New speaker help

[UWbadger91]

Hi all! I recently bought a 65” Sony 900F tv and think I want to upgrade my home theatre setup. I’m currently running a Yamaha receiver with DCM cube speakers. They are ‘ok’ but I feel like I can’t really use the sub because I don’t want to disturb my neighbors and the cubes aren’t full sounding enough.

Upon going to Best Buy they’re recommending I first upgrade my front two speakers with DT 9040s and then get the CS9040. I can get them for $225 off with Black Friday. Would this be a good option or is there something with better value? Would you recommend going a different route? I am very open to options and my budget can stretch to coffee the Definitive Tech stuff, it’s a matter of it’s a damn good deal now, but I can’t find much info on them. Any help would be very much appreciated!


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[ryanosaur]

Hi Badger.

The sale on those 900f's was great. I took advantage too!

I'm in the process of updating my old HTIB to a real system right now. I listened to the DefTechs... and a lot of other stuff too.

Do you have a budget? Do you have a plan to upgrade for just stereo or HT? Also, which Yamaha are you running? If you're going for a full HT setup over time, what's the size of your room looking like? And do you plan on running atmos?

(These are all questions that most here will ask. )

Off the top of my head, you might not be able to hear them first, but you might want to check out SVS Prime series. And a good subwoofer, too. I think those Def Techs with built in sub only go 2Hz lower than the Prime Towers, which are less expensive without a built in amp. SVS also has highly regarded customer support and makes great subwoofers which will really prop up your system. Not telling to tell you what to buy, but its very much worth researching some other gear for comparisons sake!

Cheers!

 

[UWbadger91]

Hi Badger.

The sale on those 900f's was great. I took advantage too!

I'm in the process of updating my old HTIB to a real system right now. I listened to the DefTechs... and a lot of other stuff too.

Do you have a budget? Do you have a plan to upgrade for just stereo or HT? Also, which Yamaha are you running? If you're going for a full HT setup over time, what's the size of your room looking like? And do you plan on running atmos?

(These are all questions that most here will ask. )

Thanks for the response! It surely was a great deal! I’m hoping to take advantage of the good deals on AV stuff currently too.

Budget: $1,700 for the Deftech towers and center was stretching my budget a bit, but I can swallow it...so say that’s my max.

Receiver: Yamaha RX-V365

I plan to upgrade in stages as funds free up and depending on if I buy a house, etc. Best Buy said to first upgrade my fronts/center, then do receiver, sub, and lastly rears. So yes, HT over time. Seem right?

I’m pretty new to all this, but I’m techie so I’m open to doing Atmos, but am not dead set on it.




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[ryanosaur]

BB/Mag is a great resource, but you gotta be careful. DefTech has a reputation for fudging their numbers a bit. Personally, I didn't like the sound... thought the Bipole design sounded scattered compared to your standard towers. Also, that "built-in-sub" was a litle problematic. To me.

First and foremost, if you like the sound... well, its your money. We have DefTech fans here, we have SVS fans, all kinds.

How big is your room now? Just curious. Are you on a one year plan to relocate, or a 5-10yr plan?

 

[snakeeyes]

How close are the neighbors? Is this an apartment or condo?

What percentage movies vs music listening?

 

[UWbadger91]

BB/Mag is a great resource, but you gotta be careful. DefTech has a reputation for fudging their numbers a bit. Personally, I didn't like the sound... thought the Bipole design sounded scattered compared to your standard towers. Also, that "built-in-sub" was a litle problematic. To me.

First and foremost, if you like the sound... well, its your money. We have DefTech fans here, we have SVS fans, all kinds.

How big is your room now? Just curious. Are you on a one year plan to relocate, or a 5-10yr plan?

To be honest Deftech is all Magnolia showed me. I inquired about Klipsch and he said they’re not worth the money. This is why I’m here asking for advice because I couldn’t find much info on Deftech (other than hearing forums hate on them), so any input is very much appreciated! I come from a Bose household.

My living room is 14x14. I plan to be here at least 1-2 years yet. Just waiting for the housing market to drop a bit.

Given that, I need something that has great sound quality, but doesn’t need to be on super loud as I don’t want to disturb my neighbors. Currently the gain in my sub is at about 20% because of this....I may be a little too worried about it.




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[ryanosaur]

Receiver: Yamaha RX-V365

Not super experienced with Yamaha, but if you go 5 channel now, you're probably looking at 50-70W per channel, all channels driven. The def techs will run on your receiver. The Primes will too, for example.

Did you listen to the Def Tech compared with anything else?

 

[UWbadger91]

How close are the neighbors? Is this an apartment or condo?

It’s an apartment. The neighbor that’s on my living room wall side never hears my stereo/tv he said when I asked him last week. I’m not sure if the people below me do, but I’m a pretty courteous person so I don’t think it’s an issue.


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[UWbadger91]

Not super experienced with Yamaha, but if you go 5 channel now, you're probably looking at 50-70W per channel, all channels driven. The def techs will run on your receiver. The Primes will too, for example.

Did you listen to the Def Tech compared with anything else?

No I didn’t. They’re pushing Deftech hard.


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[lovinthehd]

Personally DefTec isn't ever on my radar and I generally find Magnolia sucks within the BB umbrella at least. DT play too many games with specs for me to even respect them. Your receiver is likely fine but a speaker upgrade is a good route to better sound quality (unless you need features/connectivity then a new avr also helps). Not familiar with the DCM speakers you have but DCM was generally well liked from what I've read on various fora. What particular speaker setup do you need? What does your current avr not provide that you want?

 

[ryanosaur]

No I didn’t. They’re pushing Deftech hard.

That's the first warning sign.
Read some reviews right now on SVS prime towers, just for the sake of it. Check out their site, too. Again, not trying to sway you to SVS, just don't be so eager to save money that you spend more than you need!

 

[UWbadger91]

That's the first warning sign.
Read some reviews right now on SVS prime towers, just for the sake of it. Check out their site, too. Again, not trying to sway you to SVS, just don't be so eager to save money that you spend more than you need!

My exact thought. Would this be the SVS tower you’d recommend? I see Magnolia has 2 versions in that model. Do they ever go on sale? Would I need a sub or could I do these with a center channel for awhile?

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/svs-prime-dual-6-1-2-passive-3-5-way-floor-speaker-each-premium-black-ash/5707702.p?skuId=5707702

Thoughts on Polk?

As for content...40% TV programs, 40% movies, 20% music (mostly Rap/EDM/Rock)...don’t hold that against me.




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[ryanosaur]

My exact thought. Would this be the SVS tower you’d recommend? I see Magnolia has 2 versions in that model.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/svs-prime-dual-6-1-2-passive-3-5-way-floor-speaker-each-premium-black-ash/5707702.p?skuId=5707702

As for content...40% TV programs, 40% movies, 20% music (mostly Rap/EDM/Rock)...don’t hold that against me.

No judgements here. I was auditioning $3k prs of speakers with Method Man, Gorillaz... and a bunch of other stuff too.

Yes. but go here:
https://www.svsound.com/pages/speakers#prime-series
just get away from best buy if you can. Buy direct from SVS... get 45 days in home trial, free return, etc! If my math is solid, you can buy a new sub, too, with the money you save NOT buying DefTech.

Again, take the evening and shop around!

 

[UWbadger91]

Personally DefTec isn't ever on my radar and I generally find Magnolia sucks within the BB umbrella at least. DT play too many games with specs for me to even respect them. Your receiver is likely fine but a speaker upgrade is a good route to better sound quality (unless you need features/connectivity then a new avr also helps). Not familiar with the DCM speakers you have but DCM was generally well liked from what I've read on various fora. What particular speaker setup do you need? What does your current avr not provide that you want?

I’m running just little cubes. I’m looking for more fuller sound.


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[lovinthehd]

I’m running just little cubes. I’m looking for more fuller sound.


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That doesn't answer my questions...what specific speaker setup are you considering? 2.0? 2.1? 3.1? 5.1? 5.1.2? etc etc

 

[UWbadger91]

That doesn't answer my questions...what specific speaker setup are you considering? 2.0? 2.1? 3.1? 5.1? 5.1.2? etc etc

Sorry my ignorance. 3.1 to start and branching out from there. One of my draws to the Deftech was that the speakers had subs in them so I didn’t have to buy a sub right away. I suppose I can do that regardless of what I buy though.


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[ryanosaur]

Badger, how tall is your ceiling? Less than 10'? you're probably in a <2000'3 room. If you really want great Bass response in you room, you might need to step up in weight class for subs to the SVS 2000 series subs... but you could start wit h1 PB 1000, and add another with a 'y' splitter in a couple months! easy.

 

[lovinthehd]

Sorry my ignorance. 3.1 to start and branching out from there. One of my draws to the Deftech was that the speakers had subs in them so I didn’t have to buy a sub right away. I suppose I can do that regardless of what I buy though.


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Meh, the "subs" in the DT speakers are about as weak as their separate "subs" (as you can tell I don't think much of either). 3,1 or even just 2.1 (as long as you have a plan for a suitable center down the line) can yield better value.

 

[ryanosaur]

One of my draws to the Deftech was that the speakers had subs in them so I didn’t have to buy a sub right away.

Those are very poor excuses for woofers, and they inflate the cost of the speaker because you are buying an amplifier with each speaker you buy!

 

[lovinthehd]

Those are very poor excuses for woofers, and they inflate the cost of the speaker because you are buying an amplifier with each speaker you buy!

Not to mention historically not an amp with particular longevity