newbie questions

[urdost]

Hello Folks,

I am a newbie and would really appreciate it if you could give out your suggestions on buying a home theater system.

I recently bought Sony 52W3000. Now, my eyes are on the home theater system (first time HTS buyer). I would like to have the TV and Home theater system in the loft (not a closed room). So, I was wondering if i have to go for home theater in a box (Onkyo SP 908) or buy receiver, speakers and subwoofer separately. I am not sure how effective its going to be as all these go in the loft area. My budget is $1000-$1200 (I dont mind shedding few dollars more, if needed) for the home theater system.

I do have LG LRY 517 DVD player. I am planning to buy a HD DVD player sometime next year.

Thanks a bunch in advance!

 

[Johnd]

Hey urdost...welcome to the forum

Firstly, most philes are unimpressed with Onkyo speakers. For that price range I would consider the 805 (sales are coming) over the 605 in the htib and speakers (onyx) from av123.

 

[urdost]

speaker

Thanks John.

Which onyx speaker model are you referring to in av123.com?

Sure, I will look for sales in 805.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

Look at building a system consisting of the x-sls Tower for the mains, x-ls Bookshelf for the surrounds, x-cs Center and then we can figure out what sub you would need. I would also look at the package systems from SVS. Either one of these will blow away any HTIB.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Now, my eyes are on the home theater system. I would like to have the TV and Home theater system in the loft (not a closed room). So, I was wondering if i have to go for home theater in a box (Onkyo SP 908) or buy receiver, speakers and subwoofer separately. I am not sure how effective its going to be as all these go in the loft area. My budget is $1000-$1200 (I dont mind shedding few dollars more, if needed) for the home theater system.

I do have LG LRY 517 DVD player. I am planning to buy a HD DVD player sometime next year.

I also vote for separate receiver + speakers all the way.
The lowest price I've seen the Onkyo 605 (HDMI-1.3 x 2/TrueHD/DTS-MA) is $386 (includes S/H), so that only gives you about $800 for speakers. I think start with a great 2-ch system & add on as you go over the next 2 years.
By the way, did you know the Toshiba A2 HD DVD player was only $98 at Wal-Mart & Best Buy last Friday?

My recommendation:

Get the Definitive Technology BP10B 42" tall full range towers (Two 6.5" Midrange/Woofers + Two 1" Tweeters & 20Hz-20kHz +/-6dB) for $800/pr.

The retail is actually $1,000/pr, but I know I can get them brand new for $800. Of course, you can also buy them used for a lot less if you want.

Then 1 year later, especially if you get a bigger home theater room, add the CLR3000 massive center speaker for ($700 street price brand new, of course).

Then another year later, add another pair of BP10Bs for your surrounds for another $800. You are looking at one sweet "high-end" speaker system you can be proud of for the rest of your life.

Then say another 3 years later, when you get your 4,000 sf dream house w/ a 800 sf HT room, add the Def Tech Trinity 2,000 watts Dual-14" subwoofer for $2,000 and totally disturb your neighbors.

 

[jcPanny]

HT System.

urdost,
I would not recommend spending more than half of your budget on a high end receiver like the Onkyo 805. If you stick to the $4-500 price range like the Onkyo 605 or Yamaha RX-V661, you will have more money for quality speakers and a sub.

The current $165/pair sale price on the Onix X-ls speakers from AV123 is hard to beat. Pick up a couple pairs, an X-cs center channel and an X-sub for a great budget system. If you have some extra funds, consider a larger 10-12" sub from SVS or HSU or pre-order one of the new models from AV123. If you would consider starting with a 3.0 or 3.1 system there are also great sale prices on the higher end Onix Rocket speakers.

Other decent budget speakers are Athena Audition series and BIC, but niether have the same build quality as the AV123 X-series.

 

[roshi]

Hey urdost...welcome to the forum

Firstly, most philes are unimpressed with Onkyo speakers. For that price range I would consider the 805 (sales are coming) over the 605 in the htib and speakers (onyx) from av123.

Do you know any details on the sales? Cause I'm looking at buying a 805 soon. Any info on deals appreciated.

 

[jcPanny]

AV123 Sales

Check out their web site, www.av123.com
http://www.av123.com/specials.php
http://www.av123forum.com/showthread.php?t=24756

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Check out their web site, www.av123.com
http://www.av123.com/specials.php
http://www.av123forum.com/showthread.php?t=24756

That Strata Mini @ $1,300 sure looks nice.
http://www.av123.com/products_product.php?section=speakers&product=78.1

 

[aberkowitz]

Do you know any details on the sales? Cause I'm looking at buying a 805 soon. Any info on deals appreciated.

Roshi, I know Amazon has the unit with free shipping for $915, crutchfield with free 3 day fedex (and some of the best service around) for $899, and I'm sure you can get it on ebay or other used sites for even less if you search.

As an owner for 5 months now I can say that it's well worth the money (I bought over the summer for $999 and free fedex from crutchfield) and has handled everything I've thrown at it.

 

[roshi]

Roshi, I know Amazon has the unit with free shipping for $915, crutchfield with free 3 day fedex (and some of the best service around) for $899, and I'm sure you can get it on ebay or other used sites for even less if you search.

As an owner for 5 months now I can say that it's well worth the money (I bought over the summer for $999 and free fedex from crutchfield) and has handled everything I've thrown at it.

Oh ok. I thought you know of a better deal than that. In that price range, I'll probably buy it at Circuit City for $899 and add a 29$ 3 year extended warranty .
I appreciate your reply though.