Next HT upgrade - what should it be??

[KASR]

OK, so I'm alittle uncertain where to spend my next $1000 on the Home Theater, so I'm opening up to suggestions.

I have just upgraded my screen, have a decent AVR, 5.1 speakers and some great theater seating. What's the next logical step? (I can't change the room around too much, as we don't own the house yet).

 

[alexwakelin]

Off topic, but I clicked on the speaker link in your sig and noticed this on polk's website.

Anti-Defraction Baffle

Polk needs to learn to use spell check.

$1000 could get you a really nice sub.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

Acoustic panels, Acoustic panels, Acoustic panels, Acoustic panels, Acoustic panels...

 

[greggp2]

Oh oh... Greg's on a Panel kick. I knew you posted this before I even opened the thread. He's right though. Either that or put some really nice curtains on the windows to make the wife happy!!!! They seem to work pretty well too....

 

[Highbar]

I'm seconding the sub. They are always nice.

 

[Davemcc]

The upgrade list is endless. A BD player? A new set of 3 front speakers? New sub? Treatments? Media server?

Where do you feel the system is lacking? What part of the experience would you like to improve? There must be something you have in mind to allocate $1000 toward the upgrade.

 

[KASR]

some great suggestions! All of which I have considered at some point in the last 24 hours!
I don't have BD player - what's a safe way to go on that front? I have one more HDMI input left on my receiver - however, I am thinking about upgrading to a receiver that has pre-amp outs.
I have also been thinking about creating my own acoustic panels - so I might be able to do one big upgrade and a DIY panel addition.

Dave: you mention a Media server. What would I need to get that going?

 

[MidnightSensi]

some great suggestions! All of which I have considered at some point in the last 24 hours!
I don't have BD player - what's a safe way to go on that front? I have one more HDMI input left on my receiver - however, I am thinking about upgrading to a receiver that has pre-amp outs.
I have also been thinking about creating my own acoustic panels - so I might be able to do one big upgrade and a DIY panel addition.

Dave: you mention a Media server. What would I need to get that going?

If you are thinking about doing DIY acoustic panels (which I think would be a good project), you might also consider doing a DIY subwoofer. You get more bang for your buck, but the main thing is it is fun. If you went that route, you could probably build both the panels and a pair of subwoofers within a grand.... also with the DIY stuff you can build what fits your room... like a really nice subwoofer that hides behind the couch, etc.

For a Blu-Ray, I'd buy a PS3 for Blu-Ray (its still the best blu-ray player I've tried, plus it has additional functionality) and a receiver with pre-outs. The Onkyo Pro preamplifiers are so cheap right now that its difficult to pass those up, but after you bought amps you'd be over budget.

 

[jostenmeat]

OK, so I'm alittle uncertain where to spend my next $1000 on the Home Theater, so I'm opening up to suggestions.

I have just upgraded my screen, have a decent AVR, 5.1 speakers and some great theater seating. What's the next logical step? (I can't change the room around too much, as we don't own the house yet).

IMO, if this is for audio purposes only, I vote for the front 3 speakers. Or sub. OK, that's tough. If music is anywhere as important as HT for you, then the speakers. If HT all the way, perhaps the sub. Happy hunting.

 

[Davemcc]

Dave: you mention a Media server. What would I need to get that going?

There's a few ways to go with a media server. If you have any computer skills, you can build an inexpensive (~$500) server with a terabyte or more. There is a thread on here that describes the build of such a system. There is the Escient Fireball (~$650 street price), which my wife has claimed in the unlikely event of any divorce action because she loves it so much. Escient has quite a range of servers to choose from in a variety of price ranges. There are also other companies that build servers but I can't remember them. I haven't looked since I got the Escient. Digital movie and BD servers are generally in the $3500+ range but having one would be awesome. That seems like the holy grail of AV, a bug free digital movie server. If you are really good with computers, you could build a custom HTPC. Sheep is building a nice one right now.