Onkyo tx-sr608 Audyssey auto-tune telling me something about my speakers?

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Audiophyte
Im very new to home theater and speakers/stereos in general.

I use the system on "all stereo" playing music 3/4 of the time with the other 1/4 being movies.

Room: 16x25 12' vaulted ceiling, sitting aprox 15' from the wall.

Onkyo tx-sr608
center: Polk cs20
front: Bose 10.2 series 2 towers mint condition
rear: Bose 301 series 2 mint bookshelves
subs: Polk 505s x2

Ok i used the audyssey mic to tune the speakers. Sat it ear level, center of couch for 1st test, seat to the right for second test, and 3ft forward/4ft to left of the 1st test seat.

Audyssey set them to this:

center : distance: 12ft -2db
Front R: distance: 14ft +4db
Front L: distance: 14ft +3db
Rear R: distance: 10ft +3db
Rear L: distance: 6ft -2db
Subs: distance: 12ft -15db

It set the crossover to 40hz on all of the speakers besides the subs. Subs are throught the lfe and power knob is on 9/20.

Post tune the clarity is great and i seem to hear "more" with the base being way down. I would called it balanced.

When i change the crossovers to say 80hz, the base is improved but is overpowering and i miss out on mids/highs.

Ive been looking around at replacing the front towers as i think they are the weak link but im just not sure. Been looking at the HTD series 3 towers/center...
 
AVRat

AVRat

Audioholic Ninja
For starters, crank the gain on the subs down to about 4 then rerun Audyssey. The numbers really don't look that bad, but definitely show the sensitivity difference between the Bose/Polk. You'll definitely have a better front soundstage with matching fronts. I wouldn't think the Bose/Polk a very good match.
 
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Audiophyte
Thanks very much for the feedback. I turned the subs to 6/20 power and re-ran audyssey. The only thing it changed is the subs from -15 to -12.

Im wondering why it set all the speakers to 40hz crossover when the center cs20 specs say 50hz which im guessing benched is closer to 70hz.

The front speakers seem to benefit from the 40hz and bass loss is noticeable even changing it to 50hz.

Opinions on $500 each front/center speakers? The Home Theater Direct Level 3 has been highly recommended but it seems there is so much out there and ive just started reading on these enthusiast forums...

Suggestions? I feel like the volume the front stage puts out is not enough...
 
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Audiophyte
Im simply looking for front/center speakers that are better than mine in every way. When the highs sound good there is no bass and vice versa. The audyssey seems to turn the sub nearly off and that results in not nearly enough bass. Mostly for 5.2 music on all stereo.

Before joining here the other day i did not realize how many different brands of speakers are out there.

Price range 1000-1500 for the 3 speakers.

I was sold on that avs123, then HTD level 3, then the infinity 363(appear weak imho with only 2 6's)...just dont know what to do and want to make a good choice spending that kind of bread...
 
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slerch666

Audioholic Intern
I ended up with the B&W 683s for my fronts. They are some of the best speakers I've heard at this price range. Problem is, those are just the l/r speakers and would put you at $1500 on just those... which means you'd need to budget for the center with something else.

The "step down" from the 683 is the 684. I listened to the 684s and the HTM62 together and it sounded pretty good. Those 3 will set you back about $1520 or so.

Of course, I don't know how they would match with your sub and your rears as I'm pretty new to this hobby as well...
 
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Audiophyte
I ended up with the B&W 683s for my fronts. They are some of the best speakers I've heard at this price range. Problem is, those are just the l/r speakers and would put you at $1500 on just those... which means you'd need to budget for the center with something else.

The "step down" from the 683 is the 684. I listened to the 684s and the HTM62 together and it sounded pretty good. Those 3 will set you back about $1520 or so.

Of course, I don't know how they would match with your sub and your rears as I'm pretty new to this hobby as well...
Those 683/htm61 look sweet. Where do you purchase those without paying retail? What other speakers did you look at and what made you go with those?

thanks so much for the feedback.
 
AVRat

AVRat

Audioholic Ninja
Actually, with your room size, the 608 (not much power), and dual subs, something like the Infinity 363s is exactly what you need. Its nominal 8 ohm impedance and 93 dB sensitivity make it a very easy speaker to drive.

Still not sure why Audyssey wants to set the Polk subs so low, but it’s no big deal to adjust the level to your liking.
 
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Audiophyte
Actually, with your room size, the 608 (not much power), and dual subs, something like the Infinity 363s is exactly what you need. Its nominal 8 ohm impedance and 93 dB sensitivity make it a very easy speaker to drive.

Still not sure why Audyssey wants to set the Polk subs so low, but it’s no big deal to adjust the level to your liking.
I moved subs 1 foot each farther from their corners and now audyssey has them set to -8db. Actually its more "resonating bass" than i like. Im feeling a bit lost at this point.

Will those 363's sound alot better than the 10.2? Please link me to the best deal on them. I plan to do some upgrade very soon like whenever i makeup my mind. I know one thing i dont want to do 7 channels or bi-amping...Just needing feedback to make the best decision.

363's can be had for $490 shipped pair. Any other suggestions? I'll probably put the 301's in the garage and use the 10.2's as rears...
 
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