search for decent sound at a budget

[kazza2ud]

I was thinking:

Klipsch Quintet II ($250)
sub: Yamaha YST-SW315 ($200)
Yamaha RX-V661 ($300)

As a sub question (not subwoofer, additional) does anyone know the difference between the Yam V661 and the V463, because they're selling at the same price now.

I dunno I might just wait and see what used stuff pops up, like this:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Definitive-Technology-ProCinema-600-Speaker-System_W0QQitemZ330250103700QQihZ014QQcategoryZ1499QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem#ebayphotohosting

 

[kazza2ud]

I know there are a lot of topics like this already, just post if you feel like it, I'm reading through the old ones. I'm actually reconsidering my above plan and maybe just buying a pair of Ascend CBM-170s and maybe adding on later. I never liked the idea of tiny little speakers, I never felt they meshed well with lower frequencies, so I may do this instead.

How do you guys feel about starting with a FR and FL, do I need a center? If I were to get 2 CBM-170s what would I use for a center... another CBM-170? Is there any advantage to getting a speaker made specifically for the center channel, other than it maybe fitting better around the tv?

 

[mike c]

starting with decent L and R speakers is better than starting with 5 or 3 crappy speakers IMO.

 

[kazza2ud]

or maybe Behringer B2030s or athenas or... my oh my there are so many choices it's quite a pain

 

[kazza2ud]

I'm thinking a pair of CBM-170s and maybe a 340 for the center. I live in an apartment so I could probably just do away with a sub, this setup would cover a decent amount of bass, yea?

 

[mazersteven]

3-CBM-170's across the front would be perfect.

 

[kazza2ud]

oh yea? is there a specific CBM-170 center piece? I heard people praising the 340 so I was beginning to lean that way.

 

[kazza2ud]

yea i think i may go with 3 170s. Maybe ill just turn the center one on its side or something.

How would 3 170s and 2 old standard sony stereo bookshelf speakers (remnants of an old stereo) compare to that Quintet II i was looking at originally. I know I'll lose out on low end with no sub but I would feel bad cranking a sub anyway, living in an apartment.

 

[ChunkyDark]

I feel the best going deal for the <250$ range sub is the x-sub:
http://av123.com/component/page,shop.product_details/flypage,shop.flypage/product_id,41/category_id,9/manufacturer_id,0/option,com_virtuemart/Itemid,37/vmcchk,1/Itemid,37/

The scamp10 is very promising bang for buck, but personally I'm not sure if I can hold out much longer

As you mentioned there are a good number of low budget suggestions on the site, so low budget doesn't have to mean bad sound!

Frys online often has some really good deals, so be sure to shop around and check out the deal websites. The important thing is try not to paint yourself in a corner upgrade wise, and have fun!

 

[Soundman]

I'm thinking a pair of CBM-170s and maybe a 340 for the center. I live in an apartment so I could probably just do away with a sub, this setup would cover a decent amount of bass, yea?

"decent bass" is so relative. Only you can answer that question. I will say that once I added a sub, my movie viewing experience increased dramatically. It's not that you need loud base, especially if you're in an apartment. It's just that most speakers can't reach those frequencies so you are missing out on a good portion of the soundtrack, even if being played back at a low listening lvl. If you don't plan on listening at high volumes then output may not be as important to you. But personally, even a modest sub will help smooth out the response so your main speakers aren't forced to play frequencies they weren't designed to reproduce. For music it's not as important, but then again, it depends on what type of music you enjoy. Just my 2 or 3 cents...ok, maybe it's a dimes worth.