System review please

[Firefighter520]

The space where this system will be going is a bonus room currently being built in my attic. Room is 16'x28' with 8' ceilings. We will only be using half of the room for this setup. My budget is around $1500, but anything under that would be a bonus!

Receiver: Yamaha RX-V373 or RX-V473

Center: Polk TSi CS10

Front L/R: Polk TSi300 floor standing x2

Sub: Polk PSW125

Rear surrounds L/R: Polk RC65i In-wall x2 “having to go with In-walls (request by my wife) “


I am looking for feedback on my choices and any recommendations for maybe a different setup, etc. Thanks in advance for your time!

 

[hizzaah]

Is the theater space going to be open to the entire room (since you sad only half was to be for the theater)?

 

[Grador]

Have you listened to these speakers and like them, or are you going for them based on price?

 

[shadyJ]

I haven't heard the Tsis but I have heard the Polk Monitors which supposedly use the same tweeter and did not like their highs. I'm not as picky about sound as many around here, so if I don't like something, that should give you pause. I would skip the Polks. I would go with some Infinity Primus setup or the popular Budget Pioneer speakers discussed in this thread. The Polk sub you mentioned is particularly sad.

Here is a system for about $1500 which I think will be much better:
Infinity Primus p163 pair = $172
Infinity Primus c351 = $200
Infinity CS60 In-wall pair = $189
Hsu Research VTF2 mk4 = $596
Pioneer VSX-1122-k = $359

total + shipping = $1516

It's only a tad over budget and will smash that Polk setup. The Hsu VTF2 subwoofer is an especially big performance jump over any Polk sub.

 

[Firefighter520]

Is the theater space going to be open to the entire room (since you sad only half was to be for the theater)?

Yes it will be open to the entire room. The other half of the room will have a pool table and bar.

 

[Firefighter520]

Have you listened to these speakers and like them, or are you going for them based on price?

I have listened to the TSi 300 speakers and like them a lot, everything else I am going off of price.

 

[zieglj01]

I have listened to the TSi 300 speakers and like them a lot, everything else I am going off of price.

I would still look at the HSU sub, that shadyJ recommended.

 

[hizzaah]

- Pioneer Andrew Jones FS52 Fronts ($200/pr at Tiger Direct. Your Local Best Buy will price match to that so you can pick up locally)
- Pioneer Andrew Jones SP-C22 Center ($70/e at TD. Price match @ BB)
- The Polk in-wall speakers you listed for surrounds would be fine. You said rear surrounds, so are you planning to get 2 pairs and run 7.1 or just 1 pair of surrounds in 5.1? ($110/pr)
- I would second the HSU VTF2 MK4 mentioned above. That is a ton of space for the sub to pressurize and the Polk you offered wouldn't cut it. ($596 shipped)
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=$976 for the speakers

- Refurbished Denon 1912 or 1913 receiver from Accessories4Less ($365 shipped or $370 w/ free shipping). They both offer nice networking features and both come with full Denon warranty for 1 year. Might be able to find new ones for similar prices online, just make sure they're Authorized Denon resellers if you want to have a warranty.
=$1346

That leaves you with ~$150. This can buy your speakers wire, wall plates, banana plugs, etc. You could also use it to buy a Blu Ray player if you need one. Will also cover any tax you incur at Best Buy/ Amazon..
---------------------------------------------------------

If you want to start out with a good 2.1 system, you could go with
- HSU VTF2 MK4 sub we already mentioned ($596)
- Pair of Focal 814V Floorstanding speakers (~$850 shipped)
- Refurb Denon 1612 5.1 receiver ($200)

Would put you over budget by ~$150, but you would have an incredible 2.1 setup. Weakest point would be the reciever so if you found wiggle room in this setup, put it into the receiver.

If the 2.1 intrigues you, but the budget is firm, you could drop down a step in the HSU sub department to the VTF1 MK2 for $500 shipped. Or try the Cadence CSX15 sub for $380+ship. The cadence is a lot of sub for the price.

 

[Firefighter520]

So I've been reading about the Pioneer Andrew Jones designed speakers and really like them. I am sold on the HSU VTF2 MK4 sub. How are Pioneer In-wall speakers? I am staying true to Yamaha or Pioneer in regards to my receiver due to past experience, I just can't decide between the two brands??

So here is what I'm thinking at this point for a 5.1 system:

-Pioneer Andrew Jones FS52 Fronts
-Pioneer Andrew Jones SP-C22 Center
-HSU VTF2 MK4 sub
-In-walls (undecided)
-Reciever (undecided)

 

[shadyJ]

Hizzah has a good idea, a great 2.1 is better than a good 5.1. I would rather have the 2.1 Focal/Hsu setup than the 5.1 Infinity/Hsu setup. However, I would not pair the Focals with a subpar sub, so I wouldn't even get a sub to go with those until I could get a decent $600 plus sub from Hsu, Rythmik, or Power Sound Audio. The VTF2 is as low end as I would go with the Focals.

 

[Firefighter520]

If I went 7.1 how would having my surrounds In-wall mounted with my rear surrounds ceiling mounted sound?

 

[shadyJ]

It isn't ideal, but I don't think it would sound that bad. The surround channels aren't that important, so it's ok if the surround soundstage isn't perfect. It's mostly just ambient noise anyway. I think I would rather have in-wall side surrounds and in-ceiling rear surrounds though.

 

[zieglj01]

-In-walls (undecided)
-Reciever (undecided)

Also, take a look at HTD in-wall speakers
HD-W65 In-Wall Speakers

 

[Firefighter520]

A little over budget but you guys have brought up some great ideas. After a lot of research last night this is what I'm thinking now.

Receiver: Pioneer VSX-1122-K $359.00

Fronts - Pioneer SP-FS52 Andrew Jones $99.99 each x2

Center - Pioneer SP-C22 $69.99 (still on the fence about this one)

Sub- VTF-2Mk4 $529.00

Surrounds- HD-W65 In-Wall $129.99 pair

Rear Surrounds - HD R65 Aim In-Ceiling $159.99 pair

Puts me at $1445.97 which I can live with. Any advice on my center speaker choice?

 

[zieglj01]

Center - Pioneer SP-C22 $69.99 (still on the fence about this one)
Any advice on my center speaker choice?

That center was made to go with the system (timbre match), and is not a wimp.
The other options for center would be, to use the Pioneer bookshelf or even use
another tower for the center channel.

 

[shadyJ]

I have to question the dynamic range of a center with two 4" for bass drivers. I don't doubt they sound good, but how loud can they get and stay clean? 4" is a appropriate size for a mid range driver, not bass. On the other hand, I am sure it's fine for most people.

 

[Firefighter520]

So this is what I am purchasing after a lot of research and time on the phone with the HTD guys.

Yamaha RX-V673 7.2 channel
HTD level 2 fronts with towers and HTD in-wall for surrounds and in-ceiling for rear surrounds
Sub: HSU VTF-2Mk4

 

[shadyJ]

So this is what I am purchasing after a lot of research and time on the phone with the HTD guys.

Yamaha RX-V673 7.2 channel
HTD level 2 fronts with towers and HTD in-wall for surrounds and in-ceiling for rear surrounds
Sub: HSU VTF-2Mk4

I think that will be a good system, however I would go with the Level Three bookshelf speakers over the Level Two tower speakers. The reason is tower are made to have a full range of bass extension, but you won't be taking advantage of that since you will likely crossover the bass frequency range that towers have over bookshelf speakers anyway. In other words, you tower speakers won't be doing anything that bookshelf speakers can't do since you are getting a good subwoofer. Another reason is the tweeter on the Level three speakers look a lot more interesting than the conventional silk dome tweeter on the Level Two speakers. I think there is a chance that the treble on the Level Threes could be a great deal better. Since the cost is about the same, I recommend you make the switch to Level Three Bookshelf speakers and Level Three center.

 

[zieglj01]

So this is what I am purchasing after a lot of research and time on the phone with the HTD guys.

Yamaha RX-V673 7.2 channel
HTD level 2 fronts with towers and HTD in-wall for surrounds and in-ceiling for rear surrounds
Sub: HSU VTF-2Mk4

It will sound good.

 

[Firefighter520]

Great point Shady I hadn't thought about it like that, I will make the change for sure. Thank you guys for the help! I truly believe I'm getting a great system for the money I have to spend. I've come a long way from my all "polk" system, thanks for opening my eyes!