Trying to build a Home Theatre using PA speakers in front.

R

RajanKG

Audiophyte
I already have a primary home theatre and am planning to set up a second home theatre (5.1) in the living room using whatever gear I already have and with bare minimum additional purchases.

I plan to use my Yamaha Stagepas 400i PA speakers as the front speakers for the second HT because I do not have space for a second set of front speakers here and at the same time I cannot do away with these PA speakers as they are used a lot for party music, karaoke sessions and playing instruments. I’ll have to somehow make do with these as the front speakers. They sound pretty good for music although they are a bit bass-heavy. These speakers will be driven by its dedicated amp-cum-mixer when used for PA and by the AVR when used for HT.

Here are some of the specs that I could find for the speaker and it’s amp to give an idea about it’s capabilities & limitations-
  1. 2-way bass reflex speakers (8” woofer and 1” compression driver).
  2. Frequency Range (-10 db)*: 55 Hz to 20 kHz.
  3. 400 watts into 4 ohms* (on paper).
  4. It’s rated at 125 watts before clipping (with 1% THD, 1 kHz @ 1W)* per channel. Nominal, it’s no more than 37 watts.
  5. The Stagepas 400i is rated at 125 db SPL*/ speaker. but in the manual there is nothing about the speakers.
  6. The addition of a powered sub woofer of at least 120 watts RMS should give it the bottom end power.
(I am not very clear about the terms underlined above and marked with asterisk. Would appreciate some clarity on these).

The rest of the components (existing & proposed):-

AVR: I’ll be using one of the following two AVRs that I already have:-
  1. Onkyo TX-NR626 (2013 Model)
  2. Denon AVR-2311 (2010 Model)
SUB: I already have an SVS PB 1000. I can either use this or buy another Sub.

CENTRE: I am considering the Polk Audio Signature S30 (not yet finalised).

SURROUND: I am considering the Polk Audio Signature S10 (not yet finalised).

I understand that I am trying to mix & match diverse gear and cannot expect the seamless integration that one can get from perfectly matched speakers. It’s a compromise I could live with. Having said that,

Are the specs of the Yamaha speakers okay?
Will this set-up be any good?
Any better suggestions and ideas would be welcome.
 
-Jim-

-Jim-

Audioholic General
Hi Rajan,

You have an unusual design requirement. At first blush the Stagepas 400i PA speakers are part of a dedicated PA System designed to be driven by it's own mixer/amplifier. So I'm assuming you aren't going to use that in your living room HT setup, as neither of the AVRs you list have any pre-outs to plug into the Stagepas' mixer/amplifier.

So that leaves you with driving the Stagepas speakers with one of the AVRs. The Denon manual says 6 to 16 Ohm loads so you could have some issues with the 4 ohm rated Stagepas speakers.

As I don't know where you live. Here's what is in the Onkyo TX-NR626 manual in this regard:

Speaker Connection Precautions • (North American and Taiwanese models) You can connect speakers with an impedance of between 6 and 16 ohms. If you use speakers with a lower impedance, and use the amplifier at high volume levels for a long period of time, the built-in amp protection circuit may be activated. • (European, Australian and Asian models) You can connect speakers with an impedance of between 4 and 16 ohms. If the impedance of any of the connected speakers is 4 ohms or more, but less than 6 ohms, be sure to set the minimum speaker impedance to “4ohms” (➔ page 55). If you use speakers with a lower impedance, and use the amplifier at high volume levels for a long period of time, the built-in protection circuit may be activated. • Unnecessarily long, or very thin speaker cables may affect the sound quality and should be avoided.

I suggest you test the Onkyo TX-NR626 with just the 2 Stagepas speakers connected as a stereo pair (Left & Right Front Speakers). For what I can tell they have a 1/4 inch phone plugs as an input so you'll have to make up some cables to suit. (Make sure to get the phasing correct.) Use a typical (but decent quality) source,, and select All Channel Stereo listening mode on the Onkyo. Very gradually turn up the volume and see if you like the sound you hear. Don't crank it up fast. The Stagepas speaker Specs really don't matter now as you already have them. And frankly I doubt if many on this Forum have ever heard them. (I haven't.) If you like the sound then you'll want to move on; if you don't like it you'll be looking for another solution.

If that works for you, then the folks here can chime in and assist on the rest of the system.

I hope this is helpful.
 
M

Mark of Cenla

Full Audioholic
I have just about the same thing, except mine is a Peavey. Your speakers will probably be fine. I have used a CD player outside with mine, and it sounds OK. I bought it to use as a PA for a band. Peace and goodwill.
 
Kingnoob

Kingnoob

Audioholic Samurai
Beringer are probably better but unless you crank up volume higher then avr can handle you should be fine .
Your pro have more lot more bass
 
R

RajanKG

Audiophyte
Hi Rajan,

You have an unusual design requirement. At first blush the Stagepas 400i PA speakers are part of a dedicated PA System designed to be driven by it's own mixer/amplifier. So I'm assuming you aren't going to use that in your living room HT setup, as neither of the AVRs you list have any pre-outs to plug into the Stagepas' mixer/amplifier.

So that leaves you with driving the Stagepas speakers with one of the AVRs. The Denon manual says 6 to 16 Ohm loads so you could have some issues with the 4 ohm rated Stagepas speakers.

As I don't know where you live. Here's what is in the Onkyo TX-NR626 manual in this regard:

Speaker Connection Precautions • (North American and Taiwanese models) You can connect speakers with an impedance of between 6 and 16 ohms. If you use speakers with a lower impedance, and use the amplifier at high volume levels for a long period of time, the built-in amp protection circuit may be activated. • (European, Australian and Asian models) You can connect speakers with an impedance of between 4 and 16 ohms. If the impedance of any of the connected speakers is 4 ohms or more, but less than 6 ohms, be sure to set the minimum speaker impedance to “4ohms” (➔ page 55). If you use speakers with a lower impedance, and use the amplifier at high volume levels for a long period of time, the built-in protection circuit may be activated. • Unnecessarily long, or very thin speaker cables may affect the sound quality and should be avoided.

I suggest you test the Onkyo TX-NR626 with just the 2 Stagepas speakers connected as a stereo pair (Left & Right Front Speakers). For what I can tell they have a 1/4 inch phone plugs as an input so you'll have to make up some cables to suit. (Make sure to get the phasing correct.) Use a typical (but decent quality) source,, and select All Channel Stereo listening mode on the Onkyo. Very gradually turn up the volume and see if you like the sound you hear. Don't crank it up fast. The Stagepas speaker Specs really don't matter now as you already have them. And frankly I doubt if many on this Forum have ever heard them. (I haven't.) If you like the sound then you'll want to move on; if you don't like it you'll be looking for another solution.

If that works for you, then the folks here can chime in and assist on the rest of the system.

I hope this is helpful.
Hi Rajan,

You have an unusual design requirement. At first blush the Stagepas 400i PA speakers are part of a dedicated PA System designed to be driven by it's own mixer/amplifier. So I'm assuming you aren't going to use that in your living room HT setup, as neither of the AVRs you list have any pre-outs to plug into the Stagepas' mixer/amplifier.

So that leaves you with driving the Stagepas speakers with one of the AVRs. The Denon manual says 6 to 16 Ohm loads so you could have some issues with the 4 ohm rated Stagepas speakers.

As I don't know where you live. Here's what is in the Onkyo TX-NR626 manual in this regard:

Speaker Connection Precautions • (North American and Taiwanese models) You can connect speakers with an impedance of between 6 and 16 ohms. If you use speakers with a lower impedance, and use the amplifier at high volume levels for a long period of time, the built-in amp protection circuit may be activated. • (European, Australian and Asian models) You can connect speakers with an impedance of between 4 and 16 ohms. If the impedance of any of the connected speakers is 4 ohms or more, but less than 6 ohms, be sure to set the minimum speaker impedance to “4ohms” (➔ page 55). If you use speakers with a lower impedance, and use the amplifier at high volume levels for a long period of time, the built-in protection circuit may be activated. • Unnecessarily long, or very thin speaker cables may affect the sound quality and should be avoided.

I suggest you test the Onkyo TX-NR626 with just the 2 Stagepas speakers connected as a stereo pair (Left & Right Front Speakers). For what I can tell they have a 1/4 inch phone plugs as an input so you'll have to make up some cables to suit. (Make sure to get the phasing correct.) Use a typical (but decent quality) source,, and select All Channel Stereo listening mode on the Onkyo. Very gradually turn up the volume and see if you like the sound you hear. Don't crank it up fast. The Stagepas speaker Specs really don't matter now as you already have them. And frankly I doubt if many on this Forum have ever heard them. (I haven't.) If you like the sound then you'll want to move on; if you don't like it you'll be looking for another solution.

If that works for you, then the folks here can chime in and assist on the rest of the system.

I hope this is helpful.

Thanks a lot Jim!! This is of great help indeed! I live in India but had purchased the Onkyo in Dubai. I’ll go through the manual once again and also do as advised by you over this weekend and revert with the results.
 
R

RajanKG

Audiophyte
T
I have just about the same thing, except mine is a Peavey. Your speakers will probably be fine. I have used a CD player outside with mine, and it sounds OK. I bought it to use as a PA for a band. Peace and goodwill.
Thanks a lot Mark! Let me set it up and see how it goes!
 
R

RajanKG

Audiophyte
Beringer are probably better but unless you crank up volume higher then avr can handle you should be fine .
Your pro have more lot more bass
Thanks a lot! Yes, the music of the Yamaha is definitely more bass-heavy. Your post is reassuring in that I’not the only one trying this. The successful efforts of people like you gives me the confidence that this will work!
 
Kingnoob

Kingnoob

Audioholic Samurai
Thanks a lot! Yes, the music of the Yamaha is definitely more bass-heavy. Your post is reassuring in that I’not the only one trying this. The successful efforts of people like you gives me the confidence that this will work!
I’m sure if more people knew this worked they could save thousands on gear ⚙ haha ... if pro stuff sounds as good or better then hifi
 
Kingnoob

Kingnoob

Audioholic Samurai
Yeah I posted on that one trying to get it more notice , oddly my email became username on that site .. not on purpose either

some hifi brands use horns and compression drivers also, just not a lot. Plus a 15” woofer is a lot bigger then anything hifi , wish I could get them but I’m using Klipch towers in a smaller room . I’d have a hard time explaining to my parents why pro is better .... probably fail and get in trouble

my-subs are the weak link in that system, I’m probably not aloud to bring my 15” down there and it’s too big for the room.
 

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