What kind of surround sound do I need?

[George Lentini]

I'm looking to get a surround sound system for a medium-sized room. My dad used to have an old Sony surround sound system with an STR-de995 receiver and it never sounded very good. I'm hoping to spend as little as possible for a decent quality system. The most I could spend is in the $500-$600 area, but if I could get away with spending less, I would prefer it.

I'm particularly interested in something with solid bass and clear sound. I'm guessing a 5:1 system would be the best option. I also still have the STR-de995 receiver. Should I use this receiver or get a new one and spend less on speakers? If so, what receiver would you recommend? I'm not looking for a system that I will upgrade in the future. I want something that will be good to go now.

Are there any sound system or sound system and receiver suggestions? I'm looking at the Pioneer SP-PK52FS to go along with my current receiver. Will it have enough bass? Is there a better or cheaper option? Is there anything else I need to make the system sound as good as possible? Space isn't really an issue.

 

[markw]

First, receivers don't make bass. That's the job of the subwoofer.

Second, the overall sound of the system comes from the speakers. Crappy speakers can make an excellent receiver sound bad.

Saying that, with that budget I'd keep that receiver and concentrate on five speakers and a subwoofer. It's a 7 channel receiver so it can't be all that old. It may or may not have HDMI switching but that can be worked around.

I'll leave the actual speaker selection up to others but you'll want to drop a significant amount on a subwoofer. This place makes pretty good budget speakers, particularly when they are on sale. They only get more expensive (quickly for significant improvement) from here.

http://www.parts-express.com/cat/powered-subwoofers/95

 

[PENG]

I'm looking at the Pioneer SP-PK52FS to go along with my current receiver. Will it have enough bass? Is there a better or cheaper option? Is there anything else I need to make the system sound as good as possible? Space isn't really an issue.

With a $600 budget, the Pioneer set is definitely a viable options.

http://www.amazon.com/Pioneer-SP-PK52FS-5-0-Theater-Speaker/dp/B00IRH0QMA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1451522113&sr=8-2&keywords=pioneer+sp-pk52fs

The linked system will leave you $170 for the best subwoofer you can get for that amount.

Also, as Mark said, keep your receiver and following his link for your subwoofer hunt.

 

[mtrycrafts]

.... My dad used to have an old Sony surround sound system with an STR-de995 receiver and it never sounded very good. I'm hoping to spend as little as possible for a decent quality system. The most I could spend is in the $500-$600 area, but if I could get away with spending less, I would prefer it.

....

That is counter intuitive, don't you think? Getting a better system for this budget, no?

Perhaps your dad's system was never set up properly ion the first place?

 

[George Lentini]

That is counter intuitive, don't you think? Getting a better system for this budget, no?

Perhaps your dad's system was never set up properly ion the first place?

I should explain: Somewhere along the line, my dad got rid of the old system excluding the receiver.

From what I see here, it seems like the best option is the Pioneer. The remaining question is whether to get the 5:1 version or the 5:0 and get a different sub woofer. The listed sub woofer (Pioneer SW-8MK2)
can hit 38hz. Some research suggested that something that could reach lower will make a significant difference. Is that correct? Is there something better for $170 or less?

 

[KenM10759]

I would JUMP at that Pioneer 5.0 system and once you install it and start listening to it you'll know that you want an increased budget for a sub because...those speakers really deserve it. And so do you.

 

[markw]

I agree. That Pioneer 5.0 system is about the best you will find.

But, I'd go for a different one than they include in the 5.1 system. You can easily do better. Look at that link I posted earlier for one direction. That 12" sub, on sale for $119 looks like a good bet.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I should explain: Somewhere along the line, my dad got rid of the old system excluding the receiver.

From what I see here, it seems like the best option is the Pioneer. The remaining question is whether to get the 5:1 version or the 5:0 and get a different sub woofer. The listed sub woofer (Pioneer SW-8MK2)
can hit 38hz. Some research suggested that something that could reach lower will make a significant difference. Is that correct? Is there something better for $170 or less?

Need to be careful with subs. Just because one hits a certain frequency like the one at 38 Hz, the level may be low.
So, you need to decide how important a sub is for you and what performance you want out of it.

 

[rojo]

Even if you use your existing receiver, that's a fairly lean budget to work with. Consider starting with fewer speakers then adding more later. After all, 2 great speakers will sound better than 5 OK speakers, right? The Pioneers have an overall positive reputation for price / performance, but I think you can do better.

3x Affordable Accuracy monitors would leave about $250 for a sub. Of course that's assuming Dennis will agree to break up a pair to sell you the third to use as a center channel. If not, or if you need front-ported so you can wall mount your LCR, three of the Wave Crest HVL-1 bookshelfs would be a respectable alternative. With either, your budget would handle a Dayton 15" sub. Boom. Authoritative bass, the clearest sound possible within your budget, shipped for around $550. Later, when budget allows, grab a pair of Fluance AVBP2 or XLBP bipolar surrounds.

Consider this: when Andrew Jones left Pioneer, he arrived at ELAC where he was able to design the entry-level speaker he had wanted to design while at Pioneer. In a sense, the ELAC B5 and B6 are successors to the Pioneer SP-BS22. With that in mind, read Kurt's impressions of the ELAC B5 vs. the Affordable Accuracy.

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