Which in walls

[elimin8orx]

Hello everyone,
Nu-b here. I am building a new 7.1 HT room in my Basement 12x19x7'6". I think I have already decided on a projector Epson Home 1080 UB and a severtson legacy grey106" screen, a receiver Onkyo TX-SR705, and a sub av123 mwf-15 (the sub cost about $200 more than I wanted to spend but I hear this thing is god like for the price). This sub probably isn't gonna pass the WAF test either but I'll play dumb when it arrives (The box is how big? You said you can't move it?) Here is my debate which ones to get. I am going to do in wall speaker and have about $1300 to spend on them. I know in walls aren't the best choice but I figure I will have to build enclosures for them. In wall or on wall is all I would prefer to use. The have a much cleaner look. Here are my choices.
Jamo
JA-626K4 for LCR
SU631K4 for side surround
SU6.521K4 in ceiling for the back.
Of all of the speakers I am listing here these are the only ones I have actually heard. Price 1348.30 inc shipping. www . jamo . com/Default.aspx?ID=5932
or
RBH
MC-616 for LCR
MC-6DB for side surround
MC-615 inceiling for the back
Here is a link to the RBH site and info. Price 1291.05 shipped
www . rbhsound . com

Sorry about the links this is my first post and it won't let me add URL's

Are these good choices? If not what would you recommend? I wouldn't mind doing an on wall but they seem to be alot more expensive.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

RBH out of those two but you should seriously consider SpeakerCrafts.

 

[elimin8orx]

I though about Speakercraft but had no idea which model. They had to many choices which caused confusion. Here is what I was considering from them and the confusion.
AIM Cinema One LR not sure what to use for center with these.
AIM Cinema Dipole One LR Surround
AIM 5 One In Ceiling for rear
They would be 1061 + what ever a center would be

 

[Warpdrv]

You will get better results from an In-wall that has a closed back construction, the only problem with that is then In-walls start to get very pricey...

YMMV

I abandoned the inwall due to the costs... Far more sound quality for your money with non in-wall products... I know this doesn't help you... sorry..

Or think heavily into how you can treat your walls inside to prevent sound leakage... It can be done...

 

[AVRat]

I'd go with the RBHs.

 

[elimin8orx]

Since I am building the walls could I not add something similar to dynamat and give every speaker a consistent area inside of the wall? When I say this I mean basically creating a sealed enclosure in the wall using caulking and 2x4s. Lining the back and sides of the enclosure with dynamat. For example an RBH MC-616C enclosed speaker measures 7 3/4" x 19 1/2" x 8 3/4" take away roughly 1/2" on all measurements because of MDF. and you get 7.25x19x8.25 and you get roughly 1136.5 sq in. For the enclosure for the MC-616 inwall you would have to do the math a little different to come up with a number close. 3.5 (depth of 2x4) x 15 (gap between studs) x 22 and you would have 1155 sq in. Pretty close to the same size as the factory enclosure. Since I really don't know anything about speaker design I may be way off with this though who knows. Hopefully you guys can tell me.
Speakercraft sells enclosures for there speakers at $100 a peice, but they don't have any for there newer cinema line. I also call Speakercraft and they told me the AIM LCR 1 for the center on what I had mentioned earlier.
If you know of an in-wall or on-wall that is better for what i am looking to spend please let me know.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

Back boxes are more difficult than they seem. The wrong design and size can be way worse than using nothing. You need to talk to the manufacturers and see what they say and also scroll down to the DIY section here and get those guys to help you.

 

[elimin8orx]

One other option is to say screw it and go for the SVS SBS-01 or HSU HB-1 package setup and get wall mounting brackets. Although this doesn't give me a dipole. I would still get the AV123 sub though. I really would prefer to have in-walls though.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

That is always a good choice but why the AV123 vs. the SVS sub?

 

[elimin8orx]

I just talked to someone at RBH he recommended placing a 2x4 1' above and 1' below where the speaker is mounted. He also said don't worry about sealing the enclosure with claulking but did recommend using dynamat or something similar. I haven't heard any of the subs from SVS, HSU or AV123 and I have no idea where I can go to hear one. I choose AV123 based on the craigsub ranking. I have time to wait for it to arrive.

 

[AVRat]

You are on the right track. The SCs or RBHs are good choices as is the wall enclosure concept. The MFW-15 is also a good choice.

 

[elimin8orx]

Would I be better off going with the EMP EW30 on walls all the way around (7 speakers) for roughly the same price? Or would something different for the surrounds be recommended?

 

[Sybaris]

I'm thinking of going down the same road with in-walls though I have just begun my research on who's doing what how.

I keep seeing an issue with the back enclosures and sound quality with in-wall speakers. My question is if you are modifying an exisitng wall, as in my case, why wouldn't you buy cabinet speakers for LCR, fabricate mounting platforms for them behind the wall, (I would be able to do this as I'm using the wall of a pre-existing walk-in closet), take the screen off the front of the speakers and cutout/mount a screen on the wall in front of the speakers?

Just one of the options I'm looking at. Any advice much appreciated.

 

[elimin8orx]

I think the biggest problem that causes so much confusion on inwalls is when they are reviewed they are rating some well that don't have enclosures. Are the ratings comparative to other inwalls or everything out there? So when everyone is saying inwalls suck sound quality sucks why are the reviews good?

 

[tomd51]

You may want to take a look at Gene's article on In-Wall Speaker Selection & Installation Basics... -TD

 

[flossmore]

I second Greg's opinion on Speaker Craft. Working in the audio indusrty for years and custom (in wall or ceiling) installation being one of the most profitable and most difficult I grew to understand and appreciate it. Speaker Craft was always my first choice. Their modo designed by custom installers for home theatre enthusiasts was very true. For my taste there speakers always gave a clean even sound. Plus installers loved them for there quality brackets and easy installation. Now there are good competitors like klipsch and Polk for instance but both had completely different sounds where as speaker craft was right in the middle. Without sounding like a salesman if I had to go with an in wall speaker, Speaker Craft would be my first option. Plus being one of the audio industries best kept secrets you can find some steals online. Just my two cents. Hoooraaayyyyyy for my second post.