Home Theater guys

A

ayz

Veteran XX
So I decided to forgo the plasma and use my old 27" wega for now, cause if i dont end up watching much TV thats a waste of money. Instead, i've decided to build myself a serious home theater instead of some shitty HTIB. I was going to get it piece by piece;

so far i'm set on purchasing then Athena F2.2's for the front 2 speakers, mainly for listening to music. after a few months i think I will get the b1.2's for surround speakers and maybe the c1.2 for a center channel.

because of hte low range of the F2.2, i don't think i'm going to need a sub for this system. thoughts?

also, i'm trying to decide between the Pioneer VSX-1015TX receiver and the Onkyo 504. The pioneer is obviously better, but pricey ($450 pricey). the Onkyo is more in my price range; however i know absolute dick about this, so I was wondering if I could get some advice on receivers (preferably in 200-300 range) so I don't end up with some shitty receiver that shortchanges my F2.2's.
 
ayz said:
So I decided to forgo the plasma and use my old 27" wega for now, cause if i dont end up watching much TV thats a waste of money. Instead, i've decided to build myself a serious home theater instead of some shitty HTIB. I was going to get it piece by piece;

so far i'm set on purchasing then Athena F2.2's for the front 2 speakers, mainly for listening to music. after a few months i think I will get the b1.2's for surround speakers and maybe the c1.2 for a center channel.

because of hte low range of the F2.2, i don't think i'm going to need a sub for this system. thoughts?

also, i'm trying to decide between the Pioneer VSX-1015TX receiver and the Onkyo 504. The pioneer is obviously better, but pricey ($450 pricey). the Onkyo is more in my price range; however i know absolute dick about this, so I was wondering if I could get some advice on receivers (preferably in 200-300 range) so I don't end up with some shitty receiver that shortchanges my F2.2's.
Click to expand...

Not to rain on your parade here...but $450 is not exactly pricey for a good receiver...in fact, id say you cant get a GOOD one for less than $1k.

Next up...Pioneer and the words "Good" and "Receiver" never belong together.

Heres one thing to keep in mind about reciever and home theaters:
You need to be looking at 3 factors more than anything.
Sound qualtiy (analong and digital)
Video conversion, up sampling. (converting from one video signal to another)
Connections (estimate how many HDMI, super video, DVI, component, etc youll need, as well as what output your going to pump to your TV. HDMI is best, though DVI is the same, jsut without sound).


I cant help you in the 200-300 dollar range, but as far as good recievers go, Onkyo is one of the best overall inexpensive makes. That doesnt mean that all thier low priced systems are good though.

From one sites recomendations:
Low and mid-priced ($300 to $700 MSRP): Denon, Outlaw Audio, Yamaha, Onkyo, Harman Kardon, NAD
High-priced ($700 and up MSRP): Rotel, NAD, Denon, Sony, Yamaha

Personally, i dont trust Yamaha or Sony receivers. Too much hit or miss for my tastes. All the rest are usually fine.

All in all, i like Denon the best.
 
^-- what he said ...

Plus, as far as speakers go, get the subwoofer and use the frequency crossover of the receiver (not the one built into the sub if there) and do it that way.

While many mid range speakers boast a good low frequency response, more often than not this is bullshit. Most midranges are flat out going below 80hz comfortably, and thats only quality speakers as well mind you. Set your crossover betweek 60-80hz if possible and throw in a sub for the frequencies below the crossover, this will help give your home theater that "stomach rumble" feeling of theaters (though not as powerful).

Onkyo make some awesome receivers and are always my first choice (I own an older TX-SR600 - going on 6 years old now and still kicking hard)

If money was no object, Linn would be my choice for a complete HT setup, but then again a basic fitout for a 6.1 receiver/speakers configuration would exceed $50,000 to get into audiophile territory.
 
considering the Athena P4000 sub, but that's an extra initial $150 i could put into a good receiver instead =/

narrowed down to these two receivers:

Pioneer VSX816S

http://www.onecall.com/ProductDetails.aspx?sHist=12-125,4-2008$10635&Sort=lowPrice&id=30946

Onkyo TXSR573S

http://www.onecall.com/ProductDetails.aspx?sHist=12-125,4-2008$10635&Sort=lowPrice&id=29566

i think i may switch out the speakers however. This will be for my apartment living room, and so far everything i've read says that the F2.2's are for larger rooms, and the B1.2's should be fine for a living room. Also there's the price consideration; for the price of a pair of F2.2 I can get 4 AS-B1.2's, an AS-C1.2, and an AS-P4000 sub
 
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All I know is that all of my surround sound speakers will be installed into the walls, my 37" widescreen LCD will be hung from a ceiling mount (but it's an 'L' mount so it will be facing forward--not downward), and my receiver/DVD/VHS players will be sitting on a built-in rack. I'll be having all of this stuff done in August.

That's all.
 
I have my own house...

but the den where I'll be putting all of my HT sh*t is pretty small.

Hence the in-th-wall/mounted-from-the-ceiling approach.
 
i'm not building a "home theater" persay. I have a fucking 27" wega right now for crying out loud. But I do like my sound.

I guess "home audio system" would be more appropriate.

i think i'm going to be going with the F2.2's. Having surround and center channel speakers isn't nearly as important to me as having 2 really good front channels for music.
 
First of all, anyone who says "Pioneer" and "bad receiver" should be immediately ignored...the Pioneer elite receivers are some of the most highly rated receivers, and the 1014/15/16 are a rebadged elite level receiver. There are only two real options under 500 for a HT receiver, the 1015(the 16 will be out soon), or the Panasonic digital receiver which is around 300. Don't listen to anyone who wants to slam Panny either, their digital receivers are amazing.

I used to have the 1015 running an Athena set up, til I gave it to my GF...for the price, you won't touch that package anywhere. DO NOT GET THE p400/4000 sub. The F2s will do for now, until you can get a good sub(www.svsound.com ...or HSU subs...or build your own)...I would save up til you can get the SVS PB10 at least...how big is the room?(I need W,L, and H measurements)..Also, make sure your center and surrounds timbre match the FL and FR, so get Athena speakers from the same family(i had 4xF1, 2xB1, 1xC1)...some people think the B series makes a better center than the C does. They also make dipoles from the same family, depending on your room design that may be a better answer for the surrounds.


cliffs-There are only 3 real receiver choices under 750 or so-Pioneer 1015, Panasonic digital receiver, and I just remembered the Harmon Kardon 635 is on clearance now at most places for 600 or so.

Athens offer by far the best bang for the buck, just make sure you timbre match all the speakers.

Don't even fuck around with the Athena sub, save up for an SVS entry level or HSU entry level sub(depending on room size)...I have a 1000w SVS+ series 12" sub and it's not enough because my room opens up and has too much area to pressurize


edit--do not pair an Onkyo up with Athenas...Athenas need a warmish sound from the receiver, which would put you on Pioneer or Denon...the Panny and Onkyo are both bright
 
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FngrBANG said:
All I know is that all of my surround sound speakers will be installed into the walls, my 37" widescreen LCD will be hung from a ceiling mount (but it's an 'L' mount so it will be facing forward--not downward), and my receiver/DVD/VHS players will be sitting on a built-in rack. I'll be having all of this stuff done in August.

That's all.
Click to expand...

Well this confirms it in my book.... vgx
 
FngrBANG said:
I have my own house...

but the den where I'll be putting all of my HT sh*t is pretty small.

Hence the in-th-wall/mounted-from-the-ceiling approach.
Click to expand...

I work for a company that does this(along with networking, security, intercoms, etc)...PM me what sizes/brands you want and I'll save you some moneys
 
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