home theater in a box - help, purchasing stuff

I

iNVAR

Computer Monkey
Veteran XX
I am purchasing a Panasonix PT-AX100U HD 720p projector.
Panasonic PT-AX100U (Panasonic PTAX100U) Panasonic Projectors

I now need a sound system and the appropriate cables to go along with things. My cable box will have an HDMI output apparently.

What should I buy? Should I buy my A/V receiver, speakers, sub, etc. piece by piece or save money (and maybe lose out on a bit of quality) by going with one of those all-in-one speaker/receiver packages that I see around all the time now?

Also, should the receiver I get have HDMI in/out switching capability? Is it worth the extra $$? And where should I get my HDMI cable from? I need one approximately 20' in length.

I am not looking to spend thousands upon thousands on my audio system alone, and I don't think I'm super picky or anything when it comes to sound.

Thanks.
 
Nomad said:
if youre buying home theater in a bix there is one system under 700 that has good bang for buck

Amazon.com: Onkyo HTS894 5.1 Channel Complete Home Theater System w/ Single Disc DVD: Electronics
Click to expand...

Thanks, looks nice except for this:
Now for the stuff I wish someone had told me... Not that the info would have necessarily stopped me from buying the HT-S894, but I think others will find these details important. If you connect the receiver to your TV with component cables, then anything connected to the receiver through HDMI will not display any picture. This is verified in the manual. Stranger yet, if you hook the receiver to your TV with HDMI, then anything connected through component cables will not show a picture on the TV. On top of that, the receiver's on-screen menu will not display on your TV through the HDMI output. Very irritating, considering HDMI was one of the selling points that convinced me to choose this system. I can't even use it now, because I want to be able to use the setup menu and have more devices that use component outputs than HDMI outputs. It's really a shame that I have to choose between using HDMI or component connections. Some may want to note that the receiver uses HDMI v1.1.
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home theatre in a box is a poor mans entertainment system.

if you can drop about 1500 get a component system with a polk hd reciever and some really nice speakers.

oh and for the love of god, don't go wireless rear speakers
 
Going separate definitely will bump up the cash outlay quite a bit.

I use my plasma as the switching center - IE, all of the cables for TV go through it. The cable box, DVD, XBox, etc all connect to the TV, and then an audio cable connects to the receiver for output. That way, I don't have to turn on the stereo every single time I want to watch TV. Some people don't like doing it that way, preferring to route everything through the receiver. Shrug.

I'd go separate just because then you can get better quality parts. Just be prepared to write a much larger check.
 
Well, how about this... anyone want to toss out some other suggestions, whether for a HITB thing, or tell me what components to get? I'd like to keep the cost of things to around a $1000-1200 at most, and I'm looking for 5.1 surround (if it does 7.1, great, but I'm not going to be able to put side speakers anywhere.)

Also Gandalf, things will be going through the receiver because I won't have a TV, only a projector, so it won't have speakers in it.
 
iNVAR said:
Thanks, looks nice except for this:
Click to expand...
incorrect. i used HDMI(PS3) and component (xbox360)

The only real HDMI limitation is that your cable box may initiate copy protection when running HDMI from the cable box thru the rcvr
 
reciever is the most integral part of the system so put a lot into it.
Buy the Onkyo 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver - Silver (TX-SR805S) and other Home Audio Receivers and Amplifiers at circuitcity.com

for speakers get what you think sounds good. i personally recommend the KEF brand, they are stylish and have phenominal sound. though i would recommend their floor stand speakers as opposed to the satellites linked below. but space might be a conscern.

KEF America Inc. and other Home Theater at circuitcity.com

other than that just make sure you have hdmi connections to most of your stuff. and get some good speaker wire, crappy speaker wire will destroy everything you put into your system.
 
I dunno if you have a Frys store near you, but I'd check their ads for deals on receivers. You can find decent A/V receivers for 250-500 bucks. You don't need the added expense of 7.1 though, I don't know of anything that actually will take advantage of it, 5.1 is more than enough and you're not installing side speakers anyway.

Expect to spend about 300-400 minimum on the sub-woofer though, those things are pricy.

For speakers, Polk Audio are very nice, and not that expensive.
 
that is why i said HTIB is a poor mans entertainment center

gandalf is right, but his way ends up being more frequent replacement. i am of the mindset to spend a good amount now and have it for 10+ years, as opposed to spending a tiny amount now and having to get a new one in 2-3 years.
 
Onkyo has a new receiver coming out at the end of this month that decodes both Dolby True HD and DTS Master HD. It's HDMI 1.3 and only costs $599. In my opinion it's looking like the best receiver available for the money by a long shot. It's the TX-SR605. There is a very large thread about it on AVSForum. I would get this and just buy some decent speakers as you can afford them. It really looks like an incredible receiver for the price.
 
lil bastard said:
Onkyo has a new receiver coming out at the end of this month that decodes both Dolby True HD and DTS Master HD. It's HDMI 1.3 and only costs $599. In my opinion it's looking like the best receiver available for the money by a long shot. It's the TX-SR605. There is a very large thread about it on AVSForum. I would get this and just buy some decent speakers as you can afford them. It really looks like an incredible receiver for the price.
Click to expand...

Don't think I can wait till the end of the month. I need something soon (now). :)
 
You have no way of getting sound right now? It would really suck to have to buy an amp that doesn't support all the new blu-ray and hd-dvd audio codecs when they are coming out in less than a month at a very decent price :( True HD sounds really incredible. The 605 also has Faroudja image upscaling up to 1080p. It's a really nice amp for the price. I know it sucks to have no sound, but man it would be tough to pass on something that is completely up to date as far as codecs and hdmi functionality when it is so close.
 
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