Recommended 5.1 speaker set for $300...

[nizmike]

Hello All,

I am new to this board and was hoping to get some educated advice.

I recently purchased a Yamaha HTR-5630 Receiver and was looking for recommendation on a 5.1 speaker set. I am looking to spend $300 for a speaker package(sub included).

I would consider my wife and I to be casual movie watchers.

Thanks in advance.

Michael

[Bryan]

I just do not see a good 5.1 speaker package happening for $300, chief. The killer, ultimately, is the subwoofer. Good ones generally go for $400 on up (there we are talking the likes of the HSU (http://www.hsuresearch.com) VTF-2, Adire Audio (http://www.adireaudio.com) Rava, or SVS (http://www.svsubwoofers.com) 25-31PCi). Barely passable in my book and in your price range is the Sony SA-WM200 (http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=1051806317290&skuId=5378897&type=product&productCategoryId=cat03045) for $99.99 delivered coupled with the Fluance AV-HTB (http://www.fluance.com/fluanceavhtb.html). The Rocket Tyke (http://www.av123.com/products_product.php?section=speakers&product=36.1) goes for $399 plus shipping, the Home Theater Direct Middies (http://www.htdaudio.com/htdmiddies.html) for $499+ shipping or the HSU Ventriloquist/VTF-2 combo for $660 delivered. Your best bet would be either to buy used or build slowly.

[This Guy]

yeh i agree with bryan. $300 isn't gonna get you anywhere, fast. I'd say you find a nice line of speakers that you like, then get their bookshelf model and use those as your two main speakers. As you get more money get the larger, or even the same model and move the current ones to the back. Then I'd save another $400 or so and get an Adire Rava, SVS, or HSU. sub. You don't need to rush this, you will want to kick yourslf if you buy an all in one system for this much.

-Joey

[nightflier]

...I am looking to spend $300 for a speaker package(sub included).

Have you considered Streem speakers (www.streemspeakers.com)? They are along the lines of the Fluance speakers and their 5-speaker (including two towers) Streem HT-33 set ships w/o a sub for $499. The reason I would recommend a set w/o a sub is because this is something you want to consider carefully and buy the best that you can afford when you have more than $300. You should be able to get quite a bit out of these until you can save up for a good sub. I'm a big fan of SVS subs, and I can't say enough good stuff about SVS. My friends have pretty fancy speaker setups, but when it comes to action movies, they all come over to my house.

Back to speakers, I recommend building your speakers up in pieces. If you do, I would highly recommend Axiom speakers. You can buy a pair of M3ti speakers for $250 (shipping included) from their outlet store, and they will outperform most anything in that price range. I have yet to find a negative article on these speakers and some compare them to $1500 monitors. When you have some more money to buy a pair of Axiom towers (the M60ti's are a good choise), you can easily move these to the back as surrounds.

Anyhow, that's my 2 cents.

[Willow]

I say start with your 2 fronts and no sub right now ! then set receiver the phantom, Im sure you can either buy some PSB, energy,polks in that price range...but 5.1 on 300$ thats tight...even for a htib which no one really recommends

[headknocker]

I have to agree with all of the previous responses...$300 is a pretty tight budget and a decent sub wilI cost that much and more.

I haven't heard them myself but the HSU Ventriloquist 6.1 system(which comes in various 5.1 and 6.1 configurations) got a very strong review in the last issue of Home Theater magazine. There appears to be some real thought and ingenuity built into the system and it's pretty darn inexpensive as well.I think the system in HT was going for around $600 (directly from HSU) but you can get it down a little cheaper by going with their smaller sub and dropping one of the rear surrounds.

Or you could go the slow and steady route and get a nice sets of mains and a timbre-matched center channel in the beginning and add to it slowly. You most-definitely need a subwoofer to receive the real bottom-end in DVD's so don't hold off too long.

[Woochifer]

The absolute lowest I would go is the $500 Energy Take 5 package ($700 with the subwoofer). The 5.1 packages below that level that I've heard have serious deficiencies all over the frequency range, with the bass pumped up in the midbass range to conceal the lack of extension in the lows and problems in the lower midrange and upper bass range. And even that Take 5 system has a frequency gap between where the satellites leave off and the subwoofer takes over.

At $300, you're best off scoping out a good pair of bookshelf speakers, and incrementally adding on as funds become available. That will give you more balanced tonal characteristics from the highs down into the bass range, and it allows you to go with a true subwoofer later on without the frequency gap typical of smaller sub/sat systems. Your receiver has a virtual surround mode specifically for speaker configurations of two, three, or four speakers, so it lets you enjoy some surround functionality as you add on. The best thing about home theater is that you can enjoy yourself with two speakers, and hear audible improvements with every new addition. You don't have to buy the whole thing at the same time, and that's a common mistake that consumers on tight budgets make. The most glaring weak link whenever buying all at once is almost always in the speakers.

[headknocker]

Good advice,Woochifer.

The worst thing you could do is pick up some cheapo 5.1 set at BB or CC to get you into the ballgame right away. I installed my buddy's first HT several years ago and his wife was hell-bent on getting some crappy Sony 5.1 system from BB.She finally caved in after my constant harping about going too cheap on the speakers. I eventually picked up two pairs of Aura LSB-527M bookshelves,an Aura LSC-537M CC, and a half-decent Dahlquist 12" sub on uBid for around the same price as the Sony.They eventually moved into a bigger house and their HT room was quite a bit bigger as well. The little Aura 527M's were perfectly fine in their original house but they weren't cutting it in the new place.I gave him one of my spare pairs of Aura LSW-828's( a large bookshelf-21.5" tall with an 8" woofer) and I took one of the pairs of 527M's off of his hands...it made a huge difference as the 828M's are excellent for HT.

[Nich]

Hello All,

I am new to this board and was hoping to get some educated advice.

I recently purchased a Yamaha HTR-5630 Receiver and was looking for recommendation on a 5.1 speaker set. I am looking to spend $300 for a speaker package(sub included).

I would consider my wife and I to be casual movie watchers.

Thanks in advance.

Michael

$300.00 will not get you a decent 5.1. If its for movies the cheapest speaker that sounds good is the Energy Take 5+1. I am currently running this right now on my HT and I love it. My only complains is the deeper base; it intends to break up. If you are gonna use it for music cd's...then I would steer out from it. It sounds too small.

If you can find one of these for $300.00 and go for it.(used)

[twwesn]

I looked pretty hard at the 5.1 systems and had them narrowed down to 2 or 3 systems but was never in that $300 range. For around $550 give or take I was considering the Infinity Modulus (factory refurbs on ebay), the Polk RM6700's, or the above mentioned Energy Take 5.1. One that really intrigued me was the HSU Ventiloquist and as mentioned before got a really good review in a recent magazine. I personally am going the route of building my system slowly as many have recommended because I feel for music that many of these systems will not sound as good as a decent bookshelf system.

[cashlz]

As everyone has already stated thats a tough budget to work with (not to discourage you). A friend of mine jus upgraded from a basic sony htib($300 or so) to this http://www.circuitcity.com/detail.jsp?c=1&b=g&catoid=-10041&qp=0&oid=70772 An Onkyo 6.1 htib, and I must say that all things considered it was well worth his money difference to sep it up a bit. Good luck with the search.

[RGA]

I agree with all the others...mostly.

Buy Used. If you can get pretty big full range front speakers you may not need a sub. A sub for my Wharfedales would be barely noticeable...I know I used to have one. Certainly certain subs would be noticed but are more for boom. And the ones that are good and would be noticed cost a lot of $$

Trouble with used is that while you can get a far better SOUNDING speaker for your budget it will be tough to find a center speaker that matches - and if not there's no point to getting a center.

I would not even buy the afformentioned Energy Take 5 - In Canads it goes for $900+ and really I'd rather spend that on two front speakers that actually sound coherent on music. Music is a big part of movies.

[Nich]

I agree with all the others...mostly.

Buy Used. If you can get pretty big full range front speakers you may not need a sub. A sub for my Wharfedales would be barely noticeable...I know I used to have one. Certainly certain subs would be noticed but are more for boom. And the ones that are good and would be noticed cost a lot of $$

Trouble with used is that while you can get a far better SOUNDING speaker for your budget it will be tough to find a center speaker that matches - and if not there's no point to getting a center.

I would not even buy the afformentioned Energy Take 5 - In Canads it goes for $900+ and really I'd rather spend that on two front speakers that actually sound coherent on music. Music is a big part of movies.

Where did you get that price??($900.00) I bought mine for only $600.00CAD new.