Basic Home theatre set

[yaryar]

Hi all,

Just wondering if i could gather advice on a base-level home theatre reccomendations. As my knowledge on audio equipment is not high....i thought i'd consult the people in the know.

Basically, i'm looking to purchase a home theatre set for my home for about the $600 mark. I know for that price, the sound quality would be incomparable to the more expensive sets, but any reccomendations at that price? Also, what do u guys think about using high quality PC speakers? (eg. Logitech Z-5500) I prefer to purchase a "set" rather than individual components, as that will confuse me even further.

cheers!

[robert393]

We would need more information. What kinda system are you wanting (2ch stereo, 5.1, 6.1)? What component devices do you already have (TV, speakers?).

Robert

[shokhead]

House or Apt? You might be better off buying a unit at a time as you save enough. Find what you want and wait and shop around for a good price on check out classif.

[recoveryone]

For the budget range your dealing with I would suggest a trip down to the good old Ebay web site and pick up a few last year or older models. That way you can still get a fairly decent setup, Cause if you head down to a store they will sale you pure junk that may not be upgradable (all in one systems). On Ebay you can buy from Dealers, (pioneer, Denon..etc..) on last year models that still come with warranty's. In the speaker department you can get real good deals on full 5.1 setups or mix and match as you feel. I heard the Logictech system is good/great for PC use, but I can not see it comparing to a Home system. Now if your in a dorm or apratment complex with picky neighbors then the logictech may be the way to go.

[shokhead]

Dont think E-Bay is an auth dealer for the warr.

[Geoffcin]

Hi all,

Just wondering if i could gather advice on a base-level home theatre reccomendations. As my knowledge on audio equipment is not high....i thought i'd consult the people in the know.

Basically, i'm looking to purchase a home theatre set for my home for about the $600 mark. I know for that price, the sound quality would be incomparable to the more expensive sets, but any reccomendations at that price? Also, what do u guys think about using high quality PC speakers? (eg. Logitech Z-5500) I prefer to purchase a "set" rather than individual components, as that will confuse me even further.

cheers!

In that case I recommend a combination of your ideas, and another poster who liked Ebay.
Cambridge Soundworks sells the B stock items on Ebay. If you got a system like this;

http://cgi.ebay.com/Cambridge-SoundW...QQcmdZViewItem

You would have a serious HT system for what the price of a good subwoofer might run you. Will it be the best? No, but I've heard the speakers, and they are more than decent. You will be able to "rock the house" with these. What's even better is that you'll get a full manufacturer's warranty.

[Daddy3Legs]

Man, you!

[recoveryone]

Dont think E-Bay is an auth dealer for the warr.

Sorry Shokhead, but pioneer does sale their own stuff on Ebay with the warranty

http://cgi.ebay.com/Pioneer-VSX-515-...QQcmdZViewItem

wasn't talking about third party dealers.

[hometheaterbug]

Getting a surround sound setup for 600 bucks might be tough.If I had to do it all over again, I'd buy used speakers (audiogon or ebay).I think you get a better deal as long as you are careful about your selection.The surround sound reciever your going to need is going to be tough to find and still keep you on budget.I really like the Harmon Kardon gear but in the past I gave the nod to Yamaha becuase of a superior reliablilty record.I wrote a thread about some of the problems I'm having with my own HT,so I'm not claiming to be an expert on HT setup.However, I do follow prices of audio/video gear very closely and recommend you buy used.If your room is small you can get away with less all the way around.
I have some Infinity gear I might part with but it may be beyond your budget.If your intersted,drop me a line.I think the IL 10's are a great speaker btw, I totally agree with the review below.The Infinity IL10's may be one of the best mass market speakers I've ever heard.When powered properly they shine and the voicing is top notch.....Thats my 2 cents

Infinity IL 10's
Infinity IL 25C
Infinity Enta12


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Summary:
Kudos to Infinity, and PLEASE disregard any of the low scores posted by jerks who are obviously out to discredit a fine product. I'm a professional speaker designer with over 30 years experience in High-End and the IL10's represent a phenomenal value, perhaps the best I have found in mass produced, wide-distribution audio products.

(And NO I do not work for Infinity or a store, so park your nastygrams right where they belong.)

From 80Hz midbass on up, they are neutral, articulate, clear and transparent. The basic character of the CMMD material is one of tremendous propagation speed with truly excellent damping and low ringing. (I wish I had this kind of cone to work with in any of the easily or readily available "audiophile" OEM woofers, I could make some really incredible megabuck systems!)

By the eway, these are like a really fine basic sports car... a platform that deserves some additional enhancements to REALLY perform. They are ideal candidates for tweako-philes, especially if you damp out the interior of the cosmetic faceplate (take out the rubber sockets for the grille, unscrew the faceplate, damp it with mortite or blu-tack and reassemble).

For more elaborate tweaks, you could drill through the enclosure sides and add a tensioning bar...and one from top to bottom. The basic drivers and engineering are excellent and a fantastic achievement for the price, and deserve a really good enclosure mod. Then you could swap for audiophile grade crossover parts. The result? Unmodified, better than most $1,000 speakers. Fully modified, hard to beat with ANY speaker under $3,000

I use mine with a 15" Velodyne sub and the results are as good as you can get for under 4,000 USD and better than most multi-kilobuck rigs I have heard.

Again, shame on immature or dishonest jerks who are deliberately trying to drop the scores on these. We need to encourage more audio companies to make fine products like these.

Bravo, Infinity ! This product line makes me want to go work for you.

[yaryar]

Hi All!

Thanks for the great feedback! I guess i should have included more detail with ht eoriginal post.

I'm looking to provide good sound to my basic TV set, which atm is hooked up to a 2.1 pair of basic PC speakers. (crappy, but better than nothin i guess) I'd be looking to have the setup in my lounge area, which can be enclosed with doors. I'm looking for a 5.1 setup.

A good point raised was upgrading. i've looked at the suggestions made so far and kept the advice in mind. Again, due to my basic knowledge, i'm sure there'd be factors i wouldn't even know about.

Prior to this, i've been told that the Logitech Z-5500 was "excellent" for its price and would cost more $$ for its equivalent in a home theatre set. As i didn't really consider eBay at that time, i thought the Logitech was a good suggestion after reading reviews and abit of reading online.

I'll keep lookin and take into considerations your suggestions!