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Please help this noob!!
First off, I would like to say I am excited about joining. This is my first post here. I am just starting to build my home theater. I currently have a 3 year old 37" 1080i LCD and a crappy panasonic 5.1 in a box. However with my current purchase of a PS3 I am ready to build a real home theater. Here is an outline of my plan and budget for now, I would appreciate any advice on particular products in my price ranges as well as advice on ways I might change my design to make it better. I appreciate any help you can provide.
Step 1- Internal 160gb 2.5 sata HDD -$160
External harddrive (larger then 500gb)-$400
7.1 A/V Reciever- was looking between $800-900 but any suggestions under $1,000
Step 2- Entertainment center console style-$1100
1080p LCD tv for under $2,500 ( thinking about buying one on Black Thursday if I can find a deal)
Step 3- Speakers- leaning towards wall mounts-$1200-1500
Any control panels, or switchers that would integrate all sources
Now for the inputs I already have and desired set up-
PS3- hdmi
PS2- component
Xbox-component
Wii-component
upconvert dvd-hdmi
cd changer
cass deck
PC
In my final setup I plan to have both tv's hung next to each other with all the gaming systems ran through the a/v receiver and into the new tv, through HDMI but I alsowant to run a component out of the reciever to the old tv. Will I be able to connect the PS3 to the receiver with HDMI and still use a component out of the receiver to my old TV?? I also plan to run the CD and cass decks into the receiver. I also plan to connect my current desktop pc through the DVI on my current TV. Any suggestions on the best equipment or ways to streamline my design are greatly appreciated.
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forgot to say the as far as the LCD is concerned I definately want another flat panel, and as far as the speakers I was hoping to get a 5.1 surround for the budget then add the extra 2 as budget allows. You all know how that goes, I'm already pushing it as far as the wife is concerned.lol
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigT0ke
forgot to say the as far as the LCD is concerned I definately want another flat panel, and as far as the speakers I was hoping to get a 5.1 surround for the budget then add the extra 2 as budget allows. You all know how that goes, I'm already pushing it as far as the wife is concerned.lol
Welcome to this forum BigTOke..just a sec....puff...puff....that feels better..now where were we...oh ya
Sounds like your in the same boat as me. One thing that helped with my lady was that I rented the movie "The Commitments" one day. It's about a Irish R&B band (great movie) anyway she really toked, I mean took, to this R&B music and has been on board with my upgrades (sorta) ever since. Hell she even likes some Blues now.
Peace Out:cornut:
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One thing is that i would spend at least 30% of your budget on speakers,if not a little more and in general wall mount speakers will not sound as good as free standing speakers in the same price range.
bill
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thanks for the warm welcome. I plan to use the set of crappy panasonic speakers I have until I upgrade the speakers down the road. The budget then could possibly grow, but due to the constraints I have in the space and shape of the room. Right now I'm more focused on suggestions for a reciever that meets my needs and tv suggestions. I have the wife on board for the current budget and she would be flexable with slight increases in any area if the differance in price is justifiable. She's actually really understanding and a great girl, so I'm lucky. Besides she's hooked on guitar hero now so she'll appreciate the sound system.lol
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigT0ke
On paper it looks good. Seems to out do my Denon for $300-400 less. Of course you should see if you can hear it locally with decent speakers (something along the lines your planning to upgrade to later)
Cheers
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You should have no problem finding a decent avr within your budget.
If you can hold out a month, Onkyo should be dropping some avr's that are HDMI 1.3. The 605 is going for only $499.
http://forums.audioreview.com/showpo...6&postcount=11
If not, plenty out there that support 1.1 & up.
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Don't forget to make room for an Xbox 360 which can be your multimedia center. It will stream all your music and HD videos from a network, plus of course it has lots of HD movies you can download...not to mention the gaming!
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as far as the xbox is concerned, I may buy one after the elite comes out. But it won't be as a multi media device. With the blu-ray, upconvert dvd player, and my pc hooked up to the whole system I doubt a 360 will provide more then I have. I listened to the HK with Klipsch speakers ( kinda what I'm looking at getting) and the sound quality was decent. I was wondering if anyone has this one or if I should wait for the Yamaha RX-V861. Thanks for all the helpful input so far.
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Harmans are a pain to set up, at least that is what I can remember from my past...and Klipsch don't need alot of current do to their effieciency. You can step down like L. J. said I suggest good speakers and whores.:ihih:
Onkyo and Yamaha have some good models coming out w/ good features for the money.
http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/p...8&CTID=5000300
Actually, take the extra $ and get a nice remote for the lovely wife.:)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigT0ke
as far as the xbox is concerned, I may buy one after the elite comes out. But it won't be as a multi media device. With the blu-ray, upconvert dvd player, and my pc hooked up to the whole system I doubt a 360 will provide more then I have.
It will give you HD-DVD (if you add the drive of course) but the biggest thing it will give you is the Xbox Marketplace. Tons of HD content to download...movies, TV shows, clips, trailers. But yeah definitely wait for the 360 Elite. Mine will be here soon :)
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I think that you should focus on what speakers you like before you choose a receiver. Some speakers will need more power than others. It would suck to do all this research on a receiver and buy one, then find that it doesn't work for the speakers you fall in love with.
Here is one of many choices for the speakers. This company will let you try them out at home for 30 days to see if you like them. Just about any receiver would be able to drive these.
http://www.av123.com/products_produc...s&product=14.1
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should I have an issue down the road concerning power, wouldn't I be able to add an amp?? I'm focused on a receiver now because I plan to buy one within a month or so. I have speakers that will suffice for now. When I do update I was leaning towards the Klipsch Referance IV series, but we'll cross that bridge in about 8 months. After the receiver and after the new tv.
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You are asking the right questions! Plan for the whole system so you won't make any decsion you regret.
BTW: Settng up my H/K was not too difficult for me...
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From the computer drives your looking at I'm assuming your into d/l music. I would suggest looking at a squeeze box setup.
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GMichael is right,whenyou are upgrading the reciever should come last.Speakers make the biggest difference and should always come first.
bill
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I have figured out which speakers I will buy, but I'm not buying them until after the receiver and tv. If I buy the speakers now I won't even be able to use them with the crappy panny in a box reciever I have now. I finally decided on Klipsch Referance IV RF-62's with the Klipsch RSW-10d sub- grand total-list-3000 but will pay more like 2500. Will the HK 347, the yamaha rx-v861, or one of the Onkyo be a good receiver for these?? Is HDMI 1.3 worth buying in a receiver since most tv's don't support it and I'm not convinved any studio's will ever release thier master quality video?? Thanks again for all your help so far.
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The hard drive's are mainly for movie and Jpeg content. With a digital HD camcorder those gigs get used up fast. This may seem like a dumb question, but as the title states I really am a noob, but could you explain what a squeeze box setup is?? I have very little knowledge in this area, but like Hydro man said I'm doing as much research as I can and asking as many questions as I can. I would much rather take this time now then realise I blew a bunch of $$$ because I was iggnorant or uninformed. I will say that the wide base of knowledge I've found on this site has already been very helpful and guided me towards spending the extra cash on better speakers.
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Seems to me that almost any receiver should be able to drive these. Here are the specs I found:
RF-62 Specifications
frequency response 38Hz-23kHz +/-3dB
power handling 125W RMS / 500W Peak
sensitivity 97dB @ 2.83V / 1m
nominal impedance 8 ohms compatible
high frequency drivers 1" (2.54cm) Titanium diaphragm compression driver mated to 90x60 square Tractrix® Horn
high freq crossover 1800Hz
low frequency drivers Dual 6.5" (16.5cm) Cerametallic™ cone woofers
enclosure type Bass-reflex via dual rear-firing ports
height 40.6" (103.1cm) (w/feet)
width 8.5" (21.6cm)
depth 15.5" (39.4cm)
weight 54lbs (24.5kg)
finishes Black Ash woodgrain vinyl
built from 2006
Don't look bad either. I put the whole package up here though in case you decide to go that way.
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Info on the Squeezebox.
As long as your avr supports HDMI 1.1 you should be able to take advantage of the lossless PCM tracks on most BR disc, assuming your gonna use your PS3 for this. HDMI 1.3 is not gonna make or break your system. I'm interested in the Onkyo due to it's ability to decode the new audio formats (more avr's will be popping up that support this by the end of this year). Something I probably won't use anytime ( I have not seen a BR with a Dolby HD track yet) soon but still nice to have.
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I don't think I need the squeezebox since my Pc will be integrated into the same entertainment center. Most of my audio needs are movie and game oriented, I've been listening to music on the same crappy Technics stereo for ever now, so pretty much anything is an improvement in the music area. I just read today that only level 6 avr's can run 7.1 lossless PCM through the HDMI. Is this true?? Can it be acheived through the digital optical then??
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Thanks GMichael. I have the spec book on them, and auditioned them at the local StereoShop. I'll keep shopping until it's time to buy, but I think I found what I'm looking for in the speakers. Now all I need is, well everything else.Lol Avr, HDD's, TV
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BigT0ke
I don't think I need the squeezebox since my Pc will be integrated into the same entertainment center. Most of my audio needs are movie and game oriented, I've been listening to music on the same crappy Technics stereo for ever now, so pretty much anything is an improvement in the music area. I just read today that only level 6 avr's can run 7.1 lossless PCM through the HDMI. Is this true?? Can it be acheived through the digital optical then??
No, optical can only handle 2 chann of PCM and currect DD & DTS tracks.
I'm not sure if this is the article you read but it should clear some things up for you.
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yes that is the article, but it didn't clear much up. In fact I'm more confused. So a level6 rec is the only way to get 7.1 lossless PCM?? If so that sux because There is no way I can pcify the wife into letting me spend 3 to 5k for a rec. Will the new Onkyo 605 or 705 do the trick?? Thanks for the input.
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