# Help and Suggestions on Selection and Setup on Two Possibilites



## ClevelandSound (Oct 14, 2012)

First post on here, so bear with me.

I'm looking for a decent surround sound system or set of speakers for a smaller room. I've narrowed it down to two possibilities: the *Energy 5.1 Take Classic Home Theater System* and the pair of *Sony SSF-7000* floorstanding speakers. I'm a college student, but I'm looking for these to last me in the long run.

So, my first question is: *For a small-medium sized room, which system is better?* I know that a 5.1 Surround Sound system is a little much, but I like the idea of having the speakers mounted on my wall and I could always use these when I move into an apartment one day. I'm considering the Sony SSF-7000 because I think floorstanding speakers look incredibly stylish and these ones seem to be highly recommended without being too expensive.

My second question, which is perhaps the most important, is: *Can a Sony STRDH520 power either or both of these?* To be honest, I picked this receiver because it's cheaper.

Detailed answers as to why you pick which system would be greatly appreciated.


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## yoda13 (Feb 14, 2012)

Hi,

Personally, I would pick the Take Classic for the flexibility it gives you and the inclusion of a subwoofer. I'm confident that it would do much better for movies (wider frequency range) and probably would fair as good for music. Note that the Take Classic system wouldn't fair very well in a large room. If your room is larger than say, 3000 cubic feet, I would look at the Sony towers.

As far as the receiver goes, not knowing your budget, I'm not fond of Sony receivers, they can be problematic, HDMI issues among others. I would pick this or this personally. Newegg is a very reputable dealer.

Hopefully others will chime in for more arguments on either or,

cheers


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## ClevelandSound (Oct 14, 2012)

Thank you! For future reference could someone just sum up how to tell if a receiver can properly power a system. Anyone else have a suggestion or any experience with these two speakers?


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## yoda13 (Feb 14, 2012)

Actually, it's not so much the receiver ratings you have to look at first, but the speakers, and watts, is the last specs one should look at. Now this is true for most of the time.

Impedance (ohms) and sensitivity (measured in db) are the two measures you should look at first. Most of today's entry level receivers will power any speakers you'll throw at them. You'll only potentially run into trouble when you try to power 4ohms (or lower) speakers. The lower the ohms, the less "resistance" the speaker offers. A receiver must (should) be rated to do so. If not, the receiver risk overheating as it was not design to "push" that amount of power (heat sink, power supply, etc...)

The other measure, sensitivity, is how loud a speaker will "play" with the amount of power you'll give it. The lower the number, the more power is needed by the receiver to achieve a certain sound level. For example, the Take Classic are rated at 89db efficiency. This means that it takes 1 watt per every meter you are from the speaker to reach 89db at your position (measured in decibels per 1 watt per 1 meter). Most speakers at a given input of 2.83 volts will have an output of 80 to 90 decibels.

the higher the db per meter rating, the less power you will need to achieve the same sound pressure at the same distance. For every 3 db increase in sound, you need twice the amp power to drive it. Using an example of comparison of 2 different pairs of speakers. One rated at 87 db and one rated at 90 db. To generate a sound pressure level 90db, you need only half of the power that you would need for the 87 db speakers to achieve the same sound pressure level or a speaker with 90db sensitivity.

All this to say that any receiver you pick will be fine as most commercial home speakers have a sensitivity of 89db +.

Again, hopefully someone with a more detailed explanation will chime in.

cheers


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## ClevelandSound (Oct 14, 2012)

So if the Denon AVR-391 receiver only has 75 watts per channel, how can it power the Energy's subwoofer which is a higher watt subwoofer?

Maybe I'm just confused on how receivers work.


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## zieglj01 (Jun 20, 2011)

ClevelandSound said:


> So if the Denon AVR-391 receiver only has 75 watts per channel, how can it power the Energy's subwoofer which is a higher watt subwoofer?
> 
> Maybe I'm just confused on how receivers work.


The subwoofer has its own built-in amp. The signal is sent
form the receiver's sub pre-out, to the sub amp.


I would still look at the new Pioneer FS52 tower speakers >
from TigerDirect, and something like the Denon 1612 refurb
receiver from AC4L.

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=3381568&CatId=5696

http://www.accessories4less.com/mak...-5.1-Channel-A/V-Home-Theater-Receiver/1.html


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