# Please help - Need a nice home theater setup



## RichyRihc (Aug 20, 2017)

PLEASE HELP:
I have a nice size room with vaulted ceilings. 
I need a relatively concealed 3.1 home theater/ surround system. 
This isn’t a main/ intended theater room but I have a nice 75 inch QLED HDTV coming and wanted a really nice sound system to go with. System is mostly for TV/ movies but also music. I don’t have right room to conceal the wiring for rear satellite speakers (i.e. for 5 or 7.1) unless they are small and wireless… is why I am going for 3.1… and the front speakers need to be “in-wall.”

This is what I’ve come up with so far:
Receiver: Marantz SR5012 ($1000)
In-Wall speaker: Martin Logan Axis High-Performance ($850) x2
Center channel: MartinLogan Motion 50XT ($900)
Subwoofer: MartinLogan – Dynamo 700W 10” ($700)

I DON’T KNOW WHAT I’M DOING but I have a little money to spend – BUT don’t want to waste my money either. This is just what I’ve come up via reviews, research, etc. I was going through BestBuy initially but I have deviated from their recommendations a bit.

It would be a bigger dream to have rear satellite speakers (5.1 or 7.1) if possible.
I am very interested in the Bose Virtually Invisible 300 Wireless Surround Speakers but I don’t know if they are proprietary to Bose or if they will even work with what I have. Please advise if or if not…

If the Bose won’t work – Is there anything that I can use for satellite/ rear speakers that are small and wireless? 
Also, which Blu-ray should I get?
ANY advice on this matter is greatly appreciated. 
I want a really nice system within the price range that I’m already working with.


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## theJman (Mar 3, 2012)

In-wall speakers are often a SQ compromise, so it's best to avoid them if at all possible. Small bookshelf speakers would probably work better. It seems as though you're looking at a center that's not in-wall though, with speakers that are. Is that the correct model number for the center you're considering? I don't know I've ever heard of anyone using a combo like that. It's likely to give Audyssey fits trying to balance the sound between the 3 fronts.

How large is your room (HWD)? That plays a critical role when sizing a subwoofer. If the room is pretty small the 700W might suffice, but anything larger and it would be overwhelmed by the volume of space and struggle to perform.


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## RichyRihc (Aug 20, 2017)

Not sure that I could go larger than 10" on the sub. That size will have to suffice.

What is an SQ compromise? 
Its a big room (~15' x 19') with ~25 ft vaulted ceilings and attached off of an eat-in nook and kitchen. 
"In-wall" b/c the house came with them and wiring for them... I was just going to upgrade them. 
Center speaker is not in-wall b/c it isn't really practical to conceal it that way. I was just going to put it in the entertainment cabinet under the TV - The TV will be wall mounted. I also didn't think that I could add rear speakers b/c I can't really run/ hide wires... so I was thinking of adding wireless ONLY if I can get really nice sounding small wireless speakers. 

Again, I don't know what I am doing. I want to get something that sounds amazing enough for that room, and I have a little money to spend. I was relying too much on BestBuy... Now I am exploring options. 

Any advise on how to set this room up is appreciated. What receiver and speakers do you recommend? How would you do it?


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## theJman (Mar 3, 2012)

RichyRihc said:


> Not sure that I could go larger than 10" on the sub. That size will have to suffice.
> Its a big room (~15' x 19') with ~25 ft vaulted ceilings and attached off of an eat-in nook and kitchen.


From a functional standpoint it won't suffice though as your room is at least 7000 ft^3 (HxWxD), and that's not including the eat-in nook and kitchen. With such a huge volume of space any 10" subwoofer will be all but invisible. If it's placed really close to the listeners you might get some value, but any more than a few feet away it's not really going to be able to do much of anything. It's all down to physics I'm afraid, and those are immutable laws.




RichyRihc said:


> What is an SQ compromise?
> 
> Again, I don't know what I am doing. I want to get something that sounds amazing enough for that room, and I have a little money to spend. I was relying too much on BestBuy... Now I am exploring options.


SQ = Sound Quality. All speakers like to be placed away from boundaries, they need room to breath (as it were). By putting them inside of a wall you effectively have the entire length and width of the wall as a boundary, and that tends to end badly. Ideally you want all your speakers to be several feet away from any wall/ceiling/floor, not be directly coupled to them. If you truly want "amazing" sound you should reconsider in-wall speakers. I don't know what BB told you, but at least they steered you in a good direction with Martin Logan. They do make nice products. Expensive, but nice.




RichyRihc said:


> Any advise on how to set this room up is appreciated. What receiver and speakers do you recommend? How would you do it?


There's certainly nothing wrong with the Marantz SR5012, but with what you're looking to achieve it might be overkill. It's a 7.2 receiver, yet it seems like you're considering a 3.1 system. The SR5012 means you'll be spending money on things you won't use. You might be able to save a few bucks by getting a receiver more aligned with your needs - say one designed for a 5.1 setup instead - and then using that 'extra' money elsewhere (on better speakers and a subwoofer for example).


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## RichyRihc (Aug 20, 2017)

Thanks. I wish I knew what to do. A colleague at work thinks that I should just go and use Sonos soundbar with sub, and then maybe also get satellite rear speakers. I don't know much about Sonus though.


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## theJman (Mar 3, 2012)

Soundbars are not really the choice for anyone seeking good audio quality. There are some now that aren't all that bad, but they simply can't match a well designed system comprised of components chosen for their individual strengths. What are your proclivities when it comes to sound? That, and aesthetics, play a huge part in the decision. Do you like highs that can be described with words like "sparkle" and "energetic"? Is midrange more important? Do you like fine detail, high volume abilities, voices that sound true to life, something else perhaps? Defining what characteristics are needed will help identify which speakers may satisfied them.


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## paulys55 (Jul 31, 2017)

Just curious...is there a room above or below your theater room?


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## RichyRihc (Aug 20, 2017)

Crawl space below. No room above - Its vaulted. But there is a normal height ceiling above/ behind me. Crawl space though... hmm...


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