# Question and advice: Best home theater system for 1200-1800



## Guest (Aug 27, 2007)

I need some help here. Not sure what to get as there are so many options out there and some are extremely overpriced. I need to get:

Receiver, speakers, sub-woofer, wire, cables, and stand for < 1800. 

HELP!!!

oneG


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

Hello oneG and welcome to the Shack!

I moved your thread to General Discussion... a little better fit. :T

Do you already own a DVD player, CD player and/or what sources are you planning on using?


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## drdoan (Aug 30, 2006)

Hi oneG, welcome to the Shack. You will be able to get a great system for that price. I would start with the speakers as they are the most variable in an audio system. Most new receivers are pretty good, so I would look for features vs price. For wire, don't spend a lot on fancy cables. If they are going to be hidden, you can use a quality lamp cord of 16 to 12 guage from Home Depot or such like. You might want to consider the size, volume, and shape of your room, to use sound treatment (DIY is great).
I personally would want a good subwoofer. Hope this helps. Dennis


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## Darren (Apr 20, 2006)

If you are referring to home theaters in a box then there are no good systems for any price. You can put together a good starter system yourself for the $$ you have but won't have a Monster system by any stretch. You can go DIY and stretch your $$ farther. 

For a good mid range system (DIY) with 5 satellites, sub, DVD, and an AV receiver you are looking at right around $2k. Going with off the shelf purchases for speakers and subwoofer might add a bit of $$ to that.

Disclaimer: I despise HTIAB so that skews my opinions here... I've found that you can always put something much better together if you avoid them.


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## Wayne A. Pflughaupt (Apr 13, 2006)

Based solely on what you requested – it’s hard to beat the SVS speakers for bang for the buck. Their 5.0 ensemble coupled with their cheapest sub would be about $1200 delivered. You might check out the reviews I’ve done on them:

http://www.hometheatershack.com/for...ensemble-good-things-come-small-packages.html

http://www.hometheatershack.com/for...ce-off-svs-pb10-isd-takes-few-contenders.html

That leaves $600. No problem finding a receiver in the $300-400 range. If you’re a newbie I suggest looking at Yamaha, Pioneer or Denon, since their manuals are an easy read. 

That leaves a couple hundred dollars. I guess your next big-ticket item will be a stand. Not going to speculate on that, since you offered nothing on what your expectations or needs are. I mean, you could stick a board on top of a milk crate and have a “stand.”

No reason to break the bank for cables in this price range. Like Dennis noted, some by-the-foot zip cord speaker cable or low voltage outdoor lighting wire from a hardware store will be cheaper than anything the bog box stores will sell. I’d suggest at least 14 gauge. The hardware store should also have a decent video cable you can use for the coax connection between the DVD player and receiver. For the cable between the receiver and sub, the cheapest route would be a coaxial cable like for TV, and get screw-on F-connector to RCA adapters.

Regards,
Wayne


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## drdoan (Aug 30, 2006)

I would like to add (I was busy for my last post) that I use and LOVE the SVS's SBS-01 7.1 system with the PB-12/Plus subwoofer. I think 5.1 is fine and their smaller sub is a killer for the price. Let us know how things go. Have fun, Dennis
PS-be sure to read Wayne's reviews on the SVS speakers and subs. They are great!


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

Can't believe I'm the first to post this:

cables = monoprice.com


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## Guest (Aug 28, 2007)

Hi all, here is what I am thinking:

Orb audio mod 2
includes 400 watt sub.
$1000

Pioneer VSX-82TXS receiver $800

Bought:
HDMI cable ($6.00)
Optical audio cable ($4.57)
both from amazon

What do you guys think?


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## eugovector (Sep 4, 2006)

Probably not too bad. What's the layout of your room, what size is it, and what sources will you be viewing/listening?


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## JCD (Apr 20, 2006)

Where I think the Orb speakers probably sound fine, I think they were designed more for WAF issues than pure sonic ability. I think the SVS speaker system mentioned would be a better sonic choice, but a less perfect choice if WAF is a major factor.

JCD


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## Guest (Aug 30, 2007)

Hey all, so I bought the people's choice orb audio system. I am really excited about it. I have a question concerning receivers though. I am thinking of getting the Denon 2807 instead of the pioneer. I believe it is better quality, with better DSP's and DAC's inside the receiver. However, I wanted to get peoples opinions on this and one more thing. What do you guys think of buying a refurbished Denon? Instead of 1100 I can get one for 700 which will fit in my budget. 


oneG


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## JCD (Apr 20, 2006)

I'm not sure what others would say, but I don't think there is much difference in the quality of sound among receivers in the same price range. However, I have heard that Denon's have a better repair history than Pioneer. So, I'd go with the Denon over the Pioneer. The one thing about Denon though, they have terrible remotes. I hate mine. That might be something to take a look at unless you're going to go with a universal remote.

As for refurbed vs. new -- I think it just depends. Take a look at lcaillo's response to a similar question in this thread.

JCD


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## nova (Apr 30, 2006)

I like the Denon over Pioneer also,... but there is no reason to pay the full $1100 retail price. Do some shopping around (authorized dealers), get some price matching and stuff going,... I'd bet you could get it brand new from an authorized dealer for about $850 or so.

I made a deal when I bought my 3805, got it for $850 instead of the $1199.00 msrp and they threw in the DM-S305 mic for free (about a $60.00 value). The deals are there, you just have to work at them.


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## Fred33 (Sep 4, 2007)

There are some great inline resources like ebay and some whole sale sites. Let me look around and I will post them up if I find them.


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## jvc (Jul 15, 2007)

I agree with JCD........
Denon remotes can be a nightmare to deal with. I do know people that will argue the "better customer support" though. I know a few people with Denon receivers, and they are very good. You may never need to use customer support. 

You can usually get a deal on a Harmony remote from Amazon.com. They are very good remotes. Easy to program (via the internet), control everything, including some non-audio stuff, and is very wife friendly.
Good luck!


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## nova (Apr 30, 2006)

Yes, I agree, a Harmony remote is well worth the money. That 3805 remote is awful :gah:


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## Sonnie (Apr 11, 2006)

Not sure if you've bought yet or not, but I've owned the Denon 3805, 3806 and now own the 2807. Never been disappointed. I've also purchased a 2805 refurbished a while back and as far as I know it's still working in the guys system.


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