# Another Novice looking for system advice



## Rboyd62 (Nov 27, 2009)

Hello all, As seems to be the case i am looking into putting together a new home theater system. I have been researching for two weeks but i am still debating on what to do. I did read through this thread which was helpful, but the onkyo 876 and other higher end components are out of my price range.

http://www.hometheatershack.com/for...er-new-person-home-theater-advice-please.html

Currently, the room i will be using is roughly 15x20 feet, with a Samsung LN46B750 LCD television, with a viewing distance of 11'. My total budget is 1500$ max and preferably 1200$ or so for the AV Receiver and a speaker system. In addition i will be adding a blu-ray player, Wii , Xbox 360, i pod dock and HD cable box. 

What i am looking for is good sound quality for movies, sports, games, and music, on a relatively small budget. I have ordered an Onkyo TX-SR707 from amazon for 435$, as i was able to use some coupons and get a great deal. however, it will be awile before it ship so if there is something better in the price range i can look at it.

Also any advice regarding a speaker setup

My questions are:

1) can i hook up all my proposed components through the receiver and get them to work? if not which ones will need a component connection?

2) As i am looking for suggestions for a speaker system, or what to purchase should i look at floor stand speakers for music or is there a comparable quality alternative. Currently i have an old H/K 125 AVR and Infinity entra speakers, (left/Ctr/Right), and have never really bothered with surround sound. I should note that i will not be doing in wall mounting, so either bookshelf /stand speakers or floor standing or a mix is required.

I am considering purchasing the speakers in 2-3 groups, so any build order would be appreciated as well, as well as any component or speaker selection advice.

Thanks in advance
Rboyd


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

First of all welcome to the Shack Rboyd,

Your choice of the Onkyo 707 is a very good one. For your budget there is nothing better unless you look for a used one. 
There are several speaker packages you can look at. The one I recommend is the SVS SBS-01 speaker system however this would push you over budget a little bit. But is highly recommended as it also includes a great sub.

All your components will plug directly into the receiver as the 707 has plenty of inputs.


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

I just found this Onkyo 806 receiver for $499 that is an amazing price for it if you can squeeze it into your budget.


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## Jon Liu (May 21, 2007)

Tony hit the nail on the head with the Onkyo. Also, in my opinion, I would also go with the 80x series over the 70x series. Extra features along with a tiny bit extra power for just a tiny bit more, price-wise is a worthwhile move.


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## nova (Apr 30, 2006)

Looks like the speakers Tony has suggested are on sale right now. The Onkyo 707 and the SVS SBS-01 should not be much more than your lower budget of $1200, depending on shipping. Would make for a nice system. Even the 806 and upgrading the SBS-01 with a PB-12 sub would still come in under your $1500 upper budget.


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## Rboyd62 (Nov 27, 2009)

Thanks for all the help and information folks. 

Given that my significant other has demanded that if i upgrade, she wants floor standing front speakers, i have to keep the 707, due to price considerations, or sacrifice on speaker price.

My question is with an eventual 5.1 system will the 707 have enough power to run a larger system, including STS front speakers and a sub woofer, along with a center channel & satalites?

The other question i have is more of an audio one. What level of difference is there between a smaller 5.1 system from the start, such as the SBS/SCS mains and STS mains, in a standard living/family room. I would expect that the overall sound quality wont change that much for movies, but as the wife is a music nut, she really wants a good set of speakers for music, and she dislikes speaker stands for astetic reasons.

if anyone has any other companies for speakers i would also be interested.

Thanks in advance yet again:huh:


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## tonyvdb (Sep 5, 2007)

The trick with buying good floor standing speakers is to get ones that are fairly efficient in the upper 80db's or higher is a good start. The SVS towers are just that and would have no issues with the 707 at good listening levels. The part that "may" task the receiver is movies that use all the channels alot. But the great thing about the 707 is that it has pre outs and you could later down the road buy an external amp to drive the fronts releaving the receiver of the main part of its load. External amps dont have to cost alot even a good used one can run you under $200.


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## nova (Apr 30, 2006)

Hmmm,... personally I prefer a good pr. of floor standers for the front left and right. Unfortunately, a "good" pr. of floor standers will easily wipe out "your" whole budget and then some. High quality floor standers will cost quite a bit more than their equivalent bookshelf speakers.


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## selden (Nov 15, 2009)

Since your wife is the one who wants good speakers, you might try persuading her to visit your local a/v store(s) and listen to what's available. Good speakers have a much longer lifetime than the electronics driving them.


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## DougMac (Jan 24, 2008)

Rboyd62 said:


> Given that my significant other has demanded that if i upgrade, she wants floor standing front speakers, i have to keep the 707, due to price considerations, or sacrifice on speaker price.


Boy, is that a twist on the standard WAF! Why does she insist on floor standers?

SVS is currently holding a terrific sale on the SBS-01 system. A 5.1 system with a PB-10 NSD is only $800. The potential sticky point is they're bookshelf speakers. You could replace the L/R with their STS-01, but they're $749 a pair and would bust your budget. Maybe it's time to present a set of choices...


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## Rboyd62 (Nov 27, 2009)

DougMac said:


> Boy, is that a twist on the standard WAF! Why does she insist on floor standers?
> 
> SVS is currently holding a terrific sale on the SBS-01 system. A 5.1 system with a PB-10 NSD is only $800. The potential sticky point is they're bookshelf speakers. You could replace the L/R with their STS-01, but they're $749 a pair and would bust your budget. Maybe it's time to present a set of choices...


The first reason she wants the floorstanders is that she is the audiophile in the family. To be honest, i dont even own an Ipod, and detest cell phones and all the mobile we carry around these days. I use them of course, but i complain.

So whatever speakers we purchase, has to have good to great quality for music/ipod/mp3 players etc. Right now with the H/K 125 & infinity speakers, you can actually hear the difference in sound quality vs the speakers from the TV, with the TV sounding much better with HDMI, as well as any HTS speakers have to double as a standard music setup.

The other issue is personal, and astetic basically. Since we live in a Moderate sized home, 2100SF, there is no dedicated room for Home theater or a man cave. So i have to make sure she can decorate around what i buy basically or im in trouble. Also, while the box woofers look great, the size tends to clutter up things, which will only create more problems. Since we have had floor standing speakers for 10 years, shes happy with them and really does not want to change to something with speaker stands.

Regardless of what i purchase im going to have to wire it, mount it on walls probably, outside of the front.


So my options at this point are basically SCS mains, scs center, with SBS surround.

or STS mains, SCS center, SBS surrounds. 

Ideally if the quality was there, id just stick with the SBS speakers, but based on what i have heard in stores with comparable sets, she wont like it for music listening.


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## DougMac (Jan 24, 2008)

*Comparable*



Rboyd62 said:


> Ideally if the quality was there, id just stick with the SBS speakers, but based on what i have heard in stores with comparable sets, she wont like it for music listening.


If you and your SO are used to the floorstanding form factor and especially if the resident audiophile thinks there are sonic advantages, a mix of floorstanding L/R with SBS-01 center and surrounds might be ideal for you. If wall mounting surrounds is needed, the SBS-01 would make a particularly good choice over rear ported speakers since they are sealed and don't require a minimum clearance.

Tell us about what you've heard in stores. I can pretty much assure you what you've heard isn't anywhere close to comparable.

If the store is a popular big box electronics store, they don't carry anything nearly comparable at that price point. 

If it's a boutique stereo store, they may carry speakers comparable in sound quality, but nowhere comparable in price.


Internet direct has some distinct marketing advantages over brick and mortar, the most significant of which is to offer better quality at a lower price. They also tend to have a more informed potential customer base, they don't have to market to the masses. 

Their big disadvantage is in actuality not that big a disadvantage. There is no opportunity for the customer to hear the speaker before purchase. Experience has taught me that auditioning speakers in the store is usually a very ineffective method of determining if they are suited for your environment. I go back to the dawn of stereo when my dad put together a hi-fi set. In all the years I've auditioned speakers, I can count on one hand the number of listening environments in stores that allowed for critical evaluation.


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## lsiberian (Mar 24, 2009)

If you are interested in modding your speakers you would easily smoke the SVS STS speakers.

Your speakers have Hi-fidelity drivers in them and I can specify some easy mods if you're interested. 

The cmmd drivers are among the best in the world.


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## Rboyd62 (Nov 27, 2009)

lsiberian said:


> If you are interested in modding your speakers you would easily smoke the SVS STS speakers.
> 
> Your speakers have Hi-fidelity drivers in them and I can specify some easy mods if you're interested.
> 
> The cmmd drivers are among the best in the world.


Send me a PM if you would, if i can save money then i am all for it. The old center channel is toast , but i still have the left/right Infinity speakers, entra three series i believe.


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## JerryLove (Dec 5, 2009)

> The first reason she wants the floorstanders is that she is the audiophile in the family. To be honest, i dont even own an Ipod, and detest cell phones and all the mobile we carry around these days. I use them of course, but i complain.


 Get a pair of Dayton 10" or 12" subs (about $150 each) and a pair of Behringer 2030p ($150 combined) and (unless your AVR has stereo sub outs, I'm assuming it has pre-out and pre-in) an external crossover. Stick the 2030p on top of the subs and call it a "floorstander".

Add another pair for surrounds and if you like another pair to use one as center. 

5.1 should cost you $850 plus your AVR. 7.1 should cost $1000 plus your AVR. The audiophile in her will like the result (nearly flat response across a wide axis). 

One note: the Daytons don't have enough stuffing in them. Open them and toss in more (a $3 pillow can be used) to reduce reverberation in the bass. Also: make sure to keep the subs very near the front speakers (right below them is perfect). If you are using the external crossover to split the front pre-out, set the fronts to large. If you are using stereo sub outs, set as normal (you may get better phase control with the external crossover).


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