# New HT Setup. Lots of reading. Still need help



## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

Ok, so I have probably read maybe 200 pages of post on the Official Klipsch thread. I want a 5.1 surround system that will knock your socks off. I have a friend who use to install HT systems in multi million dollar houses here in the Dallas Fort Worth area. He is trying to push Speakercraft, but I have been brought up that Klipsch is the way to go. So I have been reading up on their stuff. Its to my understanding that their tweeters are very bright and the speakers have to be positioned just right. 

So I dont really have a budget, but Im 24 years old with a decent job. Its tough for me to save up so I am buying one piece at a time. I have budget's for what I can pick up at a time and its roughly $600 or so.

So I was thinking of the following Klipsch setup.

RF-82
RC-62
RS-52 or do I need to go with the RS-62?

I have a Denon AVR-791. Im about to return it to Best Buy because I can get the 2311CI and 891 for the same price on the internet. 
I have a Pioneer 8" Ported Sub to get me by for now. It will do for now till I get my entire setup done, then Ill go pick up a 12.

My current speakers are from a Panasonic HTIB I picked up 5 years ago.

I do listen to some music and I live in a house. My current living room is 17x13, but I plan on moving up towards my office that will have a bigger living room.

So with all of the reading and reading and reading I have done, this is the system I came up with. So now its time to ask the question


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## callas01 (Oct 24, 2010)

So what is your question?

If you like the sound of klipsch then buy them. I would not say they are the end-all be-all of speakers for HT. I think if you listen to some music, then I would suggest Monitor Audio or PSB. To me both can be forward enough but not overly bright like Klipsch where it can sound harsh, and much better with music then Klispch speakers.


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## GranteedEV (Aug 8, 2010)

I don't feel that Klipsch is the way to go at all. In fact I think their speakers aren't very good and wouldn't ever have one in my house but for 600 dollars you can't get much though. Music wasn't performed and recorded through such boom and sizzle speakers - and neither were any movies. The Klipsch's are certainly an upgrade over any HTIB i'm sure, and their sensitivity makes them a nice choice at loud volumes, which you seem to be aiming for (IE a true Home Theater that does any action movie proud). If You're intent on getting Klipsch, go for it, but you're not really helping yourself get the best experience.

MY recommendation? Bigger on the budget. You can get _quality_ for that much in the form of some Behringer 2030p but i have reservations about their ability to really handle dynamics and high SPLs. A good idea is to scrap the idea of 5.1 - for now

Start with surrounds instead of fronts. What I mean is, get a pair of bookshelves to eventually use as surrounds, but in the meantime use as fronts. I recommend getting a quality speaker to really familiarize youself with how things are supposed to sound - the Behringer 2030p, Axiom M3, and the EMP e5Bi B-Stock are a few nice places to start. 

Next Get a sub. I'll recommend an Epik Legend but the choices are endless. 
Once can save around 1000 dollars, you should be able to afford some tower speakers and a matching center to use for fronts.
Then get a second matching sub to clean up room response.


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## callas01 (Oct 24, 2010)

WOW, that was interesting... although your right GEV, I wouldn't put klipsch in my house either.

OP, FWIW, I just upgraded speakers and my wife is asking me to sell my old Energys, which are more accurate and better sounding then the Klispch you are consider, I will ship them to you for $500 for a 5.0 setup. If youre interested.. you can PM me and I will send you pictures.


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

Sorry, I forgot to ask the question.

I know I am suppose to listen to which speakers I like, but I dont really have that great of an ear and what I like in a store will probably be different than what I will like at home. Im an audiophile when it comes to car stereo's, but Im new to the whole HT gig. Whats going to sound good to me probably isnt going to be what is what I am going to like in my house. Plus, I dont really have time or know of anywhere where I can go to listen to high end HT speakers. So I am asking the board..

Is this setup worth my money? Is there anything better out there? Is the system above setup correctly for a nice timbre? Are the loaded horns so bright that they cant be adjusted?


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

When I said my budget is $600, I meant as in for each part of my speaker selection.

$600 for my L&R's
$600 for my center
$600 for my surrounds

Im wanting that, in your face, making you feel like you are really there, accurate sound that will impress myself and my friends. I want to hear sounds that I have never heard before.

Im sure anything I get will be an upgrade to my HTIB. And I do recognize that the thing with Klipsch is either you love them or hate them.

Also, Id really like to have a strong Front Stage before having a strong surround back speakers. I dont really want to go with bookshelves for my fronts. I like having tower speakers. I dont want to have to put my bookshelf speakers on stands. They seem like they could be knocked over easily as they have a high center of gravity. I have also read that tower speakers will give you a better front stage with mid bass, bass (although Ill have a sub) than a set of bookshelf speakers.


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## Dave Upton (Aug 4, 2009)

I would definitely avoid speakercraft - they are not in the same league as real HT speakers. 

As for Klipsch, I'm not a fan since I like my speakers to be pleasant for both music and movies, while Klipsch products tend to be great for HT, their music reproduction ability is quite mediocre, and I find their highs rather fatiguing.


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

Dave Upton said:


> I would definitely avoid speakercraft - they are not in the same league as real HT speakers.
> 
> As for Klipsch, I'm not a fan since I like my speakers to be pleasant for both music and movies, while Klipsch products tend to be great for HT, their music reproduction ability is quite mediocre, and I find their highs rather fatiguing.


Thanks for the input. Like I said, I will be listening to music, but more HT. 90% HT/watching cable and 10% music. I dont play music all that much, just when Im having friends over for a little get together, but thats about it, so music playing is on the bottom of my priority list. 

As far as the tweeters go, is there not a way to tone them down a bit? Are they really that harsh? I have Focal Utopia's in the front and Focal K2P's in my truck. People say that Focal's have a bright tweeter, but that doesnt seem to bother me. My friend is trying to get me to quit thinking like a car audio person and think like a HT person. They really that fatiguing when listening to high volumes? When I watch movies, I crank the volume up.


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## callas01 (Oct 24, 2010)

If you want that in your face, accurate sound, then look at the Monitor Audio RX6s or Focal 726Vs. They would be much better speakers then Klipsch.

As far as bookshelfs go. Don't think that all towers perform better then bookshelfs. Also, stands can be mass loaded so they are heavy, meaning they can be filled with lead or sand. Then you can put Earthquake putty/Museum putty on the base or Blue tack to keep the speaker from being able to be knocked off the stand.

I'll tell you this, my Dynaudio Excite bookshelfs outperform most towers in their price range. And most towers only have deeper bass... but not by much.


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

Well not it seems like Im back to square one. Too many options out there for HT speakers.


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

So a pair of Paradigm 9's would outperform the Klipsch rf-82's and be a good selection? I like the price. I found set on Ebay for $450 plus shipping.


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## Dale Rasco (Apr 11, 2009)

Hey Jesse, Paradigms are nice and perform well. I am also not a huge fan of Klipsch personally, but I have friends that love them. In the end, it is really about whether or not you like what you hear. I like my definitive technology speakers, my friends that like Klipsch don't care for them. I suggest getting out to listen to some and see what you like. I don't know that I would buy any speakers blindly without hearing them..... Well, I wouldn't buy any speakers blindly 'AGAIN'. :bigsmile:


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

I know I should listen to speakers before buying them, but maybe its the car audio enthusiast in me, but listening to speakers on display always sounded different in cars. So I have always relied on researching researching and researching what other people like.

Best Buy didnt have any Klipsch speakers to listen to which is weird. It was at a Magnolia store in Frisco, which is a really nice area. Pretty upscale. They did have alot of Definitive Technology. I didnt know if it was something they were trying to push or what, but Ill go check them out. Im buying through the internet anyway. 

Those Paradigm speakers looked really nice. I just saw some Paradigm Mellenia 200 on ebay and a couple websites for $800.


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

JSampson said:


> So a pair of Paradigm 9's would outperform the Klipsch rf-82's and be a good selection? I like the price. I found set on Ebay for $450 plus shipping.


Do you know what ones they are? V.5 V.6:dontknow: How old are they? On Audigon there is a pair of Monitor 9 V.6 which is the latest version for $675. Thats a really good price, i had a set of those for a couple months then upgraded to the 11's. They are som very nice speakers for the money especially at that price.:T


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

Well they were the 9 V.2, but the auction ended at $450. I wont be able to make my purchase for another couple of weeks. I didnt know they had that many of revisions. I might have to go check that out if they are still available. What center and Surrounds should be paired with these? I am now looking at Paradigm instead of Klipsch now. I need to go do a mass delete on my bookmarks now lol


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

I have also been checking out the Polk Audio RTI A9's. Not sure how great Polk Audio is, I know in car audio, they are in the bottom middle


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

Go for the V.6 version on audiogon, much newer (much) and a bargain at $675 they are somewhere in the neighborhood of $1000 new let me take a look at what center and sorrounds will work best with them.:T

Good call on switching to Paradigm over the Klipch.


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## bambino (Feb 21, 2010)

Allright, for center in the Monitor series you could get the CC290 or CC390 (it's as big as the 9's) for surrounds they have the ADP-390 or the ADP-190, i would determine my selection here by how big my room is and my power source.:T


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

Aw thank you very much for checking that out for me. My power source is currently a Denon AVR-791, but I am going to return that back to Best Buy and get a 2311CI (891) for roughly the same price on the internet. The amplifier selection is the same. Just a couple more things here and there, biggest one being HD radio and an upgraded 2015 video processor.

Its my living room. Not all that big, but I am going to move next year and I plan on having a bigger living room. Currently, its a 17x13


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## taoggniklat (Mar 30, 2010)

Hello,

I have owned the Paradigm Monitor 9v2 speakers since they first were made. I think you will find that the Paradigms will have a similar sound and efficiency as the Klipsch, without the harshness of the Klipsch high end. 

If you can find them at a good price on ebay or audiogon, for the money they are great.

Another brand to check out might be Aperion. They are an internet only brand but they do offer a 30 day in home trial. I have only heard their new series (Veritas Grand I think) and they are quite nice. Those might be out of your budget, but they do have other models that are cheaper.

I find POLK to be a bit harsh in the upper end, and tiresome to listen to.

Hope that helps. Let me know if yo have any more questions about the Paradigms...

Cheers,
Jared


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## taoggniklat (Mar 30, 2010)

Also, as far as subs go....go with one of these options, they really are the best out there right now (outside of DIY).

HSU (Just released a new one for $899 that looks to be an awesome sub)
Epik (Legend and Empire are the two they produce right now, the Legend for smaller rooms and budgets)
eD (Elemental Designs)
SVS
Rythmik Audio (Highly recommended for music lovers, but still good for HT. They also have kits if you want to DIY)

For $600 you can get some really nice subs that will be a step up from what you find at Best Buy and the like.

If you can stretch your budget, getting dual subs can be a benefit (can always get 1 now, and another later)

If it was me, I would rather get a nice 2.1 (L/R + Sub) setup first, and then add the rear and center speakers as you get the funds.


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

hmmmm Millenia 200 or 9 V.6........ Still havent figured that one out yet. Seems like the Millenia was built more for looks, but the Monitor 9 was built for all around sound.


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## taoggniklat (Mar 30, 2010)

JSampson said:


> hmmmm Millenia 200 or 9 V.6........ Still havent figured that one out yet. Seems like the Millenia was built more for looks, but the Monitor 9 was built for all around sound.


I have not heard or seen the Millenia in person so I cannot comment on that. However, I do not care for that style of speaker (from any manufacturer).

Only thing I can say is go to a dealer and try em out. Just not my cup of tea.


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## JSampson (Nov 6, 2010)

Thanks for the input. Currently I already have a Pioneer 8" sub that is suprising me a bit. Its overpowering my entire 5 set of speakers i have right now when I have a dialog only scene with bass type things going on in the scene somewhere. But its hard to turn down the bass, because I want the boom part when something actually happens. I have a few more tweaks to do with that sub. 

I recognize eD from your list as they are a great competitor in the car stereo world. I was thinking of doing a DIY sub install. Currently, I have two of the all around best subwoofers for HT use. They are used in car stereo's but people also use them in HT setups. TC Sounds TC1000 12". I have two of them. They both need to be recoiled. Price is a bit steep with them. They use the TC2+ motor which were and still are some of the lowest distortion motors that can dive down real deep. It was only a few years ago, that alot of people were building their HT systems with these TC1000's. TC Sounds also made subwoofers for Eclipse. I just dont know if I have the time, the will, or want to even invest into something like that. I have made over 50 speaker boxes in my life. I am kind of tired of it. Plus, I probably wouldnt even get it right and I really dont have the time or the patience to keep remaking boxes to get it right. I would only go ported anyway.


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