Advice on buying new speakers! (1 Viewer)

[amacsteeze]

Hey everyone,

Before i start, i should mention that this is my first post here on hometheaterforums and loving every minute of it!

So here is my situation, I will be moving downstairs into my basement once we finish it and ive been looking into buying some new speakers. The room is about 9 X 10 or so, and ill be in-wall wiring the speaker wire next week. I have a few questions about how i should set up the room. I will be upgrading from some cheap "precision acoustics" towers and a yamaha 6030 receiver.

So im curious as to what everyone thinks of bose speakers, specifically the 301 bookshelf speakers, and the acoustimass 10 set. I have a few friends that rave about their quality but the few times ive been in best buy and futureshop they are no where near set up right to actually hear the quality.
Ive also been looking at the new klipsch reference series speakers, which have some reviews that are hard to argue with.

My last problem is while im looking into these, what combination of tower/bookshelf speakers should i get? And is it better to have bookshelves in the front or the back? Im a huge bluray enthusiast lately and so i might look to stretch the system to a 7.1 in the future and with that, where should the other speakers be placed for best results?

Any help would be greatly appreciated,
thanks again!
Alex MacDonald

 

[David Willow]

No problem.

Since you are looking at Bose, I assume you have a pretty good budget for these speakers. I would start by going to stores and listening. Find HT stores, not just Best Buy types. Listen to B&W, Klipsh, Polk, etc. Also check out Axiom and SVS online (and others). I highly recommend SVS subs.

 

[brandonchenry]

Bose=trash

Money goes into marketing, not product quality.

 

[bosawx17]

Bose is absolute garbage. The only thing Bose is good for is for listening to classical or instrumental music.

No highs, no lows...it's gotta be Bose

I personally love Definitive Technology speakers. They are great for all spectrums of audio listening...music, movies, normal television watching. It all depends on your budget. Klipsch Reference is not too bad, but if you are going to spend money in that price range, go with Def Tech instead!

 

[JohnRice]

REALLY!!! You learn something new every day.

 

[bosawx17]

Haha...okay, well let me rephrase that...

The only good thing Bose is semi-decent for is....

 

[tls36]

I would also avoid Bose, if you want something smaller, Definitive is nice!

 

[amacsteeze]

I appreciate the suggestions everybody, and i should mention that right now i work at best buy here in alberta, and as such i get a signifigant discount on anything in future shop or best buy stores. I have no problem with spending a big chunk of cash on these speakers, because i cheaped out last time and i learned my lesson pretty good.

i looked at the SVS subs and im wondering if there is anywhere that sells them in a store, so that i can have a listen to them before i invest in them?

Check these 2 surround speakers out and maybe someone can tell me if there is a big difference between these two;

Future Shop: Audio: Home Speakers: Polk Audio Surround Bookshelf Speaker (FXIA4) - Black

Surround Speakers : QS4 - Axiom Audio

Both seem like what im looking for but the polk speakers i can have almost half price on, so my predicament grows, are the axiom ones worth the difference?

 

[Robert_J]

They are only available internet direct. By cutting out the brick and motar retailer, you are getting much more product for your money. If SVS were sold in BB or FS then you would expect to pay at least twice as much. If they were sold in a home theater specialty store, then they would probably cost four times as much. Ron (the S in SVS) and Tom (the V in SVS) met here on the forum when Ron wanted to build his first DIY sub. These guys are enthusiasts like us. Their engineers are enthusiasts. They don't farm out customer service to some guy with an accent (unless it is a New Jersy accent). Even those guys are nuts about home theater.

-Robert

 

[George_W_K]

I'm very happy with my SVS sub that I've had a few years now. Good, company, great people.

I can't speak for the Polks, because I don't have much experience with them, but I have the QS8's and they are excellent surround speakers. Axiom recommended I buy the QS4's because of my small room, so I imagine they sound very similar to the 8's. If you go to the Axiom website, there should be somewhere, in the forums I think, where you can contact people who live near you to give them a listen.

 

[amacsteeze]

Okay awesome guys, I have another question, i dont wanna jump my cost up by buying a receiver that will let me run 2 subwoofers on it. If i use a Y-splitter the split my subwoofer out into 2, can i run 2 subs into that and have it work the way i want it to?

 

[Robert_J]

My Pioneer VSX-1014 only has 1 LFE/sub output but I connect it to a 2 channel pro amp using a "Y" adapter. The adapter cost about $3 at Rat Shack.

Are you planning getting the SVS subs or a lesser quality model from your retail store? Because one really good sub is better than a pair of poor ones. If you are really wanting a pair of subs, get a good one now and then another good one later. As far as I'm concerned, you can't have enough subs.

-Robert

 

[brandonchenry]

i looked at the SVS subs and im wondering if there is anywhere that sells them in a store, so that i can have a listen to them before i invest in them?
-I think they have a canadian retailer. Sonic Boom Audio- it can be found on svs's website under international dealers.

If i use a Y-splitter the split my subwoofer out into 2, can i run 2 subs into that and have it work the way i want it to?
-you can use a "y" cable or you can daisy cahin your subs. If you keep them close to each other you will have less trouble phasing them with each other.

 

[amacsteeze]

Well i like the SVS subs, the reviews are awesome, but in sound quality and loudness, do i want a cylinder or box sub?

 

[Robert_J]

Shape of the enclosure has very little to do with the quality of the sound. Since the ported boxes and cylinders are similar in size, the output (loudness) should be similar as well. You should pick the one that best fits your room.

-Robert

 

[SHS]

In a 9x10 room I can't imagine you needing more than a single SVS Ultra and there are several other subs that will fill a room of that size with some frightening bass.

In a 12x24 room I am running a single Ultra and it makes the walls breath....seriously, unless you have very high cielings and openings everywhere I really think you are looking at overkill with two subs.

I am sure there are those that will disagree, I could not be happier with my choice. Sure it is not cheap but I feel it is the one piece of HT equipment that will out last all of my other components. The trial and return policy is easy to work with, the staff is very helpful. Contact them and get their recommendations.

I have no illusions that SVS is the ONLY good sub manufacturer but I keep looking at Elemental Designs, Home Projects, HSU, Velodyne, Av123 and others and have not for one second regretted my choice.

 

[Robert_J]

Yes, a single SVS Ultra is enough for most. But I frequent DIY subwoofer and speaker sites. There are guys like the pic below that don't think a single sub is enough.

-Robert

 

[SHS]

I guess I can't understand how anyone could stand those SPLs for any length of time....well, at least without becoming deaf.
To each their own I guess.

 

[orestes]

I agree that bose = trash....

 

[Robert_J]

It's not about SPL, but extension and sound quality. To keep distortion at a minimum, you can't push your sub to it's limit. So you get a bunch of subs and let them all share the load. Now that guy just likes to build subs. If I had the time and money, I'd be just like him. I'm currently working on enclosures for 7 different drivers.

-Robert