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Looking for advice

#1
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10/14/09 at 4:45pm
  • Joined: October 2009
  • Post Count: 1
Hello all, I'm looking to buy my first home theater set up and still have a lot of questions that I hope yall could help me with.

I know I'm wishing hard, but does there exist a 7.2 receiver that can send two separate subwoofer channels?  What I mean by that is can I have a multiroom setup where one room is playing 5.1 surround sound, and the other room is playing 2.1 stereo from a separate source?

If i go with a 7.1 multiroom setup (5.1 home theater, 2.0 in the kitchen), is there anyway I can add a subwoofer to the second zone?
Also, if I have speakers plugged into the zone 2 output, can I have it play the same source as zone 1?  (ie, hear the TV from the kitchen)

What about wireless speakers?  Are they any good?  Same questions as above apply for these.

Multimedia storage:

I like the Seagate Freeagent theater+:

http://www.seagate.com/www/en-us/products/external/freeagent/freeagent_theater_plus/
 
I see that it has network capabilities, but does anyone know if it will behave like a network drive that I can access from my computer and move files onto (wirelessly, while it is downstairs and I'm on my computer upstairs)?  

What bout this Cirago multimedia center:

http://www.cirago.com/cmc1000.htm

Same goes for this one, can it act as a network drive so that I can add files to it from my PC (wirelessly as well)?

Lastly, what are your thoughts on an HTPC?  From what I know, they're great cuz they do everything.  But whats holding me back is the higher cost, the amount of work involved, and if I'll have to deal with long boot times.    

Thanks for the help guys!
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#2
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10/16/09 at 10:40am
  • Joined: November 1999
  • Post Count: 5,747
Off the top of my head I don't know of any AVRs that will let you split multiple sub outputs.  I know of some that have multiple outputs but they are designed fro 5.2 and 2.0.  Are you looking for in-ceiling and in-wall speakers or bookshelf speakers?  Depending on how you hook them up you could still use a sub.

As to the media boxes, I'm not sure what you are going to use them for.  An XBOX360 Arcade is cheaper at $199.  It is an extender and can "stream" pictures, videos and recorded TV from a PC running Windows Media Center (Vista Home Premium and above or Windows 7).  If you have an XBOX Live Gold membership (about $35-40/year) you can even stream Netflix VOD if you are a Netflix subscriber.  Plus you can use it for gaming.  Any other XBOX360 model will work too.

When it comes to the HTPC I would read through the HTPC forum here and post there with any questions.

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#3
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10/16/09 at 3:59pm
  • Joined: August 1999
  • Location: Katy, TX
  • Post Count: 5,823


Quote:
Originally Posted by Patrick Tang View Post

I know I'm wishing hard, but does there exist a 7.2 receiver that can send two separate subwoofer channels?  What I mean by that is can I have a multiroom setup where one room is playing 5.1 surround sound, and the other room is playing 2.1 stereo from a separate source?


If the receiver has speaker terminals for the second zone, you could use a subwoofer there that has speaker-level inputs and outputs. If you’re using the line-level sends for the second zone, you will need a local amplifier. You could just us another HT receiver with a sub output.
 

Quote:
Also, if I have speakers plugged into the zone 2 output, can I have it play the same source as zone 1?  (ie, hear the TV from the kitchen)
Most second zone receivers give the option of simultaneously listening to the primary zone’s source.
 
 
Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 


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“A nice mid-fi system,” according to an audiophile acquaintance.

My Tech / DIY Articles and Reviews
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#4
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10/20/09 at 12:10pm
  • Joined: October 2009
  • Post Count: 17
I suggest running two receivers, one for the home theater and one for the kitchen.  The output from all source equipment (cable, DVD, so on) can be fed to both systems and accessible simultaneously in both systems.

I had a Mac Mini connected to my Home Theater for a couple years.  I never turned the computer off, so boot time wasn't an issue.  Used a wireless keyboard and mouse and was able to play DVDs and iTunes movie downloads.  Replaced the Mini with an Apple TV.

What do you anticipate using the multimedia storage device for?  If its saving and playing pictures and HOME movies, the the Segate device will work fine.  If you want to ability to download and play movies, iTunes/Apple TV or XBox/NetFlix are good options.

Neither storage device you mentioned appears to be wireless.  However, given you have a wireless access point or wireless router configured on your network, wired and wireless computers should be able to access the device.

Wireless speakers need power, so you will need to run house current wires to the wireless speakers instead of a speaker wire.
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