Help me build a setup for my smoking bar!

beezalee · 04-10-2007, 02:01 PM

Hi guys,

I am a small-business owner and am in need of some advice. I've been visiting this site for years and have found the information to be helpful.

Anyway, I have a cigar/hookah bar opening up within the next month or so. I am planning on playing music in the background at a low to medium level. I have settled on having a system that comprises of 4 bookshelf speakers with no sub, and an entry to mid-level receiver. The size of the main seating area is 26' (w) x 26' (l)

The main criteria for the speakers is that they should be the best for music. These speakers will not be used for HT use. I am biased towards Klipsch ( i have several setups at home) and I have heard a couple of sets from B&W (which sound amazing) The format of my music however, is MP3.

With regards to the receiver, there aren't any specifics that I can think of right now. Preferably, it should have 3 digital coax inputs for my 3 cable boxes. I am thinking of getting something from Denon.

Lastly, for my budget, I'm looking at around $300 per pair for the bookshelf speakers and around $300-400 for the receiver. I just want to say thanks for checking out my post, and any help you guys give will be appreciated. Please don't let me make the wrong decisions!

ThomasC · 04-10-2007, 05:19 PM

These are very good speakers for the price ($220): AV123 x-ls

They aren't in stock right now, but I believe they should be in a week or two. You can call them up and ask about availability.

Circuit City has the Denon AVR687 for $400. Do any of your cable boxes have optical outputs? The Denon only has 2 coax inputs, but it also has 2 optical inputs. If they're only outputting stereo, then there's no need to go with either. Just get a few stereo RCA cables and you're set.

Jacob C · 04-10-2007, 09:47 PM

Ascend Acoustics 170's are a little out of your price range (~$50) but I know that they let you know you are playing mp3's and not the CD. The sound quality difference is obvious on my system. Maybe what you need is a appealing sounding speaker and not necessarily an accurate one. Just a thought.

MaxL · 04-11-2007, 10:07 AM

for me, i'd check out the monitor b-2's ($280/ pair) or the psb alpha c deal ($140 ea or 5 for $600) both from saturday audio. there are advantages to each. neither are small speakers, but the added size should make for better sound in a room that size even at moderate levels. the monitor speakers may be a tad warm for you if you really like klipsch. but they go down to a very respectable 42hz at the low end, very good for a bookshelf at this price. the psb's (i have one for my HT center) are very neutral and accurate without being grainy or sharp, not overly detailed, which may be a plus for digital material. the MA bronzes should warm up the digital as well and smooth it out.

as for the receiver i am a bit confused. do your cable boxes only have digi coax out? do you want digital surround receiver or stereo amp with four speaker outs? you can find both used in your price range but with very different sound qualities. personally i'd go for a vintage marantz or sony, pioneer, kenwood etc. they will pair nicely with the digital sources to balance the sound IMO. they have good power sources and many models with extra speaker outs. they will only take RCA's in though. without looking, i don't think there are many choices w/3 digi coax ins, new, for your price. you're also not going to find many if any 2 channel options with coax ins. for the surround option, i like the onecall deal on the marantz zr6001, nice amounts of clean power, gets you 2 digi coax ins and a gererally well made piece that should last you and sound good. they also have the HK AVR 147 - it's in your budget and has 3 digi coax ins (1 front). i hesitate to recommend it though because it is the bottom of their line and i've heard about quality control issues in their low-mid level stuff. it's a shame because HK specs well for the price and is historically a respected name in the industry.

anyway, good luck

beezalee · 04-11-2007, 10:31 AM

I mentioned 3 digital coax ins for the convenience of switching through 3 of the cable boxes that i have. If it's going to be out of budget to compensate for this, i don't see any issues with the receiver not having these features. Now that I think about it, I'll probably just connect the cables boxes to my receiver via stereo connectors since I don't have a traditional surround sound setup anyway.

The receiver should also be able to take a stereo signal and output it to the 4 speakers without compromise. I mean, there should be 2 left channels and 2 right channels for any given source. I don't want a receiver that just emulates a surround sound experience with a stereo source.

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MaxL · 04-11-2007, 12:02 PM

yeah for me i'd by used in that case. if you've got a used/ speciality hifi shop around, go to them first. compare prices to ebay, most dealers will negotiate on used gear or throw in cables or something. in chicago i went to saturday audio and decibel audio. don't know where you are. i'd look at the marantz 1060 integrated amp, a couple on ebay now - drive 4 speakers, 4 line level inputs (don't include phono in, not line level). while 30 wpc rms sounds low, it's a very conservative rating and will blow out many new amps boasting 100+wpc. for newer gear, i had an onkyo inegra integrated amp (a-9711) mid 90's, well made, more inputs, more power (on paper), drove 2 sets of speakers. before i traded it in for my HT receiver, i pitted the onkyo built in the 90's rated @ 80wpc against my sony built in the early 70's rated @ 30wpc. i hooked up one of my cambridge audio speakers and one AR speaker to each and did a bunch of comparisons. the sony won in every category IMO. it sounded more dynamic, detailed, open and surprisingly had plenty more head room especially for the relatively power hungry AR's. i am listening to it as i type this. the only reason i'm not recommending it is because it only has 2 rear non-phono ins and one 1/4" plug aux-in in front, doesn't give you a lot of flexibility unless you get an external box input switch ($50 give or take). mind you, the onkyo was a solid piece of gear, i'm not trying to knock it.

anyway, lacking a decent local shop, i'd go ebay all the way. i can recommend more particular models if you like.

good luck

beezalee · 04-11-2007, 04:19 PM

OK, so I went to my local Tweeter store. I'm in Boston by the way and this was the closest store I found to be a "specialist" in audio/video equipment. They're going out of business, so there were a lot of deals that I found. Unfortunately, their selection for the given price range was limited. I did find something that I think sounds pretty good. What do you guys think of the following speaker and receiver combo:

Bookshelf: Polk Audio RTI4 x 4 @ $208/pair before tax
Receiver: Yamaha RX-797 @ $420 before tax

Anyone have any experience or thoughts on either?

MaxL · 04-11-2007, 05:07 PM

i don't know what your timeline or the closing tweeter's is but here's my thoughts:

1 - nothing wrong with that stuff. i understand if you're in a hurry and don't want to go running around to find this gear, you don't have to look any further. i wouldn't call it a great deal, but it's not a ripoff either. my only other concern is where is the next closest tweeter if there's something wrong with any of it?

2 - personally i'd want to check out some other options. i suggest two places in particular. spearit sound on comm ave link here. they have used gear and high end stuff. they have a refurbed NAD 720bee, very nice, different leage from the yammy sound wise, for $450, very good deal IMO. also check out cambridge soundworks in newton or check out the warehouse sale going on this weekend in norwood. they have their own speakers, some of which are very nice. plus they sell eveything else you need.

whatever you do, good luck

beezalee · 04-19-2007, 12:29 PM

Can anyone make a recommendation if I wanted to get Klipsch bookshelf speakers?

I'm a bit hesitant with Polk and need to listen to a set of Klipsch bookshelf speakers before making my decision.