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Ideas for Home Theater under $4K budget - creative ideas and thoughs are appreciated

post #1 of 9
10/4/09 at 9:11am
Thread Starter 
 Hello Folks - i am looking to get a new home theater system setup for my living room (tall ceilings, wooden floor, wooden cabinet).

Looking for following components.

1. Solid A/V receiver (7.1)
2. floor speakers (2)
3. sub woofer
4. center channel
5. surround through (in ceiling speakers - my wife wouldn't let me hang speakers - aesthetics!!)
6. IR remote (hide the controllers behind the wooden cabinet).

i have listened to several speakers in best buy (def tech, martin logan, vienna, klipsch); overall me an my wife like the sound of klipsch.

will be my first system; appreciate you all's help in this regard.

thanks
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post #2 of 9
10/4/09 at 10:52am
Would she allow you to use in-wall speakers for the surrounds?
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post #3 of 9
10/4/09 at 12:28pm
Yeah, in-wall would be a bit better.

Just some general thoughts...

If you like the Klipsch, go with them, but try to get a listen at some place better then Best Buy, if you can.

Get a direct market sub, such as SVS or Hsu.  Don't lock yourself into the same brand as your other speakers.

The other 5 speakers would ideally be from the same line, but requiring in-walls will probably make that impossible.  Just make sure the front 3 are the same line.

Martin Logans are excellent speakers, but few people are willing to set them up in the way they require.  They need a lot of space around them, particularly behind.  So I would probably steer clear of them.  Before any ML lovers come in complaining about that, read carefully what I said.  They are great speakers, but you can't just throw them in a room.

Don't spend too much on the receiver.  At your budget, I would put about 50% in the 5 speakers, 30% in the subwoofer and 20% in the receiver.
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post #4 of 9
10/4/09 at 1:29pm
If you liked the sound of Klipsch, check out the internet direct brand Axiom.  They are not as bright as Klipsch but still brighter than others (not as fatiguing, IMO - I am not a Klipsch fan).  For your budget you could get M60's, VP150, and M2 In-walls for the surrounds.  Add an SVS (or similar) sub and a nice Onkyo or Denon receiver (get the best you can AFTER you pay for the speakers) and you can easily get a great sounding system for $4k.  Check out Monoprice or Blue Jeans Cables for you wires.

M60 - $1000
VP150 - $400
M2 - $300 (or $600 if you want 4)
SVS PC12 - $1000
Denon 2310 - $900
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post #5 of 9
10/5/09 at 4:41am
Before deciding on Klipsch, think about the type of sound you would like.  For pure dynamics and volume, it's hard to beat Klipsch.  Also, I've heard many "younger" music fans claim that Klipsch sound more like live music.  At the ripe old age of 44, I now consider live music to be an acoustic concert, rather than electronic music cranked through a PA system.  Some times I still miss my old PA system :)

When you are comparing speakers, bring a quality recording of acoustic music, i.e. jazz, pop music, and then a well recorded movie with dialogue and natural sounds.  You may find that Klipsch delivers the punch that you are seeking.  On the other hand, you may that speakers of a different design make dialogue easier to understand, and acoustic nuances easier to identify.

Also, with a lot of hard surfaces in your room, you may find that speakers sound brighter in your home, than in a store with carpeting etc.
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post #6 of 9
10/12/09 at 6:56pm
Thread Starter 
 sorry for being silent; i had changed my phone and internet service; took me while to get back online.  thanks to ATT's not so friendly customer service.

appreciate all the input; i will start researching the suggestions mentioned here.
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post #7 of 9
10/13/09 at 3:41pm
I tink it's pretty hard to knock Denon's receivers, and Onkyo's line up is also a good value.  I'm a firm believer in what room EQ's bring to the table and I'd look for a receiver with the Audyssy's MultEQ XT platform.

I've never been a big fan of Klipsch, they probably stand out in a show room more than others because of a bit more focused directionality. I prefer speakers that have a bit better off axis performance and that are more into imaging than dynamics, although having both is a bonus. There's a good suggestion above, and that's to try to seek out stores with a bit better listening environment than BB to audition speakers. I favor speakers like Paradigm, PSB, and Energy since they seem to offer a real good bang for the buck in every price category.

I built some Rythmik Audio servo controlled subs a while back, and they were among the best I've come across regardless of price for music. They now sell finished subs that you should have a look at - there aren't too many servo controlled subs in that I know of anywhere close to their pricing...
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post #8 of 9
10/20/09 at 1:48pm
Thread Starter 
 i live in a small place; where there is only one electronics retailer that is Best Buy; can't go elsewhere to listen to other speakers.  i will research all the above options online.
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post #9 of 9
10/24/09 at 12:27pm
Look into the Polk Monitor speakers Newegg.com has on closeout right now.  There are some great deals and they are nice speakers.  You just don't know if they are to your liking and all sales are final on the closeout models.  Monitor 70s and CS2 in front with monitor 40s or 30s in back would be a very nice system for $700 or less delivered.
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