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Using existing Bose .1 speakers & subwoofer with new receiver?

post #1 of 6
11/22/09 at 11:42am
Thread Starter 
I have an 8 year old 5.1 Bose Lifestyle system (do not have the model# at the moment) w/ 1 CD tray and radio, there is a powered subwoofer (the electronics are in the subwoofer), and the front and rear speakers. Being an older unit it does not have an optical cable or HDMI connector so I cannot use this with the new Samsung BD-P3600 Blu Ray player and Sony LCD TV I recently purchased. Rather than replace these speakers with an all-in-one home theater in a box, is it possible to retain the Bose speakers and use them with a new stand-alone HDMI receiver such as a Yahama? Or will the powered subwoofer electronics be a problem? I would prefer to utilize these speakers and replace the Bose Lifestyle 25 receiver with a decent receiver if possible. But I don't understand the electronics involved...

Thank you
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post #2 of 6
11/22/09 at 12:22pm
These all-in-one Bose systems are purposely designed not to work with components from other manufacturers. They have proprietary speaker connections, low impendance drivers (often times as low as 2 ohms) and unusual connection procedures so more than likely you can't use them with other receivers.

If the whole system is in decent shape then I'd throww the whole thing on ebay or craigslist. There's a pretty good market for used Bose, well, I'll be nice and call it "stuff"  , and get something better. Both you and your Samsung 3600 deserve better. And really, all things considered, I am being nice  .

P.S. Do a search of Bose reviews if you don't believe me. But be fore-warned. You won't like what you read.
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post #3 of 6
11/22/09 at 12:46pm
I agree with Gene. You won't find any love for Bose in any home theater community. Along with doing a search, see this: http://www.firstadopter.com/fa/archives/001749.html
Click on the links there too. Good reading..............

To save some money on speakers, you may find a good deal on some at Craig's List. I see good deals on there quite a bit. Just watch out for "White Van Speaker" systems. If you're not familiar with the brand, do a Google search for them. You'll find out if they're a scam set or not. Some of those sets have fake web sites, to try to make them look like more than they are.
Good luck!
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post #4 of 6
11/22/09 at 6:39pm
Do people still fall for the "White Van special"? I remember back 15  or so years ago it was easy to know it was a scam just by the weight alone 
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post #5 of 6
11/23/09 at 9:50am
Since you have a new TV and Blue Ray you need to upgrade your sound system to give justice to the rest of your components.   Start saving your money and start finding a speaker system and receiver your ears like.

You might find that those Bose Speakers might connect up to your PC, and if you have a decent sound card might actually sound better than many of the PC speakers you can purchase.
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post #6 of 6
11/23/09 at 2:26pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks all, that was pretty much what I expected. Since I don't need a Blu Ray or DVD player I was looking at the Onkyo HT-S5100 system because of the tons of rave reviews for this mid-range system. I haven't yet had a chance to hear them yet though. They have just the pass-through HDMI but sounds like a lot of folks with more knowledge than I like them. But I've always wanted a decent Yahama or Pioneer receiver and a decent set of speakers and I'll check around.
Thanks again!
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