Help with appropriate Speakers/Receiver to bring out clear voice sound in small bedroom home theater (1 Viewer)

[schan1269]

1. Yes
2. The CS2 is the better center, period. The CS1 should "never" be paired with anything bigger than the 50. The CS2 goes with them all.
3. See 2
4. I wouldn't say that.
5. Yes and no. Depends what KIND OF BASS you wish to hear/feel vs your budget. I listen(especially at night while using Night Mode) w/o the subwoofer quite often on broadcast. DVD/BD I always turn it on. As you noted(if you looked them up) above, I have numerous sets of speakers. Except for the DCM TF600(which is no bass slouch itself), they can all achieve 35-ish hz...all by themselves.
So, buy your 3.0. Bookshelves or towers, makes no difference.
Even this...
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_8?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=sony+sscr3000&sprefix=sony+ssc%2Celectronics%2C0
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-SSF-5000-Floor-Standing-Speaker/dp/B000OG4E1G/ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1352122651&sr=1-4&keywords=sony+ssb3000 (essentially the tower version of the SSB3000)
Would be...
1. Huge improvement over the TV
2. For your ears, might be enough without a subwoofer.
Point is. Buy your 3.0. You can always add a sub.

 

[girbabe]

That helps. I think what made me panic was that a Polk thread mentioned how much better the CS2 sounded with the 60's and that there was a huge difference in sound from 50 to 60 but not so much difference from 60 to 70. Then reading about a great match that Denon and Klipsch make just made me feel worse about not getting the rc 52's.
By the way, the guy with the Klipsch towers on craigslist for $300 said he'd deliver them to me. Do you think it would be worth my while to wait until the black friday ads come out and see if there are any better deals before I start buying used? I have to borrow money from my ex if I buy from a private party and I'd rather not unless it was a screamin' deal.
And...one of the links you sent had a "3 way" tower. What's the difference between 3 or 2 way? Can you also tell me why you're steering me away from satellites?
I think that's all for now.

 

[schan1269]

The F2, for $300...delivered...
Good deal. Even on Amazon they are selling for $185 a piece used.
And $300 /piece is the going Ebay rate.
$400 in speakers...good price.

 

[girbabe]

But they're Synergies. You don't think I should hold out and try for a black friday "reference" deal?

 

[schan1269]

Nope. For that $300...if you decide you want to go ahead and get some Reference to do a side-by-side comparo...
Then you can either return the Reference if you can't tell a difference...
Or re-sell the Synergy for $250...and somebody will take them off your hands.

 

[girbabe]

While I'm waiting:
There are polk r300's on sale for really cheap ($59) that are normally $200. I can't seem to find any info on this model.
The Premier Acoustic PA 8C just came to my attention. It says it has the clearest sounding tweeter on the market today.
Your opinion on these two?

 

[schan1269]

Polk R series suck.
It isn't that they sound bad. It is the cabinet. These things are darn near made from cardboard. No, they really aren't that bad. But I wouldn't even give $60 for them.

 

[gene c]

Agree on skiping the R series.
Premier Acoustics...clearest tweeter on the market? Not likely at those prices. I just sold two pair of Polk Lsi7's and an LsiC with the fabulous Vifa Ring Radiating tweeter for $675 on CL. I'm already regretting it.
Keep looking.

 

[girbabe]

Okey doke. How about these:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/120965821736?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2648
http://www.ebay.com/itm/261110945443?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2648
http://www.ebay.com/itm/200467135373?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649
http://www.ebay.com/itm/140869804488?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2648
http://www.ebay.com/itm/130798043953?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2648

 

[girbabe]

Should I get these? Looks like a good deal. Only one bidder and it's ending in 9 hours. Would need help with a center. (Also, I made a post containing several links for Klipsch deals on ebay but the moderator intercepted for review and I don't know how long that takes)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Polk-LSi7-Main-Stereo-Speakers-/230876291289?pt=Speakers_Subwoofers&hash=item35c14ca0d9
EDIT: And so you guys know that I've really been listening to you, I found this thread that said my receiver can handle 4ohm speakers even though it doesn't specifically say. I hope this is a true statement because the more I read about the Lsi7's, the more I want them. I'd feel better if I had your opinion first before I commit.
http://www.hometheater.com/content/avr-4-ohm-speakers

 

[girbabe]

I set my alarm for 7:45am which gives me about 8 minutes to check your response before I go bid on the Lsi7's. After reading the description and your regrets for selling them, seems like I should own them. They seem WAY cool and I'm kinda excited. Can't go wrong for $250, yes? If I'm not outbid, I'll be back needing help finding a center. There isn't an LsiC to be found anywhere.

 

[gene c]

The LSi series is Polks top of the line speaker. They're gorgeous (in Cherry anyway), better bulid quality and much better materials and drivers/tweeters than any of their other speakers. However, they excel at music much more than HT. $250 for the LSi7's is about the limit for them as a "very good deal". LSiC's are much harder to find. But their sound is often referred to as dark or somewhat exaggerated in the mid-bass region. Not what you want for HT or dialog clarity so for you, I'd pass on them.
I've never owned Klipsch speakers but I bet they would be a good choice for you. But the RTi8's (or 6's) and a CSi3 (or 5 which is quite large) would be the ones I'd get if I were picking them out for you. I absolutely loved them for HT. Sounds like car crashes and broken windows burst from the speakers into my livingroom! But music is my priorety and they were just too bright too me. Male vocals sounded almost harsh. Boz Skaggs sounded like Mrs Skaggs.
Buying speakers is like going into a car lot. Everytime you go down a different row you find one with a bigger engine or a prettier color. For HT with an emphisis on dialog the Polk RTi's (RTi8's and a CSi3 are on sale right now), when on sale at Fry's, is the best fit for you IMO. Get the Ebony models. The cherry ones look and feel like cheap formica.
Off to work. Have a great day.

 

[girbabe]

::whew:: Thanks - will do. REALLY appreciate your input.
EDIT:
Also wondering about 2 way vs 3 way. If 3 way acts somewhat like a center speaker but on a smaller scale, would that enhance or interfere with the center?
And also wondering what Sam thinks about the reference series of the Klipsch links in my previous post in comparison to the Fry's Polk rti8/csi3 deal? You seemed to be on board with the rti8's but you have experience with the Klipsch. Gene is the opposite and I love having to think through the recommendations on both sides.
I prefer towers but it seems like the bookshelf's are always cheaper. Is there any significant difference in sound quality or just cheaper to manufacture?
Maybe this is all just overkill since any system I end up getting will never have heavy use and I certainly don't want to overpower the small bedroom space they're needed for. I also don't want to get on the upgrade-itis train either which is why I'm being such a pain here. You guys are so tolerant.

 

[gene c]

The cabinet is a large cost of making a speaker. The bigger the cabinet the higher the cost.
With the bigger cabinet comes the ability to produce a little deeper bass. But the RTi8 was never known as a speaker with really good bass response. A three-way speaker will have a more complicated the crossover network. But just because a speaker has 3 or more drivers doesn't mean it's a 3-way speaker. Look at the specs and see how many crossover points it has.
As I recall, the CSi3 was a very good match for both the RTi6 and RTi8. Even better than the CSi5. But I have a fairly large living room and wanted a larger center channel speaker so I opted for th CSi5. More than likely I just wanted big speakers all around .
I good mid-size bookshelf is usually more than enough for most of us, particularly if a good subwoofer is also used. But we all like our tower speakers. A three-way speaker with a small mid-range driver usually accentuates the upper mid-range where much of the vocals lie. But a good 2-way can be equally as good. The quality of the crossover is very important. More so than the number of drivers a speaker has. But the only way to tell which is better is by listening to them.
I'm sure you'll be happy with what ever you decide upon except maybe the R series. But I believe Mike Frezon (a Moderator around here) has those and seems quite satisfied with them.

 

[girbabe]

Hi guys - So, I have the receiver and ended up buying the BIC America 62CLRS and the DV84 speakers. Last night I hooked everything up and started the auto setup but it doesn't detect the center speaker. I moved the wires around to narrow down the problem and the speaker itself works fine. I then connected center speaker to Left connection and left speaker to center connection and center was detected but left speaker was not. I'm assuming it's a receiver issue? Can you guide me what to do next?

 

[Dave Upton]

What kind of receiver is it? Occasionally you have to do a hard factory reset to get things working. Unfortunately, it is also possible that your amplifier's center channel is not working because it's broken.

 

[girbabe]

It's a refurbished Denon 591. How do I reset? If it doesn't work, is that my last recourse and need to send it back?

 

[Dave Upton]

Turn it off by using the ON/Standby button
Hold 3 buttons, ON/Standby and the 2 surround buttons.

 

[girbabe]

Thank you! I got it working but have a question. I read something about the speakers being set to small even if they are floor models. When doing the setup, the center was small but it set the 2 main floor speakers as large. Should that be changed? I don't have a sub, just a 3.0.
Edit: Also, when checking the crossover frequency, one was set at full range and the other was 40hz. Is the acceptable? (I don't recall which was which but I'm assuming you're a seasoned receiver expert and probably know what I'm referring to).

 

[Dave Upton]

If you have a subwoofer, all speakers should be set to small (even massive floorstanders!). The reason for this is bass management. Much of the lower frequency content in a mix that is meant for your mains can't be reproduced at a loud enough volume by the speaker alone, so when you set to small, that energy below the crossover (we generally recommend 80Hz) is redirected to the subwoofer.
For your speakers, I'd start with 80Hz on the LCR and subwoofer for crossover point.