Basic 5.1/7.1 receiver recomendation (1 Viewer)

Hi Folks, I'm looking to semi-upgrade my home theater system that is 11yrs old. I'm planning to keep the 5 bose speakers and ditch the receiver + subwoofer (bose set the hpf/crossover to like 200hz and there's no way to change it). Now I found a polk subwoofer (psw10) for $99, but I'm having trouble finding a receiver. It doesn't have to be feature packed since it'll be hooked up to only my pc. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance!

Nick,


A few questions first:


1) Are the Bose speakers the cube-type speakers that are normally connected to a "Bass Module"? If so, they may not work with just any receiver. They are likely low-impedance speakers that will damage most receivers if you connect them. They really are designed to work with the Bass Module (it's technically not a subwoofer), and are mostly useless if you're not using the whole system. Do a search here for "Bose" to see why we really don't like them very much.


2) How will the system be connected to your PC? HDMI? I'm not very well versed on the PC side of things, but if you have a full HDMI (with lossless HD audio) output from your PC, then it may be pretty straightforward to use just about any off-the-shelf HDMI 1.4 reciever.


3) What is your budget? We can't offer much in the way of options without knowing how much you're willing to spend. If the Bose speakers can't be used, and you're faced with getting a whole new system you can expect to pay at a minimum $350-400 for a decent HTiB system that won't have to be scrapped the next time you decide to upgrade.


Finally, how large is the space you're trying to fill with sound? How loud do you like things to be? The 10" Polk subwoofer is not likely to really offer much in terms of decent "home theater" performance. While Polk makes decent speakers, their subwoofers are not much to write home about. You get much better value from a manufacturer who specializes in subwoofers.


Oh, and welcome to the forum!

1) The LS receiver is 350W; cube speakers 280Hz-13.3kHz @6.6ohms If they blow, that'll prove to my dad I need new 1s. 2) I was thinking of using RCA cables or optical. I mainly listen to music so true 5.1/7.1 isn't important to me. 3) I'd like a nice receiver but the hdmi 1.4a, 3d, and whatever it does with the tv signal I can live without. So, around $150-250 or less if it's w/o the fancy-smanchy things. 4) A 10x10 room. Comparing to a 1000w onkyo hts, i don't hear a difference of loudness vs my bose 350w but i like it loud. Like I said before, I mainly listen to music so if the sub hits lows hard, I'd be happy.

It's not the speakers that will 'blow'. It is the receiver that can be damaged. Bottom line, if you must use BO$E, only use them with the proper BO$E components.