Discrete In-Ceiling Speakers - No Bigger Than ~7" Diameter Grill - Recommendations? (1 Viewer)

I'm hoping some folks can recommend in-ceiling speakers that are less than ~7" in diameter grill. The wife would like something as discrete as possible and I'm hoping for decent sound even though I'm limited to around 7" or less. I would like to spend around $300 or less--willing to go a bit higher but only if I see the added value. My needs:

[*]5.1 set up in living room
[*]2.0 in office
[*]2.0 in master bedroom
[*]2.0 in master bath (one in shower and one outside of shower; none of the speakers below are specified for moisture/outdoor use--still haven't researched shower speakers but if anyone has any suggestions, by all means!)
[*]2.0 in laundry/powder (both are really small rooms that are near each other so one channel in each room)
[*]2.0 in garage (plan to reuse some old 8" driver Sonance)
[*]4.0 outside (2.0 on roof deck and 2.0 for patio area--still haven't researched outdoor speakers so if anyone has any suggestions, by all means!)
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Below are some that I found so far. I'm leaning towards Polk 500-LS because they seems to have the best specs/price. The Niles is really interesting due to sheer size. The Polk SC50 is nicely priced with good specs but the thick bezel is a turnoff. I'm impressed with the new Jamo's and how they squeezed a 6.5 driver in under 8" exterior diameter. I like the KEF and Paradigm but the brand label on the grill is a turnoff.

Niles CM4PR
Around $225 w/ 4-5/8" diameter grill
3.5" driver w/ enclosure
70Hz - 21kHz
25 - 100 watts

Definitive Technology DI 4.5R
Around $220 w/ 5-3/8" diameter grill
4.5" driver
35 Hz - 30 kHz
88 dB sensitivity
10 - 150 watts

Polk 500-LS
Around $300 w/ 7-3/4" diameter (a bit too big)
5" driver w/ enclosure
35Hz-33kHz
89 dB sensitivity
10 - 125 watts

Polk SC50
Around $100 w/ 7-1/4" diameter
5" driver
50Hz - 20kHz
88 dB sensitivity
20 - 100 watts
I don't really like the thicker bezel around the grill but it is cheap.

Monitor Audio CWT-140
Around $150 w/ 7-1/8” diameter
4" driver
75Hz - 30kHz
85 dB sensitivity
10 - 50 watts

Yamaha NS-IC400
Around $150 w/ 5-7/8”diameter
4" driver
95 Hz - 40 kHz
85 dB sensitivity
30 - 90 watts

Speakercraft CRS3
Around $135 w/ 5-1/8" diameter
3" driver
80Hz - 16kHz
86dB sensitivity
40 watts

Jamo IC 206 FG (2-way)
Around $225 w/ 7.9" diameter
6.5" driver
68Hz - 21kHz
55 - 110 watts

Jamo IC 206 LCR FG (3-way)
Around $350 w/ 7.9" diameter
6.5" driver
68Hz - 21kHz
55 - 110 watts

Sonance VP45R
Around $250 w/ 6-7/8" diameter
4.5" driver
58Hz - 20kHz
90 dB sensitivity
5 - 70 watts

KEF Ci130QR
Around $130 w/ 7.6" diameter
5 1/4" driver
45Hz - 34kHz
87 dB sensitivity
10-100W

Paradigm AMS-100R
Around $150 w/ 7.7" diameter
6.5" driver
75 Hz - 22 kHz
89 dB sensitivity
15 - 100 watts

You don't want 5.1 in-ceiling. Put the front three on the wall with the TV. There are even LCR bars that you can attach to the TV.There is absolutely no excuse to mount the front three wrong.

Yup, you definitely want that center to face you/the sitting area directly. I would recommend the SpeakerCrafts more detailed for the price and size. These are a few of the models I've personally listened to and recommended. But the rule of audio is always is whatever sounds great to you. 6 1/2" CRS6 ONE 7" AIM7TWO Pivoting tweeter does come in handy. Btw, what A/V will you run your system with?

Audio14 said:

Btw, what A/V will you run your system with?

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I was thinking about using this old receiver for the 5.1: http://www.integrahometheater.com/model.cfm?m=DTR-7.6&class=Receiver&p=i

Pretty good receiver, nice specs especially THX. You should be fine with whatever speakers you decide on

Replacing that AVR with a current one isn't cheap. I have a 7.8(and a 5.8).I assume that it takes audio off the HDMI...???As long as the BD player You choose decodes lossless, you are good to go(the AVR will just see MCH PCM).

schan1269 said:

Replacing that AVR with a current one isn't cheap. I have a 7.8(and a 5.8). I assume that it takes audio off the HDMI...??? As long as the BD player You choose decodes lossless, you are good to go(the AVR will just see MCH PCM).

Click to expand...

No it won't be cheap which is exactly why I plan to continue using it. I'm unsure whether it takes audio via HDMI because I inherited it from the previous home owner. But I'm not too worried if it doesn't because I can always use optical or coax.

Good news-ish...

The OM of the 7.6 says it supports over HDMI...

2.0 PCM
5.1 LPCM up to 96/24 (probably accepts 7.1 as well...but 7.1 didn't exist yet)
Bitstream DD and DTS

So, at worst, a BD player will have to be set 5.1 PCM. (which if you buy a new BD player, many are losing internal decoding...so pay attention to what you get)

schan1269 said:

Good news-ish...

The OM of the 7.6 says it supports over HDMI...

Click to expand...

Thanks for finding this out. Don't hate on me but we don't even own a bluray player. Mostly because we're not big movie people, we watch a movie about once every 6 weeks maybe and we'll probably stream it from Netflix.

To clarify a bit about us, our balance does lean towards aesthetics (wife does design) more so than sound but I would still like to maximize the quality of sound as much as possible even though we have chosen to limit the speaker size and type (in-ceiling although might consider speaker bar for front L/C/R). We chose ~7" or less because we taped templates onto the ceiling of where speakers would be located and thought ~7" still looked aesthetically pleasing. We're mostly into music as background, we watch some TV and we watch very little movies. We're not audiophiles but I still appreciate good sound and want the best bang for my buck with the size limitations we have arbitrarily created.

I've never heard their LCR bars. Didn't know they existed till about 18 months ago. But...

http://www.leonspeakers.com/hz.html (I would really like to see their 616 made 10' wide. Yes...10 feet)

Another good option is the Pinnacle QP 9 and WAFR bars(which I used to sell Pinnacle wholesale. Pinnacle, under contract, came up with the original Pioneer PDP speakers...which they in turn...morphed the idea into the QP...and now WAFR)

Def Tech also has LCR bars in the Mythos line.

It is a point of conjecture about Pinnacle's QP or Leon's Horizon being the "first LCR bar"...

Pinnacle QP were sold with the original Pioneer PDP as an option, instead of the "flank" speakers Pioneer contracted for.
Leon, apparently, started the LCR bar to sit on top of RPTV.

Here is the link to the manual for the 7.6(really a 6.6 manual with "oh, your 7.6 does this as well" sections)

http://www.manualslib.com/manual/77647/Integra-Dtr-7-6-6-6.html?page=34#manual (hopefully you can page left and right...if not you can find it at "manualslib")

schan1269 said:

I've never heard their LCR bars. Didn't know they existed till about 18 months ago. But...

http://www.leonspeakers.com/hz.html (I would really like to see their 616 made 10' wide. Yes...10 feet)

Another good option is the Pinnacle QP 9 and WAFR bars(which I used to sell Pinnacle wholesale. Pinnacle, under contract, came up with the original Pioneer PDP speakers...which they in turn...morphed the idea into the QP...and now WAFR)

Def Tech also has LCR bars in the Mythos line.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the Leon link along with the other soundbar suggestions. The Leon looks interesting, quite pricey for me but the ability to custom match size and color to the TV model is an interesting feature.

Do the WAFRs sound pretty good? Pretty thin at 2".

I'll have to research soundbars more.

What would you recommend for in-ceiling rears to go with a soundbar if you were limited to around 7" diameter visibility (not cutout)?

IF you go Leon...

http://www.leonspeakers.com/axis.html (tell them the paint you used...they'll pre-paint them...prior to shipping)

Pinnacle

http://www.pinnaclespeakers.com/wafr626.html

I suggest sticking to the same manufacturer in the 5.1 area. The rest of the house just make sure the same brand in each room.

And yes...Leon is pricey. But...your speakers, if you do it right, will be around 20+ years.

schan1269 said:

IF you go Leon...

http://www.leonspeakers.com/axis.html (tell them the paint you used...they'll pre-paint them...prior to shipping)

Pinnacle

http://www.pinnaclespeakers.com/wafr626.html

I suggest sticking to the same manufacturer in the 5.1 area. The rest of the house just make sure the same brand in each room.

And yes...Leon is pricey. But...your speakers, if you do it right, will be around 20+ years.

Click to expand...

Does that mean same sub manufacturer as well?

wildta said:

Does that mean same sub manufacturer as well?

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(The quick response is because I saw "when" you liked the prior post)

Typically...no.

The best sub manufacturers either...

1. Make nothing but subs. (Velodyne. Although many here would call them way overpriced...nobody would kick one out of their theatre either)
2. Make other speakers as an afterthought(for those that "just want to match"...I would put HSU in this category)
3. Do make other speakers...but they "make nothing cheap"...speaker wise(SVS falls into this category)

As far as an investment in speakers. They can actually accentuate the value of the home during re-sale.

The house I am in now, I negotiated with the prior owner over what he was going to leave in the actual theater. Originally the house was to be sold "bare".

I negotiated leaving the Screen Research ClearPix (we met on a specific cost factor...and paid for it outside the mortgage)

There were a few others as well that stayed or went. (such as the 60" front deck lawnmower he had "for sale"...which ended up part of the mortgage. It helped it was October when I bought the house...lawnmowers aren't exactly hot sellers that time of year)

In addition to that AVR, I also have this SonAmp Cinema 5150:
http://www.richard-hooker.com/sites/sonance/elect/5150.htm

My assumption is the previous owner used the AVR as the processor. Would there be a difference in sound quality if you connect a separate amp like the 5150 to a receiver instead of a preamp processor? Maybe I will just test it out and if I don't like it I can just buy a separate processor like this one:

http://shop.emotiva.com/collections/processors/products/umc200

The only issue with that amp is you will have to make sure your 5.0 speakers are 8ohm and higher. Bridging requires it.