No idea what I'm doing. Need help (1 Viewer)

I'm looking to purchase a receiver to run the sound and video in my bar/living room. The room is 16' wide and about 40'-45' long. I'm going to be using ceiling speakers (not yet purchased). I also want to mount 2 outdoor speakers outside. I'm thinking I can get 4 speakers inside and then the two outside. I really have no idea what kind of receiver I need or whereto place the speakers (or even what speakers to buy). It's mostly going to be st up for music and sports. Do I really need it to be surround? I can't see how this would work because of the layout of the room. I kind of want all the same sound to come out of all of the speakers. Also is there a way to have the 4 speakers inside on while the 2 outside are off? I know I'm missing things I want to ask, but that's good for now.

You are describing every Zone 2 AVR on the market.

You should run your front 3(surround uses 5, not 4) on the wall with the TV.

And no...you don't "need" surround...you can run any AVR you purchase as 2.0, 3.0, 2.1, 3.1, 5.0 or 5.1.

To help further...

We need...

Your sources you want played Zone 2(most AVR are analog Zone...meaning red/white RCA).

Budget(so we don't send you a recommendation for the Denon 4520...unless you need what it does).

And you do know building code rules...CL rated wire. Wire for speakers can't be in the same wall cavity as power wire...etc

This is where the tv will be mounted and this is the layout of the room. Nothing can be mounted over the bar only in the drop ceiling.

The only things that will be running through it would be a Directv Genie and the tv. I'd like to stay under $500 for the receiver. I just looked up zone 2. I don't think that's what I'm looking for. The speakers outside will be playing whatever is on inside when they are on. But most of the time they will be off. I know I sound stupid, but I'm a level zero when it comes to this stuff. And all of the speaker wire will be run above the drop ceiling.

If you mount your TV There, you can mount an LCR bar with it.Google...Leon HorizonThere is also Zone B.Look up the Yamaha RX V575 on Amazon. $350 New$300 refurb

Awesome. Thanks a lot.

Also, I have an Onkyo receiver upstairs that is about 5 years old and it requires an audio cable and an HDMI cable to run to the TV. Is this new going to require an audio cable or will everything run through the HDMI?

The 575 takes audio off the HDMI. Making this simpler. It also has net support so you can use it via your phone/tablet...

This will be a cool option...(blasphemy to some...and sorta even to me, but here it is...solves your dilemma...it would help to know where in the room the 2nd pic is)

I am going to assume that the surround speakers aren't going to be "placed ideal". (providing a room layout would help in this regard)

Using Atlantic Tech...
One of these...
http://atlantictechnology.com/default.asp?NodeId=57

With two of these...
http://atlantictechnology.com/default.asp?NodeId=165

Notice that in-ceiling is a "single source stereo"...
My suggestion. Run your 4/5 in series to both speakers...so both speakers are 4/5(and yes...I know you don't "get that"...)

Using single source stereo speakers would probably solve a bunch of "where do the speakers go".

Those are quite nice.... but the price is a bit much for me. There is also a home theater in my basement and am going to go ALL OUT for that one (in the near future). For this room I just want something that plays good music and so that you can here ''the game'' throughout the entire room. The receiver is awesome. Just don't want to kill myself on speakers... yet.

I found the AT FS4000 on Amazon...yeah...$800. There are less expensive iterations...

http://www.amazon.com/Pinnacle-Speaker-Wood-9-Element-Bar/dp/B007O1NPYG/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1396153799&sr=1-1&keywords=pinnacle+qp ($200...at the moment)

I do suggest multiple single source stereo speakers in the downstairs area...maybe three(which count as 6 speakers).

The idea is to run the "surround" of the 575 to all three. Then no matter where people are in the room...the speaker they are near...is the surround speaker. And then when listening to the AVR in all channel stereo...you have stereo from all 4 locations(if you go LCR and three SSS)...

This gets decent reviews as well...

http://www.amazon.com/Dayton-AudioBS36-36-Inch-Speaker-Black/dp/B000YQBW5C/ref=cm_cr_dp_asin_lnk

Now we're talking. I know who I'm talking to when I do decide to set up the home theater!

I can do $200 if that one is the better one in your opinion.

I used to sell CE wholesale. One of our brands was Pinnacle. They created the idea of the "flat panel speaker" on request of Pioneer for their first plasma televisions. If you look up those Pioneer speakers...all of them are actually Pinnacle.

Pinnacle spun that idea into the LCR bar. Leon claims they came up with the LCR bar first(apparently they were building them to sit on top of RPTV).

No matter...Leon did it first. Pinnacle, at least, recreated it to match modern flat panel...(splitting hairs)

And if I do the 6 channels downstairs then I can only have one outside speaker?

You still run two separate ones outside...although...

http://www.amazon.com/OSD-Audio-AP550TT-White-5-25-inch/dp/B001X87QUU/ref=sr_1_23?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1396154556&sr=1-23&keywords=osd+outdoor+speaker (yes, that is left and right in one enclosure)

Depends how you want to skin this cat.

Lunchbox824 said:

And if I do the 6 channels downstairs then I can only have one outside speaker?

Click to expand...

Don't think of it as "6 channels"...

It is 2 channels in triplicate...

And you'd have to run the 3 left and 3 right in a series/parallel arrangement(which...if it comes to that it is easy to explain)

Hahaha... you were doing so well at speaking my language.

Lunchbox824 said:

Hahaha... you were doing so well at speaking my language.

Click to expand...

Could even make this simpler with one of these...
http://www.amazon.com/Speaker-Selector-Impedance-Matching-Output/dp/B002I9XKTE/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1396154850&sr=1-1&keywords=impedance+speaker+switch

Wire the surround to that...and then you can choose when the 3 sets of speakers are actually playing. Maybe it is just 2-3 people huddled with the TV...leave the closest surround speaker on...turn the other two off.

Ok, so I could purchase the soundbar, the 3 ceiling speakers and the 2 outdoor speakers and they would all be able to run through that receiver?

That does sound simple.