$3500 5.1 Speaker budget - help!! (1 Viewer)

[DanielK]

Hi,

I need some recommendations for a 5.1 speaker setup for around $3000-4000. I know it is ultimately up to one's ears, but suggestions/recs would be helpful as I'd like to rule out as many possiblities before making a final purchase. Will be running the speakers with the B&K 50/Sherbourn 5/1500a combo. Have a SVS sub for the low end. About 70/30 home theater/music - classical, vocals, soft rock. Considering either floor-standing or bookshelf's. Have auditioned Dynaudio audience series (didn't have contours available), Energy Veritas (2.3-2.1-2.0C which I really liked), and Paradigm Studio series. Heard great things about the Rockets, but audioenvy doesn't list anyone in the central Illinois area. Any other thoughts/recs/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Paul_Scott]

with that kind of budget you owe it to yourself to get the rockets in your house for 30 days.
you may be out a couple hundred $ if they don't work and you decide to send them back, but for 30 days you will get to extensively hear them, hear them in the actual room you will be using them (very important) and at the very least, have some better reference for when you go out to dealers to listen to other brands.
thats what i did.
i ended up not keeping mine, but i don't consider the money lost on shipping to be wasted money.
even though i went with something else , the rockets were unquestionably all around excellant speakers, superior HT speakers, and a tremendous value for their class.
i heard several speakers i would classify as good as them, usually for much more money, but i didn't hear any that i thought were significantly better, and of course, none that were a better value (when you take into account asthetics too).

other brands i liked the most;
Vienna Mozarts
Magneplanars 1.6
B&W cdm 1nts (?)

when i started shopping the first thing i was able to narrow choices down to were fabric tweeters.
all of the metal ones i heard could sound great, but began to fatigue me very quickly.
realizing that helped narrow my focus quite a bit.

 

[Dustin B]

That budget should allow you to get a complete set of GR-Research AV series speakers from Link Removed custom built. You could pick a very nice veneer and get it stained whatever color you want with that budget.
The only real issue here is unless you can get your hands on a demo pair you'll be taking a fairly large risk trusting others opinions as there will be no refunds on custom speakers like this.
If you are in or near Atlanta there is a DIY meet this Satarday and I think some completed GR-Research speakers will be there.

 

[Luis C]

The entire Maggie surround system can be had for $2800. There is virtually no speaker set that will match its detailed and lifelike presentation at anywhere near the price.

 

[MWestyn]

B&W would be my suggestion. I auditioned them after many others and was extremely impressed. Go to www.bwspeakers.com and find some speakers that fit your price range...you can't go wrong with them IMO.
If you do decide to go with B&W, there is a GP from an authorized retailer I am getting in on from another forum. PM me for more info (huge discount).

 

[harvey_mason]

ALl these choices are great, IF I can add one I would say the PSB stratus line IMHO cannot be beat for the buck.

I have heard speakers almost twice the price that didn't sound as good....

The sound stage is amazing. Do yourself a faver and listen to these speakers...

regards,
harvey

 

[Dustin B]

Not to rag on your suggestion harvey, but this is why I would recommend looking into the GR-Research Stuff:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...1+research+psb
I really trust Martice's opinion. But as always the DIY stuff like this is a bit of a risk. But the bigger the risk the bigger the reward (ok, bad saying for this but sort of true). A fully completed pair with a nice veneer finish is ~$800 from Rutledge Audio I believe.

 

[Brian Bunge]

Dustin,
Damn, you finally got pretty close to the price! BTW, if you haven't seen them yet, I just posted pics of my A/V-1+'s in the DIY forum.

 

[Anny Chien]

Audio Physics Virgo 1 or 2 Mains with the Center Channel $3000 used
with Definitive Tech BPX2 $500 with NHT superones rear $100

Proac Response 2.5 with ProAc Response CC-1 $3000 used
and above surrounds

NHT 3.3 with vs2a $2200 above surrounds used

Totem forest and Model 1 center $2500 used

Dynaudio 1.8 with contour center $3500

 

[Shane Yates]

I have heard the PSB Stratus series in 5.1 surround (Goldi mains, C6i center,Stratus Mini surr. and Sub 7) and they are awesome, best bang for the buck by far IMO. That setup would probably set you back around $3000-$4000.

 

[RichardH]

Since you already have a pre/pro, have you considered getting 5 active speakers? You might not like the hyper-accurate sound, but I think you should give something like the Mackie HR-624 a try. Or HR824 across the front and 624 in the rear. At least see if you like it.

Five of those plus SVS would be my ideal setup. Driven by a nice pre/pro of course.

 

[Sasha_G]

People will never truly know how the music was intended to sound like until they hear music through the types of studio monitors (i.e. professional speakers) used to master them. The most common studio monitors I've seen are the Genelecs ($4k) and the Mackie HR-824 ($1300 street). The Mackies sound incredible, and they are powered so they include the 150 watt amp built in.

At the AES convention, Mackie unveiled their new center channel and subwoofer, which I listened to in a noisy environment. These should be released shortly. I couldn't really tell how they sounded and din't get a price, but I know from before that the 824s simply rock.

The Mackies in particular have a wide sweat spot suitable for medium sized rooms. They get loud enough (121dB) and also have a auto-power on/off setting, so you don't have to hasle with turning on and off the amp. I would consider this the ultimate set of speakers to rival many of the rediculously priced consumer "high-end" units.

 

[Guy Usher]

If you are looking at "DANES" look no farther kit or otherwise they will sound great. . .

 

[Dave Vaughn]

M&K S-150's if it is 90% + for home theater use. They sound awesome and you can usually buy them off ebay.

Just my .02

 

[Mark Nguyen]

how about these?? I have them and love em...great for music and awesome with movies 5.1.
http://www.definitivetech.com/review...0HT/index.html
Good luck,
Mark

 

[Jeff Ery]

Before recommending anything that you should Listen to , I would suggest that we need much more information about the ROOM ,the things in the ROOM, speaker PLACEMENT ,LISTENING POSITION, TYPE OF acoustical TREATMENTS if any you might use,# of other SEATS and where they are, ETC....You have a B&K ,SO I would guess you are using the crossover controls and notch filter, but are you using anything else? While many of the previous recommendations may work for some, a pair of Maggies in the exteme corners of a room 16' apart listenened to from a sofa on one side of the room might very well be an utter waste of money.Many speakers don't do well off axis, or right along side of an entertainment center, or butted up against a wall. Many hobbyists have the luxury of treating/arranging/designing/tweeking the room to suit the speakers, you (if you're like many) live in a differant kind of room....