Does the madness ever end? (1 Viewer)

[Maneesh]

Compared to most people here, I have a modest setup - Kenwood VR507 receiver, Michaura M55 (like Axiom M22ti) x 5, Sony SA-WM40 sub. It has served me well over the years.

Recently, I have some disposable income and started lurking here again, and thoughts of an upgrade began popping in

I am happy with my speakers but am thinking of getting a better receiver and sub (I hear SVS calling my name).

But when do I reach the point of diminishing returns? Obviously it depends on the budget, but I have a feeling I'm getting sucked into the vortex yet again... reading forum posts, researching and pricing components, it can get pretty addictive

Of course a big part of the thrill is getting new stuff and playing with it, but honestly people, how many of you have spent more time and money than you should have ?!

 

[Robb Roy]

Maneesh,

While that's a very subjective question, I'd have to say more often than not I've spent NOT ENOUGH on gear, and wound up making another purchase later. If I'd spent what I should have up front, I'd have saved the expense of the previous inferior purchase. Of course, those limits were often imposed rather than voluntary.

-Robb

 

[Garrett Lundy]

Ideas of diminishing returns:

*Spend a good chunk of $$$ on your subwoofer. Todays films, and some music styles, are extremely bass-heavy. And any HT-fan will tell you that a subwoofer bottoming-out is about the saddest sound in movies :frowning:

If you told you you were going to buy a Kenwood 5.1 HTiB for $399 and a $599 SVS subwoofer to go with it, I think it would be a perfectly reasonable combination. No upgrade short of a FP will gain more acclaim than a truley impressive subwoofer.

*Most of the time, in a small to medium room, even crap speakers are usually "good enough" for HT. As long as they aren't underpowered and clipping, I can't honestly tell a difference betwixt my Paradigm set-up and my neighbors Aiwa HTiB. For music listening, the difference is easily appearant however.

*Buy a good receiver. Eevn bad HTiB speakers are OK most of the time if they aren't being destroyed by too little power.

*A cheap FP is usally better than a RPTV costing 300%. Even a bad FP is an amazing thing to own.

If I had to do it again I would spend less on the speakers and instead spend the money on a better receiver. I likes my SVS I would also have no started a DVD collection. Instead i would have rented (Netflix), and instead spent the cash on a FP.

 

[Andy F]

If you're using this equipment for mostly or entirely HT, focus your money on the Center channel, sub and receiver. Probably in that order, but it depends on what you think of as the weakest link in your system now.

 

[DavidCooper]

Heck by doing a TON of research and asking question after question. I have been able to put together a REALLY impressive sounding system while keeping a modest budget.

If I wasn't addicted to all of this I wouldn't have made the choices I have made when it comes to getting the most for my money.

I have a couple of friends that have a much bigger HT budget and they have spent some serious cash on their systems. They don't do really any internet reading or forum stuff. They just bought what they thought would work off of recommendations from a local high end dealer. Needless to say....when they heard my system they were floored. They both couldn't believe how it sounded.....and they about passed out when I compared the prices of my equipment vs. theirs. It's all about finding the best you can get for the money......I guess.....but the "upgrade" bug will still bite from time to time!

 

[Eddie Horton]

What I'm doing with my system is putting the money where it counts for me on the things that I can get the most life out of. I'm going with a set of Axioms and an SVS sub. Next, I'll add a reasonably priced multi-channel amp. Since I use my HT 100% for movies and zero for music, spending thousands on a speaker set up really doesn't do anything for me, and the Axiom/SVS system will keep me happy for years to come. My wife and I lucked up when my folks bought us a 51" Sony RPTV for a wedding gift, so that is taken care of for a while, but sometime down the road I'll add a projector. I currently own a Yamaha HTR-5790 receiver and a Zenith DVB-318, so until something comes out that works better than Dolby PLIIx and until HD-DVD arrives, I'm set. A little long winded, but my point is: spend the money so later there are no regrets, and spend it where it will last. I'd definately go with the SVS. That's my 2 cents, anyway.

 

[MarkusP]

Dennis - what type of system do you own? You don't have anything listed in your profile.

Thanks,
Mark