Help me move up from Bose! (1 Viewer)

[Joe Szott]

Hi,

I have a HT setup which is pretty decent except for the sound. I have a Bose Series 7 that includes the 3 satelittes/subwoofer front, 2 (model 110?) speakers for the rear, and an extra Sony SW-40 subwoofer I added and modified for extra bass. The bass is nice, the rest is so-so. I wanted to get a new center channel speaker, but am now thinking about replacing the entire Bose speaker set based on comments from here, the Spot!, and AVS forums.

On to the help: if I replaced these speakers with something like the NSP1 set from JBL, would I see an improvement in the sound? I need to stay with satelitte type speakers for the front/rear, due to the many destructive children that freerange in our house. Floor speakers = Dead speakers for us. If not the NSP1, what is a good 5 speaker combo for under $500 that I could mostly hang on the wall?

Although our Yamaha RX receiver doesn't support 5.1 DTS, we will probably upgrade that early next year or so -- I figure the speakers are a bigger bottleneck right now.

Can anyone help? I'm mostly an audio newb, don't really know what are the good deals and what's all the rest.

Thanks...

 

[Joe Szott]

How do the JBL S series compare to the N series? Would 4 S36W speakers and a center S (i or ii?) perform a ot better than the NSP-1 package? I really don't know how to compare these speakers very well.

 

[Geno]

"I really don't know how to compare these speakers very well. "

My $.02: use your ears. they are the best. go to many different stores and listen to the ones that fit your preferences. move them around, check them out. if you have a budget, just post the model #'s for the speakers you think sound the best within that budget and someone will tell you if its a good deal or not. after that, get them and enjoy!

 

[Mark R. Ososkie]

S36's all around would definitely sound alot better than the nsp1's, no contest. The S-center (i or ii makes no difference) is also a big step up from the n-center that comes with the nsp1's.

 

[Joe Szott]

great, thanks mark and geno.

I'm thinking about an S-center and a pair of S36's in the front, should I get another pair of S36's for the back set or can I go smaller with some S26's?

Many Thanks, this is really helping me out.

-Joe

 

[Mark R. Ososkie]

I have s38's in the front and s36's in the back, and i absolutely love the s36's as rear's. I would definitely go with s36's all around, they would match up really nice. If you consider the s26's, you could place them in the front OR the back (its all preference, i would prefer the back), and they are very large bookshelf speakers, being 17" in height

i also use omnimounts for my s36's, if you are looking for them.

 

[Joe Szott]

Haha, mark you must be a mind reader. I had just decided to go S36 all around and am scouring around for mounts. EBay has S36AW for around $150/pair right now.

Can you post a little more about omnimounts and where I can find 4 of them for a good $?

Thanks Again...

 

[Pablo Abularach]

Joe,

The S36 is your best way to go, a little over you budget, but well worth it, you could get the for $250 a pair. And the S center for $141. The only thing that you should consider is that the S36 doesnt go as low as S26 or S38, so for completing your system you will need a sub, you could stay with the SONY and then improve to an SVS.

I also was in the same dilemma about three months ago, deciding between S36 and S26, and the $80 difference made me go with the S26, but because of the weight I had to buy BT77 bracelets which were $60 for a pair, so the real difference is $20. If I knew that this would happen, I would have bought the S36. But still I like very much the apperance that the S26 has in my room. And they do sound great.

Hope this helps,
Pablo Abularach.

 

[Phil Iturralde]

The surround speakers you see in the pictures above are mounted using the key holes in the back. I used all 4 of the key holes and I also installed the round rubber feet on the back so that they DO NOT vibrate like you mentioned in your email and I have SVS subs so that says allot.

You can read his JBL S36's & S-Center Studio Series Speakers Review @ his website and email him for more specific questions about mounting. Tell him I sent you!!!
Phil

 

[Steve WC]

Decent article on small systems:
http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/Sou..._cm_00,00.html

 

[Stephen Houdek]

The JBL setup, whichever you choose will likely sound much better than the Bose system. Especially if you stay within the S series.

Just make sure you listen so you aren't wasting your money on something that doesn't live up to your expectations.

 

[Stephen Hopkins]

I have the NSP1 package and am using all 4 N24s as surrounds and back surrounds in a 7.1 setup. I purchased N28s as mains. The N24s really sound great, especially for their size. They'll go down to 75Hz, so with a good sub and a crossover set at 80Hz, everything should blend very nicely.

You could go the route i did, buying the NSP1 package to couple with your current receiver. When you upgrade your receiver, you could then get N26s to use as your mains (also wall mountable) and shift the front N24s to the back surrounds in a 7.1 setup.

The NSP1 package is one of the best "Bang for Buck" packages out there, especially since it can be had for less than $250 shipped at alot of places. I picked my NSP1 package up for $165 shipped used for 2 months from another HT Forum member.

All this said, if you have the $$ available, it would probably be better to move into the Studio series. The S36 and S38 are both available in wall mountable versions. Most prefer the Studio series in direct comparison to the Northridge series, although some find the Studios to be much brighter and even confined. In my comparisons, the only noticeable differences i hear are in the bass extension of comparable models (the Studios going 5-7 Hz lower). This, matched with a lack of income, is why i went with the NSP1/N28 combination. A comparable Studio series setup (S38 mains, SCenter, S26 surrounds and back surrounds) would have been around $700 + shipping. My NSP1/N28 combination was $295 shipped. $$$ was the driving factor, but i'm not sure i would hear $400 worth of difference when paired with an entry/mid level receiver (Pioneer 811S) in a small (10x10x8) room.

 

[Joe Szott]

Any more tips or suggestions on mounting JBL S36's?

I am pretty sure this is the way I'm going to go:

* 4 S36 (LF, RF, LR, RR)
* 1 S Center center
* Keep my Sony SW-40 Sub

Thanks for all the help guys!