Hometheater System for under 1200 (1 Viewer)

[Brian Burgoyne]

Erik,
I just looked at yahoo maps and found out there is a place called Sound Designs right in your town at 6310 W Donges Bay Rd, Mequon. What do they carry? Also, you are just outside Milwaukee, which is a big city and has lots of stereo stores listed in the yellow pages. Surely some of them will carry a nice line of speakers that have some affordable entry level packages like Paradigm titans for example. You should be able to find some of the following: Energy, PSB, Mirage, B&W, Klipsch,

Audio Emporium
8766 N Deerwood Dr, Milwaukee, WI 53209
Phone: (414) 354-5082

Audio Video Specialties
3801 N Oakland Ave, Milwaukee, WI 53211
Phone: (414) 963-9928

Ultra Fidelis
Milwaukee, WI 53226
Phone: (414) 774-0234

Sound Investments Ltd
2500 W Silver Spring Dr, Milwaukee, WI 53209
Phone: (414) 438-1818

These are just a few. Within 45 miles you have a dozen stores or more. Just call and find out what speakers they have to audition and then post some options here and people will give you some more ideas.

 

[BryanZ]

Up to $2K? That is a whole different animal! I would ask your friend and his father to ask around on the different forums and see if there is anyone in their area who would let them audition some of the internet only stuff. Check out harmonicdiscord.com and audioenvy.com for some ideas. I also believe some sites will eat the return shipping costs (Ascend Acoustics and Axiom might, possibly ACI and Rocket as well - verify this first). If that is the case, then I would recommend the Ascend 22-2001 package (5 CBM-170s + HSU VTF-2 - check out reviews at audioreview.com and other places) for $1,158 along with a Denon AVR-2802 receiver.

Locally, Paradigm, PSB, Energy, Def Tech, and B&W should be able to be found. Axiom might be as well. Another excellent option for you since you live in WI is to go across the border and come back. You should be able to get much better deals that way, especially for Canadian speakers.

 

[Jon Sciabica]

Only online, but for $1200 I would recomend:
-HTD Level III "Y" 5.1 speaker setup - $924 w/ shipping
-Panasonic he100 - $234 + shipping or
-Panasonic he200 - $349 + shipping for a little over budget
At $2000 I'll let others handle that.

 

[Stephen Hopkins]

For $2000 (All Retail):

Setup 1 - High End Receiver, Middle Line Speakers

Pioneer Elite 43TX - $1000
JBL N26II mains - $200
JBL N Center - $150
N24II Surrounds and Back Surrounds - $300
JBL PB-10 Sub - $300
250ft Home Depot 12 Gauge Speaker Cable Spool - $65

Total $2005 + Tax

Setup 2 - Middle Line Receiver, Higher End Speakers

Pioneer VSX-D811S - $400
JBL N38II Mains - $400
JBL N-Center - $150
JBL N26II Surrounds and Rear Surrounds - $400
JBL PB-12 Sub - $400
250ft Home Depot 12 Gauge Speaker Cable Spool - $65

Total - $1815 + Tax
Total w/ SCenter and S38II mains - $2015 + Tax

 

[Matt Jesty]

Just did this for 2k as a bedroom system for a long-time customer and it sounded great:
AVR1802 Denon
OS1W (x5) Mirage Omni-sats
KSW10 Klipsch sub...............

 

[Erik Reichertz]

Thanks for all the help. I was not aware that there were so many stores in our area that focused on speakers. That Canada thing doesn't sound like a bad idea either. I get my license pretty soon and that would give me a good excuse to drive up there. So any ways I'll show him all the stuff you posted and we'll decide on something.

 

[Erik Reichertz]

By the way what your recomend as far as Canadian Speakers go do they have the same stuff as America, but just a favorable exchange rate? Or different brands?

 

[JimC_A]

I bought Axioms from Canada. They are incredible. I auditioned Paradigm, Mission, NHT, JBL, and Jamo. Message me if you want details on my Yamaha/Axiom setup.

 

[Matt Lopp]

FWIW,

If you are going to check out the Milwaukee stereo shops, I would recommend against Flanners. They are NOT knowledgeable, but, unfortunately, do a great job of arrogantly ACTING knowledgeable. In other words, they are typical salesmen.

I could rant about specifics of my experiences if you want...

The only close shop I might recommend is Audio Consultants on Hwy 21 in Libertyville, IL (close to Great America). Unfortunately, they're not extremely cheap, but they are helpful and will bend over backwards to set up systems for you to audition. They also sell used equipment with a 1 year full credit upgrade policy.