HT Setup From Scratch (1 Viewer)

[theStorminMormon]

This is my first post, and I've got lots of questions. I've got some money to spend. Say around $5k. And I want to spend it on a home theater system. I'm going to have lots of questions as I research how to put this together, but here's my first one.

I noticed over on Wikipedia they have a cool diagram of a home theater setup. Forum won't let me insert image, which is annoying, but if you look for "home theater" or "home cinema" on wikipedia you'll see the image.

My main question is about the receiver/pre-amp/amp stuff. The "processing" stage.

The only experience I have with HT at all is that I encouraged my dad to buy an out-of-the-box surround sound set. So he's got a DVD player, TV, and receiver going to cheap 5.1 speakers. And the annoying thing is that you have to synchronize the TV (video) and receiver (audio) inputs. If you want to watch a DVD player, you have to set the right input on the TV and the right input on the receiver. If you change to playing a video game you have to change both inputs again.

So my main question is if there's a receiver that will handle all of the audio/video so that I only have to deal with one input. I'm going to be having a Wii, Xbox360, PS3, regular DVD player, and Verizon FIOS HD-DVR (maybe an HT-PC down the road), and I would really rather not have to juggle audio/video inputs independently for each of those.

Other than that, I'm just looking for general pointers. I'm relatively tech-savvy when it comes to computers (build my own, code a little bit, do some consulting on the side) but I know *nothing* about home theaters. I'm thinking $2k for a 52" LCD tv, and then the rest of the $3k for the receiver, speakers, mount, and whatever else I need.

It's all going into a fairly large room, about 15X20 that's an addition to the house.

If you guys had a budget of around $5k, how would you do it from scratch? (By the way, if I can do just as well for $3-$4k, great. If going up to $6k would make a huge difference, I could do it.)

Thanks.

 

[Robert_J]

Sometimes you have more source devices than your receiver can handle or you have better video with a direct connection. I have that problem. But I solved it with a Harmony 880 remote. It is activity based. I press "Watch HD Tivo" button and it switches the receiver to the correct audio setting, switches the projector to the HDMI input, switches my HDMI switch to the correct input and turns on the HD Tivo.

If you want your receiver to be the hub of everything, you have to first identify your audio/video sources. DVD, Blu-Ray, DVR, CD, XM, video games, etc.

You may want to re-evaluate the amounts you appropriate to each item. I'm sure you can get an LCD TV much cheaper than 2K. You will also want to spend the majority of the money on the speakers. Technology changes but great speakers built in the '60's still sound great. Great speakers built today will still sound great 20 years from now. Based on that, there are sections here for receivers, sources, speakers, TVs, etc. Each section has great resources. Finally, there is a Project section that is used to tie all of this together as well as furnishing your rooom.

-Robert

 

[Ed Moxley]

$2k sounds about right, for a 52" LCD. That's about the same price here in my area anyway. You may find one cheaper online, but I, personally, won't buy a tv online. If I have problems with it, I don't want to deal with people online. I want to be face to face with them. But that's just me.

I agree with the Harmony remote. They can't be beat, for the price. Mine was much cheaper than the 880 model. They are very user friendly. My wife even likes it.

With a budget like your's, I'd probably go for the Denon 3808ci receiver.
Denon USA | AVR-3808CI
Best Buy had this the other day, for about $1500.

I'd also probably go with the SVS speaker system. Everyone raves about them, and they make one of the best subwoofers on the market.
SVSound - Complete Systems

Then pickup a Blu ray player, and you'll be all set. If the layout of your room allows for it, you may want to get a couple of extra matching speakers, and make it a 7.1 setup. Some Blu ray movies are already 7.1 discreet channels, and more will be coming out.

This is what I'd get, if I had that much money to spend. I'm sure others will have other suggestions to look at too.
Good luck with whatever you get. Keep us posted on your purchases, and how you like them.

 

[Kevin Stewart]

Before you decide on anything else, you should decide on your display. Why do you want 52" Why do you want LCD? What is your seating distance?

Now, a 52" LCD might be the exact display you need, but you want to make sure. Keep in mind that if you're sitting further than 8', 52" is probably not big enough. Additionally, if you don't absolutely need something to hang on the wall (and most people don't), you can get great deals on DLP's which will open up your budget for other things (i.e the 65" Toshiba could recently be had for $1500).

Also, have you thought about front projection? A 15X20 room is just screaming for a 120" screen and tiered seating. You could probably get a very nice projector set-up (and receiver and speakers) for you budget.

 

[theStorminMormon]

Thanks for the responses so far. I gather from what you guys are saying that there is no such thing as a receiver that handles all the audio/video, and that people buy these hk remotes to get around the problem. That actually sounds like a pretty good solution to me. I'll look into getting one of those.

As far as the choice of TV goes, I'm open to suggestions. The room it's going in was not designed as a screening room by any means. It's also not as big as I thought. I just measured and it's about 15'3" X 13'9". Say 15X14. Display brightness is going to be an issue because the room has large windows/french doors on two sides, and they are on the side that gets the most direct sunlight. If my room looks like this:
______1______
| |
| |
| |
2 3
| |
| |
| |
______4______

Then the TV will go on wall 2. Wall 1 has a floor-ceiling window and french doors. Wall 3 has 2 two more floor-ceiling windows. My concern with a projector was that I would have a hard time getting sufficient brightness. I was also worried about response time for action scenes/gaming. Not saying I should be worried about that. It's just my impression of screens. And I just haven't liked plasma screens that I've seen. Too much motion blur. But it's been a while.

So the seating distance will be 15 feet minus the distance for the TV from the wall (1) and the sofa from the wall (3). I figure I should move the sofa away from the wall a little bit so that the rear speakers are behind as opposed to parallel with the seating. (Does that make sense?)

If you guys really recommend something other than a 52" LCD (I'd do 60, but they seem to double in price from 52 to 60).

Thanks a lot for the specific speaker/receiver options. I will definitely start my research by using them as my benchmark.

As far as 7.1 vs. 5.1, I don't know if I have enough space on my walls for additional speakers given the double doors on wall 1.

When I'm allowed to post images, I'll stick up a better blue print. Thanks a lot guys!

 

[theStorminMormon]

What about a PS3 as a Blue-Ray player? I figure it's worth it since I may pick up a game or two as well. (I own a 360 and a Wii already).

 

[theStorminMormon]

Like I said in my previous post, I got the measurements wrong. (I was going from memory when we built this addition, and not all of the space is left in one room.) It's more like 15X14. Front projection seems a bit more complicated and then there's the ambient light issue from all the windows.

 

[theStorminMormon]

I forgot to ask, but would I also need a pre-amp, amp etc. with that receiver? Before I can dive into the various sub-forums I figure I need to know which parts I need.

Display
Speakers (and sub-woofer)
Remote
Receiver
Wires
Amp?
Pre-Amp?
anything else?

 

[mylan]

The receiver contains both the amp and pre-amp sections in one complete package and the Denon 3808ci would be a good choice. Denon is also releasing new receivers this month with the latest features, the 2809ci would be another to consider.

 

[Ed Moxley]

I'm guessing that amount is about average, or maybe a little above average, for folks around here, especially with tv being included. I, personally, have never had that much to spend on home theater. I still have an old 36" SD tv. I really want a new HD tv! My whole system costs somewhere around $1300 - $1400 (including cd and dual cassette). So mine is considered an entry level system. My receiver was less than $200. If I had a PS3, I couldn't take advantage of the high def video, or the HD audio, of Blu ray movies. So, $5k is a good amount to work with, to deal with today's technology. No need to worry............

You will definitely notice a difference with that system, compared to one like mine.

PS3 is a good option as a Blu ray player. The Denon receiver I listed can take full advantage of the PS3, so it's a good match with it. In answer to your question, you don't need a pre-amp with that receiver. It will also handle all the video and audio, you were wondering about, since both will work through the HDMI connections.

The Harmony (not HK) remotes are nice because they work everything in your system (except maybe the PS3). They are very wife friendly too. They have outstanding customer service, if ever needed. I'm not familiar with this Denon's remote, but Denon remotes are usually the worst thing about a Denon receiver. Maybe they've improved them.

 

[theStorminMormon]

You guys are really helping me out. I'm going over the prices with my wife and she was shocked at the price for both the speakers and the receiver. I was able to explain the speaker prices (I know a little bit about speakers, at least enough to understand that really good speakers last a long time) but I have to be honest: I don't know what you get out of a receiver that makes it worth $1,600.

The pre-amp/amp thing is good. And I know I need *something* to process the sound for 5.1 surround, but what's really going on that makes it work $1,600?

 

[Ed Moxley]

130watts x 7 channels
ability to process the new HD audio formats over HDMI (less cables to hook up)
ability to download firmware updates over ethernet connection
lots of digital inputs
one of the best names in home theater gear

There's ok stuff, and there's decent stuff, and then there's good stuff. The good stuff isn't cheap, no matter what brand it is.