mixed speakers for home theater (1 Viewer)

[luxasia]

Hi..
new entry to this forum..

Background - Just bought onkyo SR875 amp and need help to maxed my new investment.

My previous amp (Technics with Dolby Suround Pro Logic) has been serving me well for the last 12 years. I used 2.1 Cervin Vega with 12" woofer in zone 2 and 3.1 Bose acoustimass system supported by 2 average rear speakers in zone 1 for my home theater. Both are pasive woofers. Today just bought Jamo sub woofer 300.

Questions;
1. I dont want to store my current speakers and plan to use them in combination. My thought is as follows; use the bose for front - left, right & center supported by the jamo sub 250. For surround left & right use the cervin vega and also the passive bose woofer at the back making it a 5.2. I was told that I could do the following for the suround;
a) from amp to passive woofer then out to surround speakers
b) from amp to surround speakers then to the passive woofer.

Is this good arrangment? Bose cube acoustimass speakers claimed they are 4-8 ohm max 200 watt. The cervin vega probably 8ohm 150 watt. my new onkyo output is 250 watt per channel.

2. Also thinking of standardising all speakers using bose. Keep the current one for front. To buy bose vs 30 package ( 1 x 100 watt center and 2 x 80 watt soround). If budget allows, will get 2 additional cube for sorround back speakers making my set up 7.2. However, read review on bose plastic quality and lack of midrange.

3. Due to the average/poor reviews on Bose speakers, should I replace all speakers with other make. Thinking of Jamo. Where I came from others are beyond my budget

Beside dvd, I also use ps3 for gaming and blue ray and for music, I'm into all from rap to heavy metal and occasionally jazz & classical.

Any suggestions welcome and highly appreciated. Thanks

 

[Gary Shipley]

You won't get any good comments on Bose from this forum. Your best best would be to either go with all Jamo or any other brand of speaker. Polk, JBL,and Klipsch are just a few of waaaaay better alternatives than the Bose. There are counless other speaker brands I'm sure others here will suggest. You also need to let everyone know what your budget is so they know how much you can or are willing to spend and I'm sure you'll get lots of other suggestions.

 

[Ed Moxley]

I agree. Trash the Bose and get some real speakers.

 

[Robert_J]

If you ignore the previous posters and use the Bose, you must use the tiny satellite speakers in conjunction with the woofer module. There is no way they can handle 200w running full range. Plus they don't play below 200hz. That's where the woofer module takes over.

There is a great 2nd hand market for those that believe the Bose hype. Check out Ebay. You may get enough for then that it will cover a new set of speakers.

-Robert

 

[luxasia]

Thanks guys.. guess great minds think a like .. I will surely use the advice and go for other makes and send the Bose to charity center..

Next question;
1. If I do get speakers with one make (still thinking of Jamo) for a 7.1. could I still add one passive woofer to my surround speakers making it a 7.2? In other word, 1 power woofer at the front and 1 passive woofer at the side or rear.
2. Connetion would be from amp to surround speakers then out the passive woofer to avoid cross over cut off by the passive woofer ?
3. This setup would be better hooking up the passive woofer to the surround or surround back speakers ?
4. For the new speakers, should I get all 7 with same wattage as my onkyo is supposingly driving all channel 250 watt ?

Thanks for the help

 

[Robert_J]

1. You could. But it is recommended that you go into your receiver's configuration menu and set all of your speakers to small. That will route all bass to a more capable sub. And you can add a dozen subs and it would still be a 7.1 because there is only 1 LFE sound channel.

2. If you decide to go the passive sub route then your wiring idea is wrong. You will need a passive sub crossover. Those are available from Parts Express. I still suggest active subs because of the phase issues passive crossovers introduce into the signal.

3. Your choice. Most of the time they play the same things. Which is much less than the mains. If your second sub is to even out room response then again, not a good idea. The subs need to be playing the same material to even out room response.

4. In a perfect system, all 7 of the speakers are identical. Most of the time that doesn't work out because you need a horizontal speaker for the center and large towers are bulky as surrounds. Getting 7 speakers from the same line is still great because it will insure they are all timbre matched. Your sub can be from a different manufacturer. I suggest getting one from an internet direct company that specializes in them. Finally, ignore wattage ratings. Not if they are 5w or something incredibly small. But for the average home theater buyer, it is a useless specification. That's like buying a car because it is red and ignoring every other factor in the decision making process.

-Robert