My Setup ideas Help me Critique (1 Viewer)

[MeowMixMan]

So this is my first post on the forum. I work for an electronics retailer and have been saving up money for awhile to do my theatre setup right. Here is my setup:
32” Sony XBR6 1080p (purchased)
Receiver (see below – deciding)
Speakers (see below – deciding)
PS3 or 360 (deciding)
Monster MP HTS 950 (clean power surge protector)
Monster 1000hd HDMI cables
Monster ZB100 SW-12 (sub woofer cable)
Monster Ultra™ Series THX® 1000 Speaker Cable with Monster Tips (speaker wires)

I have a pretty good idea of what I want. I’m going to mostly be using the setup for gaming/movies. I have another stereo set up for just music. This is all going into my bedroom so it’s not going to be too overkill. Through my employer I get major discounts on all of these products, normally I would want to go with Harmon Kardon for a receiver but I only get a discount on Onkyo and Denon for receivers. Originally I was just going to get a cheap receiver but I’m hung up on the ones that say THX certified, is this really a key to good quality? Here are my choices:
I’m using the receiver for a 5.1 setup, audio only, no video pass-through. All video inputs will go to the TV and I will run an optical from the TV to the receiver.
Onkyo: TX-SR806 – TX-SR706 – TX-SR606 – TX-SR576 – TX-SR506 – TX-SR304
Denon: AVR-989 – AVR-889 – AVR-789 – AVR-689 – AVR-589
Now I do get a good discount on these but the higher ones are still pretty pricey.. I need to know if it really is worth getting a higher end receiver or not, or if one of the middle range ones will do just fine or if the THX certified is really worth it.
For speakers I’m looking at Polk Audio and Boston Acoustics… these two packages have caught my eye, which would you say is better or are they trash?
Boston Acoustics: MCS130
Polk Audio: RM6880
Am I better off spending a little bit more and piecing my speaker system together or are these nice setups? It’s only for a bedroom. Please critique my ideas and comment on the products listed so I know if I’m on the right track or not.

I also have the option of the HTIB from Onkyo involving the: HT-S9100THX – HTS-S7100 – HTS-S6100 – HTS-S5100 – HTS-S4100 – HTS-S3100
Would any of these be a better deal for the money than pairing a receiver with one of those speaker setups?

Thanks!

 

[JohnRice]

Skip everything starting with "Monster". If you want, get a nice conditioner from Panamax. Monster cables are the second biggest rip-off in audio. 12ga zip cord from a home center is fine for speakers.

I would get a "real" receiver rather than a HTiB. All the ones you list are decent units, though I wouldn't go below the 606 with Onkyo.

 

[MeowMixMan]

Yea that's what my research has been showing about monster. I'll just buy a spool of 12awg and maybe some banana connectors for the receiver end, I'll still get their hdmi and sub cables tho, as I do get a good discount on their products.

I keep telling myself I should get a receiver and speaker combo. I was thinking the 706 w/ the polk speaker setup but really, it's going into my bedroom so it doesn't have to be crazy.

Thanks for the reply.

 

[Kevin Stewart]

Why not just run everything to a decent receiver via HDMI and then HDMI to the display?

Are you going to do blu ray (PS3)? If so, you'll need HDMI to get lossless audio anyway.

 

[Jeff Gatie]

Don't even bother with Monster at a discount, unless you can get an HDMI cable for $10. Shop at Monoprice, BlueJeans or BetterCables and you'll get great HDMI cables equal to Monster for $10-20. HDMI is more forgivable than analog cables due to being digital and having strenuous error detection/correction. There's no such thing as a "better" performing HDMI cable, they either work . . . or they are broken.

As far as the rest of your system, I would go for the individual components if you have the budget to do it. Onkyo always offers the best bang for the buck, but Denon offers better quality. If you don't have the budget for separate components, then the Onkyo HTiB is a good place to start, because they have real receivers that can handle upgraded speakers later on. Don't go any lower than the 6100 HTiB (or 606 receiver), though. The cheaper HTiB/receivers from Onkyo lack HDMI audio support and won't do Blu-ray HD audio formats. These days it would be silly to buy a receiver that does not support HDMI and HD audio.

Also, the days of running video directly to the TV to preserve quality are over. As explained above, HDMI cannot suffer degradation like analog connections, it either works or it doesn't. Passing HDMI through the receiver will not degrade your picture quality in the least and it is the preferred (and only way) to get bitstream HD audio formats from Blu-Ray disks.

 

[MeowMixMan]

I priced everything out on monoprice and even with my discount I still do save money so I'll go the monoprice route. The only monster product I'll buy is the power protector.

So this is what I've decided:
32xbr (being shipped)
mono price hdmi/speaker/sub cables
ps3 for blu-ray and gaming

Now I either get the Onkyo 6100 HTiB

or

I save up a little longer and get the Onkyo 706 and the polk audio speaker set. Do you think it is really worth getting 7.1 or is 5.1 good enough?

 

[Al.Anderson]

5.1 is good enough. But the more important question is the speakers - you may be much happier with the Polks. The most important thing is to listen to them first if at all possible.

 

[Kevin Stewart]

Do not get the HTIB. Save up.

Also, once you listen to 7.1, you'll never want a 5.1 setup again. Some of this is dependent upon your room, however. If you have the room/space for 7.1, that's definitely the route I'd go.

 

[MeowMixMan]

Thanks everyone. Yea I think you're right. I'm tempted to by the HTiB 6100 but I know I won't be as satisfied as if I were to save up. I looked at the receivers today at work, the 506, 706, and 806 and I believe I'll be going with the 706 and buying my speakers individually as all the packages are 5.1 and the subs usually aren't that good.