Question from the Newbie (1 Viewer)

[Chris Wright]

I am currently in the process of finishing off my basement
and am planning on purchasing a Home Theater system. My budget is approx. $5000. I am a total rookie and this and thus, brings me to you, seeking your expert opinions. The components that I have given serious thought to, and the method to my madness, are listed below:

Projector: BenQ 8230 Price = $2500 from ProjectorPeople.com
Reasoning - High Lumens, good Contrast Ratio, and has component out, which is what I want to run. Seems like a good "Bang for the buck"
Receiver: Yamaha Rx-V1400 List Price = $799
Reasoning - Have been to 2 local merchants, and they are both pushing this as the one to have
DVD Player: Yamaha DVD-S1200 List Price = $999
Reasoning - Same as Receiver
Speakers: This is where I am struggling the most. I really don't have any idea. I would like to spend no more than $1500 in total.

So based on the information that I have provided above, please advise me as to whether or not I am headed down the correct path, given the budget that I am trying to work within. What would you change and why? Any help on speakers would be a HUGE benefit. Also, any websites that I can utilize to find these items at a great price would be great as well.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and I look forward to any feedback that you can provide.

Sincerely,
Chris Wright

 

[Garrett Lundy]

Are you looking to build a 5.1, 6.1, or 7.1 system? Just because the local dealers want you to buy a $800 reciever and a $1000 DVD player doesn't mean they'll be the ones you want (or give the best value).

Also: what brands of speakers are locally available for you to demo?

 

[Jack Briggs]

Since you're asking for specific system recommendations, I've moved your thread here, where DVD players are discussed. The Basics area is not for asking about specific make/model recommendations; it is for general discussion at the beginner level.

 

[Chris Wright]

Garrett,

At a minimum, I'm looking at a 5.1. It's my understanding that the difference is that a 5.1 = 5 speakers plus a sub; a 6.1 = 6 speakers plus a sub, etc.

I think that 5.1 will get me started, however, I would like to purchase a receiver that will make it easy to upgrade in the future.

As far as speakers are concerned, the big audio store around here is American, which carries Polk, Klipsch, Infinity, and Bose.

The local store, LaSalle Electronics, carries about the same plus Boston Accoustics.

Is there any other information that I need to supply you with?


Thanks,
Chris

 

[Garrett Lundy]

Size of room? and how much distance between the back wall and the seating area. If the couch (assuming you sit on a couch) is against the back wall, then there is little need for a 6.1 or 7.1 system. But if you have space behind the couch, then you could use the sixth, or seventh channel.

At least you have a decent selection of speaker brands to choose from, I like the Infinty sound, but they can be a little pricey (I went with Paradigm). And I have to question the benefit of a $1000 DVD player as opposed to a $100 DVD player, but thats just me.

 

[Chris Wright]

Garrett,

The size of the room is a little bit tricky. On the "half" where the projector and components will be, the "square" size of the room is 13' wide by 18' deep. The reasons that I say "square" is that the other side of the basement will be open to this room. Also, behind the squared portion of the room is an area that is 9' wide by 10' deep (it is the portion at the bottom of the stairs)

I agree with the $1000 DVD player, however, I want to make sure that I am buying a good unit. Whatever I decide to buy, I want to make sure that it has component out capabilities.

Any other info you need?

What about the rest of you? I would appreciate some other feedback.

Sincerely,
Chris

 

[Jay Foster]

Hi,

I would definitely not spend that much for the DVD Player. I have read thousands of emails, etc. about this. You can get a DVD Recorder (philips e80) for about $350 and it has the Faroudja chip in it. It also has component connections and it does give a great picture. I also have the Liteon which is still available for about $250. This will save you some money to put into speakers. And from what I've read here, and the demo I had at a guy's house recently, I would definitely get an SVS subwoofer.

 

[SethH]

For a DVD player look into one of the Denon universal players. That way you will have an excellent DVD player that will also play SACD and DVD-A and you will still save some extra money for the speakers. Oh, and of the brands of speakers you mentioned I would look at the Boston Acoustics and Klipsch. Either brand paired with an SVS or Hsu sub would sound very good.

 

[Ian-Fl]

Have you looked at the NEC LT240k projector. It's a 4:3 DLP projector as well and always gets recommended as a excellent HT projector. I have a NEC projector and they have excellent build quality. There is a $200 rebate till the end of the month.
Have you gone to projectorcentral.com yet?
A projector with alot of lumens tells me it's designed more for a presentation in an office with lights on than for a home theater. When there are alot of lumens it doesn't always translate into good contrast levels. The specs can be misleading because there's a balance between lumens and contrast in a good HT projector.
Currently there are DVD players like the Momitsu DVD-V880 DVI DVD Player. The Momitsu has a DVI-VGA output which has a very sharp beautiful picture with this output.
http://www.extremephono.com/momitsu_dvd_v880.htm
More and more now there are DVD players now with DVI outputs so you might as well try to get the latest technology cause next year they'll be something else.
Speaker technology doesn't change much from year to year so you can get a set of speakers that will last you a long time. Make sure the speakers you choose has a good center speaker. Something with the same size drivers as the mains. Rockets always get good center channel comments. http://www.av123.com/products_produc...s&product=31.1