Should I match my old speakers for surround sound or buy new system? (1 Viewer)

[Raj_Thiara]

This is my first time posting. I was given a pair of Paradigm Reference Studio/40 speakers (they are very good) as a wedding present last year from some friends who are audiophiles. I am now at the stage where I am considering setting up a surround sound system in my new place. I've heard it is best to have all 5 speakers (for 5.1) to have equal quality but money is a bit of an issue given the expense of these speakers. The question I have is would it really make that much of a difference if I got some reasonably priced but decent rear speakers to go along with the Paradigms or should I just keep my Paradigms for music purposes and buy one of the surround sound package systems (and if so, some recommendations).

I do like to have good sound but am not into upper-tier Home Theater systems at this point due to financial constraints but these will be expected to ease in about 3 years so I don't want to waste money on something I will be immediately junking at that point in time either. All suggestions are welcome.

 

[Brian L]

There are lots of folks enjoying their systems with mismatched speakers. I was one until recently, when I tracked down some used B&Ws (a center and surrounds) to match my B&W mains.

Now that I have a matched set, I can say without question that I really do agree with all the suggestions out there that matched speakers make a big difference.

For me, its not such a big deal for movies, since the action on the screen tends to distract you from the discontinuity between your mismatched speakers, but for music (I have a MC hi-rez player, and listen to a lot of DVD-A and SACD discs), its a BIG difference.

At the end of the day, you need to do what you have to do. If you don't yet have the coin for a matched set, buy what you can and don't sweat it. You will still enjoy the system.

But, start putting some pennies aside for the real deal. At that point, your make-do speakers can find work in another room, or find a new home via e-bay. Speaking of which, have you looked on e-bay for the matching speakers? Thats where I found my B&W center.

If you are like me, whenever you finally able to do the deal, you will not regret getting a matching set.

BGL

 

[Ernest Yee]

Those 40s make damn good mains anyways - so if you have a sub already, you could get away with just using a pair of 20s for surrounds and maybe a CC when the time comes.

 

[LCSeminole]

Raj, First of all, I wish I had friends like that. Secondly, matched speaker set-ups really do make a difference. Having said that here is a link to what Paradigm recommends as matched speakers, http://www.paradigm.ca/Website/SiteR...e/systems.html

 

[John S]

heck yeah, those are great speakers...
The 20's will serve you very well for surrounds.
Of course 40's all around would be better, maybe even best.


Good luck!!!

 

[Raj_Thiara]

Thanks for all your help.

I've decided not to get a surround system speaker prepackaged set at this point in time. I will eventually probably getting the Paradigm 40s for a mathcing set. In the mean time, I've decided to spend my money on a very inexpensive Sony bookshelf set that will eventually go into the wife's room once we have our new place. She is not a big audiophile and was pleased with sound and the aesthetics of the Sony SS-MB350 speakers.

The receiver that I have decided to use will be the Panasonic SA-HE 200. It appeared to have most of the features I need and was very positively reviewed compared to some more expensive systems. It definitely outperformed the Denon AVR-2803, Sony STR-DE 1000 and Harman/Kardon AVR 330 and Yamaha RX-V740 which were the other receivers in my pre-set price range. Unfortunately, the place I was testing lacked Paradigms and the Paradigm dealer lacked the Panasonic receiver. Any thoughts about the marriage of these two?

I have also decided to get the SVS 20-39 cylinder series subwoofers which I will power for now with my old JVC amp for now. The basement is rented out to someone else so I have no use for 2 subwoofers or an independent amp which would be far too disruptive to the neighbor. Furthermore, the entertainment room is very small and has a good corner for this speaker to stand in. Nevertheless, when I get my new place I can just get another SVS 20-39 and get the Sampson amp that SVS recommends.

I will probably replace the old center speaker I have (Accoustic Profiles PSL-C2 bought in 1995) with the Paradigm cc-470 later in the year once the holiday bills have cleared and some money has been saved as I do believe that this will make a huge difference in the overall quality of the system.

Thus, in the short-term I should finally have a functional 5.1 surround system and in the long-run I will not need to sell or get rid of any of the components that I have bought.

Any thoughts on my plan (especially the Panasonic SA-HE200 with the Paradigms)?