Speaker Opinions (1 Viewer)

[Tim - W]

I recently purchased a Onkyo TXSR 601 Receiver and an Onkyo DV-CP701 DVD Changer. I need to get some speakers to go with this and would like some input. I would like to keep it to around $500 and want to get the full set or at a minimum the center, subwoofer and front speakers. From what I have seen, the options are:

1) Polk 6005
2) Infinity 450 TS
3) JBL's (can't remember the model off the top of my head, but they are sold at Best Buy
4) Boston Accoustic Sys8000
5) Energy - Take 5 plus one

Your recommendations would be appreciated.

 

[Harold Wazzu]

Maybe a matchiung Onkyo set? http://shop1.outpost.com/product/3821397

 

[Leigh_M]

I have the Onkyo speakers and I'm not impressed. The voices are a littled muttled for my taste. I would check out Infinity Entra or TSS-750. I've seen both in your price range on ebay.

 

[Mark Bregar]

I'd personally shoot for the Bostons

 

[Ralph B]

if your watching alot of movies buy a 5.1 set.

if you listening to music more, get your self a pair of paradigm speakers. you like towers get the paradigm monitor 7's I just bought them and they are great! I have learned now if you dont have the money now buy little by little. I can wait now! people always said buy a little at a time but I wante all now and with little money bought what I could afford to have all at once. I wont do that anymore.

if you gonna buy JBL buy online, not at best buy. your getting ripped at best buy and will pay up to double what you can get them online for. stay away from the JBL N24's unless they are only for back surrounds. they are terribl cabinets! save! buy a pair of fronts then wait till you have more money and buy more to mach. for $500-$600 you can buy some Paradigm Monitor 7's and they will amaze your ears.

 

[Pablo Abularach]

TIM,

I would like to keep it to around $500 and want to get the full set or at a minimum the center, subwoofer and front speakers.

If you want to stay on $500 budget, get

JBL NS-P1II Northridge Series 5-Piece Home Cinema System $200
Sony SA-WX700 250 Watt Active Subwoofer $200
+ Shipping, interconects, and wire, you will be inside your budget.

Good luck with your choice.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Tim, FYI: Please don't post the same query in multiple sections. I had moved your other post in A/V Sources to here, only to find that you had posted here already. In the future, ask a mod to move any misplaced posts. Thanks. JB

 

[Tim - W]

First off Jack, I apologize I realized that I had posted the thread in the wrong place and copied it over.

Thanks everyone else for the replies. I am looking primarily for a surround sound system, but will play music on it as well.

 

[ken-m]

I WOULD PERSONALLY GO WITH THE POLK'S. I OWN RT25i MAINS, CSi30 CENTER, AND PSW202 SUB. THESE SPEAKERS ROCK THE HOUSE. I AM VERY IMPRESSED WITH THE BUILD QUALITY AND SOUND QUALITY FOR THE MONEY.

 

[Patrick++]

I'm looking at a similar price range for speakers (~$500) and was thinking either a pair of paradigm titans with a prd-10 sub, or maybe just a pair of paradigm phantoms.

i'd like to give that JBL 5.1 system a good listen (the one made of n24ii's), but the only place that carries JBL around here is Best Buy and you can't hear a thing in there and the kids that plug their systems in don't seem to know what they're doing.

my apartment is fairly small so it wouldn't take much to fill it... and if i get anything too big it would be wasted since i wouldn't really be able to turn it up far. just looking for something that'll sound great and be a good basis for future upgrades. any thoughts?

 

[Ralph B]

Patrick: like I said... stay away from the JBL NSP-1 set!!!!! its not worth it. listen to them at best buy if you really want them but I have seen a place online recently sell them for $179.00 for the whole set. but I own it and would not recommend it. you would be better off with a pair of paradigms for now and get the rest later. I know that stinks getting some noe and some later but really you will be glad you did. the only use the N24's are good for are for rear surrounds.... and barely good enough for that. the center channel is not very good either. someday you might be in a house and then you will have the speakers already you need. you dont need to crank it to hear quality. my kids are in bed and led zeppelin at a low volume on my paradigms sound great. if you want a hollow sounding speaker set with no presence or wormth then the JBL set is for you.

the JBL set doesnt not sound great. its ok but not great.

the reason I bought them is because they are made of plastic type material so my kids cant kill them. but they are getting bigger now and understand not to touch daddys stuff.

 

[Patrick++]

sweet, thanks!

now it's just a matter of deciding between titans+sub or phantoms.... or the equivalent from some other brand. first audiophile shop i went to the guy showed me paradigms and i fell in love with them (he demoed a cinema series 5.1 system for me). the phantoms wouldn't have that rumble when watching movies, but they'd sound great with music.
decisions, decisions, decisions... :frowning:

 

[Ralph B]

Patrick: I did the same thing last friday! learned a valuble lesson. I also listened to some speakers at an audiophile shop and listened to PSB and Paradigm's.

I fell in love with the Paradigm Monitor 7's and couldnt walk out without them. I think it will be my choice of speaker. I have been listening to them everynight and wondering when the new feeling will stop. at this point I want to listen to them everynight.

 

[Frank Carter]

Ralph,
The NSP-1 system is excellent for the money IMO. I'm amazed that you express such a strong sentiment against them. I feel they are the best speakers in their price range and I think most others do as well. I've been absolutely floored at what a pair of the N26's can do by themselves in stereo and the N24's do the same thing only with less bass(as is expected).

Patrick,
The Paradigms are going to be better than the JBL N series, but it is a significant jump in price, for what you can get the NSP-1 system for online you get one pair of Titans. On the Titans+sub vs Phantoms, I think I would go with the Titan's and a sub or Atom's and a beefier sub.

 

[Patrick++]

i'll try to get in to best buy early some weekday morning and hopefully it'll be quiet. last time i went in the place was packed and there was so much noise that i couldn't really hear anything... stupid warehouse stores

 

[Frank Carter]

I think Best Buy stopped carrying the NSP-1 becuase of the new E series from JBL. I could be wrong or they still could have a set.

 

[Ralph B]

frank: I thought they were ok at first. but after bringing home the paradigms I coould hear how bad the JBL's were. the bigger ones sound better but the N24's are a good buy if you on a budget and want to settle till you get something else.

people told me to buy a pair of fronts first and then do the rest as money comes. I didnt listen cause I wanted everything at once. I wish I did, I would have saved myself alot of money and they said so. but I wouldnt listen. now after 2 sets of speaker purchase's I bought a quality pair in the paradigm's. I just think while he has $500 to spend now , get some quality fronts or even the paradigms. it costs more in the long run and JBL n24's arent in the same ball park but jumping from them to paradigms isnt even worth the mention in the same breath together. I wasted alot of money, I didnt take advice twice and now im trying to relay my mistake. a pair of paradigm's in 2 channel will blow away a 5 channel NSP-1 set any day. I tried them both that way to get an idea and its amazing what the paradigms can do alone compared to 5 low grade speakers like the JBL nsp-1 set. I opened them up to see why they sound so flat. its beacuse of the enclosure and lack of fill to make up for the enclosure material. its bad.

guys dont make the same mistake I did twice. take your $500 and buy a set of quality fronts like the paradigms. alone they sound better than 5 speakers of the JBL nsp-1 set. I wasted so much money dont make the same mistake i did. other stuff can wait when money comes. dont be impatient like I was and want all at once. its not worth it!

I now see the light!!!!!!!

 

[Frank Carter]

Ralph,
I agree that Paradigms are a big step up from the JBL Northridge(I've owned both) but I don't feel they are bad speakers. We are all entitled to our own opinion, I just wanted to state mine.

 

[Ralph B]

Frank: I did find a good use for two of my N24's, they are ok as rear surrounds.

 

[Michael Yung]

I was at BestBuy this weekend and had a chance to audition some of the bookshelf size speakers just for fun. I listen to Yamaha, Sony, Athens, JBL and Klipch and I was most impressed by JBL and Athens. They both had the most natural sound in the mid-range and the bass response wasn't bad either. The JBL had more bass but it was somewhat bloatted. And despite the terrible listening condition, I feel both of these speakers would image well in a quiter environment.

I am pretty sure the JBL I listened to were the E30's at about $260 a pair and the Athen around $200 for the pair. For your $500 budget, that's pretty much half of it right there just on the fronts. But it is my opinion that the front main speakers are the most important speakers in any system. Centers are mostly for dialogs for TV and movies and there aren't much special effect there and the sub is just the bottom octives for action movies to add the effect. Whereas the main speakers creates the magic of surround sound even without the surround speakers. We're talking sound staging and stuff like that. So my suggestion is to revise your budget and put all that $500 into just the fronts and now and then get a sub (if you get bookshelfs) or center (if you get tower main speakers). Just my 2 cents. Hope it helps.