Speaker suggestions (1 Viewer)

[Anton_B]

My wife and I are getting ready to build a house in the country miles away from any other houses. You know what that means? I finally get my theater!! Although we are still in the early stages of planning, I have started collecting the pieces of my theater a little at a time so as to not hit her with the total bill all at once.

So here is my question...

I found myself a Pioneer VSA-AX10 receiver at a really good price so I snatched it up. My room is going to be about 15' x 25' with a 9' ceiling. I am looking for a good set of speakers that are not huge and will not break the bank. Any suggestions? Are there any certain brands that I should or should not look at? Are any of the pre boxed speaker sets any good?

Thanks for your opinions!!

 

[Charlie Campisi]

Welcome to the forum! Everybody's "bank" is different, so you need to clarify a budget. Most here will recommend internet brands as a better value. Most will also recommend you listen to speakers before buying them because they have to suit your ears. None of us can make a decision for you.

Popular internet brands here for subwoofers are SVS, Outlaw and Hsu.
Popular internet speakers are Axioms, Rockets, Swans.

You should go listen to some speakers in the brick and mortar stores. Paradigm speakers and Velodyne subs are a good place to start. You can adjust your budget accordingly. Some things to listen for are whether the speakers are overly harsh, muffled. Take some music you are familiar with to see if you hear more or less than you are accustomed to. It's a more involved process than simply saying "buy X. They're the best."

 

[Anton_B]

Thanks Charlie, I was just looking for a place to start. My budget is hopefully not to exceede $2000. That of corse can be bumped up a little at a time if need be.

 

[SethH]

With your budget I would strongly consider Ascends with an SVS or Hsu subwoofer. (Ascend is an internet-direct brand)

 

[Charlie Campisi]

Oh, I forgot to mention Ascend as another internet brand. [Edit - and I see while I was typing someone else mentioned it for me. ]

That's a big room! That makes it a bit tougher. Speakers are one of those things that don't really ever need to be replaced, except when upgrading. So you either want to increase your budget up front and have them forever, assemble the system a little at a time, or buy and plan to upgrade. Any philosophy works, you just need to have a plan. Go and listen to some speakers. You may not want to buy anything now (I'd recommend not buying) because they will all sound a little different when you get them in that big room. But see if you are happy with what you can get for your money when you listen.

FYI - the subwoofer that you will need for the room is going to be pricey, though you might be able to save some money using two less expensive subs in tandem.

 

[AlanZ]

Your room is almost exactly the same size as mine. If I were you I'd start with an SVS PB-10 subwoofer. Unless you're a bass freak, I think you'll be very impressed with it....not only that, but you won't find anything else for $400 that will touch it. It's a kick ass sub. As for speakers, I agree with Charlie above....find yourself a nice audio shop (if you go to Best Buy or Circuit City, that's cool, but try to go to a dedicated audio/video shop too!) and listen to some good stuff. Paradigm is a great brand to go with for a newbie. They offer very good value in their products. You could go with some Paradigm Studio/20s, whatever the current center is that matches the studio line, the SVS sub, some smaller Paradigms for the surrounds (Atoms? Titans?), and still be under 2k.

 

[mylan]

Geez, AlanZ. i'm surprised you didn't try to steer him to some maggies!

 

[AlanZ]

I love to recommend Maggies, but if he's going to use a receiver I'd only be setting him up for disappointment :frowning: