what next to buy? (1 Viewer)

[KevinA]

I'm having to build my HT a piece at a time :frowning: (wife/money) Sooooo heres the question... which would give me the most ooomph, center speaker or a pair of surrounds?? neither very exciting i am afraid, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do, eh? Im leaning center just because as of right now i have an old arse reciever that doesnt put out much juice to the surrounds, but puts out relatively decent output to the center.

 

[Walt N]

If it were me I'd go with surrounds first since you can use a phantom center configuration for now. As long as you're sitting right between the two mains, I think this would give you a more noticable improvement.

 

[Eric C D]

Kevin,

You're going to get asked a lot of questions, like what you have so far, and perhaps what your budget is. I'm curious what your receiver is, because most 5.1 receivers put out equal wattage to all 5 channels. Your saying, "doesnt put out much juice to the surrounds" makes me wonder if it is a Dolby prologic only receiver.

The other question is what speakers you have. Matching is very important, so depending, it may be better to start over. And that you're going to upgrade incrementally means you will want to choose a speaker line that seems like it will be around long enough to get all the parts one-at-a-time.

Good luck with the upgrades,

Eric

 

[Darren_T]

It sounds like your receiver is an older Pro Logic receiver correct? That would be my next upgrade, that and if you don't already have it a DVD player. No sense in getting rears if you don't have DD and DTS processing. I had pro logic before my DD/DTS system and the rear info wasn't really useful. Just made noise
My vote is for a DD/DTS receiver, then a DVD player if you don't already have it. I'd look at Denon, Outlaw , or Onkyo. I have an Onkyo and it was a great home theater receiver/processor/amp. I now have it just as a processor. The Outlaw is probably best bang for the buck, good stuff at a very low price. I have their ICBM and it is a great piece of equipment.
Darren

 

[KevinA]

Yep, a dolby prologic(which WILL be upgraded in may/june along with buying a sub at that time) Jbl n-series speakers.... I have n24II all-weather speakers that are being used as mains now but will be moved to the rear when the next set are bought (n24s probably... n26s look alittle big for the wife's taste and for where they are going)

In a perfect world I'd be throwing down for the receiver upgrade and the lot right now, but not an option.... so its one more piece for an early christmas gift and the rest as I said in may/june. :b

 

[KevinA]

hehe.. got a new tv(42h81), new dvd player(tosh 4800), the room finished and new furniture within the last 6 months believe me I really want a new reciever (been looking at denon, yamaha, hk), but not going down right now. :b

 

[Eric C D]

Kevin,

I'd just repeat that you first ask if you're happy with the sound of your current speakers since you're about to invest a whole lot more.

Just to plant another idea - how much were you planning to spend on a subwoofer. If that matches up with the budget now, you might consider it instead. I agree with the others that you won't get too much more than noise out of Prologic rears, and that new TV of yours has SRS - I've been surprised by the soundfield this gives you. But you're missing the real bass that will make the movies ROCK.

Then do the full 5.1 surround when you get the receiver for it.

In any case, enjoy!

Eric

 

[Frank Carter]

I would personally add a sub, I think that would give you the most "ooomph" for your money. The popular Sony SA-WM40 is available for $125 shipped from my.sony.com. That's the best deal I've ever seen on it. Then I think I'd go receiver, center, then surrounds.

Maybe you have speakers somewhere else you could temporarily use as surrounds, like from a mini system or something.

 

[KevinA]

Im really happy with the n24s, very sharp from such a small speaker. The only thing lacking from them would be the bass which is to be expected I assume from such a speaker. That's why I was looking to supplement this setup with a good sub,(no offense to the Sony), which im probably not going to get for around 150$ (all im allowed right now ) I've seen the n-center for 99$ shipped and the n24s for 119$ shipped.... my only other option is a good universal remote for that same price range which would be off-topic (and the choice my wife's trying to push but really kinda last on my list)
From what im hearing from you guys its not really going to matter that much what I get until I upgrade that receiver and/or pick up a sub.... ?

 

[Jorge UF]

I would save for sub first. Then worry about the rest.
In order of importance (in my eyes)
1.mains
2.subwoofer
3.reciever
4.center
5.surrounds

the center and surrounds are basically tied. I would just invest in a good sub, then probably upgrade the reciever.

 

[BryanZ]

You should be able to find the WM40 for around $150 or find a good used sub for that price.