Yet another Newbie needing advice. :-) (1 Viewer)

[PeteKG]

Hi.

I’m a newbie. I’m replacing my ten-year old prologic surround sound equipment with a 7.1 rig over the course of the next year. I’d like some advice on what to buy and in what order, given my constraints, listed below.

Constaints:
/1/ I live in Ontario, Canada. (Not sure that it’s a constraint, but just in case.
/2/ room size: 21 x 17.5 feet, cathedral ceiling from 9 to 22 feet, lots of windows.
/3/ because of the room constraint, the TV and equipment are in a corner and likely won’t go ever against a wall.
/4/ Budget for everything: $CAN 1000-1,500 ($US 875-1,300).
/5/ Wife says no big floor-standing speakers. (this means I’ve gotta ditch my nice Infinity SM112’s. Waaah.)

It's been suggested that I do my upgrades in the following order:

/1/ new mains and a sub.
/2/ new 7.1 receiver.
/3/ new center.
/4/ new surrounds.

What do you think of this order? Is there anything I’m missing, in terms of an upgrade path?

How do I ensure timber-matching, given that I’m buying speakers separately?

What portion of my budget should I allocate to speakers? 60-70%?

I’ve been reading a lot of positive reviews about the B&W DM602 s3’s, but can’t find any accurate pricing info on them. I suspect they’re out of my range, but can anyone give me a rough idea of what they cost? What about SVS? They also seem to get a lot of great press around the forum.

Anyway, I hope I’ve given you enough info to be able to offer some advice.

Thanks in advance.

Pete

 

[SethH]

I agree with that order of upgrading.

Those B&W's have an MSRP of $300/speaker (USD). You might consider Paradigm as they are a Canadian company and are often compared to B&W. To ensure timbre matching you've got to buy speakers in the same line from the same company. So you'd probably want the LCR600 with the 602's.

You can negotiate on these types of speakers, but you usually get a much better deal when purchasing as a system as opposed to a pair at a time.

A sub does not need to match the speakers. Look at Paradigm, SVS, Hsu, or PartsExpress (Dayton) for subs.

You mentioned the SVS speakers. You should consider them as the 5.1 system plus a receiver would be right around your budget with the 7.1 going just over.

 

[PeteKG]

Thanks for the great advice, Seth.

Given the price of the 602's I'll likely have to pass on them, but I'll definately look into the SVS and Paradigm lines as soon as possible.

Thanks again!

Pete