linch September 2, 2004 Share linch Member September 2, 2004 I'm picking up a 57inch Sony HDTV this week, and I'm going to pick up a home theatre as well. I want to stay under 500 US (600 canadian), and I was considering getting the Sony DAVBC150 home theatre. What are the features I should make sure to get! Ie. how many componet hookups, audio features, etc. My entertainment setup is as follows: HDTV Sony KP57WS520 Xbox DVD player (which will come with home theatre) Anyone with a similar setup that can offer some advice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Bean September 2, 2004 Share Mad Bean Member September 2, 2004 The new systems are pretty nice nowadays. They are pretty much 'plug and play'. A friend of mine got a sony DVD system for Christmas, and the set up was extremely easy. The speakers were color coded for front, rear, and the sub. If you are going to set up different components, like a receiver, DVD, xbox, CD, tape player, etc., the set up can be more complicated but still not very hard. I would advise on a s-video cable for the picture and either a coxial cable or optical for digital sound. It allows for better transfer for a more crisp sound. I have a receiver with Dolby Pro Logic surround, digital cable, ps2, and CD player and love watching movie when the sound surrounds you. I'm jealous. I'd love to have a TV like that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fatty September 3, 2004 Share Fatty GC Founder September 3, 2004 Check this setup out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linch September 3, 2004 Author Share linch Member September 3, 2004 Funny fat.....funny. I tried to catch ya on aim last night... I'll just PM ya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soul .gc September 3, 2004 Share soul .gc Member September 3, 2004 A couple things Linch. You have a choice between 5.1 and 7.1 typically in most stores. 5.1 is 5 speakers and a sub, 7.1 is 7 and a sub. 7 speakers is a LOT if you do not have the room. I have 5 in family room and living room and there is no difference between that and 7 because the rooms are not overly large. A couple things I liked. Get a good receiver that has the ability to receive S-Video inputs. Buy a good Sub, this is one of the most important items. The rear speakers need to be decent quality, crackling during a nice action scene can ruin the viewing pleasure. Buy a nice center speaker that will work with the room as well. Most of the kits come with cubes for all teh speakers and a cube on top of your TV just looks kinda ugly. Make sure the receiver has a dedicated Sub outlet and your sub is powered. Buy at least a 10" sub...it is worth it. Stay away from the dvd/receiver combos, they are usually junk. Here is a good set of Yamaha Speakers. A good idea is to head to your local Circuit City or Hi-Fi store and check out their speaker room then go buy the stuff on Ebay, you WILL save money that way every time. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...5718530483&rd=1 Also - If you buy a VCR for the system, spend the extra cash and get one with a S-Video output, there is a big picture quality difference I noticed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gond September 3, 2004 Share Gond Member September 3, 2004 I have been told you should make sure to get a powered sub...mine is not and it's not that great. It sounds good but does not shake the house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soul .gc September 3, 2004 Share soul .gc Member September 3, 2004 Yea - powered is the way to go otherwise you have to spend cash on an amp to get the full use of an unpowered one and it is still not as good. The other thing I mentioned above about the dedicated subwoofer output is so you get the full output of the bass. Some will come where you have to run the speaker wires to the sub for the front speakers then run the speakers from the subwoofer. This works but you lose the low-end bass that really rumbles. Get the dedicated and you get the true low end and will have your room thumping during good movies. I can make my water vibrate during jurassic park when the dinosaurs come walking...it rocks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConGregation September 3, 2004 Share ConGregation Member September 3, 2004 On my first surround system I didn't have a sub. I had the big floor speakers for the front with the 12' bass speakers. What REALLY annoyed me about that setup was that any sound coming from the left and right front sounded great but in sound that came directly from the center (and rear speakers) had no bass and sounded tinny. I usually just used the two front speakers and left the others off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penty September 3, 2004 Share Penty Member September 3, 2004 I disagree un-powered subs are excellent, provided you have a good amplifier driving them. I recomend an Ashly MFA-8000. Personally I drive my home system with a prototype of this, but I wouldn't rcomend it. The noise floor is a little high. I will be upgrading to 3 1501s when I get the cash togeather. On a more serious note don't bother with 7.1 unless your room is at least twice as long as it is wide. Also try to get matching front and center speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zap September 3, 2004 Share Zap Member September 3, 2004 I think you might have a hard time getting a good system for $500. I've been really big into home theater for a long time and my whole set up cost me about $10,000. Granted you don't have to spend that kind of money to get a good quality system but I have upgraded as I've gone along. I also have separate amps that power everything and a preamp, etc. Most receivers you get nowadays should do most everything you want. You definitely want it to have a subwoofer out though. A separate channel is awesome for that. You want the receiver to decode both dolby digital and DTS and they should do both of those most of the time now. You want it to have a optical in or a coaxial in for the dolby digital sound too. It needs to have the same in as the out on the dvd player. Most should have optical hookup and definitely buy the cable and hook it up that way rather than the rca's. You really only need 5.1 surround because 7.1 is more for THX type systems and for the normal person 5.1 will sound just like a movie theater. 7.1 is great if you have a massive room to fill but for 99% of the people 5.1 is the best. Most movies aren't fully supported for 7.1 anyways yet which would mean that in a 7.1 system they would spread the sound between the rear and side channels instead of being speaker specific as in a 5.1 system unless the DVD was specifically made to do 7.1. I would definitely go powered subwoofer. No question about this one. DVD's hit low frequencies below 20 and a non powered subwoofer can't pick those up. To really feel the rumble and bass from movies a subwoofer makes a massive difference so as was said earlier make sure you don't half donkey on it. Penty is correct on matching the main speakers with the center channel. That way you have a smooth flow across the front which won't sound awkward when it switching from voice to regular sounds. Usually most speaker sets you look at now suggest a center channel to go along with them so you can't really screw this part up. The rears should be your last thought. If you are going to put less money into anything than the rears is it. Most dvd's the sound that comes out the rears isn't anywhere near as loud as the mains so you can go a little cheaper on these. Also, when you playback music you probably will just use the 2 front main speakers so the rears will be the least used speakers of the 5. You'll find that most speakers now also come with they recommends for not only center but rears. So your best bet is to just go give them a listen and see what you think is best. If you have any specific movies bring them with you and listen to scenes where you know the full surround is being used. It's the best way to really test speakers. Also, don't just hit the local chains. Try a high end audio store because a lot of times they have speakers that aren't really big but pack a big punch. One last thing about the receiver. Count the number of optical in's it has. You'd want one for the dvd player, one for xbox and one for cable box if it has it. Once you get all that hooked up with the widescreen tv you'll love it. I know I do. I also have an HD cable box running an optical out to my preamp so I can watch cable in dolby digital too. You should see if your cable offers that. I was able to upgrade my box to a dolby digital one for free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fatty September 4, 2004 Share Fatty GC Founder September 4, 2004 my whole set up cost me about $10,000. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubblegum Bandit September 4, 2004 Share Bubblegum Bandit Member September 4, 2004 I think Zap pretty much covered it from my prospective. Zap, are you running a projector and screen? Only other thing I can think to add, is that if you are setting up a dedicated "Movie" room the optimal ratio of width/depth is 1/1.5. I have a friend that owns a high end home theater installation comany out here and he has given me a few little tips about setting up a dedicated movie room. It just doesn't make sense for me to sink that much money into it until I'm in the house I plan to be in for good. So....for now I settle with my little AIWA mini system with add-on Sub. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis September 4, 2004 Share Dennis Member September 4, 2004 well working for radioshack i have picked up on alot but they all seem to have been coverd but the one thing i didnt see was anyone saying anything about cables. cables can amke a big difference too. if your going to put money into it then dont settle for cheap cables get some nice MONSTER cables. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubblegum Bandit September 4, 2004 Share Bubblegum Bandit Member September 4, 2004 I'm assuming you are talking about speaker cables. It has been said many times in the thread to use optical cables for input/output cables. However, I will second your opinion, Monster Cables are good cables. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penty September 4, 2004 Share Penty Member September 4, 2004 Ok time to dispell some myths here. Speaker cables can make a difference to a point, but usually not with home "low-power" systems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis September 4, 2004 Share Dennis Member September 4, 2004 Yea sorry i forgot about the optical but i guess i was promoting monster cables as the brand to go with. and just to rub it in some fo your guys faces i get 60% off all moster products. so its nice getting those $70 cables for like $20 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
All Kill3r September 4, 2004 Share All Kill3r Member September 4, 2004 i noticed a huge sound difference when i went to lower guage wiring. Don't know what 'low power and high power' is for home audio, but i play with 600w going through 2 15' subs and 10 tweeters... Thicker = better imo. i dont like powered subs, they don't come close to the real deal. I can make my water vibrate during jurassic park when the dinosaurs come walking...it rocks! is that with a powered sub ? If i wanted my glass wouldn't just vibrate, it would fall off the table. Seperate amps and subs are the way to go. Penty's advice on matching speakers is key. Zap, you're nuts. You made my little system crawl into a corner.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penty September 4, 2004 Share Penty Member September 4, 2004 heh, 600W is not low power. In my opnion Low power is 100W or less per speaker. Since we are bragging here.... =) Primary System: Marantz AV9000 Processor Marantz DV4200 DVD Player Pioneer DVL-909 DVD/LD Player RCA VR7L5HF SVHS Player Ashly PF6250 Amplifier Paradigm CC350 Center, and 4 mini-monitors. Custom 15" Sub. hmmm still doesn't add up to 10K I'm jealous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zap September 4, 2004 Share Zap Member September 4, 2004 Believe me it wasn't intended to go that price range when I started. About 10 years ago when I first got my first set of speakers I knew I didn't want Bose because of the lack of a powered sub so I went to a high end store and was literally blown away at the crap in there. I got about 1k worth of speakers at that time and it was great but eventually I moved to a bigger room and wanted to upgrade, etc. and then amassed the stuff over time. I guess you could say I got a little addicted but I haven't spent any money on it in a couple years now. Cables do make a difference once you drop a good buck into your system. Lower guage is always better. My speakers have bind posts on them so if you have that you either need to get the connectors for the speaker wire or buy the kind that has it already on it which you can usually buy in certain length. As for the components my cables are all one directional so you can't hook them up backwards haha. All that stuff hurts because after you spend all this money on amps, speakers and all that the last thing you want to do is drop a couple hundred buying cables. One thing to remember is that buying good stuff in speakers and stereos is that you really don't have to upgrade until technology passes you. But good speakers can last forever...at least I'm banking on it - haha. I don't use a projector. I use a 65" widescreen hdtv Bubblegum. I'm still trying to find that ultimate movie room but that won't come until I get myself gainfully employed again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
All Kill3r September 4, 2004 Share All Kill3r Member September 4, 2004 Road trip to Zap's house guys ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
linch September 5, 2004 Author Share linch Member September 5, 2004 Thanks for the info guys... it gave me some better insight into it all. Bottom line is I cant afford to spend much, so I'm going to with a lower priced setup, and then down the road (likely when the plasmas are working and priced well) I'll get a better setup. Now the other issue I'm having is setup... My down stairs isnt the best setup for a sound system, because its long, and narrow. So... i can not pull the coach out, and have the speaks behind me, so I'm planning on mounting them on the wall, and angling them down. Here's a few screen shots of my basement (dont mind the mess...we are slowly working on removing wallpaper, carpet, and painting.) On the screen shots I indicated where I'm planning/thinking about putting the 5 speaks, the subwoofer location is still undecided. The big tv is obviously going where the small tv and wall unit is now. I guess my main issue is going to be where to place the rear speakers... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penty September 5, 2004 Share Penty Member September 5, 2004 Hmmm From the looks of it you are planning on really small speakers, you might want to reconsider that for the fronts. I personally feel that most don't produce decent mids. There are of course exexptions, the NST Super Zeros are nice. Since you have a limited budget, I recomend dumping it all into speakers and upgrading the electronics later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bubblegum Bandit September 5, 2004 Share Bubblegum Bandit Member September 5, 2004 Nice thing about subs is you can put them anywhere, it doesn't really matter. As far as the rear speakers go, they may be a little more expensive, but have you thought of in ceiling speakers? You can flush mount them in the ceiling and that would work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
All Kill3r September 5, 2004 Share All Kill3r Member September 5, 2004 i think the sub placement does matter, a lot. If you put it way over by the wood stove it's not going to give you the same feeling if it were in a more central location.... One tip, paint atleast 2 walls in that huge room a darker color. It will do wonders for the environment, to your wife it will be more cozy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mad Bean September 5, 2004 Share Mad Bean Member September 5, 2004 You've got the right idea Linch. I read in the setup manual for my system, that the rear speakers should be 2-3 feet above viewers and facing toward the listening area. I'm not sure that you want to put the front speakers that high though, but you will want them the same height. Possibly on top the the TV. Looks like you have a good plan. I have the same entertainment center. Nice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now