dougdrake

I'm envious of those who have the time to go back and watch a movie again (which I assume is the reason people buy DVD's versus just renting them), AND keep up with all the movies being released. Not enough days/hours in a week for me...

see http://forums.klipsch.com/forums/t/99241.aspx

The Quints have internal filters in them which limit the frequencies going to the drivers - they aren't built to hit low notes, so you don't need to worry about low bass hurting them. What kills speakers is getting too much power that isn't clean. Most of the time you're only sending a few watts to speakers to hear them at comfortable levels. The high wattage gets sent to hit transients, and if you just crank the volume way up. It takes roughly 2x the power to increase the volume by 3db. If you crank it up beyond what your receiver is capable of sending, it "clips" - meaning the normally smooth sine wave of power flattens at the top, sending a rush of nasty unclean power to the driver, which if sustained for more than a few seconds could fry it. It is easier to fry speakers with low power amps than high power amps with good strong power supplies in them, because high power amps are less likely to clip.

Most times these ratings are indicated for "x" channels driven. The owner's manual probably has that information in it, maybe in the back in the specifications section, or their web site may also have it. It is uncommon for any receiver to actually output the full rated power to all channels at the same time. At the same time, it's uncommon for a soundtrack to deliver content to all channels at the same time, so it usually isn't that big an issue. However, I believe Sony is guilty of overstating their specs by quite a margin (maybe that has changed in recent years, though).

A more current pic. The things on top are bass traps. I haven't decided how to hang them yet--they work really well in their current locations. Wow, they're a long way from the Jubilee's I listened to on the inaugural Klipsch tour, in their beautiful cabinets and decidedly more decor-friendly appearance.

And of course Assassin's Creed (I guess not a shooter, though - more like a knifer and sworder)....

Are these things on the Klipsch website? If so, can someone post a link? My feeble brain is not turning them up anywhere...

Alan - IMHO, the Chorus will fit your bill nicely, then. Many say they were the WAF-friendly version of the Cornwall (so to speak), so if you like the Cornwall sound, I believe you'll like the Chorus sound. They are 101db efficient, so they don't need a lot of power to drive them - I've run them with my 30 wpc Fisher tube amp. But, l will say that they DO open up with more juice. I'm running mine with Acurus amps at 200 wpc.

I picked Barbershop music cuz the barbershop I go to (Floyd's) lets clients pick the playlist, and there is always a huge variety of music, and I like most of it.

I'd vote for the Chorus. I own both Forte I and Chorus I's, and I find the Chorus to be just that much more open with a bigger soundstage. If you don't plan to use a sub, the Forte will provide deeper bass which you will not get from the Chorus, though.

Guess it depends if you want to control the audio streaming from the room where your receiver is located, or just from the PC. If just from the PC, the above suggestions will work fine. If from the room where the receiver is, then you need something with intelligence to interface to either the Internet directly or to a server program of some kind on your PC (or run some version of remote desktop software on a PDA to control your PC remotely). I am using the Netgear MP101 which works pretty well to access my MP3 files on my PC, and also permits a limited number of pre-defined Internet radio streams. I know there are other options out there, but cannot think of them at the moment.

Yeah Todd!

Generally speaking, standard def looks like crap on HD Tv's. The minimum acceptable standard def source, IMO, would be a DVD at 480i or 480p resolution. Connect it up using component video cables - it will provide the highest resolution your DVD can support, as long as you have component video inputs on your TV. Your TV will scale it to match its native resolution. Standard def broadcast TV is not worth watching on hi-def (its resolution is 240), and I'd follow Prof Thump's suggestion about pulling Hi Def off the air if you are within striking distance of the broadcast towers - it's free hi def source material! Using a HDMI cable on standard def source material will provide zero benefit (except to the people who sell HDMI cables), at least from a picture quality standpoint.

Post a link to the owner's manual for the DVD player you are using - perhaps we can help find it in there.

That seems reasonable. What did you use to generate the test tones - the receiver, or a tuning DVD? If you used the Avia setup DVD, get out the meter again and find out what volume setting on your receiver generates 85db on the test tones from the Avia disk (75db if using the DVE disk or the receiver's test tones). Then, if you want to listen to a movie at "reference" volume, just set your receiver to the volume setting you noted from this exercise.

It's the Onkyo Pro PR-SC885P... http://onkyopro.com/model.cfm?m=PR-SC885P&class=Preamplifier&p=i There's an owner's manual posted on the Eiki site (their US distributor), I believe. http://onkyopro.com/news.cfm?id=115

I had Chorus speakers with a Forte center in a 11x12 room, so it can be done (and, I must say, it sounded stunning). However, if you're able to get a larger room I would go for it - you'll appreciate the extra space when it comes to seating and layout.

Here is a good "how to" on calibrating your system with that meter... http://www.svsound.com/questions-faqs.cfm#meter

Of course it's not just about price and features - you must also consider how they sound with your speakers and in your room. Assuming those things are equal (which of course they're not), I'd pick the Onkyo 605, Denon 1708, and HK 247, in that order. I suggest you bring home your two favorite choices and give them a road test.

I guess I'd get HDMI in the receiver because a) your source devices may increase beyond the 2 you have now - I have 3 with my PC, PS3, and HD-DVD player - and because audio processing also can occur over HDMI. I don't think I'd invest in a receiver right now that did not have HDMI support, and I'd go for HDMI 1.3. The 10 wpc difference between those 2 models of Denon's is negligible, IMO.

gonk is their forum answer man. link No, Sherwood does not build all Outlaw products - it varies across their product line. There is an FAQ on the 990 here which describes their approach to various product lines. It also pretty explicity states it is based on the Sherwood P-965.

I believe the 605 and 805 also both support HDMI 1.3, and processing of TrueHD and Master Audio if your player will pass bitstream.

Hmm, I thought MPCM was a digital-only connection? There is sometimes a challenge finding players with analog outputs to support decoding in the player and passing analog to the receiver. I do not believe any players today decode DTS-HD Master Audio - I believe they all pass that digitally to a preamp/receiver for processing. OTOH, there isn't much content out there for DTS-HD MA.

There are very few separates that handle the latest HDMI standard (1.3a). The Onkyo Pro PR-SC885 is getting lots of press right now, and it's about $1500 and hard to find. There are many who believe you don't really need 1.3 (except for some very specific circumstances), but I guess if I'm going to shell out for a dedicated pre-amp, I might as well get the latest to help future-proof it. Google that model number and you'll get plenty of info. Some folks are using receivers as pre-amps, since receivers are way ahead of the game versus dedicated pre-amps in the features arena. Again, Onkyo has some great receivers in the 600 and 800 series. Also, Sherwood Newcastle (who builds the Outlaw 990) has some nice new receivers.

The "secret" is a demo that is highly tuned to work well on their system - a well set-up Klipsch system (with a good receiver as I suspect yours is) will blow the doors off anything Bose can offer. I'm sure you've heard the joke - "Friends don't let friends buy Bose." Or, Bose stands for "Better Off with Something Else." I'm not directly familiar with your Yammy receiver (you don't say what model it is), but you need to be sure it is receiving Dolby Digital 5.1 from your player (or DTS 5.1) AND that it is set to automatically detect the signal so it decodes it correctly.