myriadcorp

Well finally got around to making the images small enough to post. Here are the photos of my living room and basement systems. Living room; Marantz TV Marantz MA700 Mono block amps Marantz AV550 Pre amp. Pioneer Elite Laser disc JVC VCR Sony DVD Paradigm Studio 100's, LCR 450's, and Servo 15 Sub Panamax Power Center Basment: Samsung 5674 TV Marantz MM9000 amp B&K Ref 50 S2 Pre amp Philipps DVD Klipsch RF35's, RC7, RS7's, and SVS PB12-plus/2 sub Monster Power Center 5100 I am just getting stuff into the basement right now so its pretty bare down there. There is some minor work I need to finish but I finally was able to watch a movie down there last night. Spiderman 2 sounded great on the system. That sub is insane. If you have the DVD crank up the part when Dr.Oc begins his fusion with the Machine. It sounded like he was in my room. More photos below.

I think this is the new marantz and the 400 models are older. Marantz SR7500 http://www.marantz.com/new/index.cfm?fuseaction=Products.Product&cont=eu&bus=hf&prod_id=3202&series=comp&type=avr I think this page shows them all. http://www.marantz.com/new/index.cfm?fuseaction=Products.ProdCat&cont=eu&bus=hf&type=avr&series=comp

Isn't the Marantz SR7400 a AV Receiver? If you are looking at receivers and selected the 7400 as something to look at, you should know the 7500 model is out. The 7400 is the old model and they have the new 7500 out with more features like DVI.

My 5663 cost 3k. I have no idea where you found it that cheap. The difference was 500.00 so I went ahead and got it. I was not very happy with picture of the 5663 so that made me more willing to upgrade.

A surge clean power center is a must for a nice HT system. You cant be hooking this stuff up to a PC surge strip. The monster power centers are pretty nice. Check Ebay.com for some Monster Power Centers. You can get a 2500 or up very cheap. I purchased a HTS 5100 which retails over $700 for $350 on ebay. I just pulled a quick link from a search for monster power 5100 on ebay. Here is one to give you an idea of what you can find on there. Dont waste $700+ for the 5100 at the sort. Buy ebay and save. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=67780&item=5733925644&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW Check out monster's site to see the other models they offer. Ebay lets you get this alot cheaper than at BB or other retail chain stores.

If you have an ultimate electronics in town try them out. Or do a authorized dealer search for your area. I would go with the reference system for your budget. Also, if you have the room go for the Floor standing 35's over the bookshelf 35's. They sound much better. Do a side by side compare and you will see what I mean. Klipsch are pretty nice speakers and you can get a 35's all around system pretty cheap. Dont be shy about asking the dealer for discounts off the prices.

My opinion is this... I would put the RF35's above the RB75's any day. The large floor standing speaker sounds alot better to my ear than the bookshelf. To me those bookshelfs sound sorta tin sounding (best I can describe) When you play the bookshelf then swap to the RF35 it just sounds like a full sound. I guess the dual speakers and the horn are alot better than one speaker and the horn. Listen for yourself though. Have the sales guy change speakers and see which one sounds better to you. I was going to do the Bookshelfs until I listened to the RB75 and RF35's side by side. BTW I saw that Yamaha 2400 receiver for less than $600 at ultimate electronics. Check out the Marantz SR5500 too its a good receiver. Honestly if you can get the Reference 35's all around why settle for a 3.1 system. That 35 system with a decent receiver will add a smile to your face alot more than a 3.1 system would. Not everyone has the cash to buy Rf7's and 7's all around. The 35's are a good speaker and will make a very nice system for your HT. If you dont already have it you will need cables and wire. Thats not cheap. Plus maybe a power center of some type. You can find some monster power centers on ebay alot cheaper than the stores. Also try ac4l.com or bluejeanscable.com for cables. Acoustic Research Pro 2 or Master is fine for a system. Dont be hucked into Monster THX Ultra or Z series cables. You will pay a fortune.

Well thinking I got the latest model of the Samsung DLP with the HLP5663 I just find out that the new HL-P5674W model is out and better than the 5663 I just had delivered this week. Has anyone purchased this set? I am about to take back the 5663 in exchanged for their 4th generation dlp tech tv. Sigh

I have paradigm studio 100's and I love them. I would give thumbs up to paradigm.

Because of room limitations I can only do 5.1. The RS7's sounded pretty good but they were not very audible when playing 5 channel stereo music. I figured the RF35's would be better in that regard. Im not sure what the price will be on the RF7's yet. If I can get a good deal I may have to play with both RS7 then RF35 as the surrounds. My sub is the SVS PB12-plus/2.

My current 5.1 setup is RF35's RC7 and RS7's. I may get a killer deal on some RF7's. If I can get the deal would it be better to use the RF35's as surrounds and take the RS7's back?

Well after waiting months I finally got my basement finished and hooked the system up tonight. Talk about a job! It took me forever to get all the speaker wires cut and setup. Also, had to build the stand and get everything together. Everything seems to work ok. I am going to have my Pre wire guy come over and setup my B&K ref 50. I tried but its way over my head. Everything sounded ok so I guess now I just wait for my furniture to arrive. Here is everything in the system: Samsung 5663 DLP Marantz mm9000 Amp B&K Ref 50 S2 Monster HTS5100 Philipps DVD 642 Klipsch RF35's, RC7, & RS7's SVS PB12-plus/2 I may be swapping the 35's for 7's. But it was pretty dang loud so who knows. I will post a picture once the furniture is in.

Thats $100 less than I could have purchased new at the local store.

I am using a Marantz AV550 pre amp that was over 1k new in 98. Its a nice item and can be found on ebay for under $150.

You can prob just get two speaker stands for about $80 and set the center on them. I have seen it done at Ultimate electronics. Two stands supporting a RC7. Set it in front of your TV and your good to go. My Samsung DLP needs to sit on something. So I had to get the stand. Just curious.... How much does that Samsung with the stand go for? The one I got is the 5663 DLP and sold for $3k.

---------------- On 11/16/2004 1:48:13 PM neomartic wrote: Yeah, I need something that will play DVD audio, like you're talking about and DVD-R, which most new players will play. Is it worth shelling out the (approximately) $400 for a Marantz VC5400 dvd player. Should I just stick with a cheap one that has the playback capability? What's the big difference as long as I have the digital and component, a/v outputs I need? ---------------- If you plan on burning mp3's to DVD media you better check videohelp.com/dvdplayer for the player you are looking at. Very few on the market can play mp3's on DVD media. I would suggest getting that $68 Philipps 642 from walmart. It plays everything I throw at it. Its progressive scan and plays svcd and divx with no problems. If your into that sort of thing. Some people know what I am talking about. I really dont see why people pay so much for Hyped up DVD players anyway. Think about this. It cost $60 to buy a DVD burner for a pc. How much does it actually cost companys to plop a dvd drive in a box and sell it? Thats why the price of dvd players have dropped to $30. I actually purchase a $30 dvd player from cyberhome. It played everything. It wasnt pretty but it played it. I chose the 642 because the mp3 menu was better. The $30 played music and video just as good so dont be fooled by the high dollar machines. Thats my opinion.

I had the same problem. After thinking about it long and hard I decided to get the stand below. http://www.bello.com/AV/avsc-2051mc.asp The speaker should fit on the bottom shelf. The TV is a Samsung DLP 5663. The stand is the same length as the tv so it should look nice.

I am not certain but I never heard of a way to record tv shows with a set top dvd burner. Most people use a DVR for that purpose. You could archive vhs to dvd with a pc burner. There are tons of programs and devices for that purpose. I would just start doing some research. Try searching google.

Skip the tv top recorders and just buy a $69 NEC from newegg.com to put in your pc. It can burn dual layer disc as well. http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproductdesc.asp?description=27-152-031&DEPA=1 Research them more. Better off with a pc burner than a av component type. You can do alot more with a pc burner.

---------------- On 11/15/2004 10:34:54 AM neomartic wrote: All your system is Marantz huh? I assume that includes a Marantz DVD player. Which model do you have. I was looking to get one, but am having a tough time deciding. Any suggestions? Thanks ---------------- My main system right now that I purchased in 1998 is; Marantz AV550 pre amp, 5 MA700 mono blocks, and a Marantz 60inch tv. I have 3 dvd players. A sony, panasonic, and philipps dvd player. The philipps is new and the others are older. Its the 642 model I purchased at walmart for $68. This dvd player does it all. It doesnt do Super audio or anything like that. I have no need for that. It does play damn near every format there is. You can burn mp3's on dvd media and play it in the philipps. Most players only work with mp3's on cdr media. You can play divx and other svcd type burns in it. If you want a player you should check out videohelp.com/dvdplayers/ They break down all the players and have customer reviews. I love the mp3 on dvd. It gives me 4 gigs of space to put all my cd's on. I burned 12 cd's on my DVD RW disc the other day and only used 1/4 of the disc space. I can pop it in the player and its like I have a huge changer. Plus if you download any mp3's off the newsgroups or other media you can put them all together on 4 gigs of media. DVD burners are about $69 at newegg.com. They have a NEC model that will burn dual layer dvd. Thats 9 gigs on 1 disc. Just imagine an IPod type disc with all your music played from one source. Its very nice.

I got a new dickenson theater about 3 mins from my house. Its got smaller theaters but its very nice. There are 15 rooms and I am very happy its there. The closest one prior to that was 15-20min away. They also have 50cent popcorn and drinks. The drinks are about 32oz too so its very nice. They have very good sound quality too. Sometimes you can hear the rumbling of the theater next to you if something big is going on.

Thanks for the offer. Guys great advice thank you. I just ordered all my cables from bluejeans. I have some acoustic research cables for my xbox. That accessories4less site is great. Those deals on AR masters are very nice. I guess I could have gone either way and spent the same price. It ended up costing me $277 for 5 channel amp to pre amp cable, 2 digital coax, 3 componenet, and 1 sub cable. Im just glad I didnt spend a ton of money on Monster Cable. It would have cost me more than $277 just buying the component cables if I went monster. Thanks!

I'm leaning to the bluejeans site. Bettercables were very expensive. Either the bluejeans or acoustic research I guess. Monster is way overpriced unless I just get the THX ones.

Anyone using Acoustic Research cables? They seem to be very affordable.

Just when I was thinking of upgrading to RF7's I see how much I am going to spend on cables. Can anyone recommend a good place to get cables cheap? Thanks! I need 5 amp to pre amp cables, 2 digital coax, 3 componenet, and 1 sub out cable.