substance-p

Here are some pictures

I got the MX system yesterday. Set up 3.1 and watched Iron Man 2. Initial thoughts: The system is small....I mean very small. Everything appears well made. The MM-6 subwoofer is amazing. An 800 watt mini sub that blends seamlessly with the speakers provides a rich full sound without being fatigueing in our small room. I don't know if I can get used to the aesthetic of the satellite as the center channel (since all 5 speakers look the same). I am unsure if I am going to keep this setup. Specifically, I am considering getting two larger book shelf speakers and going 2.1. I don't have the space for a larger center channel, so I think I might go a different direction.

Thankfully, I was able to hear several options ahead of time. I have previously demoed both the Take Classic and RC-Micro options form Energy and the Quintets/HD500?RSX-3s from Klipsch. I went last weekend and checked out the Mirage OS-3s, Nanosats, and MXs. I ended up going with the MXs b/c the performance relative to the footprint of the 250ish square foot room was solid, and the amazing performance of the MM-6 (a sub that has very high Wife Approval Ratings. The price was so low, I figure if the sats don't cut it, I'll keep the MM-6 and see if I can squeeze a larger speaker into the system. The MXs should be here this weekend or Monday. I'll be sure to post an update.

So we setup the new TV and stand. With the way we have to turn the TV on the stand for maximum viewing angle, there isn't much space at all for speakers. I went to Best Buy Magnolia and listened to the Mirage MX system (these things are TINY). The speakers sounded great considering the size and I was really impressed with the 800 watt 6 inch MM-6 sub (small enough for my Wife to approve of but still packing a serious punch). I ordered a set online for less than best price I could find for a new MM-6. I figure if the MXs don't cut it, I still have the MM-6 at a good price. I have to say that the Mirage speakers in general sounded great with music. Amazing clarity!

Just ordered the Sony BDP-S570

So far so good, but I haven't tried truly off axis to test its limitations yet. I took a handful of photos during the Packers Bears game last night b/c the teams' jerseys illustrated the unique color presentation very well. I'll take some shots off axis as well and be sure to include those.

First things first-I am a plasma guy. I have a Panasonic plasma in the bedroom and an LG in the theater. I have been unwilling to buy an LCD until now. Not that I haven't seen some nice LCDs, they just looked different enough to my eye to not to do it for me. I had to replace the 40 inch HD Sony XBR in the family room (it was too big in the new house and was obstructing an A/C vent. This killed me because the tube TV in 1080i had my favorite picture (granted in 16:9 mode it was like 35 inches of screen). This room can get a lot of sunlight and my Wife loves to keep the window shades open so I was reluctant to purchase a 3rd plasma as the replacement for the Sony. I went and looked at LCD, LCD/LED, etc. options for a few days-watching TV until I got a headache at Best Buy and HH Gregg. I almost bought an LG 5400 just because Fry's had a sick deal on it and I like the online options on my LG plasma-but I couldn't fall in love with the picture. Anyway, then I saw the Quattron. At first, it was hard to tell if it was a plasma or an LCD/LED. I went home, read some articles, and decided to take advantage of a sale and get a 40le810un. I set the TV up today and adjusted the picture with setting posted in a pretty thorough review of the 810. First things first-out of the box the picture was REALLY good. Secondly, after doing the tweaks referenced above, I find the picture AMAZING. I'll post some more feedback after I get some miles on this; however, I feel like this was $899 well spent. Now it's time for some small speakers to compliment it and replace the old school PS3 with a Blu ray....

Good idea wuzzer

Thanks for the additional suggestion. I do have a wired ethernet adapter in this location that I currently have the PS3 hooked up to. The gen 1 PS3 is getting retired (way too tempermental for a primary watching/listening area). I'll explore the option you suggested as well. The new TV streams netflix directly too. I would love to get a DVD player with Pandora but it isn't necessary.

Looking for a new Bluray player and came across one of these for $249 http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/PUSA/Products/HomeEntertainment/Blu-rayDisc+DVD/EliteBlu-rayDiscPlayers/ci.BDP-31FD.Kuro 250 is the upper range of what I want to drop on a blu ray player and I don't know if this one would be any better than an LG/Panasonic/etc. for about 150. any thoughts?

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I am looking into getting a wider TV stand that will safely accommodate smal book shelf speakers next to the TV. I tried to get the okay for small floor standing (similar to the W-34s) but my Wife would really prefer something on the stand itself. I am really interested in hearing the Mirage speaekrs (from what I hear you either like the omni-polar sound or you don't).

Thanks for all of the feedback guys. It's nice to know that there are some solid options out there with a small footprint. I think we are going order the TV and stand this week and start to demo the speakers as well.

Thanks Bill. A local store actually has a demo set of RX-3s in as a 5.0 for 350. I am going to try to swing by and hear them. The Magnolia BB has the Mirage MX 5.1 setup and I am going to demo those as well. I have heard the RC-Micros before....but that was a year ago

Thanks for the link-I will have to see if I can track down the sizes on each speaker to see if it would work.

Thanks for the suggestion dtel. It is based in part on my great experience with Klipsch products over the years that I am looking at these two systems and because of Klipsch's ownership of them that I am posting here...hoping that some other klipsch fans have tried these out at some point. I contacted an acquaintance who works for Klipsch and he indicated that he liked the sound of the Enegry line but that the sub included with the MX bundle was fantastic. It is not cost effective to piece together the Mirage sub with the the Energy RC-Micro speakers due tot he cost break associated with the bundles.

I am not sure if this is the best subforum for this question (ths system will not be for home theater but rather for the family room). We are replacing an 40 inch 4:3 HD TV that currently had a Polk Surroundbar sitting on top of it with a PSW-111 sub with an up to date smaller TV (still 40 inches, but only an inch and a half deep instead of 28 inches []). Anyway, we are going with a small stand and I have decided to sell the surroundbar to a buddy who can't swing a new system right now and have received the go ahead to buy a small 3.1 setup (but it has to fit in the shelf on the new TV stand...accept for the sub obviously). So I have it narrowed down to the Energy Micro system http://www.crutchfield.com/p_732RCMIC/Energy-RC-Micro-5-1.html?tp=184 and the Mirage MX 5.1 http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/501154958/mirage-mx-5-1?s_c=site_search I see the sub as being better with the MX setup but I am not sure how the omnipolar will sound in a shelf and I don't know about the look of the three of them in close proximity to one another...plus it is more $ than the Energy (but Vann's is throwing in a new receiver with the MXs that I can sell to my buddy real cheap) I prefer the aesthetic of the Energy micro (having a center channel that looks shorter and longer relative to the L and R speaker) and I prefer the price to the Mirage. Does anyone have first hand experience with either of these systems or suggestions for one over the other?

Youthman has a good point about separates. If you are looking to stick with an all-in-one. I really like the Onkyo 876 I just purchased. It has plenty of power for my system, and easy to use calibration process, and the Reon chip for video duty. FWIW, my system is simliar to your's with RF-35s and RS-35s (however, I have an RC-64 for the center and a couple of old KG 3.5s for the rear). So far, the Onkyo is more than up to the task of driving the system. New, they can be found around 999-1200. It was the easiest to setup, then my yamaha, and then my Marantz. Once I wrestled the Marantz into submission, it does, however, drive my family room system very well.

As I said, I am not exactly sure how Audyssey works its mojo. I have looked through the "official" thread over at avs; however, it has 575+ pages and over 17K posts, so I skipped some parts. What I can say is that the sound is much clearer, dynamic, and enveloping than any other receiver I have tried thus far (which only includes my Yamaha 663, and Marantz 5001 with this particular setup). Also, it may limit how loudly you can play; however, I can't even come close to testing it as I can't take it over half the volume without feeling like I am going to get a nose bleed. We watched Eagle Eye last night and it was great (the movie watching experience, the movie was just okay).

The new Audyssey version on the 876 can take up to 7 (maybe 8) seating positions. The system walks you through mic placement starting with the center most seatingplace in the area and then moving outward to the next seating space. In the end it calibrates based on the info from all of the spots. I am not sure how it works but have read that one of the advancements of it (this version) over previous ones is the number of seating positions it can measure and subsequently account for for calibration and room correction

I just did the automatic Auydssey calibration on the 876 with 6 seating positions and fired up a few of my favorite scenes to test a HT with (the Matrix shootout in the lobby, the Bourne Identity car chase, and Transformers [a couple of different scenes]). The difference between the 876 and theYamaha 663 I had previously powering the system is unbelievable. The system really came alive and the sound was enveloping-finally it sounded like I had hoped it would. I only had about 15 minutes to enjoy before heading off to work. I hope to watch a few movies this weekend.

I want to thank everyone for all of your help over the past few months. I could not have put together the system I did without your input and help (quite literally as serveral of the pieces were purchased from members here []). The home I recently moved into had a preexisting HT-style room. It had been built 10 or so years ago and had Bose system and a built-in area for a 4:3 style big screen. Initially, I wanted to put a prjector in the area; however, architectural constraints coupled with a desire to not have to refinish the existing built in areas left us with the idea to redo the space as best we could. It is a tough room to get a proper picture of; however, here are a few. I built a couple of black shelves to go in the TV cut out area and put an LG 50PS80 Plasma and an RC-64 in that space. I added a pair of RF-35s I got from my parents when they switched to RB-81s as well as a pair of RS-35s. The rear speakers are my old KG 3.5s There is no way to hang speakers in the rear so floorstandings are my best bet there for the time being. There is an RSW-10d and a Jamo D7 taking over low frequency duty. I recently picked up an Onkyo 876 to power the system for the time being and got a PS3 and HTPC to help round out the system. I should finsih with the intial calibration today and be all set to enjoy a movie or two this weekend. The process was slowed down by some climate issues. As this is a bonus room with three exterior walls and over a garage, it suffered from the common temprature issues of those rooms and was down right uncomfortable. So, the most expensive addition to the room is the LG Neo Plasma (Air Conditioning and Heat pump seen in the final picture). Thanks again for all the help!

Plummer-Those are some good points for sure. I am really liking the idea of a couple of rocks pointing towards the house. Two rocks should do it?

Michael, I'll have to take you up on that. My Wife is up for either options (Rock or otherwise) so I'd like to take some time to listen to both options (and hearing a rock outside would be a big help).

Thanks for all of the input thus far!

I am trying to determine how I would go about wireing either option (hanging or rock speakers) to get them to the receiver in the house. Even though the receiver is just on the other side of the window, I'm not sure of how I would run wires from the the overhang to the family room. I should also check out the rock speakers, I haven't heard any decent brand of rock speakers, only the cheap ones.