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Newbie here needs a little help with Receiver choice!


Ultravioletsounds

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Hello everyone! I'm putting together a 5.1 system this year (yes, its going to take a year! lol) Here is my planned setup at the moment.

  • RF-63 Floorstanders

  • RC-64 Center

  • RS-42 Surrounds

  • RW-10d Subwoofer
My question is which receiver in the Harmon Kardon line to go with as far as having enough power to push this set up. Any feedback would be appreciated. My couch is about 10 feet from where the Floorstands will be. This setup will eventually be going into a more sizeable room in the future. Thanks again!
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Welcome to the forums. You are looking at a great setup, even if it took you two years to get. Many of us here have aquired our systems over time, looking for good deals on used speakers and saving up and paying cash (get better deals that way, even on new speakers). I have two suggestions:

1. Buy your receiver last. If it were me, I would pick up an older used 5.1 receiver (often less than $200) and use it until I finished buying all of my speakers. The reason is that within a year, technology will have changed quite a bit and you can either buy the latest and greatest or you can buy "older technology" for cheaper than you can buy it now.

2. Although I haven't heard it, I'm not sure the RW-10d would be a good choice for the RF-63's. That is a long way away from the recommended RT-10d that Klipsch recommends with it. Even if you don't want to spend that much on a sub, look for a used RSW-15 or an older Velodyne sub. I picked up mine at an awesome price on Craigslist.

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Thanks for the reply! You make a very good point about getting the Receiver last. I've been looking through a lot of posts, but I want to make sure I get an HK receiver that can handle the load. I dont plan on blowing the door off the apartment as I dont want to get evicted (yet), but I want to make sure I dont short myself either.

As for the sub, I would love the RT-10d, but its a price thing at the moment. I will keep looking around for a nice deal or until I have the ample amount saved to get it. Bare in mind I DO want the best setup I can afford and am willing to save up for the RT-10d. I dont like spending a decent amount of money only wishing I would have waited a bit longer for better quality.

Silly question...Can you run the Floorstands and Center channel alone? Or do I have to wait till I have a complete 5.1 system for the Center Channel to be useful? Thanks!

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I dont like spending a decent amount of money only wishing I would have waited a bit longer for better quality.

You are very wise to think that way. So many times, people get impatient and "settle" only later regretting their purchase, selling what they have at a loss and then buying what they really wanted in the first place.

Keep in mind, you do not have to buy a Klipsch sub. There are lots of options, especially in the used market. Be sure to check out your local craigslist.

Silly question...Can you run the Floorstands and Center channel alone? Or do I have to wait till I have a complete 5.1 system for the Center Channel to be useful?

Not a silly question at all. As dtel said, yes, you can definitely run only 3 speakers with a 5.1 or even a 7.1 receiver. When you run the auto calibration (if your receiver has it), it will recognize those channels are not being used and will re-route the rear surround effects to your front speakers so that you are not "missing" information.

Good luck and ask all the questions you want.

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I used to have a Harman Kardon AVR55 (55 watts/ch) and it powered my RF-83's and an RC-7 just fine. I sold it because it did not support DTS. More watts just means you can crank it louder without distortion and you'll have more headroom for the high action sequences.

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65-80 w should be plenty, especially since you have a powered subwoofer and if you use the LFE output of your AVR your receiver will be spared much of the power requirments. 80 wpch with Khorns will make your ears bleed and you are only a few dB down from that.

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I would not think that glass nor wood would be any different. They both are pretty hard, flat, solid surfaces, neither of which are good for acoustics. But if you have your center flush with the edge of the cabijnet, you won't have to worry about sound reflecting off of it.

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I just bought RC-63's and the RC-64 Center. I also have the Harman Kardon AVR-354 refurb from Harman Kardon. It has 75 watts of power for all 7 speakers. It is enough to drive the speakers quite well. Not to mention that the sound quality is very, very, good. I plan on geting a amp later. But for now it is a very good set up. Great Highs, Great Lows, and Great Playback! Go For IT!!!! IT will make you feel better!

Brown

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Needless to say I'm very envious at the moment! haha Good to know it sounds superb though. I really cant wait to get all the pieces together. Nevertheless, I'm going to be patient and build it how I want it and not settle. I just wish my living room was bigger. At least I wont have to upgrade my sound system when I move into a bigger place though! My next issue is finding a suitable TV stand/center to fit the RC-64 in. I've seen numerous thread on here about that issue. If anyone has any suggestions (aside from having one built), feel free!

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