Getting started on a new home theater

[fxscreamer]

Hello, this is my first post. I wanted to get the opinions of people regarding my plan of building my first home theater. I currently have my 2 Event Studio Precision 8 mixing monitors as my 2.0 speaker setup on my HDTV. They sound amazing for what they are, but I definitely want to get a proper home theater, and get the SP8's back to my computer rig for audio work.

My plan was to start off buying a good receiver, like an Onkyo HT-RC260, and getting a pair of RF-62 II's. There would be no subwoofer yet, but I believe my current speakers frequency response of 35hz-20khz, and still sounded great, and the RF's go down to 35hz as well. Of course, I can build and piece the rest together over the next year or two, but wanted to start somewhere solid. (12AWG Cable for everything too)

Does this sound like a good plan? Can I still have great music, games, and movie experiences just on this 2.0 setup for awhile?

[jrod]

Sounds like a plan to me! I really like Onkyo gear for movie/tv viewing.

The 62 II's are getting some great reviews from right here in the forum, so that's a good sign.

You gotta start somewhere! Also....... Welcome to the madness!!

Jrod

[jjennings2510]

Hey welcome to the forum. I'm also a big Onkyo fan. I know people say there are better receivers for 2 ch music but honestly the onlyother brandI've heard is Yamaha and they didn't impress me. Plus the Audessey setup is pretty darn good. And yes that does sound like a good plan. You can definitely have great music and games and movies should be pretty good as well. But if possible you can spring for a 3.0 system and that'll definitely hold you over until you get your system built up the way you want it. I've gotten the upgrade bug and in my bedroom I just replaced those speakers with Klipsch and with me being lazy and not wanting to go to the store I never got speaker stands nor speaker wire for my rears......I haven't been in a rush though because the 3.1 setup sounds pretty darn good. The front 3 do a great job at simulated surround sound. Games, movies, music. Everything sounds great. I do have a sub but I doubt you'll need it since you are satisfied without it. So the 2 ch 62 system is a solid start indeed but if possible throw in a RC-62 center and I think that'll hold you over a lot longer. Just my 2 cents.

[SuBXeRo]

I heard the 62's and the 82's mark I models and they sounded great. There is a big difference in bass reproduction between the two though. I own rf-3 II's which have 8" drivers and i have no need for a subwoofer. I get a nice full range with bass at the bottom and from what i gather, piecing your system together over two years, your most important objective right now is to nab yourself a good set of floorstanders and a decent receiver. Part of piecing it all together though is being happy with what you have in the mean time. I would also spring for the rc-62 as stated above, well worth the money and is mated for the 82's. With smaller speakers, i always feel and hear that something is missing from smaller setups and with what i have now, i dont feel like i am missing anything. I am in an apt so having a sub is not an option but when i do get the chance, i will be seeking atleast a 15" sub to hit those low lows. You can engineer a speaker to hit a lower frequency but the driver size has alot to do with the type of bass you hear or feel. 6.5" bass is more light and airy then bass from an 8", of course both being engineered properly and designed to comparable specs.

I like onkyo, they make a good product. I like denon alot as well and are really the two brands i would stick to barring harman kardon which I would buy over the both of them. Barring all 3 of those, buying component style is your best option. Getting a processor/amp combo will yield the best results but there is a way to get to that eventually. What you can do in the meantime is buy a good receiver, one that is a high current model that supports all the bells and trinkets that you need. Keep in mind, many of these receivers offer tons of options, weed out the ones you know you really need so you can start limiting your selection. Good receivers will have pre outs that will send signals to an external amplifier. Receivers are notorious for poor performance with all channels being driven but generally underrated when 2 channels are driven. By the time you get everything in your receiver, the high channel power and the bells and whistles, you're in a range where buying component style is a very viable alternative and actually can cost the same or even less. It can always cost you more too. Check out onkyo, denon and harman kardon for your receivers, others will holler, look at yamaha and pioneer as well. All of them are good brands but we each have brands we are partial to.

If you do go component, Emotiva is the best value for your money. I really really like my XPA-5 5 channel x 200watt amp.Each bank is garunteed to push 200 watts minimum. At $800, thats a screaming value. Its an 80lb amp, each channel has its own dedicated circuitry so essentially, if one channel dies, the board for that could be replaced with relative ease. I would buy their amps again in a heartbeat. Now, their processor, the UMC-1 after updates is still thwarted with issues, I have it, I see the issues, it was most certainly released far before it should have been but the company is trying to make good and give purchasers prior, current, and future perks. I would wait for their next gen processor or go with another brand. If you didnt want to go that route, using a receiver with the pre-outs like i stated above will let you use the receiver for the processing portion only. Component style though, check out emotiva, marantz, parasound, outlaw audio, all of them have dedicated power amps, i believe they all have processors as well, i know emo, marantz and outlaw do but parasound i know has amps but not sure on the processing end.

I put more like .50 to a dollars worth of cents in here, i hope it kinda helps, its all my personal opinions, some will agree and others will disagree but I hope it helps you make a concious decision and helps you evaluate where you want to go with your system. You have many many options at your disposal and it sounds like you are doing your h/w, you should be fine!

[fxscreamer]

Thanks for all the info. I've been also talking a bit over in AVS forums, and getting some ideas. The room I'm currently in is about 15x30 with 9 foot ceilings, hanging grid, in the basement. I may be moving in the next year too, into an apartment, so my room will not be huge. Some told me that the RF-52's and RF-62's will be hard to distinguish with room sizes like that. Depending on if I get discounts, I was thinking I might splurge on the whole set of 52's, to keep the price modest, along with either an Onkyo 608 or Denon 1911 receiver. I didn't think about the amps, but that can probably wait. The subwoofer can always come later too. I just don't want major compromises getting 52's instead of 62's, but I'm coming from virtually nothing as far as a home theater setup (except my Event Studio Precision 8 mixer monitors, $1200 a pair), but NOT home theater.

I'm kind of at a fork in the road on many things. I feel the 52's will still probably blow my mind. I just want the experience of feeling the soundwaves push back my hair watching an action movie.

[SuBXeRo]

My apt's living room is about 10 ft wide and 20 ft long I have my couch in there about 5 feet back from the tv. Could you consider my rf-3's overkill? Sure you could. Only thing is that i am not blasting it. At the volumes i am at, the bass reproduction is very clean and clear. When you start raising the volume, the bass starts to taper off which is known as DB rolloff. The xover is designed to lessen the frequencies given to the drivers as volume increase tgo help protect the drivers but more importantly to keep the clarity of sound at higher levels, basically to eliminate distortion. Everything is subject to personal preference, i wouldnt spend the money on anything smaller then what I have because i know i would be unhappy with it. Upgrading is fun if you have the finances because it is costly to do especially if you can't/don't resell or resell and can't get what you want out of the market. One way to try and avoid that upgrade curve is to get something else in the meantime to get the job done that wont destroy your finances. For instance, one of the HT packages with the sattelite speakers that klipsch sells. Take not though, you need a sub with those. If you will be in an APT, avoid the sub, sub drone is one of the most irritating noises in the world.

To get your hair to pushback, you need a big sub haha. What i think what you are seeking is to hear that low end and not have it sound fake or airy. You want that tight low end with punch. Best thing i can say is listen to them all in side by side comparisons and see what you like most. Of course the show room will not be your living room, just keep that all in mind. Be particular when you listen to the demo. Ask the salesperson to set the speakers to full range or the appropriate HPF so that you can hear that particular speakers full range. This is important since you probably wont have a sub, the speakers have to do more work and its important for you to hear them on their own.