fsteddie Posted December 25, 2011 Share Posted December 25, 2011 Hi guys....I'm new to all this but seeking some helpful advice. I'm looking for two things the best bang for the buck and an attempt at a relatively energy efficient home theater setup. I don't really care about volume as I never listen to anything very loudly and to be honest when I walk into a home theater store I usually think everything that's not cheap sounds pretty good. I know energy efficiency is not a typical priority but ideally the high sensitivity of a Klipsch set up would help there. I have also been trying to find a good receiver that uses a class-d amp but all I can find are the lower end Sherwood 604/HK bds 5 or the high end elite sc series but nothing in the range I am looking for. Below are a few deals I am considering. Part of the issue is a step higher in the synergy (F-20) vs a step lower in the reference (rf-42ii) and the other part is the sub, I like the SW-450 because it is Klipsch and I know it uses a class-d amp and know nothing about the others being offered in the packages. Sorry for the long description but any advice on the speaker package or an energy efficient receiver would be much appreciated. Oh and I will use the system 90% of the time for TV/movie watching. -------$1,399.00 (2) F-20 Floorstanding Speakers (1) C-20 Center Channel Speaker (2) S-20 Surround Speakers (1) SW-450 Subwoofer -------$1,195.00 2 RF-42II Towers-1 RC-42 II Center-2 RS-41II Surrounds1 Bic Acoustech PL-200 Subwoofer -------$1,195.00 2 RF-42II Towers,1 RC-42 II Center.2 RS-41II Surrounds1 PA-120W Subwoofer -------$1,366.00 2 RB-51II, 2 RS-42II, 1 RC-52II 1 PA-120W Subwoofer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonJCarney Posted December 25, 2011 Share Posted December 25, 2011 Ok, first question is how big is your room? The RF series is an upgrade over synergy in general but the RF42's are very small and will not provide near the presence of the 6.5 inch synergy drivers. (I started with f-2's and a c-2). The RF series is more refined with more clarity than the synergy but the synergy is still a great speaker IMO. Second question is are you planning on upgrading in the future? If you are then get the rb51ii's. You'll be able up move those to rear surround duty should u ever want to upgrade your mains. 3rd question is are you willing to go used? I can build you a much better system than what your looking at through the garage sale section and audiogon classifieds. Lastly how much room do you have for these speakers? I'm guessing you have a decent amount. The f-20's are much larger than the rf42's. Have you looked at the rf62 system? To me the rf62 setup is best bang for the buck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonJCarney Posted December 25, 2011 Share Posted December 25, 2011 Or an AVR (audio video receiver)..... I run an onkyo 509 in my livingroom right now. Budget friendly and lots of features. Like $200. If you want to step up to a much more home theatre friendly unit then the onkyo 709 can be had for $499 shipped. Selecting an avr with preouts would help if you ever wanted to add an external amp in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonJCarney Posted December 25, 2011 Share Posted December 25, 2011 Subwoofers and center channel are the most important speakers in your set up. Sub's can go super high in price. Room size is a key factor on which sub to choose. Based on what you suggested on buying I can reccomend a couple of low priced sub's that will sound nice (not nessasarily gonna fill your room though). My budget friendly suggestion is a Polk psw505, or a klipsch rw 10d, often under $200 on newegg. A step up would be a paradigm dsp 3100 or klipsch rw 12d. $300-$375 range. Neither will hit harder than the Polk but they will be cleaner. A further step up would be an elemental designs a2-300 or even further up an a5-350. The a5 being significantly higher in price $800 shipped.... now these are just sub's I have personally listened to. There are obviously thousands more out there but I don't like to give advice about products I have not listened to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jreene Posted December 25, 2011 Share Posted December 25, 2011 I would definately consider going used. You can have a system that retails for over $3000 for around $1000 if you shop smart. I had a pair of rf-10s which is the predecessor to the rf-42s, and they were great clarity wise, but didnt have any oommph without a good sub. Out of the options you listed, I would go with the RB-51s and rs-42s, those are the nicest speakers out of the bunch. I also have a pair of Polk PSW505s mentioned above and got them for 180 a piece. TREMENDOUS value! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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