First Home Theater Setup

[rp1]

Hello Everyone 

As my title suggests, I am trying to set up a home theater setup for my basement which is 15 wide x 18 long x 8 high. Viewing distance is 13 feet from a 120" projector screen. I have done some reading and based on my budget what  I am thinking of the following - 5.1.2 setup

RP-150m as front (or can go RP-160M, if absolutely required) - these will be wall mounted. 

RP-250C for center

RP-140SA for surround wall mounted (I have only limited space on the back with about 11" drop ceilings).  I could use RP-150m however this may cause some headroom issues if hung from ceiling. 

Polk audio rc80i for atmos ceiling speakers

Sub - 112SW

Denon x3300w receiver 

This is going to be primarily used for movies and sports. My concern/questions are -

- Is this a good setup for the size of the room. I am not looking for a very loud system however also do not want to be under. 

- Should I replace/switch to any other comparable (priced) speakers.

 

Thanks Any advise would be helpful.

 

 

[314carpenter]

Welcome the the forum. Thanks for checking in with us. There are far more capable members here than me, but I thought I would just say a few things. First, primary seating should be 2/3 the way back in the room to to avoid as many nulls and peaks as possible over the entire audible frequency spectrum. 12 feet at your ears in your normal listening position would work best in your given room dimensions. Second, without having any full range 3 way or 4 way speakers, meaning fully developed sound across the entire 40hz-20hz +/- 3db, you will definetly want to have at least 2 subs in that space. No 5.25" will give you substantial >80hz no matter what the spec sheet says. This will eat up more of your budget than you have planned, and can be addressed at a later date.  Sub locations would most likely be opposing corners, or midway along opposing walls. 4 subs will get you the optimal response in all seating positions. Third, Room treatment will help just as much as speaker selection and placement, but is far more technical and pricey for non-DIY. Start with the flooring. Forth, the center channel will be the most important speaker choice for your content. Fifth, wall mounted anything can cause issues. That is what speaker stands are for. In wall speakers can eliminate many of those issues, but have other limitations and technical challenges themselves. Sixth, budget is always a problem, even for the most high end users. Try hitting the used equipment market to help with the budget issues. I have no comment on your specific speaker model choices, as I have not owned or heard any of those you have listed.

[K5SS]

If I were in your shoes, I would put the entire budget into the front speakers (LCR) , receiver and subwoofer. A year or two down the road, focus on the remaining equipment like adding another subwoofer and surround sound speakers, when the budget allows. 

 

There are are some very smart people on this forum so if you post a photo of the room (we like photos) and let us know your budget, we can make some suggestions on your setup. 

 

Many of of us here tried to buy everything all at once, within a defined budget, and ended up upgrading over time. Purchasing everything over a longer period of time will likely end up saving you money and more importantly, time. 

 

We have some great vendors here, like MetropolisLakeOutfitters, who can get you great pricing on Klipsch gear. I would also buy a refurbished receiver, from accessories4less, since these receivers are basically computers now and are obsolete in a couple years whenever the industry adds some new and fancy technology like this year’s IMAX launch. 

 

 

[derrickdj1]

Also, considering buying used speakers.  They will help with the budget. Basement location does require more subwooferage.  Due to ceiling height and basement construction, consider in-wall surround.  I have tried stands, mounting on wall and in-wall.  They are all nearly equal in performance and in-wall makes wire management easier.

[rp1]

Thank  you all for your good suggestions and advise. The budget I have is around 2k for which I wanted to come up with a starter system and a receiver. As I indicated this is going to be more of a casual setup that would be used for movies and sports gathering. I wanted to stay away from a home theater in box type system and  build a starter 5.1.2 package from the "get-go" ; experience it and then move/build up a better package. 

Would you suggest that with the current setup and room layout; it would suffice as start package or would suggest swapping some elements and look for used speakers. I have relisted the package again - 

RP-150m as front

RP-250C for center

RP-140SA for surround wall mounted

Polk audio rc80i for atmos ceiling speakers

Sub - 112SW

Denon x3300w receiver 

 

Thanks again for the education and advise.