RF-82's and the RC-62, good for Home Theater?

[TheKillerTomato]

I'm upgrading the HT, so my new Pioneer Elite VSX-81TXV will have something respectable to push. Right now, I have a bookshelf system that blows (old home theater in a box system speakers), so I'm considering picking up the RF-82's as my fronts, with the RC-62 Center. I read that close to 90% of your sound comes from the front 3 speakers, so 90% of my investment should likewise go there.

Do any of you guys have this setup? How does it sound? Are the 82's overkill?

I am listening to a lot more music, since the 360 will stream my mp3 collection, so the 82's are not just for home theater. However, home theater will be their primary function.

Thanks in advance.

[Raider]

I recently purchased four RF82's for mains and surrounds, and an RF62.  My room is 18' by 10' with a catherdral ceiling 8' at the sides, 10' in the center.  It's a FROG as my 8 year old daughter calls it; a Family Room Over Garage.

No way is the RF82/RC62 overkill if you have the room for them.  They almost do not need a sub. We have been tickled to death with the system, and my wife has enjoyed them as much or more than I have, even though they ostensibly were a Christmas present for me.   My very prejudiced view is that the RF82 is a sweet spot in the product line for both excellence and value. 

I drive mine with a Yamaha RX-V659 which has 95 watts per channel.  I seldom listen higher than -20db on the receiver which is very loud for any prolonged listening.  I have never heard distortion in these speakers no matter how loud they are. (By contrast, I have the same Yamaha receiver powering a set of Definitive Technology speakers in my son's room, and 0 db on his system just begins to be as loud, and definitely sounds more compressed as well.)   I suspect your Elite has even more power, so you will likely have even more headroom.  If you are currently using HTIB speakers you will be AMAZED at the the difference in efficiency and how much more lifelike they sound . The dynamics of this setup are incredible for both critical music listening and HT use.  I also find the RF82/RC62 combination to provide a seamless front soundstage.   Basically the speakers disappear and you quickly become involved with the material itself. I have been extremely pleased with the speakers, and how they have reconnected us with our love for music.  I am very critical of speakers, but have been very happy and content with this system. 

[TheKillerTomato]

Thank you very much for your response. I'm very excited to pick these up.

My Pioneer puts out 110 watts/channel, and I can't wait to see how it sounds.

Originally, I was going to get the RC-52 Center channel, for two reasons. 1) My Sony LCD has no room on top for a Center, and I'm going to purchase the Omnimount Center Channel Speaker Shelf, which has a maximum weight allowance of 30 lbs. (I have no room to place the center under the tv), and 2) Best Buy/Magnolia Theater for some reason does not carry either the RC-62 or RC-64. After posting a little on the Avsforum, and talking to some audiophile salesmen, they encouraged me to stay away from a RF-82/RC-52 combo.

So, I'll likely pick up my RC-62 elsewhere.

For anyone else with a DLP or LCD tv with no room to stick a center channel on top, you ought consider the omnimount shelf I mentioned - it has received good reviews over at avsforum, at least for my tv.

Eventually, I want my surrounds and rears to be the Klipsch reference line, but that will have to wait.

[bhenry]

Hello. Long time reader, first time writter. I have RF 7's and an RC 7 (came before the RF 83 and RC 64) in a roughly 15' x 15' room and they sound great. And to really get under my wife's skin, I use the RF 3 II's that used to be my main speakers as rear speakers. I got the bigger speakers because I will be using them in a larger room in the future. I guess a rule of thumb is that if your speakers can reproduce music accurately then they will do movies well also. And if you enjoy listening to music you are off to good start with the reference line. I have never heard the RF 82's but I know my RF 7's can play too loud even for me.

I guess my point is buy the best speakers that you can afford, because if you're like me you'll probably have them for a long time and just keep moving them from house to house. Have fun shopping, that's the best part of this hobby!

[ram2500]

That will be good combination. I do have the RF-82 but use them for rears. They sound good for music too.

[DrWho]

Eventually, I want my surrounds and rears to be the Klipsch reference line, but that will have to wait.

Waiting is by no means a bad direction to go - especially when you're going with RF-82's for mains [Y] A good speaker purchase is something that should last you 20-30 years so any waiting you have to do now is only going to pay off in the long run (unless of course the bug bites and you feel the need to upgrade before they wear out).

[TheKillerTomato]

Yeah, I was thinking of waiting all the way to Valentines day to pick up some surrounds, and then add the rears sometime later.

I have a 20'x18' living room with cathedral ceilings, peaking at 18'. Because of the open floor plan, my surrounds and rears are mounted 12' off the floor. So, my surrounds and rears need to have some umph. Which surrounds and rears would you guys reccomend?