I want your thoughts on a semi-budget friendly HOME THEATER.

MattinSTL

MattinSTL

Sound Modulator
I'm curious if anybody in here has in-wall speakers that they love? How about your TV? Do you still love that plasma or do you wish you'd have got an LCD? Is a $199 or less 7.1 receiver a waste of money? Do you have a sub?

I'm looking at doing a somewhat budget conscious home theater in the next few months, and the plan is to have it as discreet as possible... and I don't usually watch movies at theater volume... so I don't need a huge sub or a high power receiver. Basically what I'm going for (pretty soon) is a tasteful setup that can be integrated into a living room without making it totally obvious that it's more then a tv on the wall.

I'm looking at a cheap Onkyo 7.1 receiver (under $199)... and so far I've been collecting some speakers off ebay by trying to watch for the same model speaker popping up periodically (I don't want to identify this because I don't want extra bidders from this thread)... but if somebody has really strong impressions about something that's in my budget... I'll just toss my ebay stuff back on ebay and consider your advice.

The most important part of this thread (for me) is fresh comments on TVs... but I've heard that most in-wall speakers don't sound that great... and some info to the contrary on that would be appreciated as well.

Any thoughts on this?
 
I've got a 5.1 system I love. KEF speakers that I picked up on closeout from Ultimate electronics. Big loud and cheap. Probably bigger than what you are wanting. I've heard good things about the KLH line and wouldnt hesitate to try them out. I dont have much of any experience with the in-wall stuff. I think you're on the right track with E-bay. Pay attention to placement and room treatment and it will sound good.

TV wise have you thought about a projector? $1500 will buy a decent little HD projector. Heck they are probably alot cheaper now. My 720P projector (if you're on a budget save a few bucks and skip 1080) was 1200 on sale 1.5 years ago. A few yards of blackout cloth (its white rubberized cloth for drapery) stretched on a frame of 2x4 makes a great screen. I've got a 2.4:1 screen hanging from my ceiling thats about 10' wide. Its on the big side but you could easily go much smaller especially at 16:9. Get someone to make up a fabric cover for it and it dissappears into "wall art". Or leave it exposed and let everyone gawk :)

Downsides are that you have to have some serious light control for daytime viewing and projector bulbs arent cheap. Mine is 1.5 years old and approaching 350 hours and I feel like we watch TV all the time. Heck its on right now :). Other downside is that you get used to it FAST. Everyone's 50" plasmas start to look tiny.

If you're interested in the projector and want to go 2.4:1 let me know, I've done a good bit of research into anamorphic lenses and what not and will pass the info your way.
 
I've had my 60 inch LG frameless design plasma for a couple months and love it! I paid 5k here in Aus so it's no doubt much cheaper in the states. Also just purchased a cheaper end sound system, it's a kenwood 6.1 package and it does the job nicely for me, it was $500 and they speakers hang on the wall. Ah, Call of Duty 4 in 6.1...

Biggest thing is with the receiver make sure it's got the inputs you want/may need.

Oh yeah, don't bother getting peoples opinions on the plasma vs LCD debate, walk into a shop and see which one grabs you.
 
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I not sure about the $200 Onkyo amps, but th $1000 range ones are nothing short of mind blowing!!! and also have built in HD upscaling and routing to the HDMI from any source.


I you can get hold of the JAMO SUB250 sub-woofer (http://www.jamospeakers.com/Default.aspx?ID=5945&M=Shop&PID=17153&ProductID=17692, you can get it in black ash, looks best), don't let the cheaper price fool you, this sub is more than you will ever need in a home theater, mine is set only at 40%, and the windows sometimes shake when watching a good action flick.

speakerwise, the size of these are extremely deceiving, http://www.bose.com/controller?url=/shop_online/home_theater/home_theater_speakers/index.jsp, you will not believe the sound coming from their speakers, it's crazy! it's the size of your normal computer speakers, but has the volume and QUALITY of big floor standing speakers! you must hear a demo.

and then Jamo does make a range that goes in ... well ... anywhere: http://www.jamospeakers.com/Default.aspx?ID=5926

that was my thoughts,
Derrick
 
For TV's, the best bang for the buck is generally considered to be Vizio. They're up and coming. Get it from Costco if you can, they have liberal return policy.
For sound, there's no need to break the bank, you don't need super fidelity for watching movies and ball games. If you love music, that'd be another thing.
 
In our house, I didn't have room for my 5.1 setup, so I ended up getting a Yamaha sound bar (YSP-800, got it on sale at Amazon for $359). Works great and has a sub-out, which I'm not using at the moment (waiting until the kids are older -- ha!). If you have the space for actual speakers, they're better, the Yamaha's been an awesome addition for us.
 
Thanks for the input so far guys... I'm leaning heavily towards a mostly hidden system... speakers in-wall, etc... and I can tell you that a $5K TV isn't an option... the TV is going to be relatively cheap.

Maybe I shouldn't have said semi-budget... maybe I should have said "economy"...

I will look into most of these suggestions however.
 
You can pick up a 1080P 42inch pretty damn cheap these days. Just get a crap brand and a five year warranty, that's what I did, think the brand was 'Vue'. Because it's 1080P it looks pretty damn good still.
 
tmnt said:
You can pick up a 1080P 42inch pretty damn cheap these days. Just get a crap brand and a five year warranty, that's what I did, think the brand was 'Vue'. Because it's 1080P it looks pretty damn good still.
Click to expand...

That's tending towards the plan. I've actually seen Panasonic plasmas for around $1,200 at 42" and 1080p...

But I've also seen Panasonic 50" (or bigger) for around the same price, at 720p... and I've been trying to decide if I'd rather go bigger with lower res or smaller with higher res.

The scientific side of me says higher res... but I've had a 720p/1080i tv for a few years and I definitely like the big picture. In the new room a large tv will be even more advantageous, because of the floor-plan... but when I see 1080p in person (like at a store) I can see why it's so popular. It's too bad that there's such a big difference in a 50" vs. 42" tv. That's the kind of thing I want more opinions on... size? Or resolution?
 
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Well for hidden you can go with Earthquake speakers, bit sure what they cost in the USA, but here they're not the cheapest. :-), but they're damn good:

the in wall/ceiling series:

http://www.earthquakesound.com/speakers_ht.htm

Tv-wise, I'm happy with my 720p tv, but could lean towards the 1080p if I was in the market to replace mine. HD broadcasting just started off here (we only have 1 channel in HD at this point). And blu ray is still scary expensive, so no real advantage for 1080p here yet, if (or rather when) that changes, well...

- Derrick
 
I saw an open box 42" 1080P LCP (panny, i think?) at Best Buy a few weeks back for 899. Look for open boxes...and black friday is just a few weeks away. That's what I'm waiting for.

And I'll echo Brian on Costco's return policy. I used to work there and they will take back almost anything.
 
Costco's return policy has been revised because people were abusing the hell out of them... it's now 90 days... which is still mad-generous. I'll wager that if you get something and it lasts 90 days it's probably going to last 5 years. Costco has single-handedly eliminated extended warranties from my mind.

There's no bigger fan of Costco in the world, then me.

See Jim... I knew I liked you for some unknown reasons. Costco rocks.

BUT if I get a Panny (I like their picture the best... good dark blacks etc.) then I'll tell you right now that I'll simply get it from whoever is the cheapest for the given model I want. Newegg has no tax and no shipping frequently... and on a $1K item that's significant. It's like a free extra $100 off.

We'll see. Right now I'm thinking that I like size over resolution, but the one good thing I can say about going smaller is I'm curious about the double arm mounts... there are some for around $130 that look really beefy... and if that would let the tv be pulled away from the wall... and then turned to face the kitchen table... then that would most likely save the carpet and furniture... plus it would just be a cool novelty. I don't know if I'd trust a mounting system like that with too big of a tv though... but wouldn't that be cool? And hey, before you say "that's what's wrong with this country"... don't forget that I'm a single dude... so it's not like I'd be choosing tv over family dinner night... it would be choosing to risk a spill over linoleum vs. the living room carpet.
 
Newegg used to have Panasonic's pro line that had no speakers. If I remember right they were a bit cheaper and had a nice clean look to them - might want to give those a look. I've got a panasonic 42" plasma and I've got to agree on the picture. Very nice. Sales guy mentioned they actually are the mfg for a majority of the plasma panels out.

Regarding the mounts, I've got a pull-out one from Peerless I like alot. Its built like a tank and works well. It doesnt go quite 90 degrees though. I know the double arms you are talking about, they always frighten me. I'm sure they hold to what they are rated just fine, they just dont ever look strong enough though.

Oh and my wife and I eat in front of the TV every night. We talk and have normal discussions, but we eat in front of the TV. Nothing wrong with that. Wood floors clean up pretty well as do microfiber couches. Dogs help with the crumbs.
 
I have the pana 50", the 720p. I think if you get the 720p the 40" is better for the resolution size ratio.Probably the best bang for the buck. When i bought mine the 1080p was like twice the price, i could not afford it.....Watching my hvx footage on this is just something i never get bored of. Pana as the best color in my opinion.
 
matt,
getting a cheap 7.1 receiver because it is 7.1 is particularly useless. Because A. it probably doesn't have HDMI in/outs on it (the only cable that will carry a proper 7.1 signal, anything else is a gimmick) and B. you'd have to go blu-ray to take advantage of those 8 speakers, which is another $250 investment. (plus movies!)

I recommend a kick ass 5.1 system - I have:
42" samsung DLP 720p
samsung upconvert DVD
Klipsch synergy 3 speakers (bookshelves, center, multi-directional rears)
martin logan 10" sub
Pioneer "7.1" receiver (picked cause of the 4 optical inputs and component in/outs)

And I love it. It'll take a while for me to upgrade cause it's a cascade effect ... to go blu-ray, i'd have to go 1080p, then HDMI receiver, then 2 more klipsch speakers. Just not worth it in the room that we have it set up in.
 
Matt-

I don't know if you are insistent on LCD or Plasma but as I'm sure you know you can get pretty good deals for DLPs (I think Samsung and Mitsubishi are the only two brands making them now) but I have a 56" LED ENGINE (no bulb to change) Samsung DLP and the image is fantastic and cost much MUCH less than a LCD of comparable size. I know the next gen. of the same tv at 61" is going for about $1,500 and its 1080p 3Dcapable (like that will ever come in handy) with plenty of connector options. Having said that, Jim had a great point about open boxes. When I was TV shopping last March, I saw a few open boxes at Circuit City. It was a 50" Plasma Panasonic for $999.00. So, that is a great suggestion.

As far as speakers go, I just use the optical connector from my Logitech z5500 5.1 computer speakers. They are not wireless but hot damn they sound good. Unbelievable performance. I'm sure this is not what you had in mind. I bring it up just to make the point that great sound doesn't have to be a mortgage payment, as I'm sure you of all people know. I like BOSE but I just don't see them sounding $2,000 dollars better than my computer speakers. No friggin' way.

So, good luck with what you find and keep us posted with what you wind up with. Someday, I will invest in a wireless speaker system and I'd be interested to see how yours perform if you go that route.
 
I just thought I'd let you guys know that plasma and lcd have really come down... I've seen 50" Panny plasma for $1399. That's 50"... I think 46" 1080p at $1K is almost here.

Also... Onkyo has $199 7.1 w/ hdmi... so... we'll see how it goes.
 
hey, if it decodes THX, then go for it.

you also might want to consider your power source as well, and getting a power conditioner. This can have as big of an impact on sound as your choice of receivers or speakers.

Stay as far as you can from wireless speakers.

I am lucky, my fiance is a supervisor at Best Buy. When we bought our townhome she just had some employee friends come over with their neato tools and punch holes in my drywall and run speaker wire. Now my living room is wire-free.
 
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