I want to buy 5.1 speakers...

[Flash Walken]

Help me decide which ones to get!

Y'all were so helpful when I was going to buy an xbox, I figured I'd come right back.

So here's the setup:

I have an HDTV, I have a PS3, and now I have a desire to have 5.1 (or 7, if the price is right) surround sound speakers.

Now for the money. Everyone says as cheap as possible, but I'm really not looking to spend more than 450. Ideally, less.

So far, I'm looking at something like this:

http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/prodde...0&catid=20311#

help me.

edit: this also caught my eye. More than I'd like to spend, but I like the wireless aspect.
http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/prodde...0&catid=20311#

[BlackArcher101]

450 for speakers, or 450 for speakers and receiver?
Watch out for these all-in-one packages. They might not have the inputs you need to run HD and PS3 correctly.

[Thor]

Both of those have a DVD player, why get one when you have a sexy PS3?

If you don't need a receiver, go for something like this:

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pro...095518&catid=#

If you need a receiver, this would be my pick, its a great deal:

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pro...0002765&catid=

2 HDMI inputs, 1 Output, make sure thats enough

I'd always suggest for people on a budget to either save up more and get some quality or at least buy parts of your system when you can. You could start by getting the speakers (energy is awesome, have owned similar ones for 4yrs), then getting the receiver.

The receiver is very important, and if you want to cheap out on anything usually not a great idea to do that with a receiver.

[Since1984]

If I were you(which I was earlier this year) I wouldn't be to stingy on purchasing Home Theatre equipment...go with good quality equipment all those Home theatre in a box combo's are horrible and only last maybe 2-3 years.

I recommend saving up about one to two thousand(if you have the patience and money available) and buy a good receiver and some nice Speakers.

With a receiver(if you are looking to purchase one) I would definately go with one that is Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD compatible as you will be kicking yourself for not being able to utilize the full potential of your Piece of **** 3(sorry PS3, I have one and what a waste...looking to purchase a Blu-Ray player now) and some people think that cheap speakers don't make a very big difference but they do be sure to get speakers that work within the same sound and frequency range as the receiver this will give you the crisp life-like sound the new HD format movies offer...believe me it is worth it...

That being said if you can only afford say under $1000 then go with what thor said but I would recommend a better receiver as this is where you will get most of your enjoyment from ...I saved up a bit and bought this wonderful receiver http://www.onkyousa.com/model.cfm?m=...s=Receiver&p=i

And then went with a mid price range speakers brand Soundstage(from visions, great sounding speakers for an excellent price) and have nothing but good things to say about them.

Just to give you a heads up on what you may be looking at if you were to get what I got you would look at :
Receiver = $1100
2 large tower fronts = $600
2 mid sized tower rears = $350
Center Channel = $180
2 bookshelf surrounds = $150
12 inch down firing sub = $650

Total = ~ $3030

I know it is a lot more than what you are looking to spend but it is always nice when people hang out at your place and you can crank the sound up wihtout worrying about cheap products!

hope it helps, good on thor for his finds if you are looking for a quick fix in the "under 1000" range

Good luck and happy Shopping

P.S. don't cheap out on speaker wire either get a few reccomendations and then make up your mind..I went with Monster Cable and there is little to no static interference...also if you wish to really get the best out of your equipment get this power center by Monster Power:
http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pro...0064837&catid=

[BlackArcher101]

My god Since1984... shooting for the moon are ya? Monster Cable stuff on top of it all? Doesn't really help him here.

I was in the same boat Flash. I pondered getting a HTiB, but I knew in the future that if I wanted to change either of the components, it would mean buying a new setup again. So I went with a modest 5.1 speaker set and a separate receiver. This is my setup I ended with, and it does the job unless your an audiophile.

Speakers and sub: http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pro...0093376&catid=
These go on sale often, sometimes for $250-300.

Receiver: Mine is the http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/pro...0100405&catid= But to be honest, any of the 5.1's will be an upgrade over a HTiB with built in dvd. Starts at $300.

So you could technically do it for $600 which is worth the extra cash. No need to go ape**** on monster cable speaker wire. I have run of the mill speaker wire and it does the job perfectly.

Now, all that advice can be thrown out the window with one thing... How big is the room that you are wanting to use the speakers in?

[Flash Walken]

I appreciate the replies.

That's the major issue. I'm in an apartment building, and the size of the room isn't very large. There's probably 8 feet between the television and myself on the couch.

I'm not looking to feel the bass through my feet, or shatter my ear drums with the awesome intensity of 10 000 watts. I just want to enjoy surround sound from my nice new BlueRay.

[Thor]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

I appreciate the replies.

That's the major issue. I'm in an apartment building, and the size of the room isn't very large. There's probably 8 feet between the television and myself on the couch.

I'm not looking to feel the bass through my feet, or shatter my ear drums with the awesome intensity of 10 000 watts. I just want to enjoy surround sound from my nice new BlueRay.

Go with my suggestions then, its going to make you really happy and will last you years until you step up to a bigger/better system.

As for wire, don't use futureshop, if someone can post that company online we all buy our wires/hdmi cables from, since for some reason I can't find it.

Just to give you an example, my 25f HDMI cable would have cost me nearly $200 from the store here, I got mine for $30 usd

[BlackArcher101]

I'm in a 4-plex apartment with my setup I listed above. 6-8 feet between tv and couch. Speakers aren't either over or under powered, just fine and a nice small size too. What Thor mentioned will do just fine as well. Spend the extra few dollars and go with a separate speaker package and receiver.

[greerb]

I would be looking at something like these all have HDMI output/input. Since the PS3 internally decodes the audio then send it through HDMI to the reciever via PCM you don't need an expensive reciever that does the docoding internally. As for the speakers you can always upgrade.

http://www2.visions.ca/catalogue/cat...9;&menuLevel=1

http://www2.visions.ca/catalogue/cat...9;&menuLevel=1

[Thor]

BTW bookmark this site, finally found my order email from them.

The cheapest and good quality wiring and lots of other stuff which you never want to buy at futureshop or anything similar

http://www.monoprice.com/home/index.asp

[Flash Walken]

Here is an addendum to this thread.

I have my PS3 in my main room hooked up to my wall-mounted Sharp HDLCDTV. On the other side of that wall, in my bedroom, I have another HDLCD. There is a door roughly 7 feet from both televisions, connecting the two rooms.

I would like to be able to hook both televisions to my PS3 through HDMI. I would also like this process to not interfere with the 5.1 setup I have in my main room.

What kind of 'switch'/receiver would I need to accomplish this?

[Vulcan]

Originally Posted by Flash Walken

Here is an addendum to this thread.

I have my PS3 in my main room hooked up to my wall-mounted Sharp HDLCDTV. On the other side of that wall, in my bedroom, I have another HDLCD. There is a door roughly 7 feet from both televisions, connecting the two rooms.

I would like to be able to hook both televisions to my PS3 through HDMI. I would also like this process to not interfere with the 5.1 setup I have in my main room.

What kind of 'switch'/receiver would I need to accomplish this?

It seems to me that all you need is an HDMI splitter like this.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2

I bought one of these or one like it and ran it from my Bell receiver to two TVs but in my case one of my TVs would only work with both TVs turned on while the second TV worked by itself. If I unplugged the second TV, the first TV would work fine so it seems to be a problem depending on the TV type. Still it's not expensive it you want to try it out and check out the customer reviews.
To be safe you can get a powered splitter for $69.

You'll also need another 15' or so HDMI cable or drill a hole for a shorter cable.

[3 Justin 3]

I won't add anything but the following: use monoprice. I don't know how some people can justify spending $200 on a monster cable, when you can get one from the site for $30, with quality nearly identical. Also, I wouldn't recommend the Monster Power Centre, someone else recommended. It may be a decent product, but $300 is way too much, you don't have the budget, and it just isn't worth it. My $20 surge protector is fine for me and my 50" DLP, PS3, Wii, 360, guitar amp, 3 guitar pedals, computer, iPod radio thing. (Note I use more than the 1 running all of these listed!!)

[Rathji]

I bought 4 HDMI cables for 16 bucks including shipping from Monoprice last week.

[Since1984]

Please note I only added My opinion on what I think Flash Walken should do. but I still think Flash you should avoid ANY Home theater in a box....You will definitely regret it. Like I said before go with Thor's option as it is the best bang for the buck.

On a side note ...3 Justin 3...IF you can afford the extra cash on the power center it is totally worth it not to mention if your $20 surge protector failed and happened to fry any of your components you would be on the hook to replace the component, as the MP Power center will replace any damaged components up to $10,000 its just a nice little thing to fall back on that is all...I spent alot so I protect my stuff with all the fancy extra's...
Monoprice is a great find! for anyone who doesn't have a friend that can get you an amazing deal on the Monster Power and other cables but thats my little secret

[3 Justin 3]

Originally Posted by Since1984

Please note I only added My opinion on what I think Flash Walken should do. but I still think Flash you should avoid ANY Home theater in a box....You will definitely regret it. Like I said before go with Thor's option as it is the best bang for the buck.

On a side note ...3 Justin 3...IF you can afford the extra cash on the power center it is totally worth it not to mention if your $20 surge protector failed and happened to fry any of your components you would be on the hook to replace the component, as the MP Power center will replace any damaged components up to $10,000 its just a nice little thing to fall back on that is all...I spent alot so I protect my stuff with all the fancy extra's...
Monoprice is a great find! for anyone who doesn't have a friend that can get you an amazing deal on the Monster Power and other cables but thats my little secret

Well yeah, my friend can get me Monster stuff cheap too, he works at bestbuy. But if there is too big of a surge that goes through my protector, it doesn't fry mystuff, it just blows the "thing" (I forget the name), and I just need to flick the switch to reset, or buy a new one.

[Thor]

Really should stop wasting money on surge protectors for just your various items.

Put one at the source, your electrical box, there are surge protectors that will protect your entire home.

You can save your home theater system sure, but what about your appliances and anything else connected at time of surge?