Home Theater Help

 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 29
Registered: Sep-04
This is waht im getting ready to buy i need some suggestions on what im getting.
Hk avr 7300, Ascend 340 main a pair of 340 front and a pair of 340 rears and svs pb2 plus.
Is there some thing i should do differant to get a better system?
 

Silver Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 563
Registered: Mar-05
shweet setup!

however 340 for rears seems like a bit of overkill unless you're doing a lot of SACD/DVD-A surround music or have money to burn...

What are you using for your CD/DVD player anyway?

Oh, BTW make sure you have good speaker stands, the 340s need about 30" off the ground to sound their best I find.
 

Gold Member
Username: Jan_b_vigne

Dallas, TX

Post Number: 3798
Registered: May-04


Yes, buy McIntosh electronics and Wilson speakers. It will leave that piddling HK/Ascends in the dust.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 30
Registered: Sep-04
i dont know yet what dvd player i am going to buy id like some recomendations on a multi disc and a single disk and i will probably get the stands that come with the 340s if i buy ascends. Should i go with a 7.1 set up instead of a 5.1? I like both movies and music equally.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 31
Registered: Sep-04
and my price range is about 5000 total so i dont know if i can get the setup jan was thinking of hehe.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 32
Registered: Sep-04
also would the 170s be better for the rear then rather than the 340s i dont want to be disapointed.
 

Silver Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 565
Registered: Mar-05
LOL, saying McIntosh and Wilson gear will leave HK and Ascend gear in the dust is like saying a Rolls Royce will leave a Lexus in the dust.

...DUH!!!!!
 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 33
Registered: Sep-04
also im looking at this for a dvd will it work ok with my avr 7300? Denon DVD-2900
 

Silver Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 566
Registered: Mar-05
Jake,

I've heard some people say that having the exact same front and rear speakers is best for exact timbre matching, but again that all depends on if you're going to be doing SACD/DVD-A music or just normal CD music and if you have truly picky ears.

Normal CD still sounds best on good old fashioned 2-channel source direct (zero processing), so those rear speakers would go to waste.

For HT, it really depends on your taste in movies: if you watch a lot of blockbuster action/sci-fi flicks then you will get your money's worth from a monster sub like the SVS PB2 and from having high quality surrounds. If (like me) you mainly watch dramas, comedies, indy and foreign movies then you can get by with a lesser sub (maybe the SVS PB10/PB12 or Hsu STF-2) and cheap surrounds.

The 170s would be MORE than adequate, in my opinion. In fact for *my* movie tastes and listening habits the 170s and 200s are both overkill, so I'm fine with my supercheap Polk R20s which would be totally atrocious as mains but are adequate for my limited surround uses. You can get more opinions from the ascend users' forum, it's a common question.

With your budget I'd get a high quality CD/DVD player with Burr Brown DACs, such as the Denon 2910, they go for around $700. Or a modded Toshiba 3960:

http://www.referenceaudiomods.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Cod e=Tosh_3960&Category_Code=MODS

The Ascend stands integrate well and should offer maximum stabiity esp. if you fill them with sand. My wife objected to their box-like look though so I went with these instead:

http://www.x10.com/electronics/allcategories/homegarden/furnishings/furniture/sp eakers/speaker_stands_and_mounts_wood_technology_MU-30.html?18af54a83490efeb4296 073a

After filling them with sand and using Blue-Tac between the speaker and top plate, they're very stable too---would take a pretty determined 8 year old to knock them over.
 

Silver Member
Username: Petergalbraith

Rimouski, Quebec Canada

Post Number: 581
Registered: Feb-04
Edster said:

I've heard some people say that having the exact same front and rear speakers is best for exact timbre matching, but again that all depends on if you're going to be doing SACD/DVD-A music or just normal CD music and if you have truly picky ears.

He has a point. I used non-matched towers as surrounds for over a year, and it was just fine for movies and okay for multi-channel music on concert DVDs. That is, I thought it was "fine" until I matched-up the surrounds. Now multi-channel content does sound better because it images a soundstage better.

I haven't watched a movie yet with this arrangement, but I don't expect to notice a difference on movie surround content. I'll try to post again here if I turned out to be surprised.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 34
Registered: Sep-04
Wow thanks for the post any of u guys have the hk avr 7300?
 

Silver Member
Username: Petergalbraith

Rimouski, Quebec Canada

Post Number: 584
Registered: Feb-04
I wish... h/k avr-325 for me (purchased as a factory refurb a little over a year ago). It sounds great to me...
 

Bronze Member
Username: Chitown

Post Number: 49
Registered: Apr-05
From my research I agree that most people do not have the hearing range to get a heck of a lot out of the back speakers, specially for video. So you can save yourself some money by going cheaper for now.

 

Silver Member
Username: Eramsey

South carolina United States

Post Number: 136
Registered: Feb-05
Go for the AVR7300 Jake. I could only afford the AVR 335 so I envy you. With this receiver and a decent set of speakers great sound is in store for you. You don't need tubes or ultra expensive speakers to achieve that. E.Ramsey
 

Gold Member
Username: Jan_b_vigne

Dallas, TX

Post Number: 3807
Registered: May-04


Yeah, ya do! Make a down payment on the Mac, get a second and third job to afford the rest of the electronics and the Wilsons. You'll be so tired you won't even think about Home Theater. Then one day when you're rich and on some politician's gift list, you'll be able to scam the investors and take the pay off for keeping your mouth shut about the Senator and the Hawiian dancers with the sheep. You'll retire at an early age and have the government buy, sorry, appropriate the system you want for your get away island. You'll even have outdoor speakers by the various pools! Come on; pull yourself up by your bootstraps!!!




 

Silver Member
Username: Petergalbraith

Rimouski, Quebec Canada

Post Number: 587
Registered: Feb-04
Rough day at the office Jan?
 

Silver Member
Username: Eramsey

South carolina United States

Post Number: 137
Registered: Feb-05
That was hilarious Jan! But here is an alternate plan. Put a downpayment on the Mac when your 18 work three jobs for the next 20 years, meanwhile live with your mother. By the time your 40 you will be hopelessly single,and too exhausted to think about about home theater. Hopefully by then the Mac will be paid off. Damn,I wish I could have gotten the AVR 635 but the wife had to have a new Dell and some clothes of course. E.Ramsey
 

Gold Member
Username: Jan_b_vigne

Dallas, TX

Post Number: 3816
Registered: May-04


"Rough day at the office Jan?"

No, just been watching the news. Seems like everybody's p.o.'d about something. What a world!




 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 35
Registered: Sep-04
Well i dont think my wife will go live with my mom lol but i think i can get my kids too hehe
 

Silver Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 593
Registered: Mar-05
Jake,

I'd also look at the HK DPR2005, have read many raves about its pure-digital technology and at $850 shipped it compares well to the 7300:

http://www.electronics-expo.com/product.jsp?x=DPR2005&zipz=11001

 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 36
Registered: Sep-04
look at the differance in wait and price on the site u gave me 20 lbs vrs 55 lbs something has to be diferant and the price of the avr 7300 is way more on that site whats the diff?
 

Silver Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 607
Registered: Mar-05
Jake,

the difference in weight is normal because the DPR2005 is an ALL-DIGITAL receiver whereas the 7300 is a traditional analog receiver. With the 2005, the digital signal from your CD/DVD player goes directly to your speakers whereas with the 7300 it has to get converted into analog, which not only requires more componentry but also can introduce noise and other artifacts into the sound.

Go to the avsforum.com and do a search for "list of digital receivers" and you'll see a monster 40 page thread. They are mostly raving about the Panasonic all-digitals which are even lighter and cheaper (around $200-400), and from which many of the posters claim they're getting better sound than analog receivers costing 8 times as much, even separates costing thousands of dollars.

All-digital is the true cutting edge new technology in audio, Panasonic's models though are much more low-end than HK's which will have better build quality and more audiophile features.

When I was auditioning the Ascend speakers, the guy had them running off a $230 JVC RX-F10 all digital receiver (look at Amazon.com) and the sound quality was stupendous...incredibly clear, crisp and transparent. Now whether it might be TOO detailed potentially causing listener fatigue over extended periods of listening, is a popular criticism made by fans of traditional analog receivers and disputed by all-digital owners.

I just thought it's worth a shot, I'm sure the HK has to have even better sound quality than a lowly Panny or JVC though.
 

Gold Member
Username: Jan_b_vigne

Dallas, TX

Post Number: 3825
Registered: May-04


The idea the signal goes directly from the CD player to the speakers is a bit of a stretch in conceptual imagery.


http://search.yahoo.com/bin/search?p=digital%20amplifiers%20class%20d


 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 37
Registered: Sep-04
now u have lost me
 

Gold Member
Username: Jan_b_vigne

Dallas, TX

Post Number: 3832
Registered: May-04



http://www.audioholics.com/techtips/audioprinciples/amplifiers/digital_classD_am plifiers.html
 

Silver Member
Username: Edster922

Abubala, Ababala The Occupation

Post Number: 613
Registered: Mar-05
Jake,

Jan is right, I was oversimplifying a bit there.

Bottom line though, all-digital is a whole different animal than traditional analog, and if I were shopping for a receiver today with your budget I'd give the DPR-2005 a shot, it has the potential of sounding as good or better than separates costing thousands of dollars which the AVR-7300 while undoubtedly a superb receiver, probably does not.

Read up on it, it's interesting stuff.
 

Bronze Member
Username: Jake272727

Vernal, Ut Usa

Post Number: 41
Registered: Sep-04
It seems like alot of money to just give it a shot both recievers i can get under 1000 dollars this is getting hard now.
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