Best Home Theater System for @$1000?

[humanoidtyphoon]

For all around great performance I say go with B&W Nautilus 800 series...the 605s are amazing with a good sub. They are very musical and they also do home theater extremly well. 605s with a REL sub are definatly in the future.

And as was said, defiantly go with seperates but save some cash and go with B&K instead of Krell, etc. for your power. They are very good and have a great warm sound. IMO

[This message has been edited by humanoidtyphoon (edited 08 January 2002).]

 

[ilya]

Oh... and please don't buy Monster cable.

Get some Audioquest or similar cabling
to do your system justice.

 

[humanoidtyphoon]

Monster Cable is fine until you run seperates and if you are running just a moderate system...but audioquests are better!!!

 

[johndoh]

Originally posted by humanoidtyphoon:
Check out REL subs(my personal favorite)...they are not power eaters like so many others.

Wow! I thought I was the only one that liked REL subs. I own a REL Stadium III sub.

Anyhow, Ilya and others here have made very good points. It’s not about how loud you can blast your stereo. Many audiophiles spend a ton of money on their equipment, but they will rarely “crank up” their stereos while they are listening to their music. It’s about clarity, cleanliness, and reproducibility of sound.

I do have to agree that the speakers are the quickest and cheapest way to improve the sound quality of any system. However, when buying components, everything has to be in a balance (amps, speakers, pre-amps, CD/DVD players, and so forth) when it comes to quality.

As people have stated, a not-so-good component mated to a great pair of speakers will sound only ok. You will not hear the full potential of the speakers. When correctly match to the right components, the speakers will sound like you are listening to a completely different set of speakers. Vise versa on the components as well. Great components mated to a not-so-good speaker will sound horrible compared to its potential.

MikeO, it looks like you are definitely on the right track by doing research. Do the research first, then go and listen to the systems that you have researched. Go to a place that is very knowledgeable about stereos and can help educate you on what to listen for and what exactly you are listening to.

It’s also highly recommended that you create a demo CD for yourself and that you can use to listen to different stereos & setup. Make sure you include music & songs that you are very familiar with. (Madonna always have really good recordings) You’d be amazed at all the details you typically don’t hear, once you hear the music on a “high end” system. Be warned though. Once you get the “bug”, there’s no turning back. The amount of money you can spend on stereo & home theatre system can cost you an arm and a leg. Or a nice BMW.

 

[nsxxtreme]

..

 

[johndoh]

You are correct. The sub should compliment the speakers and round out the overall sound. In a stereo that is correctly set up, you should be able to tell a slight difference if you turn the sub on & off. A sub should never be "boomy" or over powering.

 

[humanoidtyphoon]

Originally posted by johndoh:
Wow! I thought I was the only one that liked REL subs. I own a REL Stadium III sub.

Awesome!!!! Most people either have never heard of them, can't find them, or look past them because they are $$$$

Pound for pound I rate them over M&K, Velodyne, or Boston Acoustics because of their versatility. For straight movies, M&Ks rule the land but if you do anything else....look to the REL if you can afford it.

 

[NSXLNT]

Xtreme, I have no doubt you can design a killer stereo system for the NSX, and I'd love to hear it some time. But you're still wrong on the power for subs. Low frequencies
are much larger than high frequencies( you can see it on an oscilloscope ) , and regardless of the efficiency of the low frequency voice coil, it still takes more power to reproduce/transmit/send. Sound is nothing more than air moving against your ear drum. Low freqs move more air than high freqs. Why do you think a woofer is so big and a tweeter small? Does it take more effort to lift 10 lbs. or 100 lbs.? Don't confuse the power potential of an amplifier with what is actually being drained by a given freq at a given moment in time,ie RMS verses peak power ratings.Trust me on this one, in recording studios Bi-amped,time aligned active monitors have become the accepted norm for any critical reference monitoring, whether it's for symphony or industrial. Without exception every one uses an amp that has a minimum of twice the available wattage for the low end as the highs. These are the people that produce the music you listen to, and record the sound tracks on the very DVD's we're talking about wanting a system for. Don't you think they know what they're doing?

 

[nsxxtreme]

..

 

[ilya]

At least MikeO doesn't have to worry about the sub with his home setup since most have built in Amps.
The sub will sound cleaner and more powerful with a better signal from a better amp, but the home subs all have built in amplifiers (except for some of those el cheapo passive subs).

 

[bobyang]

Whew! this thread sure has generated a lot of traffic. Everyone's made good points so far, so I'm not going to repeat them. My only suggestion is for a combo that I think would be worth considering (especially if you're going to buy used).

For home theater, I've really liked NHTs. for around $700-800 used (I think-haven't checked up on prices recently) I bet you could get a nice set of 5 SuperZeros or SuperOnes and an NHT Sub. That would give you outstanding imaging and make blending the sub with the speakers much easier. It also wouldn't be that bad for music.

With this system, I'd bet you'd upgrade the amp/preamp and DVD/CD player WAY before the speakers.

 

[NSX4U2]

For new, stick with your buddy, as there is 40 points in audio/video gear.

For used, take a look at: audioweb.com. As mentioned, this is a very good way to go when looking at high-end equipment(i.e. Meridian, Levinson, Krell, Martin Login etc.)

I spent a little over 50K for my home theater, but it is also used as my demo room. I do not have a retail store.

I have been doing custom home theater installations (pre-wire and finish) part time for the past 8 or so years.

Any questions, I would be glad to help.

97-T #009 @ 21K

 

[NSX4U2]

Originally posted by humanoidtyphoon:
Monster Cable is fine until you run seperates and if you are running just a moderate system...but audioquests are better!!!

I dis-agree with this comment. Monster builds a Z-series wire that is excellent for the money. I am a Monster Cable dealer and have used all their wire from the Jr's to the Z-series.

Rule of thumb: 10% of budget goes to your interconnects (audio and video) and I tend to spend more for video that audio with with the 10% budget when home theater is the priority.

97-T #009 @ 21K

 

[Hrant]

Originally posted by NSX4U2:


I spent a little over 50K for my home theater, but it is also used as my demo room. I do not have a retail store.

I have been doing custom home theater installations (pre-wire and finish) part time for the past 8 or so years.

Any questions, I would be glad to help.

97-T #009 @ 21K

Didn't know we have hidden talents in our very own backyard .......

Comptech has a few nice videos that they want to loan the club, how about we bring the popcorn and drinks ....... ?

 

[DocL]

I did a lot of research on speakers a few years ago, and one of the best buys out there is the Radio Shack Pro-LX5 speakers. They have no low end punch, but a good sub will take care of that. The speakers are actually made by Lineaum and have the same di-pole tweeter which has great imaging. Even better is that they cost $100 each and there is a matching center speaker for $150

Ultimately I ended up with a Sony ES reciever, Nakamichi 7 disc CD, Toshiba 2 disc DVD, Pro-LX5 fronts/center, Jamo rears, and Infinity powered sub.



[This message has been edited by Dr.Lane (edited 10 January 2002).]

 

[nsxxtreme]

Let us know what you end up with. The Sony ES recievers are nice.

[This message has been edited by nsxxtreme (edited 10 January 2002).]

 

[humanoidtyphoon]

Originally posted by NSX4U2:
I dis-agree with this comment. Monster builds a Z-series wire that is excellent for the money. I am a Monster Cable dealer and have used all their wire from the Jr's to the Z-series.

It is really a matter of personal preference and opinion when it comes to cables....I run monster myself because they were there when I needed some, but I would go to another brand if I had a choice. Monster does make some good products....their line conditioners are very nice.

 

[Larry]

I bought a Sony system........DAV700 I think. Five speakers, a subwoofer, tuner built in, plays CD's DVD's and those new format disks. It sounds great and only cost me $700. You don't have to spend a fortune on these systems to get great sound.

Larry

 

[ncdogdoc]

I really love these kind of discussions, and tend to stay out of them because of all the misinformation and engineer vs. audiophile arguments. The truth is most people do not care what the system sounds like, only what it costs, or what it looks like. Bigger speakers are not always better, and bigger amps are not always better, but in the end you usually get what you pay for. Subs do need lots of power, because they are pistons, and to move air, you need voltage. Now whether that voltage comes from an amp rated at 100w or 1000w, it really comes down to how many volts you can dump before clipping (Krell, Classe, etc) You can easily tell the difference between receivers, it comes down to power supplies and output devices (mosfets or tubes vs. cheap stuff), routing of signal pathsl, and how the digital signal is handled. Does the CD player have a digital out vs. analog. What about jitter, etc. All out the the league for the opening topic. Stick with the Bostons unless you go with the new upmarket Polk minis. I have Paradigm and I am very pleased. I also buy almost everything used. Picked up the Kenwood Stage 3 seperates and a used Pioneer Elite DVD/Laser, and Sony widescreen LCD Projector, and Wholesale RCA widescreen TV (16:9) at Sam's! all for under $7000. I was the first installer of Soundstream in AL in 1983, had a Sounstream/Kef/Boston Acoustics system. Good luck on the system, it is like the NSX and the go fast crack pipe.

:

------------------
Gary Yates
1995 Red/Tan

 

[NSX4U2]

Originally posted by Hrant:
Didn't know we have hidden talents in our very own backyard .......

Comptech has a few nice videos that they want to loan the club, how about we bring the popcorn and drinks ....... ?

I'm open to a Club home theater/NSX demo day! Just bring the Comptech videos and popcorn!

I'll supply the kilowatts and soda.

97-T #009 @ 21K

 

[Yawwn]

For new, stick with your buddy, as there is 40 points in audio/video gear.

For used, take a look at: audioweb.com. As mentioned, this is a very good way to go when looking at high-end equipment(i.e. Meridian, Levinson, Krell, Martin Login etc.)

I spent a little over 50K for my home theater, but it is also used as my demo room. I do not have a retail store.

I have been doing custom home theater installations (pre-wire and finish) part time for the past 8 or so years.

Any questions, I would be glad to help.

97-T #009 @ 21K

Hi NSX4U2,
I wanted to see if it was possible for me to make arrangements to see your setup sometime. I am in the process of working with an architect to build my custom home in Pleasanton, and wanted to see what is possible / needed in the structure and design of a true home theatre room. I plan to have approximately 20 seats in a room that someone recommended should be about 16*35'. How far are you from San Jose?

Thanks!
J.


Sorry to bring up an old thread. I did a search, and posted this without looking at the dates.
Mike O, it's been about a year. What did you end up purchasing, and what do you think about it?

 

[Mike O]

Man...this is an old thread.

Instead of buying the sound system, I ended up buying a Speed Yellow Boxster S in late January of 2002.

If, and when, I do buy the system, I believe I'll get the Sony ES receiver and the Miller & Kreisel speakers. Have gone ahead and bought the DVD player, so all I need now is the amp and speakers.

 

[scottjua]

this IS and old thread...here's some links for when you do star researching again:

http://www.avsforum.com

http://www.hometheaterforum.com

http://www.svsubwoofers.com

http://www.rhinocables.com

http://accessories4less.com

Those Forums have info that pertain to not only strictly home theater...you'd do well to kind of watch a learn what kind of gear works for other people who may have similar tastes or requirements. Those Forums helped me alot...

and the subwoofer link...personally I think you CANNOT do any better for the money than SVS (500-1000$ beats just about anything this side of 5000$ and some more expensive than that)...hands down.

I now own: Pioneer Elite 45TX receiver... SVS 25-31 subwoofer, I use Rhino Cables and AR (Acoustic Research bought from www.ac4l.com) Interconnects and my old Bose 301s as mains (soon to be replaced by B&W, Klipsch, or Onyx bookshelves), and some AR "The Edge" as surrounds, and my home theater ROCKS the holy hell out of you...

Ask humanoidtyphoon...even though my mains are lacking...it's super clean, nice, loud, earth shaking, and dually impressive sounding. It's make you never want to leave the house.

And Humanoidtyphoon's above and antiquated idea of his "below average" speakers come from his ultra high standards. He uses B&W DM303's and I think they match well with his Rel Sub and Elite receiver... so well that his system sounds more like he's using 2000$ mains instead of 300$ a pair mains...

That illustration along with what I experience with my SVS sub Just goes to show you price doesn't always determine quality. Take Bose for example...education and listening has onyl shown me how mislead I was by the hype machine into thinking that Bose sounded great and were worth the astronomical prices. Granted they do make a few decent speakers...but for value ratio they are far from desireable in my opinion.

Hope this info helps...and helps ANYONE interested in sound...

 

[Yawwn]

Thanks for the links. I've already explored avsforum, but I'll check out the other ones.

It's great that you bought a Boxster when you were thinking about a $1000 stereo system.

NSX4U2, if you are still active here, and are willing to showcase your system, my fiance and I would like to visit you sometime.

Thanks,
J.

 

[scottjua]

http://www.hometheaterspot.com

also has it's share of resident ISF calibrators...and is another useful resource.