Help me buy a great 2.1/3.1 audio solution.
September 17, 2010 11:11 AM
Help me upgrade my audio! Mishmash of decades-old audio equipment isn't cutting it anymore.
My "3.1" audio setup consists of a 10-year old Sony receiver, 2x 18-year old bookshelf speakers, and a 15-year old center channel speaker that was cannibalized from an old Cambridge Audio computer speaker. I also have a decently nice Sony subwoofer.
I'm willing to ditch everything and upgrade.
It's all connected to the receiver and comes in from the optical port on my TV. I have a 42" Panny plasma, and my audio does not do the video justice.
I'd like to stick with 3.1 or 2.1 as space is pretty limited, and my budget is about $500. I'd like HDMI on the receiver but I don't know much about video passthrough and all that stuff.
I'm here for suggestions and some schooling on modern AV stuff. Thanks!
My "3.1" audio setup consists of a 10-year old Sony receiver, 2x 18-year old bookshelf speakers, and a 15-year old center channel speaker that was cannibalized from an old Cambridge Audio computer speaker. I also have a decently nice Sony subwoofer.
I'm willing to ditch everything and upgrade.
It's all connected to the receiver and comes in from the optical port on my TV. I have a 42" Panny plasma, and my audio does not do the video justice.
I'd like to stick with 3.1 or 2.1 as space is pretty limited, and my budget is about $500. I'd like HDMI on the receiver but I don't know much about video passthrough and all that stuff.
I'm here for suggestions and some schooling on modern AV stuff. Thanks!
I'm gonna disagree with Threeway Handshake... those do look like some nice monitor speakers but you should get more than a stereo setup. 5.1 channels should be the baseline minimum.
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 11:49 AM on September 17, 2010
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 11:49 AM on September 17, 2010
What exactly about the old system isn't cutting it? If you're not interested in 5.1 surround, there may not be much reason to change. If your speakers are getting buzzy or something, you can just replace those. If your amp's overheating, you can replace that. Your basic setup is just fine.
If you wanted to simplify a bit, you could go with a pair of powered speakers like Threeway Handshake recommends. That'd let you get rid of the receiver.
posted by echo target at 12:10 PM on September 17, 2010
If you wanted to simplify a bit, you could go with a pair of powered speakers like Threeway Handshake recommends. That'd let you get rid of the receiver.
posted by echo target at 12:10 PM on September 17, 2010
but you should get more than a stereo setup. 5.1 channels should be the baseline minimum.
I'd like to stick with 3.1 or 2.1 as space is pretty limited, and my budget is about $500.
There are two things wrong with what you said Parker -- they don't have the space for it, and a budget of $500 will get a person at best only a shitty 5.1 receiver. Buying a "home theater in a box" for $500 will probably sound worse than what they've already got.
They want to upgrade to make it sound better. Four or five more cheap speakers won't make it sound any better. More speakers never make anything sound any better, that just spreads the bad sound around to more than two speakers. Unless you're ready to drop several thousand dollars at a minimum, you're not going to get anything worthwhile in some sort of multispeaker monstrosity.
Go to a good audio store and give them a listen, compare them to $500 home theaters in a box. The studio monitors also can be found in music stores that have recording equipment. You'll be amazed. It isn't even a contest. Not even the same sport.
posted by Threeway Handshake at 12:22 PM on September 17, 2010
I'd like to stick with 3.1 or 2.1 as space is pretty limited, and my budget is about $500.
There are two things wrong with what you said Parker -- they don't have the space for it, and a budget of $500 will get a person at best only a shitty 5.1 receiver. Buying a "home theater in a box" for $500 will probably sound worse than what they've already got.
They want to upgrade to make it sound better. Four or five more cheap speakers won't make it sound any better. More speakers never make anything sound any better, that just spreads the bad sound around to more than two speakers. Unless you're ready to drop several thousand dollars at a minimum, you're not going to get anything worthwhile in some sort of multispeaker monstrosity.
Go to a good audio store and give them a listen, compare them to $500 home theaters in a box. The studio monitors also can be found in music stores that have recording equipment. You'll be amazed. It isn't even a contest. Not even the same sport.
posted by Threeway Handshake at 12:22 PM on September 17, 2010
Great advice so far - I admit I hadn't considered that I could get rid of my receiver completely.
A question on that front, would I need any special ports on my TV to hook up speakers directly to it? I have a Panasonic TH-42PX85U. Could I use the sub or would monitor speakers handle bass just fine?
posted by somacore at 1:08 PM on September 17, 2010
A question on that front, would I need any special ports on my TV to hook up speakers directly to it? I have a Panasonic TH-42PX85U. Could I use the sub or would monitor speakers handle bass just fine?
posted by somacore at 1:08 PM on September 17, 2010
Asking if a a monitor speaker will handle bass just fine, is a bit like asking if a car is fast enough? Without referencing a specific model its a really hard question to answer.
Furthermore requiring a sub is a very subjective call. Some people prefer strong bass, some neutral or soft. In most common home theater system a sub is included.
However I own speakers that go deeper than most cheap subs out there, so it really depends on preferences and specific models.
posted by digividal at 1:52 PM on September 17, 2010
Furthermore requiring a sub is a very subjective call. Some people prefer strong bass, some neutral or soft. In most common home theater system a sub is included.
However I own speakers that go deeper than most cheap subs out there, so it really depends on preferences and specific models.
posted by digividal at 1:52 PM on September 17, 2010
Asking if a a monitor speaker will handle bass just fine, is a bit like asking if a car is fast enough?
Go to a good audio store and give them a listen...You'll be amazed. It isn't even a contest. Not even the same sport.
Given the above context I found it reasonable to assume that these monitor speakers would deliver much better performance, maybe even negating the need for a sub, considering they're "not even the same sport."
At any rate I'm going to take the advice of Threeway Handshake and visit some stores in the area this weekend.
posted by somacore at 2:10 PM on September 17, 2010
Go to a good audio store and give them a listen...You'll be amazed. It isn't even a contest. Not even the same sport.
Given the above context I found it reasonable to assume that these monitor speakers would deliver much better performance, maybe even negating the need for a sub, considering they're "not even the same sport."
At any rate I'm going to take the advice of Threeway Handshake and visit some stores in the area this weekend.
posted by somacore at 2:10 PM on September 17, 2010
Oops, I don't know how I missed the request specifically for 2.1/3.1 solutions. Chalk it up to a hurried lunchtime readthrough. Sorry!
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 2:53 PM on September 17, 2010
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 2:53 PM on September 17, 2010
Once you have a list of a few speakers you're interested in, check Craigslist before you buy. You can often get great speakers there at not-so-great-speaker prices, because a lot of the people who are into audio constantly upgrade and have money to burn.
posted by vorfeed at 3:12 PM on September 17, 2010
posted by vorfeed at 3:12 PM on September 17, 2010
I would look into a surround bar and subwoofer combo. You mount the surround bar under or over your tv. 1.1 systems
posted by bravowhiskey at 11:55 AM on September 18, 2010
posted by bravowhiskey at 11:55 AM on September 18, 2010
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There is little reason to have the AV reciever be a switchbox for video, since most televisions come with more inputs than devices you probably own.
posted by Threeway Handshake at 11:42 AM on September 17, 2010