HT Receiver/Speakers for an apartment

[GeekDrew]

I'm going to be moving soon, and am looking for a receiver and speakers that'll work well for me. I'm not an audiophile, and don't need anything that's very high end... just decent. The room that this will be in isn't that big... from memory, maybe 12x15. It's a one-story apartment complex; I'm on the end of the building, and the subfloor is concrete -- so I don't think that some of the usual apartment concerns apply (wrt bothering the neighbors and etc).

I have a Panasonic TH-42PZ80U Plasma TV (my only current output device). For input, I anticipate a PS3, cable box, DVD/VCR, and potentially an HTPC and Wii at some point. So... I'm thinking 3 or 4 HDMI inputs would be nice. The vast majority of the time I'll be watching TV via the cable box, followed by movies and playing Guitar Hero / Rock Band on the PS3.

I know pretty much nothing about receivers/speakers for home theater. I also really don't want to spend a tremendous amount of time looking for good buys on great speakers -- I'd rather just buy something from Amazon, NewEgg, whatever. (I'm lazy when it comes to something I'm not passionate about.)

I've been reading on avsforums (and other sites by way of Google) for a few weeks, and have found a couple of models that look like they might be up my alley... maybe.

http://astore.amazon.com/onkyo...0-20/detail/B001AMSPYU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16882290117

My budget is flexible to a certain extent... I'd like to keep it somewhere around $1000. Any advice?

 

[alcoholbob]

The difference won't be astounding, both systems will have very healthy source of power (as Onkyo has no peer in this price range). As far as the systems go, the satellites are probably a wash, and my guess is the latter will have a better sub, but its not worth a $400 difference, since for $400 you can get an exceptional subwoofer.

 

[unfalliblekrutch]

The Polk comes with a DVD player that looks "nice", if that makes any difference, also, so the difference is less than $400 if you're only considering the audio portion of the package.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

I know you said you don't want to spend time looking for deals, but

(from a different thread)

Originally posted by: PurdueRy
Also, it is out of stock but you can order it and they will ship next time they get an order:

http://search.live.com/cashbac...fferings/5002/12333220

Once it's in stock again, that's an Onkyo 606 from J&R for under $340 shipped

You can get a good sub for under $400 (which you should really appreciate with TV / Movie watching)
Example Elemental Designs A2-300
http://www.edesignaudio.com/pr...h=2_41&products_id=407 ($375)

That would be $715 for the two items after the dust clears...

That leaves speakers.

The Mirage nanosat 5.0 system has been posted a few times lately and would be a good choice if you want to keep things small
http://www.vanns.com/shop/serv...age-nanosat-5-0-system
($250)

There's also the "upgrade path" idea which may appeal to you (section 1.5 of the sticky thread)
You could get a 2.1 or 3.1 system to start and worry about adding other speakers later.

 

[Tiamat]

In that small of room, it will be difficult to justify 7.1 since it would be very difficult to set the speakers up correctly (you would need the couch situated away from the rear wall (which is a good idea for any room). Certainly, I would consider $400 receiver, $400 subwoofer, $400 pair of speakers, as your sized room would be more amenable to stereo + subwoofer setups. Later, you can add a center speaker and surrounds if your setup allows for it. Something like the Paradigm Mini Monitor V.6 could be nice. It also offers the option of pairing with a pretty nice 3-way center speaker: the CC-190 or 290. These specific centers are nice because of their 3-way design where the midrange drive is situated below the tweeter. This is far superior to the designs were two midrange drivers flank the tweeter in a horizontal plane (since the latter has lobbing problems where depending where you sit on the couch, you get crappy dialogue quality).

 

[s44]

The Polk includes a DVD player you don't need (PS3 will do it quite well). I'd get a refurb Onkyo 705 for $420 and a nice 2.1 setup... But you can just get that Onkyo HTIB you linked if you don't want to think about it much.

 

[GeekDrew]

I'm not at all opposed to Jello's suggestion to follow an 'upgrade path' (as referenced in sticky thread). I also realize that the package includes a DVD player I don't need... but I didn't know if that was actually a significant part of the cost or not (whether I should care that I'm buying more than I need).

I really *don't* want to think about it much, but I can see this crowd will beat me to a pulp for that. lol I do think that 7.1 would probably be pretty pointless in this small room, I was mainly just considering the 7.1 HTIBs because that's what seems to be popular, and I didn't figure that it would hurt to buy more than I plan to use (can always leave a couple of speakers disconnected...).

On AVSForum, I was suggested another set:
Infinity Primus 5.0 Theater Pack
Polk PSW10
Onkyo SR606 receiver


Does anyone have any comments about the Polk PSW10, or in comparison with the Mirage Nanosat 5.0?

 

[s44]

Well, their actual sound depends on your preferences. But there is one obvious factor: size. The Mirage and the Polk have tiny drivers, and don't even try to produce real bass. You have to cross the Mirage set over at 110hz, and the Polk just below 100. This means a lot more work for your sub, and possibly sound localization issues.

The Infinitys are also pretty small, but have response down to 80hz, the standard THX crossover. For about the same price, incidentally, you could also get four bookshelves and a center from The Speaker Company -- these are designs from the now-defunct Sapphire Audio brand that used to sell for rather more.