I want to put together a home theatre . . . is RCA any good?

[XMan]

I've pretty much settled on the speakers, etc. I'm going to get 4 200-watt, three way floor speakers for the speakers, a 150-watt center channel speaker, and a 200-watt sub. All RCA because the only local electronics shop is Radio Shack. Thankfully Radio Shack is the Xerox sales agent for NW Colorado, so I can probably get a good discount.

 

[yakko]

How much do you want to spend?

 

[XMan]

The speakers I'm looking at are 80 bucks apiece, the center channel is 80, and the sub is 150. The DD receiver I was looking at was 300 . . . so that's what, about a grand? Say a grand, maybe more.

 

[JackBoCracken]

The best place to find info on that would be the 3dss forums, www.3dss.com

 

[beaker429]

Just bought a Sony STR-DE545. This is a great head unit for a nice component home theater system. Has optical in for DVD player and satelite cable box. Also has onscreen programming for tuning in the "sweet" spot by tweaking the channels for the sound. Highly recommended.

 

[Entity]

AudioReview

Rob

 

[XMan]

Okay, thanks Jack.

I guess I was just wanted to know if I should get a head unit that offers 200 watts per channel or not. I'm a neophyte as far as home audio - will it screw your speakers up if you use less wattage or more wattage than they are rated for?

 

[yakko]

If the speakers are only $80 each then you don't need anything to powerful to push them so go for a quality reciever.

 

[XMan]

Hmm, looks like most of the high end receivers are 5x100 like the one I was looking at.

Is RCA equipment any good? What are some of the good brands of equipment?

 

[Michael]

I bought a Toshiba 6109c just over a year ago (Audioreview link). It "only" does 50 watts per channel, but I can't even put it over 60% without it being much too loud for my taste. I bought a Pardigm center speaker and a Klipsch powered-subwoofer and used two Kef speakers that my wife had from the front speakers and two old Kenwood speakers for the rear ones.

Other than the remote (which really is as poor as the reviews say it is), I have been very, very happy with the unit.

I don't know how big a space you're trying to fill with sound, but my family room is pretty big and I fill it no problem. I talked to a few owners of some small stereo stores and they all told me that 100 watts is really overkill except for real audiophiles.

Michael

 

[XMan]

Wonder why they would sell 200 watt floor speakers, then?

Probably just for the deaf among us, eh?

 

[crab]

Mine's Kenwood, I'm satisfied...I have had a few bad experiences with RCA VCR's tho.

 

[Ryan]

NO! RCA is bad! They make bad things. My tv and my reciever both broke, and tehy were both RCA!

 

[Ornery]

How about your local Sears? They carry a few decent units including Sony. You could also save a few bucks going with this Kenwood system. I don't own it, but have heard good things:

Kenwood 600 Watts Total System Power $429.00
Complete Surround Sound System Including Receiver, Speakers, and Subwoofer

Sears sells this for $499.00, Item #: 05798840, but will price match any E-tailer. All you need is a copy of the web page with the lower price. I've done it and saved hundreds! It's a highly rated system for the money too: Kenwood HTB-503 Reviews

You can snag a DVD player at BestBuy for as little as $100.00 on sale. Not a bad system for under $550.00! :Q

 

[KameLeon]

Next stop: The Home Theater Forum!

 

[RGN]

As a wannabe audiophile, I got to say some of the theater-in-a-box setups are kinda nice for the money. The RCA stuff I would stay away from though, not really a topnotch company in ANYTHING. Sony and Yamaha both have a couple of different priced setups, listen to them and decide. But as a rule, the more you spend the better your quality.

Good Luck!

 

[XMan]

That IS a pretty nice system, Ornery. And there's a Sears electronics-only store about 50 miles from my house.

I've already got a DVD player - Apex 600A, the one that plays MP3s - but I do need a new VCR. The one I have now does not have S-Video, so I'm stuck using a coax cable. Thanks a lot for your input!

 

[XMan]

So RCA is suck?

I've got a 36" RCA TV . . . I've had it about 4 months and it seems to be working okay so far.

 

[N8Magic]

Xerox Man,

I worked for a store that sold the RCA packages and they are most definitely a brand to steer clear of. Another brand to stay away from are the Pioneer home theater packages. Although better than the RCA packages (by FAR) they still aren't great. For a $1000 USD you can do MUCH better.

I would recommend:

Yamaha RXV-496 $300.00
4 x PSB Alpha $350.00
PSB Alpha Midi Center $100.00
Paradigm PDR-8 $250.00

Total: 1000.00 (+tax)

This system will BLOW AWAY any of the "system in a box" setups.

Good luck!

 

[N8Magic]

Oh and even if you have to mail order it (thru the net or whatever) trust me, it will be worth it.

 

[JBAR]

Buying cheap home theater gear like RCA is like going out and getting a Packard Bell for your first computer. Sure, you pay a bit less up front, but as you start to use it more and begin to appreciate what it's all about, you realize that you were duped and could have gotten four times more for your money if you only spent twice as much.