need suggestions on home theater sys

[MonKENy]

Ok so we are looking to replace our old BOSE lifestyle 5 series surround system. Im desperately trying to talk my roomate out of another bose system (but that give you the idea of a price range) His main requirements are that it is 7.1, the speakers have to be relatively small (he likes the bose size) and of course as digital as possible. He currently has a new dvd player that scales to 1080p but will prob upgrade to a Blueray in the next year so something that takes all that into consideration. What do you all suggest I looked at the General Home Theater Audio Thread but still wouldn't know what specifically to recommend. Much appreciated..He thanks you as do I!

his current speakers are like 4x6 (WxH)

seems like a great system is the Onkyo HT-S7100

but how much better is the HT-S9100THX?

It seems pretty close to the same..is it that big of a jump?

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Section 2.5 on "things to avoid" has info on Bose and Bose alternatives that could give you an idea of speakers that are of similar size to Bose but would get you better bang for the buck. Are speakers as large as the Onkyo systems a possibility then?

 

[krotchy]

Considering the Bose Price range:

Receiver:
Figure out what features you need and look at Onkyo, Denon and Pioneer Elite.

Mirage Nanosat Prestiges (Buy the 5.0 Set + 2 more since the 5.0 has the proper center)
http://www.crutchfield.com/p_6...hdisplay=Mirage&tp=184
http://www.crutchfield.com/p_6...hdisplay=Mirage&tp=186

Subwoofer:
BIC H-100 has a ton of bang for about $250

The amount it blows away any bose system is ridiculous.

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Look into anything other than Bose.

The Mirage would be good, but so many other options as well.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

What's happening with the old system by the way? Is he going to sell it or something? If there's no plan for it, there's the potential to use the existing Bose speakers as the surrounds and rears saving more money to concentrate on the very important front three speakers and subwoofer.

If size of the surrounds and rears is a priority for him, then this would help alleviate that problem and still leave room for a much improved system (especially if the size requirement can be less critical for the front three speakers and subwoofer).

 

[Noubourne]

There is no replacement for displacement. Tiny speakers - as small as Bose - are going to have to sacrifice something to become that small. Usually they tend to be (IMO) overengineered, overpriced and underperforming. Three inches just cannot do what six inches can do. If you don't believe me, just ask your girlfriend.

A 3" cone would have to have MASSIVE excursion to push the air a 6" cone can do without blinking. Sound is air moving. If you can't move the air, you're fracked.

Towers or at least quality bookshelves can provide far, far more mid-bass impact up front, and I prefer them vastly over tiny satellite systems I have owned. Bigger speakers just FEEL more real - they give more impact and weight to the sounds - especially in movies. If they look good doing it - then you're way ahead of your plastic Bose crapcubes (which I owned in college before I pulled my head out of my arse - and that wasn't the dumbest thing I did in college either).

All that said - I will try to recommend the smallest speakers I can stomach - that I know won't provide a tinny empty sound.

Here's what I would do:

$300 Onkyo 605

$999 SVS SBS-01 5.1 Surround Sound system w/ PB10-NSD Subwoofer

That 5.1 setup will easily BLOW AWAY any teeny-tiny satellite 7.1 system out of the water. The satellites (aside from having far more professional looks than Bose), will easily destroy them in FR. At 12"x7"x9.5", they are VERY small for bookshelf speakers, but they have proven to be excellent performers for their size. The PB10-NSD is quite frankly one of the best subwoofers for the money - and it's worth over $400 on its own.

If you can talk some sense into your friend about his ridiculous size requirements, then you can open up a world of other options - including towers up front and bookshelves behind.

If size and placement are huge issues - which essentially means you're paying for speakers for a crap room and they'll be useless in a better space - then you might want to consider some of the more compact LCR soundbars out there. Some of those offer very good performance, look small and compact, and do a respectable job of faking surround in small squarish reflective rooms.

 

[MonKENy]

Thanks guys, I think we are going to go with the Onkyo 7100, hes ok w/the size of those, Onkyo seems to be coming VERY highly recommended from several diff sources, It fits all the specs we need. and its NOT BOSE! God i hate bose lol

 

[MonKENy]

Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
What's happening with the old system by the way? Is he going to sell it or something?

The remote for it basically died, but he is prob gonna put it in his bedroom for that TV he has. Anyone know if the bose remote bose remote RC-18S replaces the RC-9?

 

[DisgruntledVirus]

Originally posted by: MonKENy
Thanks guys, I think we are going to go with the Onkyo 7100, hes ok w/the size of those, Onkyo seems to be coming VERY highly recommended from several diff sources, It fits all the specs we need. and its NOT BOSE! God i hate bose lol

If the Onkyo speakers are fine size wise, then you should take a look at other stuff as well. Granted it may not be a HTIB, but it will sound better.

Just my $.02

 

[MonKENy]

I like the HTiB for him hes a pain in the ass sometimes on getting him to choose thinsg and this makes it all in one so less hassle lol.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Would picking out a 5.1 set and a receiver individually work? (two decisions as opposed to the three decisions of speakers / sub / receiver?)

Noubourne's SVS set or one of HSU's enthusiast sets http://www.hsuresearch.com/packages.html would offer a 5.1 set with just the receiver choice up to him. You could even get one of the receivers equivalent to the HTIB sets you had planned.

The speakers in the HTIB sets tend to be the weak point (sub included), so if budget allows for something better, it can make a big difference.

 

[MonKENy]

those speakers are hella expensive..He likes the $650 price tag now of the Onkyo its gonna be hard to get him to spend more now lol.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

I guess I had a ~$2k budget in mind when I was looking.

 

[MonKENy]

I wish..If he said heres 2k go wild..man id set shit up crazy style!

 

[cheesehead]

For around $275, you can get an adequate 5.1 receiver with HDMI. Don't bother with any more.

The #1 thing you MUST look for in a surround speaker is, ironically, bass extension. Thanks to the shape of the human head, it's impossible to point out the direction of all sound of 100hz or below - this is why we have one subwoofer and not five of them. However, if the speakers can only play down to 150hz (which is pretty common), the subwoofer must reproduce all frequencies up to 150hz, which makes it sound as if part of a noise is coming from the correct direction and the other part is always coming from wherever you put your subwoofer. Also, subwoofers distort like crazy at high frequencies - the lower your sats go, the better.

I might consider buying used. I'm selling a friend my old Cambridge Ensemble set for $100; this includes two passive subs and five sats. They're not great speakers, but they're not bad. The Insignia NSB-2111s might also be worth a look at $80/pair; throw in the Craigslist powered subwoofer of your choice, and you're done.