£800 for a decent amp and speakers can i do it ??

[admin_exported]

ill have at my disposal next week , the princely sum of e900 , roughly £800 , ive been meaning to get some kind of surround sound for a while , so i reckon i should bite the bullet , there is no way i can up the budget , does anyone know if it can be done for that money ?? please note i live in ireland , so i may need to get some gear sent over to me , ill check out the prices here too , anyone ??

edit ... i really like the idea of floorstanders at the front , could i buy a pair of them for now , and an amp , using my £800 , and add the rest when i get money ?? and any recomendations ?? ta..

 

[Anonymous]

Max this speaker package was rated the full 5 stars here and is a bargain price. A separate sub isn't needed with this package although it could be added at a later date if you felt it was required. Add the award winning amp the Denon 1910 which is available below £400 at several retailers and you would have a cracking system for your budget. Once this is all paired up with your new Panasonic TV I'm sure it would all be very impressive.

 

[Anonymous]

thanks davee , i can actually get the denon here in ireland for e440 , so ill probably go for that anyway ..

i wonder is there any reviews for that speaker package ?? it seems a few years old now , which probably makes no odds , but i wouldnt mind reading a review , also , with my other £450 odd , would it be worth my while just getting the best pair of floorstanders possible , and adding other high quality pieces when money allows ?? and would anyone have any they might reccomend ?? ta...

 

[Anonymous]

maxflinn: i wonder is there any reviews for that speaker package ?? it seems a few years old now , which probably makes no odds , but i wouldnt mind reading a review , also , with my other £450 odd , would it be worth my while just getting the best pair of floorstanders possible , and adding other high quality pieces when money allows ?? and would anyone have any they might reccomend ?? ta...

I was considering this package before I opted for the Kef 3005SE. I do remember reading a review on this particular package in an older what hi-fi magazine. I cannot remember which issue of the magazine it was but it definitely received the full 5 stars. Maybe Andrew/Claire or someone could recall when it was reviewed if you asked them?

Max, it's up to you regarding just going for the floorstanders first or buying the whole package. Personally in your position I would just buy the whole package so I could enjoy proper surround sound straight away. Unless you have a decent hi-fi amp and CD player and intend to listen to a lot of stereo, £450 on just front speakers on your budget is pretty pointless. This would be a good package for your movies and the main mission floorstanders would also be good enough for stereo. I'd also be wary of buying loads of different speakers for a surround setup, these missions have been designed as a whole package. Buying different front, rears, centre and a sub could be a bit of a nightmare to set up correctly, and potentially not match very well. I'd aim a question at one of the pro's here before departing with your £800 either way!

 

[Anonymous]

davee thanks very much , im starting to think you might be right , money is tight , that speaker setup seems to fit the bill , the fronts are 850mm high , which would be fine ..

clare , andrew , any chance you might have any views on davees suggestion ? or even better , dig up the missions review ? or any other suggestions for my budget ? ta..

 

[robjcooper]

Max,

Q Acoustics 1010i 5.1 surround package £299.95 - fronts and rears are standmounts,

but if you want floorstanders as well to give you a 7.1 system: Q Acoustics 1030i. £139.95

Both from Richer Sounds (Package got a good review from the ears at WHF)

Amp wise, you could try the Sony STRDH800 (£239.95), the Sony STRDA2400ES (£399.95) or the Denon AVR1910 (389.95) all again at RS.

Good hunting !

 

[John Duncan]

Deffo the Q Acoustics from Richer Sounds if you can get them where you are (and additionally with the 1030is - sell a pair of 1010s if you don't want 7.1) - though the .ie site appears to have a poor selection, so you might be better off importing them. I'd add a Yamaha amp personally, but any of the above would suit you just as well.

EDIT - just seen that Mission package - very good value.

 

[ear]

I remenber hearing missions like those bookshelf ones and not liking much the sound, but for 5.1 systems they are great value.heard the 1020, 2020, not liked at all.very bright sounding to me.also heard the 2050.good sounding but lacking bass. So...I would only get the smaller ones, 1010 or 2010 and only for home cinema.but i now am planing to make a home cinema based on 3 stereo amps + speakers.1 for fronts., 1 for 2 centers, 1 for 4 rear speakers.maybe im crazy..I already got a yamaha ax-397 and HK 3390.all bargain prices new.next speakers ill get will be celestion F20 or pioneer CS-3070(3 way floor speakers.greatest sound Ive heard in a few years) and cheap!

 

[pmarb]

If you have £800 I would go the second hand route, looking out for -

Amp - Onkyo 606 Fronts - Mission M74i, Centre , M7C2, rears - M70 or M71, sub paradigm PDR10/PSW1000, REL Q50 or Q100, cabling QED micro,for rears and QED biwire for fronts and centre, Ixos digital cables, + good stands for rears - should come to about £800 (with an inital RRP of about £1800)

 

[Anonymous]

thanks folks , i want floorstanders at the front because i think they would look better , as opposed to bookshelf speakers on stands .. so i dont need a sub with those missions ? is there a particular reason for this ? do they have built in subs in the fronts ?

im not sure my room shape would suit 7.1 , too many speakers for me i think , so it has to be 5.1 ..

the 2nd hand route certainly looks a good idea , id surely get value for money , but i dont use ebay , there are no shops that i know of that would have that kind of gear , so it would be difficult for me to sort out ..

does anyone think the denon 1910 would be too good for the missions ? would something cheaper like rob suggested be good enough ? thanks ..

 

[Anonymous]

i have emailed superfi to ask if they can send me those missions in black , great price to be fair , and im sure they will do the job , if i need a sub ill add one in time , thanks for that spot davee ....

i just have one more choice to make , the amp , i can get the

denon 1910 for e440

the yamaha rx-v365 for e279

and the yamaha rx v465 for e369

or the onkyo tx-sr-507 for e359

all at sevenoaks dublin..

does anyone have any views on which of these would be best suited to the missions , i will buy the denon if i have to , but wouldnt mind saving some money , if one of the cheaper amps would be fine , anyone ??

edit... got an email back from superfi already , no problem sending to eire , £30 .. ill get them next week , have to be the colour shown though , as black is £40 extra , still , great price methinks , happy days...

now about that amp ?

 

[lobby]

I feel you will need a top end of the budget range and bottom end of the mid range amps to get the best out of those floorstanders.Imho Onkyo amp will give you the power from the 607, or wait for 608 with 3d capabilities, due out late April early May.Also the Yamaha 1065 at £469, and the Denon 1910. If you have a PS3 the Onkyo 608 amp then you just need the screen and you should be sorted for 3D.

 

[Anonymous]

well superfi have emailed me back already , with a recomendation for these amps on special offer , looks like some good value

onkyo tx sr 607 £319

yamaha rxv 765 £369.95

pioneer vsx 819 hk £319.95

that yamaha is e639 at sevenoaks dublin , any thoughts guys ??

 

[simonlewis]

The yamaha & onkyo both get reviewed on this site, if i was buying i would go for the onkyo, but i think the yamaha may be more musical, not sure about the pioneer.

 

[John Duncan]

I'd buy a Yamaha, probably, despite the lukewarm review here.

 

[Anonymous]

yea ive checked out the reviews , both 4 stars , although at their current prices id say they would get 5 stars , the denon is very appealing though , having read the review , im leaning towards it , but would the yamaha be a better bet at the price ??

 

[harveymt]

JohnDuncan: though the .ie site appears to have a poor selection, so you might be better off importing them.

Just to point out, the .ie Richer Sounds site is for the Belfast shop. They have a slightly difference range but can get anything that's on the main .co.uk site. You might just have to wait a week or two till a delivery comes in. My TV was like that. Had to wait two weeks till the next delivery but it was a great pirce.

 

[Anonymous]

JohnDuncan:I'd buy a Yamaha, probably, despite the lukewarm review here.i like the price of the superfi yamaha 765 , would that be the one you would go for jd ? or would a cheaper one suffice with the missions ? ta..

 

[Anonymous]

Max if memory serves me correctly that mission package was rated 5 stars at £550 not £370. If you can get your amp from Superfi as well, be cheeky and ask them to throw in some cables or something!

 

[Anonymous]

Daveee:Max if memory serves me correctly that mission package was rated 5 stars at £550 not £370. If you can get your amp from Superfi as well, be cheeky and ask them to throw in some cables or something!

lol , yea ill suss that out , great heads up on those missions , thanks , but what about a sub ?? do they have a built in sub ?? or are they just very bassy floorstanders ? ta...

if i dont need a sub i wont complain ..

 

[Anonymous]

I remember reading that the floorstanders go to a very low frequency and therefore a sub isn't required. I don't know if this is mission marketing babble or if it is true. See how you get on with them, if you are used to watching films through TV speakers I'm sure this package will blow you away even without the sub.

 

[Anonymous]

yea im very happy with the price anyway davee , if i have to get a sub thats not a problem , im buying the speakers , 4.5 metres of qed biwire , and 13 metres of qed standard speaker cable , delivered to ireland for £467 from superfi .. ill be ordering on wednesday

if antone has any further views on my choice of amp id love to hear them , and thanks to all who have already contributed

 

[Anonymous]

calling clare newsome ...

your opinion on an amp would be nice , im leaning towards the denon 1910 , what would you think ?? pretty please

 

[John Duncan]

maxflinn:JohnDuncan:I'd buy a Yamaha, probably, despite the lukewarm review here.i like the price of the superfi yamaha 765 , would that be the one you would go for jd ? or would a cheaper one suffice with the missions ? ta..

I'd get the highest up the range I could afford in budget (unless there was a real value star in the range0, so if that adds up to 800 quid then yes.

 

[ear]

id go for the 1910.no doubt about it. seconde choice would be the 819 pioneer.no go for yamaha.heard many.not for me.