Advice please: £3K for first Home Cinema

[admin_exported]

Hi everyone,

I got the bug last weekend after visiting a friends and have decided to take the plunge. I have £3K to spend (on LCD, amp, Blu-ray, speakers) but there are so many options and so many opinions... and I have no idea.

My two questions are: How much of the budget would you spend on each part--better amp or source? What would you buy?

I've been looking at combinations involving the following:

• Sony 37W5500 (£750) or Sony 40Z5500 (£1300)
• Denon 1910 (£450) or Denon 2310 (£750)
• Denon 2500BT (£550), a cheaper Sony/Panasonic
• Kef 3005, B&W MT-25, B&W MT-30, B&W 685

I have a Naim pre/power driving some Dynaudios which I'd like to use if that makes sense. Any advice you guys could offer would be really appreciated.

Best,

Luke

 

[Deleted member 2457]

Hi

First thing you don't buy a sony lcd, I strongly recommend a philips lcd or secondly a samsung for your budget.

Probaly a 5 star 40 inch samsung around £800 if you shop around.

which leaves 2,200 B&W MT25 with pioneer sc-lx71 amplifier and pioneer bdp-lx71 blu ray player. buy this at a Sevenoaks shop and get a package deal they are sure to through in big discounts for packages including speakers and amplifer

That is the best system in my opinion for your money if you want to spend more go for B&W MT30.

 

[shado]

You are at a great position to audition and seriously consider a Projector and Screen for your funds which is better than Plasma or LCD TV. Speak to

Thehomecinemacentre

they talk on here. Enjoy

 

[bigboss]

I don't see anything wrong with Sony. Very few models have backlight issues, but I still consider them to make the best LCD TVs in the market today. I've usually found Philps to be overpriced for what they offer, mainly because of their ambilight.

Your options seem good.

I would recommend:

1) TV: Sony W5500 series - ideally 42" or higher, otherwise 37" would do fine. What's the viewing distance? Go for the biggest feasible screen size.

2) Receiver: Denons are very good. Also have a look at Yamaha . I found them to be better than Denon personally (warm and wholesome). Yamaha DSP-AX863SE is very good. I even liked the Onkyo 607.

3) Blu-ray player: To be honest, Sony S360 or Panasonic BD60 are excellent, & I'll spend more on the receiver & the TV than the blu-ray player.

4) Speakers: I can see that you're considering style packages like KEF & B&W MT series, as well as B&W 685! All the speaker packages you've mentioned are very good. B&W have a sronger reputation & are generally more expensive. The 685 speakers are superb, if you can get over their aesthetics. I was quite impressed with KEF 3005 when I auditioned them. You can even check Monitor Audio Radius HD series.

Make sure to get a demo of the receiver/speaker packages & check it for yourself which you like the best.

Hope this helps.