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admin_exported

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I want to get an integrated home enterainment system that covers two rooms and don't know where to begin.

This is what I want to end up with...

Room 1 - 1) a large digital ready TV with 2) surround sound 3) DVD player, 4) Freeview and 5) hifi that plays CDs, Radio and MP3 (and other files)

Room 2 - 1) small wall mounted TV with 2) Freeview and 3) to be able to hear the music from the first room or not if we choose.

I have 3 to 4K to spend. I am not remotely technical so it has to be easy to use and I don't really want to start hacking into walls to lay wirers, so they need to be wireless or under the carpets

Can anyone point me in the right direction?
 

Andrew Everard

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OK most TVs have Freeview built-in, and most DVD players will handle MP3/WMA files as well as DVDs and CDs, so that's Room 1 points 1, 3, 4 and 5 sorted, and Room 2 points 1 and 2.

Now, we need to get the surround sound sorted in Room 1, and music between the two rooms, so I need to know a few more bits of info

Is there a computer somewhere in this equation, perhaps with a wireless network?

How far apart are the two rooms?

How big are the two rooms?

Do you want to be able to watch TV in the main room while playing music from the system in the second?

Basically, you're going to need an AV receiver and speakers in one room, and an amplifier and speakers in the second room.

One of the neatest ways to do this as a standalone audio set-up will be with Sonneteer's wireless Bard system, which will involve a sender connected to the main surround receiver in the main room, plus a combined receiver unit/amplifier in the second room driving a pair of speakers.

But if you have your music stored on a computer there are other ways to achieve this via a wireless network able to stream music from the PC to several rooms at once.

Give me a few more details and we'll see where we go from there.
 
A

Anonymous

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I have a wireless network and can lay my hands on a PC very easily.

Both rooms are approx 5m by 5m, and they are side by side. I would defn want to be able to play music in one and TV in the other.

Currently all my music is on CD, but PC seems to make sence.

Can you play music to the same level of quality through a DVD and a Hifi?
 

Andrew Everard

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Then the answer might well be to store all your music at CD resolution on the PC and play it through something like the Slim Devices Squeezebox into your AV receiver, using a digital connection to link the two, then a separate wireless music device to play music in the second room - either another Squeezebox and a simple stereo amp and speakers, or something like the new Denon S-52 wireless music system if you just want background music in the second 'zone'.

The alternative would be something like the Sonos Bundle 130 package run off your router: this has two units, one with and one without amplification built in - the unamped one could plug into any surround receiver, while the amplified one could be used with a pair of speakers in Room 2, and could also take a sound output from the TV in that room.

Yes, some recent DVD players, such as the Marantz DV7001, can play CDs very well indeed - or the alternative would be add a separate DVD player to the system.

So let's see:

Say £800-000 or so for the big room TV, Denon DVD-1940 or Marantz DV6001 DVD player in main room, perhaps with a side order of Marantz CD6002 CD player, Onkyo TX-SR605 receiver in main room powering a set of surround speakers - see the January issue for some ideas on those. £400-500 or so for the second room TV, Sonos Bundle 130 to link the two rooms, pair of Tannoy Mercury F1 Custom speakers for second room sound.

Yes, that should be doable within your budget, and no unsighlty wires between the rooms.
 

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