Help needed on a basic setup please

[admin_exported]

As this is my first post on this website,I thought I should say HI to anyone reading this.

Basically I am after advice on what to buy or a guide on what I should do to make it work.I have a Panasonic Viera TX-P50X10B 50" ,Sky HD,Xbox 360 (HD).I would like to buy (hopefully) a 2.1 system which will be integrated some how with my current equipment so i get surround sound when i am on my xbox 360 or watching sky or watching a dvd.I have been looking at various 2.1 systems like Samsung HT - X720GT,PHILIPS HTS4600,PHILIPS HES2800.But before I get one of these systems I would like to get some proper advice on if I am going down the correct route when buying AV equipment to get the sound I am after.I know its a long winded question,but after going round various high street audio shops,I have been given various different answers to my qustion.I am abit confused at the mo!

Help would be really really helpful as there seems to be a few bargins at the mo,so it is time to buy audio!

 

[Anonymous]

Hi

I have no quibbles on a 2.1 system, if your tight on space or just want a surround sound system with minimal speakers then 2.1 is the way forward. Before i mention about 2.1, you have to be aware that the best sound is achieved by atleast a 5.1 setup as its the only way you will get a feel of true surround sound as all the purists will tell you but i am one that owned a 6.1 setup and decided to have a system that did not take up much space, so i like you looked for a 2.1 system and ended up with a sound bar.

Now im not fully upto date with what Philips or Samsung 2.1 systems are like or sound like but ive had hands on experience with Yamaha sound bars, a Panasonic 2.1 and also a Onkyo 2.1 system too. Starting with the Panasonic, model: SC-PTX60, it is a 2.1 system with a DVD player built in with a Ipod Dock and FM radio, its a very good sounding system and affordable too at around £200 but the head unit is styled like a hi-fi, so you will need some space if you were going to put it on a shelf in a stand. Now the other system i tried was the Onkyo, model: HTX22HD, this is a 2.1 system without a dvd player, it's a subwoofer and 2 small speakers and has the amplifier cleverly built into the subwoofer itself, now this does decode also Dolby TruHD and DTS HD which are the sound formats used on Blu Ray discs, which makes this future proofed aswell as Onkyo do have a optional pack of speakers to add onto if you want to make it a 5.1 speaker system in the future. Now this retails around £250 and the sound quality is very very good. Last of all i tried the Yamaha sound bar, model: YSP1100 (this is what i own myself), now this is not a 2.1 as it's one block of small speakers concealed in a bar, i have to admit, the Yamaha got me intrigued, i wondered how these things would perform, so i ended up going to a AV show which Yamaha were attending and got to listen to one of these and i must admit, i was blown away! sound quality was awesome and it practically sold it for me. So i would recommend Yamaha anyday for a great sounding solution but your best to look at the newer models as the one i own is a few years old, a good one to look at is the Yamaha YSP600, this is compact and has HDMI inputs too, this will cost around £400 or less if you look around, also this was 5 star rated by What Hi-Fi too.

Another option is to get a seperate AV receiver, 2 speakers and a subwoofer, this would be a good idea if you have the space for a AV receiver and you have a decent budget as this would be the best option for sound quality. There are so many AV receivers to choose from, speakers and subwoofers, for that reason i could not recommend one from the top of my mind but a decent setup might set you back £600 or maybe more (or less).

So the choice is yours.

Regards> M

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the reply.After looking at your suggestions,I think the Onkyo, model: HTX22HD sounds what I am needing.The only thing I now need to know is will this system allow my tv,xbox 360 and sky hd all be hooked up to get surround sound without buying anything else?

 

[Anonymous]

The Onkyo HTX22HD is perfect for your kit and will allow your Xbox 360, Sky+ HD and TV work perfectly. The Onkyo has 2 HDMI inputs, 2 Optical inputs and 1 Coaxial input, so that's plenty of connections to play with, oh and it does have 1 HDMI output.

In regards to your setup, i would have the Xbox 360 and Sky+ HD connected direct to the TV via HDMI as the these dont send true surround sound out the HDMI, then i would connect the Sky+ HD to the Onkyo via Optical and the same for the Xbox 360. As for the TV sound, i would send it out via the Phono sockets on the back of your TX-P50X10 straight into the Onkyo phono inputs, this will cover the Freeview sound from the TV. Do remember, the tv sound via the phono sockets is not vital if you run everything through Sky+ HD, so you can afford not to bother connecting that up.

Oh, you will need to buy some decent cable's too, the Onkyo does come supplied with a few cable's but there is 2 that might come of use, which is the optical and HDMI cable but if i was to be honest, i would throw them away and get some quality cable's, your gonna need 2 opticals and a decent set of phono cable's, i would recommend the True Colours Industries Coral for the optical, these were the digital audio cable of the year from What Hi-Fi and you can pick them up around £33 each, as for the phono i would recommend the Chord Crimson at around £40 but as mentioned before, this is not vital if you are not too fussed about the Freeview sound from the tv going into the Onkyo. Sound is a vital thing, so i strongly advise on the better leads but ultimately the decision is upto you.

Regards> M