Need advice on my new kit for my new house build

[admin_exported]

Hi

This is my first post and no doubt not my last!

I am about 3 weeks away from the completion of an extrension and rennovation project, so time to look at the AV options.

Can you tell me if the following set up will work and which of the options I have listed will be the best? I like lots of trebble and deep thumpy bass (without distortion):

1. Samsung UE467020 LED 46" TV (sourced already for £1550 inc vat and del)

2. Sony STR 2400 or Yamaha 863

3. Panasonic DMPD60 or DMPD80 Blue Ray player (I want card reader + USB, hence these models)

4. Alphason Designs Accente ACT1100 Stand

5. 5:1 Speakers with huge bass (I like the look of Mission, Infinity and JBL speakers - with multiple woofers per speaker and am not a huge fan of dinky little girly speakers) - Off course there is also the Q Accustics 1010i set.... But that seems a tad budget?

6. Sky+ or HD (but I will not subscribe to HD channels as I do not watch much sport or movies) So HD box IF it will improv my general picture quality

7. HDMI Cable (if needed)

8. Did I miss anything for a 100% new set-up?

Total budget for the above: £3200

I look forward to suggestions from you pro's!

Jay

 

[d4v3pum4]

jaysbar:2. Sony STR 2400 or Yamaha 863

Don't forget Denon, Marantz, Onkyo and Pioneer. You might be lucky to find an 863.

jaysbar:3. Panasonic DMPD60 or DMPD80 Blue Ray player (I want card reader + USB, hence these models)

I haven't read the reviews yet but I'll bet pic quality wise, there is nothing in it.

jaysbar:4. Alphason Designs Accente ACT1100 Stand

Furniture comes down to taste, only you know what you like.

jaysbar:5. 5:1 Speakers with huge bass (I like the look of Mission, Infinity and JBL speakers - with multiple woofers per speaker and am not a huge fan of dinky little girly speakers) - Off course there is also the Q Accustics 1010i set.... But that seems a tad budget?

Mission seem to have gone off the boil of late. As for Infinity and JBL, I'm afraid I've only heard their car audio stuff. A system based around the MA Bronze B5 or Silver RS6 or Kef IQ range would be a good start but if you're after a particular finish or style, again, only you know your taste. I don't get what you mean by "huge bass". Ultimately where the bass goes will depend on how you setup and calibrate the amp and sub. You don't want too much or else you will miss out on the other frequencies and the bass will simply overpower everything. In the end, that is what the sub is there for and to this end, I would recommend a good quality sub from the likes of BK e.g. Monolith or something from SVS. These are big subs but they're not 'in your face'. They produce good quality clean bass and that is what you need. I own an SVS sub and Focal 8 series speakers and it sounds fantastic.

jaysbar:6. Sky+ or HD (but I will not subscribe to HD channels as I do not watch much sport or movies) So HD box IF it will improv my general picture quality

If you don't subscribe to HD, there is absolutely no point in getting a HD box as it will cost you £££ without a subscription. However, since subscribing to Sky HD, I watch a lot more movies on Sky and the Sky+ feature is second to none.

jaysbar:7. HDMI Cable (if needed)

You won't get one free AFAIK unless you get Sky HD. I'm not sure if the Panny BD players ship with one or not. I recommend the Pro 2 at hdcable or Octava at tmfsolutions and MarkGrant if you have to buy one.

 

[Anonymous]

A separate mains spur might be a good idea.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi

Many thanks for the tips. Here is how my budget is shaping up.

1. Samsung UE467020 LED 46" TV £1550

2. Sony STR 2400 or Yamaha 863 - £400 (massive power, future proofing and features at an afordable price)

3. Panasonic DMPD60 or DMPD80 Blue Ray player (I want card reader + USB, hence these models) - £235 - £280

4. Alphason Designs Accente ACT1100 Stand - £250

5. 5:1 Speakers with huge bass (I like the look of Mission, Infinity and JBL speakers - with multiple woofers per speaker and am not a huge fan of dinky little girly speakers) - Off course there is also the Q Accustics 1010i set.... But that seems a tad budget?

6. Sky+ or HD (but I will not subscribe to HD channels as I do not watch much sport or movies) So HD box IF it will improv my general picture quality - £50

7. HDMI Cable (if needed) - £30

8. Did I miss anything for a 100% new set-up?

Total so far - £2560

That leaves me with £640 for speakers (ideall full sized floor standing fronts, rears, sub and center). I'm still not convinced on what is the best for this type of price range?

These look well within budget (they would be prefect if they had full sized front speakers and meatier (watts) Subs):

http://www.hiwayhifi.com/site/product.asp?section=1&cat=41&sub=230&prod=100321 (great price!)

http://www.richersounds.com/product/speaker-packages/q-acoustics/1010i-5.1/qaco-1010i-5.1-pack

This is the look I love! http://www.hiwayhifi.com/site/product.asp?section=1&cat=41&sub=230&prod=29786

Total budget for the above: £3200

Further opinions welcome!

Thanks

Jay

 

[d4v3pum4]

Unfortunately decent floorstanders start at the price you're looking to pay for the whole lot. I have no idea what the JBL's sound like but at that price.....hmm. You can often upgrade the Q-Acoustics to front floorstanders, I'm pretty sure Superfi offer that option. The Q-Acoustics sub is meant to be pretty weak though. I think you need to get away from judging speakers by watts though, that's what boombox manufacturer's use (along with flashing lights).

These are a bargain:

AE Neo 5.1 and direct from the manufacturer.

Ultimately though, I still say you should demo.

 

[Anonymous]

The AE Neo 5:1 sure do look nice and the reviews say they will wake up the neigbours! That's what I like!

I agree that I need a demo of some speakers with the Sony or Yamaha amp. But before I hit the shops, I need to know what I prefer a demo of. The AE Neo lost out on 1 star, but the Mordun Shorts (http://www.hiwayhifi.com/site/product.asp?section=1&cat=41&sub=230&prod=100321) got all 5 stars...

I saw an ad today in What Hi Fi (BTW I have 2 x page 116 which means I lost the speaker reviews under £1000 🙁). Richer Sounds have the Kef 2005.3 for £499. OK I said I don't like fancy pants speakers and prefer the traditional full sized ones. But if one gives me more punch for my money, then that's where the demo/money is...

Also gotta make sure these speakers will work with the amps I want (most prob the Sony for value).

Again, any thoughts and input is grately apreciated.

Jay

PS - I know Atlantic is based in Staple Corner (London) and Harrow Audio in Harrow - anyone know of any other local demo rooms (I'm in Wembley)?

 

[d4v3pum4]

jaysbar:
The AE Neo 5:1 sure do look nice and the reviews say they will wake up the neigbours! That's what I like!

I agree that I need a demo of some speakers with the Sony or Yamaha amp. But before I hit the shops, I need to know what I prefer a demo of. The AE Neo lost out on 1 star, but the Mordun Shorts (http://www.hiwayhifi.com/site/product.asp?section=1&cat=41&sub=230&prod=100321) got all 5 stars...

I wouldn't get too hung up on star ratings. A 4 star product isn't a lemon and you have to judge a product against similarly priced products. Speaker choice is very subjective. What sounds good to one person might sound awful to another. For example I tried the Tannoy Revolution Signatures at home with my own system and hated them. They went straight back. WHF have them down as the best (value) speaker package at £2000+. So, it goes to show you, that we can't always agree!

 

[Anonymous]

Yesturday I had my first TV and Speaker demo. Here is the set-up:

[*] Demo Room: Circa 35-40 foot long and circa 12-15 foot wide[*]Amp: Harmon Kardon - not sure which model [*]DVD: Samsung Blue Ray playing "I am Legand", the scene with Smith going nuts in his car in a deserted town/road[*]Speakers: JBL ES25, JBLES150, JBLES20, JBLES80

What happend?

The demo started and the room was pretty
calm. Will Smith started getting mad and the room starting to feel like
very light thunder was our guest! The scene finished and I was not
greatly impressed by the bass. Alhough the clarity was very good. We
checked the Sub - it was switched OFF!!

Round 2 - MUCH better with ths JBL ES150. My skin stood up!

I asked if we could hear the JBL ES250 (12" sub)

Same scene - My skin woke up and said "what the hell was that"!!! AMAZING!
The power in the sub had the guy from the show room next door in our
demo room asking "are you trying to bring the walls down?"! As Smith
accelerated from left to right of screen you could fel his car sweep
past the entire room (consistantly from fronts to rears). This was a
truely fantastic set-up and possibly more bass than you could actually
cope with at home! 'Wake the neighbours' is what I asked for and I
think I got 'strip the plaster off all walls' instead!

Now, I am thinking - imagine if these fronts (JBL ES80) sound
this good (and good is the right word), the ES90 must be better and the
ES100 must be amazing...

The only speaker which looked a tad
pants (and that's just looked although it sounded great) was the center
speaker. It was a tad bulky.

I don't think I will get this kind
of teeth shattering bass from an 8" sub which is included with the
likes of KEF, Mordunt Short, Q Accoustics etc.

TV

A company on Tottenham Ct Rd reccomended I go
with the Panasonic 46" (600hz) rather than the Samsung UE46B7020. I saw
the Samsung yesturday and the picture quality is GREAT! I tried HD and
standard definition Sky and although the HD is a 30% improvement, even
the standard definition is brilliant. I'm not a fan of Panasonics
styling! Circa £1150 for the Pana and £1485 for the Samsung. My money so far is with the Samsung for the class and features.

Your thoughts? And any reccomendations (inc a cheap supplier of these speakers)?

Thanks

Jay

 

[Anonymous]

There's a load of non movie/sport HD channels on sky, which are gradually increasing. Stuff like nat geo and discovery docs are fantastic in native high res when avaliable.

No offence, but my personal take is that having a HD rig up costing £3k+ and cheaping out on the HD subs is like buying a ferrari and running it on 2 star. But of course it depends on the channels you watch, if the box is normally on dave or men& motors I can see your point.

(Says the man with vrigins woefull "HD" service, heh. Mind, SkyHD will probably be the way I go when I move, just don't wanna sign a contract with a landlord constantly pondering refurbing our flat)

BTW if you get a sky HD box but don't pay the subs will it still let you watch the free channels BBC etc in HD?

 

[Anonymous]

Good point about the HD. My TV is normally on BBC1 or some kids channels!

So.... Should I go ahead with those speakers at £800??

Jay

 

[Anonymous]

I had the pleasure of listening to the JBL ES80, ES90 and ES100 as well as B&W 684's today. The best for trebble were the B&W's. The best for all round sound were the JBLES90 (size into consieration too). They all sounded very nice - My money will go to the JBL ES90 as soon as I find them cheaper then £349.

I will be partnering themw with an Onkyo amp.

Jay

 

[Anonymous]

jaysbar:
I had the pleasure of listening to the JBL ES80, ES90 and ES100 as well as B&W 684's today. The best for trebble were the B&W's. The best for all round sound were the JBLES90 (size into consieration too). They all sounded very nice - My money will go to the JBL ES90 as soon as I find them cheaper then £349.

I will be partnering themw with an Onkyo amp.

Jay

JBL ES90, I beleive will come in front floor speaker (pair) for £349 and what about center and rear speakers?

and which Onkyo amp you will be buying ..845?

 

[Anonymous]

Hi

Any ideas where I can get the ES 90 so cheap from?

Not sure about the Amp yet. Onkyo 805, 875 or 876. I love the price of a 805 refurb....