Novice needs some advice

[admin_exported]

Hello, thought you might be able to help a complete novice....

My kit:

Panasonic 37px80b

Panasonic DM35 Blu Ray Player

Humax Freesat HDR

All good stuff, but im finding the sound is appalling; I haven't any space for an amp and can't have anything more than a 2.1 speaker system so whats the best way to improve the sound? I've a budget of about £200 - if the choice is between sound quality and looks then looks would have to come first to satisfy 'her indoors'

Thanks

 

[Big Aura]

not much to do for £200. Perhaps get a soundbar of sorts, or a Sony 820 and some teeny speakers that are very wife friendly?

 

[Anonymous]

I don't have any space for any kind of amp

Will i see a much better sound quality if I hook up some of these?

http://whathifi.com/Review/Wharfedale-Diamond-91/

I know these are hifi speakers but I'm assuming I can hook these up to my tv or am I barking up the wrong tree?

What I'd really like are some small 'cube like' speakers that I can park either side of the tv that aren't going to be that noticeable but still deliver some oomph.

 

[simonlewis]

You can't plug speakers straight into the tv,

What you can do is buy something like the Denon DM37DAB, & using phono cables hook it up to your tv for a better stereo sound.

 

[Vimeous]

How about this Teac and Tannoy combo?:

http://www.richersounds.com/showproduct.php?cda=showproduct&pid=TEAC-CRH240
http://www.richersounds.com/showproduct.php?cda=showproduct&pid=TANN-CUSTOM-F1

£188

I don't know what the Teac would be like but it'll also give you a DAB radio

 

[professorhat]

If you have no space for an amp, look at some active speakers - the amp is built into the speaker so you can directly hook them up to the TV. There's a group test of them in the latest issue of WHF, but some examples exist on the site here. Something like the Audioengine A5s or the Cygnett-Unison iX5 (which has the benefit of a remote control). I would recommend looking at placing them on proper speaker stands if you can.

Just saw your note about small speakers, in which case maybe the Audioengine A2s might be better - though controlling the volume on these could be a bit tricky as is discussed in this post.

 

[Anonymous]

How about the Onkyo HTX22D? You can expand it to a 5.1 system at a later date if you wish.

With 2 x HDMI in you can connect the BD player and Freesat box to it with 1 x HDMI out to the TV.

Available here for £250:

http://www.superfi.co.uk/index.cfm/page/moreinfo.cfm/Product_ID/4162

 

[Big Aura]

not sure what this is like, but it's within range

http://www.soundandvision.co.uk/hifi/speakers/av-speaker-packages/bose-am3-mk4-white

you will need to check if there's amplification for the speakers in the sub, tho.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies

I like the Bose speakers from a purely asthetic point of view - I can't find out from anywhere whether you need a seperate amp tho, the Bose website is useless. Anyone know if they can be hooked straight up to my tv?

 

[professorhat]

Quote from the website:

"It offers lifelike sound from your stereo components and, when connected to your surround sound receiver, itïs also an appropriate choice as a rear channel home cinema speaker solution."

Which suggests no.

 

[Anonymous]

The Onkyos are favourite at the minute.....just a few questions though..

With the Onkyo presumably I'd connect up the freesat and BD to the amp/sub woofer instead of the tv and then the amp would send the hdmi signal (picture and sound) to the tv via the hdmi out?

How would this affect the upscaling abilities of the freesat and BD player (when playing dvds)?

 

[Big Aura]

professorhat:

"It offers lifelike sound from your stereo components and, when connected to your surround sound receiver, itïs also an appropriate choice as a rear channel home cinema speaker solution."

Which suggests no.

the Prof is much better at reading than me. Don't know what these are like, but maybe worth a look too? http://www.cheapelectricals.co.uk/acatalog/Sony_HTIS100__ht-is100_ht-is100_htis100_htis100_ht1s100_.html?gclid=CPfmt_-uoJkCFYQWzAodG0O0pA (never used that site so pls verify yourself, but seems cheapest)

 

[professorhat]

Yes, connect the freesat and BD player to the Onkyo's inputs, then the Onkyo to the TV. For the picture, the Onkyo will pass any upscaled video content from the freesat and BD player to the TV untouched so it won't affect the upscaling of your freesat and BD player for DVDs.

For the sound, the Onkyo will obviously handle any audio it receives.

 

[Anonymous]

Reckon I'm going to go with the Onkyo, it fits the bill perfectly.

Thanks for the replies folks, doubt I'd have got onto the Onkyo without your help!

 

[Big Aura]

the onk's speakers look like they may be repackaged Missions. Which can't be a bad thing.

 

[Anonymous]

Just bought the Onkyos from Currys Wednesbury for the bargain price of £179.99 plus free Onkyo DVD player!

Thanks for the advice and thanks to someone on the other forums for the heads up on the Currys deal.

Got to go set them up now....