Speaker upgrade - would I notice the difference?

[MikeyB30]

Hi,

I'm looking to upgrade my front left and right speakers, but wanted to know whether my current upgrade options would give me any benefit. My current setup is as follows:

Pioneer VSX-920
7.1 speaker setup consisting of a Tannoy HTS201 Centre Speaker, and everything else is Boston Acoustics Soundware XS

The main use for my setup is movies, gaming and occasionally music but only via blu-rays for live concerts.

I can't have floor standing speakers, so this leaves me with bookshelf ones, my colour options are also limited to anything that isn't black, but preferably white speakers as this matches my current setup (except the centre one but as this is on the TV stand it's less obvious)

My budget isn't massive (£150), as I might also have to change my speaker stands depending on what I buy.

From a quick look at the usual sites like Richer Sounds or Superfi, I've been looking at things like (there are other options in this price range but wanted to put a couple down as examples)

Q Acoustics 3010
Roth Oli RA2

All advice/opinions greatly appreciated

Thanks

 

[Series1boy]

Hi,

I'm looking to upgrade my front left and right speakers, but wanted to know whether my current upgrade options would give me any benefit. My current setup is as follows:

Pioneer VSX-9207.1 speaker setup consisting of a Tannoy HTS201 Centre Speaker, and everything else is Boston Acoustics Soundware XS

The main use for my setup is movies, gaming and occasionally music but only via blu-rays for live concerts.

I can't have floor standing speakers, so this leaves me with bookshelf ones, my colour options are also limited to anything that isn't black, but preferably white speakers as this matches my current setup (except the centre one but as this is on the TV stand it's less obvious)

My budget isn't massive (£150), as I might also have to change my speaker stands depending on what I buy.

From a quick look at the usual sites like Richer Sounds or Superfi, I've been looking at things like (there are other options in this price range but wanted to put a couple down as examples)

Q Acoustics 3010Roth Oli RA2

All advice/opinions greatly appreciated

Thanks

what sub do you have, is it Boston?

i would try and match your centre speaker with the equivalent tannoy floor standers. May be out of your budget, but eBay is a god place to start. I would also audition them first to make sure you are happy with the sound.

also, depending on what sub you have, this a good area to look as well.

 

[MikeyB30]

Hi, thanks for the update.

It is indeed a Boston Acoustics sub, and for the most part it does a great job, but sometimes (and this could simply be due to how a given film's soundtrack was mixed), some films lack depth hence the desire the change the L/R ones to something more meaty.

I was thinking about the Tannoys, unfortunately floor standers aren't an option from an aesthetic point of view, but more importantly the missus said "No!"

 

[Series1boy]

I would look at your sub first before you upgrade speakers. Richer sounds are good for trying things out and you can return it and try something else if you are not happy with it. you don't need massive speakers for your surround sound to work well, and if it's depth, a good sub could be the solution....

 

[Son_of_SJ]

MikeyB30, I agree with series1boy in not understanding why you are using a Tannoy centre with Boston left and right speakers? Do try to get a matching Boston centre, eBay and gumtree if necessary.

I also agree that a subwoofer upgrade would bring the biggest benefit just now. I can still remember, in about 2009, upgrading from the subwoofer that came with my modest Yamaha NSP110 speaker package, see this old Richer Sounds link http://www.richersounds.com/showclearanceproduct/YAMA-NSP110/Yamaha+Nsp110.html to the Tannoy TS10, which cost 300 in 2009, see this old review http://www.whathifi.com/tannoy/ts-10/review. That was one of the biggest increases in performance through many upgrades in the last eight years of my being interested in home cinema, I mean, I connected the new subwoofer in place of the modest Yamaha subwoofer, played bits from a few Blu-rays, and went "Wow!" Suddenly I could hear both depth and impact that the Yamaha subwoofer simply couldn't produce. That Tannoy TS10 cost £300 though, and you're going to have to spend quite a bit more than £150, I'm afraid. If you can't afford it just now, wait until you can buy a decent subwoofer in maybe a few months now. Don't buy and inferior product just for the sake of buying something just now.

I like Richer Sounds for televisions, receivers and Blu-ray players, but I don't really rate them for subwoofers. Look at TheMovieRooms in Edinburgh http://www.themovierooms.co.uk/subwoofers.html or Frank Harvey in Coventry (I think) https://www.hifix.co.uk/speakers/hi-fi-speakers/subwoofers?p=1. I myself like SVS subwoofers (I have two), but the cheapest ones listed at both shops, SB1000 and PB1000, cost £409. The Tannoy TS2.10 at Frank Harvey is excellent value at £269 though. You'll probably need to phone both shops for advice.

 

[MikeyB30]

Hi Series1boy & Son_of_SJ, thanks for taking the time to reply.

Son_of_SJ, I did have the Boston Acoustics centre speaker in place for a while, but I found myself constantly tweaking the volume settings from what the Pioneer auto calibration had set it to, hence the Tannoy now in place. I re-calibrated after setting that up and noticed an immediate improvement....this is probably what's led me to my current train of thought :|

I've included a link to a review for my speakers just in case, as I'm starting to think this might be my hearing/perception or certain films.

http://www.whathifi.com/boston-acoustics/soundware-xs51se/review
I'd not thought of looking at the sub as being the part to switch out, so I will give that some thought, but won't rush into anything. I am now starting to think that perhaps some films are 'bass light' with how they been mastered, for example Avengers - Age of Ultron, where I found myself constantly tweaking the sub volume via the amp for scenes where there was no discernable rumble, which certainly didn't match the images being presented on the screen. I might also look at speaker placement and do another calibration just in case. Thanks again

 

[Son_of_SJ]

Hello again MikeyB30,

Ah, I see, you had previously tried the Boston Acoustics centre. Well, the usual advice is to have the same version of speakers for centre, front left and front right, but if you did that and you prefer the Tannoy centre, then there ain't no law against that, it's YOUR system after all! *acute*

By the way, the Avengers - Age of Ultron has a notoriously feeble soundtrack, so it's not one to use if you are trying to set up your system. See the Home Cinema Choice review, for instance, which is of the 3D version, but the damning comments in the Audio section are common to the flat version.

http://www.homecinemachoice.com/news/article/avengers-age-of-ultron-3d-review/22766

 

[MikeyB30]

Interestingly that was the same version I watched on the weekend. I've had the amp for a couple of years now along with the same speaker config, and films are a major passion of mine, so I will now take the time to check film reviews before making judgements on my setup.

I think I've certainly learned enough here to not rush into any immediate purchases, which has been most helpful, so thanks for your input.

 

[Series1boy]

I have matching focal 716 front, left, right speakers and matching sub. For my rears I use the definitive technology satelites and are ideal for surround sound as you don't need big speakers for this area.

 

[MikeyB30]

Now that is a nice setup

 

[Series1boy]

Now that is a nice setup

thanks - my point is to have matching fronts...

 

[MikeyB30]

thanks - my point is to have matching fronts...

I plan to move things around this week and re-calibrate my setup, so I'll make sure I put my Boston Acoustics centre speaker back in place before I do that