stevevt

Celestion speakers: $150
Onkyo receiver: $150
Dayton sub: $125 (Hey look! It went back up from $99. Who woulda thunk it?)
Shipping guess: $50
Total = $475
Pros:
* Much better sound
* More flexible for future upgrades
Cons:
* Refurb receiver
* 5.1 (rather than 6.1) speakers

Onkyo HTB
Total = $450 (plus shipping)
Pros:
* Easier to set up
* 6.1 (rather than 5.1)
Cons:
* Won't sound as good
* Won't sound as good



I know you're asking how the sounds of these two systems compare, but I doubt too many people have heard both of them. However, I'll go out on a theoretical limb. The Celestion/Onkyo/Dayton solution will, without any doubts, sound better in every possible way than the HTB. The detail, dynamic range, and every other thing (imaging, tonal balance, whatever) will be better compared to the HTB.

The fact that you can get these Celestion speakers for the equivalent $ you'd be paying for the Onkyo HTB speakers should not be taken to mean they are in the same ballpark. They are not. They barely play the same sport.

neiname

I just bought the speakers and will be budgeting $1,000 to get a receiver, dvd player and sub. Currently I'm using a Sony Dream System HTB (circa 2001) which has the 5-disc dvd changer. Any suggestions for any of the three above would be appreciated.

fujishig

Thanks for the great deal! Ordered these today at the 150 pricepoint, and I'm bookmarking this thread when I receive the order so I can remember which receiver to upgrade to...

Anyplace sell the matching stands for these speakers? The ones detailed in the brochure someone linked?

GoVegan

I found a few sites that were selling the stands, but they were somewhat pricey. The cheapest price I found was $40 each. I think I'll stick with wall-mounting mine.

If you just do a search for AVS301 Stand, you should come up with a bunch of places selling them.

X

I would like to mount the rear speakers on the wall. Unfortunately I don't really have an open spot until about 8 feet up (windows,and room entryway are in the way at lower elevations). That would make the speakers about 4.5 feet higher than ear level. The fronts are up about 5 feet.

Is this ok? If it's good, would even higher be better? I have a lot of vertical room to work with but it only starts at about 8 feet.

bboisvert

I'm not an expert, but that sounds fine to me... you don't want to put surrounds at ear level anyway.

8 feet is about 2 feet higher than my setup, but that shouldn't be an issue. As long as you set the individual speakers to acceptable volume levels, this should work out fine for you.

neiname

I've made a decision in the receiver:

Pioneer 1014TX: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...89717?v=glance

Still need to research the sub and dvd player

Big Worms

Awesome choice! I just bought this receiver from J&R for 399 shipped. Big unit! It is the Elite 52TX but without the outer skin. I haven't received it yet, but I am very exited about it.

neiname

I wish I could order it from J&R but I would have to pay tax because I'm in New York. Looks like my best option is a store named Wells Digital that will sell it for $375 shipped. http://store.yahoo.com/wellsdigital/vsx1014txk.html Sketchy that it is a Yahoo store.

Big Worms

Oh I see....Yeah you don't want to pay taxes. I never ordered anything from that store you mentioned, but the price is good. Oh and by the way, when I said big I should have mentioned the depth of the unit. It is a little over 18", usually units are around the 15" mark. And the 18 is not including the wiring in the back. Just to let you know.

neiname

Thanks for the info. I bought this huge TV Armoire(sp?) that is 26 inches deep and holds my new Samsung 46" DLP so space won't be an issue.

X

You better check with Pioneer to see if that's an authorized reseller. They're picky about that and won't honor a warranty if it's not.

Sdallnct

Placement Tips
Of course, it's not always possible to place your speakers exactly as shown. The diagrams give a range of placement angles, so you have some flexibility. Sometimes you'll have no choice but to mount the surrounds behind you, but if you follow the guidelines as closely as you can, you'll have good sound.

Ideally, your front speakers, high-frequency drivers, or tweeters should be positioned at ear level (when you're seated). Our recommended height for the surrounds is above ear level, as soundtracks are likely to be optimized for that location.

Beyond keeping it on the floor, there's no specific rule for placing the subwoofer, as bass sound is non-directional. However, the amount of bass may vary depending on room location. You might want to try a few different places to determine what's best for you (sometimes moving the speaker even a few inches can change the sound).

http://www.dolby.com/consumer/home_e...oomlayout.html

X

Yes, I've seen that and some other guidelines. I just didn't see anything specific as to how high you can put the rears. Since it's much higher than ear level I am a little concerned.

Sdallnct

You will be fine. Many folks buy flush mount speakers and put them in the ceiling (I'm planning to do that for looks in our family room). In my old house I had the surrounds mounted on the ceiling that was about 12' high with no problems. Also the mounts on the Celestions allow you to tilt the speakers for the best sound. You can adjust the surround output at your receiver if needed (use the receivers test tone or there are test sounds on many DVD's or get a sound meter).

Finally, keep in mind how movies audio is recorded. Some movies may actually benefit and sound better with really high surrounds (Star Wars, Star Trek and other SiFi movies, Top Gun, to name a few off the top of my head). One of the things I'm starting to really find out, is that it is impossible to set up a system perfect on every movie. You will find yourself making slight changes on a regular basis depending on what you are listening to.

namlook

Rears should be up to 6 feet higher than ear level according to the dolby specs I read a while back.

jonw9

My speakers arrived yesterday, and I am just begining to mess with them now. Does anyone know where to find the wall mounting template, or did you just measue and mount?

Sdallnct

You can unscrew the back plate of the mount and use it as the template.

X

Watch out for the washer that falls out when you do that. It's a pain to get back in the right position.

I'm at the point of knowing where to mount the speakers but my problem is concealing the wire. I want to put it through the wall but I have to go around a corner and there appears to be a horizontal stud between the speaker and the floor.

jonw9

That is what I ended up doing. The directions showed a template, I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something obvious.

Sdallnct

Can you go up and into an attic? Or do you have a 2nd story or vaulted ceilings?

If you have only one stud to go through, you do a search for flexible drill bits. These are very long drill bits that are flexible that you can push through a small hole in the drill wall then go to the stud or top plate to drill through. I think that is what I'm going to have to use for at least two speakers along an exterior wall (where the roof line is so shallow, I can't get there from the top).

X

No, I have about an 18' high wood ceiling that isn't well suited for running wire along. No attic. This isn't going to be fun.

Sdallnct

Let us know how you solve it

svadas

Flat paintable speaker wire is a great option. It's pretty hard to detect once it's up and painted, then you can run the wire next to the baseboards.

msdmoney

Well didn't have a very good experience trying to get these at Best Buy a couple of days ago. I wanted to buy these online and do in store pick up but I have gift cards and those can't be used online. So I decide to try my luck in store.

After the employee finally tracked them down, in an obviously opened box, he started to ring me up. He rang me up for $300 then asked if I wanted the protection plan. I said "no" and he gave me a smug "really you sure" and so I repeated "no." Anyways all this is just useless bacstory and not really applicable to the real point.

So I show him the online price and explain the situation to him. He said that he just couldn't match the online price. So I explained how if I clicked through and ordered online I would be paying half the price and be getting the exact speakers sitting next to us on the floor (just wouldn't be able to use the gift cards). Nope nothing he could do. I asked if there were any way I could order online and then use the gift cards when I came to pick them up. Nope not possible.

I just don't get it, why is this so hard. Am I crazy or is this whole situation just silly. What's the point of getting someone a gift card if they are so difficult to use/work around.

Sorry had to vent, you guys can all continue enjoying your speakers.

Any advice would be appreciated.