Recommend me a decent Home Cinema setup for a large room?
 

I'm looking to get a surround sound setup for my front room. Don't want to go ape shit and spend a fortune on it as it won't see much action, but there again i don't want to buy a pile of poop.

Thinking of something in the $200-300, maybe go as high as $400 for a decent one.

Any recommendations? Read some reviews on some $200-ish models but they all complained about the volume.

Unit doesn't have to have a DVD player included.

How big of a room? Volume is a function of power and there are different qualities of power. I am afraid that anything in your budget will not have the kind of quality power you are looking for.

I agree with Brian. Especially if $400 max is the budget for the entire setup (receiver, speakers, sub, and cables).

No offense, but just about anything you buy for $200-300 will be a pile of poop if you are wanting a full system. The best recommendation I can make would be the Onkyo HT-770. It gets very high praises, and it does the job for me in a room that is roughly 16x14. CircuitCity.com has it on sale this week for $424, but it might have ended today. You can also check out the Onkyo HT-570 I belive is the next one down for $299, but it was too loose sounding, boomy and did not perform well on the high end.

The Onkyo HTS-770 is on sale for $424.99 at CircuitCity.com ("Web Only Special"), representing a discount of $175.00 off their regular price of $599.99, and may be your best bet if you really need to go with HTIB.

There's more info on this package at the Onkyo website: HTS-770 product page at Onkyo website, including 77 owner reviews.



Specs from the Onkyo website:

Receiver Section

Power Output (8 ohm, 1 kHz, FTC) 130 W/Ch Dynamic Power*
THD (Rated Power) 0.08 % (all channels)
Frequency Response 20 Hz-100 kHz (+ 1 dB, - 3 dB)
Damping Factor (8 ?) 60
S/N Ratio 100 dB (IHF-A)

Tone Control
Acoustic Control 1 +/- 10 dB at 50 Hz/+/- 10 dB at 20 kHz
Acoustic Control 2

Tuning Range
FM 87.5 to 108.0 MHz (50 kHz steps)
AM 530 to 1710 kHz (10 kHz steps)

Usable Sensitivity
FM Mono 11.2 dBf, 1.0 uV (75 ohm IHF)
FM Stereo 17.2 dBf, 2.0 uV (75 ohm IHF)
AM 30 uV
S/N Ratio (FM Mono/FM Stereo/AM) 76 dB (IHF-A)/70 dB (IHF-A)/40 dB
THD (FM Mono/FM Stereo/AM) 0.2 %/0.3 %/0.7 %
FM Stereo Separation 45 dB at 1 kHz, 30 dB at 100 Hz-10 kHz



General
Dimensions (W x H x D)
Receiver 17 1/8" x 5 7/8" x 14 13/16"

Weight
Receiver 21.4 lbs./9.7 kg

Speaker
Speaker Type
Front/Center/Surround/Subwoofer/Surround Back Bass Reflex/Bass Reflex/Bass Reflex/Bass Reflex Powered/Bass Reflex

Drivers
Front/Center/Surround/Subwoofer/Surround Back Dual 5 1/4" Cone, 1" Balanced-Dome/Dual 4" Cone, 1" Balanced-Dome/4" Cone, 1" Balanced-Dome/10" Cone

Frequency Response
Front/Center/Surround/Subwoofer/Surround Back 55 Hz-35 kHz/65 Hz-35 kHz/65 Hz-35 kHz/30 Hz-150 Hz/65 Hz -35 kHz

Sensitivity
Front/Center/Surround/Subwoofer/Surround Back 86 dB/W/m/85 dB/W/m/82 dB/W/m/220 mV

Max. Power
Front/Center/Surround/Subwoofer/Surround Back 130 W/130 W/130 W/220 W/130 W

Nominal Impedance
Front/Center/Surround/Subwoofer/Surround Back 8 ohm/8 ohm/8 ohm/8 ohm

Input Impedance (Subwoofer) 15 kohm/Line


General

Dimensions (W x H x D)
Front 7-7/16" x 16-1/2" x 9-5/16"
Center 15-1/4" x 6-3/16" x 7-15/16"
Surround 6-7/8" x 10-7/16" x 4-15/16"
Subwoofer 10-13/16" x 20-3/8" x 16-3/16"
Surround Back 6-7/8" x 10-7/16" x 4-15/16"

Weight

Front/Center/Surround/Subwoofer/Surround Back 12.1 lbs./18.1 lbs./3.7 lbs./30.0 lbs./3.7lbs.

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I seem to remember Onkyo HTIB packages being rated as among the best values available. Definitely worth checking out -- but if you're interested you might want to jump on it, not sure if this sale ends today (Saturday) or not.

Also looks like it's sold out online, so you'd have to check availability at your local CC, then order online for in-store pickup to get the sale price. Not even sure if you have CC in your area, but I hope this helps.

Guess i will have to wait and get something more suitable then as i am not willing to shell out that kind of cash just like that unless its a gift or something. Room is about 16x20 with a high vaulted ceiling. The wife being your typcial woman was about to pick up a unit from Costco based on the looks and name brand - i told her to wait and do some research.

I'll add a recommendation to the Onkyo HTS-770 if that is what your budget allows. I set one up for a friend and for the money its very nice and has good sound quality.

I really think you'd be very happy with the Onkyo HTS-770. Here's another deal on that package, with a twist; it also comes with a pair of speaker stands for the satellites: Onkyo HTS-770 $469.99 w/speaker stands at Vanns.com (free shipping). I'm guessing you might want to pass on this deal and do the CC deal if you're able, judging from your response to sq240's post, since this one is more expensive. You can always add stands later if you really need them! Anyway, more customer reviews here, in addition to those at the Onkyo site. Lot of satisfied owners out there :)

Edit: More customer reviews at Pricegrabber

Edit: Here's an informative and recently updated HomeTheaterSpot thread: "Best HTIB at any price"

Edit: More user reviews, this time at CNET: 100% 'thumbsup' from 46 users

Edit: Before anyone accuses me of being an Onkyo shill, please note that my home theater, the specs for which can be found in this recently updated thread, contains no Onkyo equipment. I did seriously consider Onkyo receivers but just couldn't pass up the hot deal at the time on the h/k. Anyway, just seems like this package is the best value for PresidentGringo's needs, that's all.

If you're dead set on keeping it under $400, then here's another option, a package that was apparently rated number one in the most recent Consumer Reports HTIB roundup, whatever that might be worth (many here might say not much!). Anyway, it seems also to be well-regarded: Yamaha YHT-450

Here's a Dealtime list of retailers: lowest is $398.99 delivered.

I'm guessing you might be able to do better on the price by hunting around a little more.

Okay, I need a nap!

well, my budget was stretching to $400 when i thought a decent system could be found for that price - but it seems i may have to go for a higher priced unit.

Thanks everyone for your help guys and gals.

If you can't come up with the extra $125 for the Onkyo HT-770, check out the Onkyo HT-760. CompUSA is getting rid of their home theater equipment, so you might want to check your local store to see if you can get something on clearance. Here is the link to te HT-760 for $299.99

Onkyo HT-760 CompUSA $299.99

It doesn't have as much power as the 770 but it is a decent system from what I have heard. Just head up to your local Best Buy or Ciircuit City and take a listen to what they have. All of the HTIB at that price range (possibly even the 770) will have problems filling the room with enough sound, but it all depends on what you want. Just make sure you get a system that doesn't distort at high volumes.

I use my logitech Z-680s as my surround sound speakers and have been very pleased. They recently released a newer model that is supposed to be a little better, but I have yet to see bad reviews for either system. Technically, they are supposed to be computer speakers, but with all the features they have, they are very competent home theater speakers as well. They both fit in your price range and have a ton of capabilties including a hardware DTS decoder. I'd give them a shot...I bet they'd fit your need perfectly.

http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/pr...CONTENTID=9486

http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/pr...CONTENTID=5048

They both have an MSRP of 399.95 but the Z-680s can be found for much less than that and the 5500s can be found for 350 or so.

I have a room just like that, with about an 18' high ceiling.

I don't find it requires a particularly high-output receiver or anything. Unlike a living room that I used to have that was 2-3 times as big that really needed power.

Saw over at FW that J&R has the Onkyo 770 refurb for $249.88:

Onkyo 770 HTIB $249.88 at J&R

Shipping may be hefty, but still less total than the lowest price shipped new. Just an idea.