C-Mart

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/...52921665468245

My wife and I saw the Bravia Micro system at Best Buy the other day ($699). The one linked is $799 - new model. I like the way it looks and how compact it is, and my wife likes the fact that the speakers are so small. She hates my current Phillips HTiaB which has speakers about 10" tall by 3" wide. She doesn't want big speakers hanging from the ceiling or anything, but says that the ones on the Bravia would be fine. We have a great room so speakers are completely visible from the kitchen, the dining area, and the living room.

It would definately be a step up from what we have currently, but I'm wondering if there isn't something better for around the same price. Tiny speakers are a must or else I'll never have surround sound again! (I've thought about speakers that drop from the ceiling but I can only imagine how much that would cost.)

Spiky

Your wife would hate my place.

Sounds like you folks already made a decision. All we are going to do here is try to talk you into something you don't want, either too big or too expensive. I'm sure we're all happy to do that. Is that what you want? (orbaudio, directional in-ceiling, etc)

C-Mart

Personally I want a good home theater setup, and I wouldn't mind doing it one piece at a time if that was what it took to be able to afford it. My wife on the other hand is more of an "instant gratification" type and would want the whole thing over and done with. The only real set-back is that the speakers can't be intrusive. So, if directional in-ceiling is going to produce better sound than small speakers, etc... then I would seriously consider it. I could go with in-wall for the center, front left and front right channels, but it would have to be ceiling for the side (if I went 6.1 or 7.1) and the rear channels. The sub doesn't have to be particularly small.

I guess what I'm asking is, on my road to a great home theater, is the Bravia a decent place-holder and worth the $700 or should I just hold out with my current system and build my new system "right" one piece at a time?

FYI, at this point in time my system consists of a 10 year old rear projection big-screen that only has 1 S-Video input and nothing better, a $200 HTiaB, a DVR (capable of HD though nothing else is), and a Wii.

blued888

If you're looking for small speakers, I would suggest you also look into Orb Audio.

http://www.orbaudio.com/index.asp?Pa...PROD&ProdID=10

Unless you're okay with the idea that when the module that comes with the Bravia dies, you throw away your speakers.

Spiky

It seems to me that decent quality in-wall or ceiling speakers are going to be around $200 minimum per speaker. I think my brother uses $400 directional speakers most of the time. (he's a pro installer) And that doesn't include a receiver, unlike a box set. Or installation.

Directional are more necessary for the front 3 channels, if you need to go in-ceiling. If you do wall speakers they can be positioned properly and don't have to be the more expensive directional type. And if you have a good location, you probably don't need them for the rear, either.

C-Mart

If I were to go with Orb (or any other stand-alone speaker), will my current system power the speaker? (For example I would only buy 2 single orb speakers at first to use as my rear channels, and build the system a bit at a time). Also, how is Orb as far as reliability as a company? Have they been around a while. If I bought 2 speakers now will they be around for the next year or so as I buy components? Will they be around in 2-3 years if/when there are technical support issues?