Topic: time for an "upgrade". need some help on a low end (best buy) system.....

[Gordon]

needed to do this for a long time but now my kenwood is acting up
 I can not afford to go as big as most of y'all    so if you had to buy at best buy what would you get??  only thing I don't need is a dvd player.  thinking about one of the "home theater" ones.

[scervin]

If you want HT then go with Athena Technologies Micra system from onecall.com and a receiver

BTW, a budget would help us.

sc

[Gordon]

thanks.  as for budget I'm not sure.  trying not to spend too much but....

[Gordon]

I can swing those speakers.  now what about a receiver??  may have to get that at best buy so I can put it on my card.

[Gordon]

the athena micros are the same price at best buy and no shipping.

[scervin]

I've not seen Athena in local Best Buy stores for a long time.  Grab them!

[Chris K]

i'm in the same situation, looking to upgrade to a 5.1 home theater speaker setup and receiver. i have a cleared-by-wife budget of about $500 that i can stretch to about $700~800.

i have never heard the athena micra 6 set. i was looking to buy a set of infinity tss-450 because they have been getting good ratings. both cost about the same. how do these systems sound with 2channel music?

i would also like a receiver in the same price range to replace my aging kenwood. i would like digi in. i was leaning towards the sony stra-da3000 or possibly one of those panasonic sa-xr70's.

[zowie]

I have the Athena FS-2 full range floor standers.  They are an absolute knock-out for the money and you won't need to budget for either stands or a subwoofer with them.  Since the 70s I have owned a lot of speakers (presently have about 10 pair), some expensive, but I just can't get over how these blow every other full sized speaker in their price range out of the water.

[Nick's Picks]

you guys...

find yourself a referbed Sony STR-DA2000es or 3000es.  should be well underr $400.
then look for Epos EL3 speakers all the way around.  they run about $250 used per pair. 

a little over budget..but you could always get something cheaper for speakers in the mean time and upgrade later on a piece at a time.  some nice fat front channel towers for example...and then leave the cheapo's as the rear surrounds / center.
This way you can have a decent 2ch system w/the push of a button for music..and still have a great HT for multi-channel and movies.

[Chris K]

yeah, i have 2 kids that have already ruined a set of AR's, so i am on a 20+yr pair of altec lansing model 1's right now. I want something small that i can keep out of thier reach, and when they are older and not into everything, i can upgrade again. so i am looking to get about 4 or 5 years out of this new acquisition which will allow 2channel and surround sound.

thanks for the suggestions.

[zowie]

yeah, i have 2 kids that have already ruined a set of AR's, so i am on a 20+yr pair of altec lansing model 1's right now. I want something small that i can keep out of thier reach, and when they are older and not into everything, i can upgrade again.

One time one of my kids toddled up to my Quads and wiped his running nose on it.

[Gordon]

ended up getting the speakers from onecall as my bestbuy didn't have them and shipping was a bit cheaper from onecall.  the best buy did have some  book shelf athena's and they sounded great!   got this for a receiver

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BOPG2C/sr=1-1/qid=1138169280/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-1718706-8472629?%5Fencoding=UTF8

$300 new, shipped (free shipping).   goes for $400 at cc even the online sale this week it was $340 or so.  so for everything I am at about $650

[pfife]

ended up getting the speakers from onecall as my bestbuy didn't have them and shipping was a bit cheaper from onecall.  the best buy did have some  book shelf athena's and they sounded great!   got this for a receiver

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000BOPG2C/sr=1-1/qid=1138169280/ref=pd_bbs_1/103-1718706-8472629?%5Fencoding=UTF8

$300 new, shipped (free shipping).   goes for $400 at cc even the online sale this week it was $340 or so.  so for everything I am at about $650

+T for toys.  Have fun!

[ducati]

The Athena's are supposed to be nice.  Haven't heard them, you'll have to post your thoughts once you get them.

Other budget speakers I have heard in my home recently, and liked:
Totem Dreamcatcher ($400)--really impressive for the size, beautifully built as are all totem's.  Communicative midrange, very musical, bass is phenomenal for the size...  They will impress there.  Treble can be a little grainy or harsh at times, compared to the best speakers.  But overall a killer bargain, and although I feel they are not entirely neutral, they do get the musical message across.  The Arro's are everything the Dreamcatchers are but with refinement and better tonality, but waaay more expensive.  If you're on a tight budget, you could do much worse than these itty bitty Totem's.
Focal/JM Lab Chorus 705S ($400): the treble's the thing with these.  Ueber smooth and refined; perhaps missing a tad bit of air, but this tweeter is phenomenal for the price.  Mids and bass are good, but not as communicative as the Totem.  Way refined, though.  I listened to this one both at home, and against the very expensive JM Lab Micro Utopia, and I can say wholeheartedly the JM Lab sound boils down to a low price point very well.  Toss some killer electronics in front of these and watch out--they are so darn refined it's like they OWN the finishing school.  If the Totem's too rough around the edges for you, these will soothe your soul.

Another budget tip: if I had $400 to spend on amplification, a HT Receiver would be my last choice.  Go used, audiogon, and buy a little tube amp (Sophia Baby, Almarro A205A, ASL MG-SI 15DT, Jolida 102 or 202)--if you shop wisely real buys can be had there.  Way more musical and enjoyable than any HT Receiver.  If you don't like tubes, check out gainclones and chip amps.

A little late, in your case, but something to consider if you're not thrilled with the sound of the receiver, you can always return it of course!

[scervin]

The Athena's are supposed to be nice.  Haven't heard them, you'll have to post your thoughts once you get them.

Other budget speakers I have heard in my home recently, and liked:
Totem Dreamcatcher ($400)--really impressive for the size, beautifully built as are all totem's.  Communicative midrange, very musical, bass is phenomenal for the size...  They will impress there.  Treble can be a little grainy or harsh at times, compared to the best speakers.  But overall a killer bargain, and although I feel they are not entirely neutral, they do get the musical message across.  The Arro's are everything the Dreamcatchers are but with refinement and better tonality, but waaay more expensive.  If you're on a tight budget, you could do much worse than these itty bitty Totem's.
Focal/JM Lab Chorus 705S ($400): the treble's the thing with these.  Ueber smooth and refined; perhaps missing a tad bit of air, but this tweeter is phenomenal for the price.  Mids and bass are good, but not as communicative as the Totem.  Way refined, though.  I listened to this one both at home, and against the very expensive JM Lab Micro Utopia, and I can say wholeheartedly the JM Lab sound boils down to a low price point very well.  Toss some killer electronics in front of these and watch out--they are so darn refined it's like they OWN the finishing school.  If the Totem's too rough around the edges for you, these will soothe your soul.

Another budget tip: if I had $400 to spend on amplification, a HT Receiver would be my last choice.  Go used, audiogon, and buy a little tube amp (Sophia Baby, Almarro A205A, ASL MG-SI 15DT, Jolida 102 or 202)--if you shop wisely real buys can be had there.  Way more musical and enjoyable than any HT Receiver.  If you don't like tubes, check out gainclones and chip amps.

A little late, in your case, but something to consider if you're not thrilled with the sound of the receiver, you can always return it of course!

Is the $400 only for 2 dreamcatcher speakers??  I've seen the 5.1 for closer to $1500.

sc

[ducati]

Yes, $400 is for 2.  The 5.1 system includes the tiniest sub you'll ever likely see.  The thing is smaller than a shoebox 

Skip 5.1 entirely at this budget point, imo, and you'll get something far more musically satisfying. 

[scervin]

Just he stated that he was looking at HT.  I'm not in the camp that says a great 2 channel system will better a 5.1 channel system for movies.  Just doesn't happen. 

sc

[ducati]

I disagree.  I don't like 5.1 until you spend some bux on it.  A good 5.1 system will shine...  But I've found a good 2-channel system can sound great, too.

For instance, I'm running a HD cable box > almarro A205A SET amp > almarro M2A speakers in my home office.  I recently had ProAc Tablette Ref 8's in that room (less expensive).  I have an LCD TV in the middle and sometimes watch movies when my wife is using the big rig for something else.  This system consistently surprises me with the vast sonic expanse it delivers, far bettering the enjoyment I got out of my old HD box > Denon 1802 > 5 B&W DM302's with a Velodyne sub.  Both rigs cost about the same if you consider the ProAc's.

So yes, I'd much rather have a small tube amp and 2 Dreamcatchers than a low-cost 5.1 setup.  Every time.  And it will sound much better on music, too.  And your upgrade path, should you so choose to add 5.1, will lead you to a much better rig in the end.   Some people say it's about priorities, that 2-channel cannot do well with movies.  I simply disagree.

Now when you're talking serious bux, you have many options that allow you to tie a 2-channel and 5.1 in a high-quality rig. 

[scervin]

I do agree with you that a cheap HTIB will be garbage and a nice 2.1 for the same will be better, but again with say $3k 5.1, 2 channel can't touch it for movies.  Some folks only care about the 5.1 performance anyhow.  We will have to agree to disagree.

sc

[ducati]

I don't disagree with you, our lines are just drawn in different spots, I think

The original poster said "Best Buy" which necessarily meant a sub 3k budget.  Hence my recco!

[scervin]

Gotcha!    What do you consider good 5.1?  Just curious.  When my employer decides to stop losing $8.6 billion a year I'll feel more comfortable about purchasing new gear.  I fo one need to have good 2 channel and good 5.1.  My short list includes Pass Labs X250.5 and X3 with AVM 30 or used D1 and not sure yet, but may consider a 2 channel pre with HT bypass.  Balanced outs are a must as I need to run 30' to amps.  Hopefully in Q2 things will have settled down.  We are all waiting for the 4000 salaried cut by the end of Q1 (at least this is the latest rumor).

[Gordon]

The original poster said "Best Buy" which necessarily meant a sub 3k budget.  Hence my recco!

way under 3k   around $650 shipped.  got it all but haven't hooked it up yet.  lets put it this way,  anything is better than what I had

[ducati]

Gotcha!    What do you consider good 5.1?  Just curious.  When my employer decides to stop losing $8.6 billion a year I'll feel more comfortable about purchasing new gear.  I fo one need to have good 2 channel and good 5.1.  My short list includes Pass Labs X250.5 and X3 with AVM 30 or used D1 and not sure yet, but may consider a 2 channel pre with HT bypass.  Balanced outs are a must as I need to run 30' to amps.  Hopefully in Q2 things will have settled down.  We are all waiting for the 4000 salaried cut by the end of Q1 (at least this is the latest rumor).

I like the 2-channel pre HT bypass option.  I have been doing this for years, it's the only way I can do both 5.1 and 2-channel.  I'm not a 5.1 nut, so my money is usually drained into the 2-channel rig...  But the beauty of doing it this way is you can go as wild as you want, on both ends.  To my ears, 5.1 pre/pro's just do *not* sounds as good as hifi 2-channel pre's.  So with the HT Bypass setup, you can have your SOTA 5.1 pre/pro AND your favorite 2-channel pre, best of both worlds.

I don't have a SOTA multichannel pre/pro.  I'd like to get one someday, as my Denon 5.1 receiver isn't cutting it.  When I had the McCormack UDP-1 (5.1 out to the denon) I realized how colored and grainy the Denon is.  I'm missing alot.

We're going to finish the basement next year or thereabouts, and I'm going to do a projector rig.  I am tired of having large objects between my speakers, and dream of the day I can roll the screen out of the way (I'm really a hifi 2 channel nut, ya know).  But when putting together the "movie theater" part of the system, I want something nice this time.  We do watch alot of movies.  I want to put together a system that wows me both in movie mode and hifi mode.

[bgalizio]

I know the original poster has made his decisions already, but I thought I'd chime in with my playback system. I have an Onkyo TX-SR503 receiver (http://www.onkyousa.com/model.cfm?m=TX-SR503&class=Receiver&p=i) and Athena S3 speakers (http://www.athenaspeakers.com/modelS3.htm), which sounds great for this price point. I want to add a 5.1 setup sometime this year and will probably go with the Athena Micra 6 system. I like having all audio/video stuff together in one room, so this works easiest for me. Yes, I like tubes, but am not quite ready for that yet.