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2-Channel system for "home theater": Possible?

post #1 of 17
1/30/12 at 1:35pm
Thread Starter 

Hi all. I purchased a Blu-ray player back in December for my HT system. I have a decent 1080p capable TV, and it is a good upgrade from DVD.

I have heard that Bluray offers a second benefit, which is the sound. As I live in a very small space, I resort to using the TV-speakers, which is probably a sin in this part of the internet.

 

I absolutely have no space for a sub (and my neighbors would hate me) and definitely not for 5 or 7 channel sound.

 

I've heard some people, especial Uncle Erik, mention something about using a good 2 channel setup instead, which would probably be better than a bad 5 channel setup.

This sounds good, except there are some problems.

 

1. Budget. I absolutely cannot spend more than about $150 on this.

2. Needs to interact with my Harmony remote.

 

The other question is, will I be able to take advantage of the high-bitrate DTS-MA, or will it just resort back to the DTS core?

Regardless of what happens, I suppose that any speakers would probably be better than the tv's builtin speakers, especially with the higher-bitrate soundtracks.

 

Thanks for your help!

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post #2 of 17
1/30/12 at 3:49pm

yeah, wise words from UE, and very true. However, I'm pretty certain when he said a good 2 channel he probably had a slightly larger budget in mind.

 

one option would be a pair of active speakers and plug them straight into the TV set. I've a pair of Audioengine A2 that I sometimes use this way. 

 

they're miles better than the TV built-in speakers. without them the TV sounds awful; lifeless, flat, and distant.

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post #3 of 17
1/30/12 at 4:10pm

For my office I didnt want to spend allot. Just something cheap for general computer listening as well as a song or two every now and then.

I went with.....

http://www.amazon.com/Sherwood-RX-4105-Stereo-Receiver-Black/dp/B0002EPWC0/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1327968271&sr=8-3


and


http://www.amazon.com/Sony-SS-B3000-Bookshelf-Speakers-Black/dp/B000OG6I6A/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1327968313&sr=1-2


Cheap. Effective and believe it or not pretty decent sounding. I went a little farther and got  some cheap 3 way crossovers and padded up the speakers a bit and it really brought them to life. Sound very good for how cheap it was and look pretty good to boot and sounds pretty good playing blue-rays. (I work for the family company so im allowed to do that!)

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post #4 of 17
1/31/12 at 10:55am

Ya an entry level decent/beefy stereo amp like that Sherwood and some used floor standers that extend low would be a great solution for your budget - i use a Pioneer AVR and a pair of floor standers with 12" woofers and am happy L3000.gif

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post #5 of 17
1/31/12 at 3:56pm
Thread Starter 

Thanks everyone.

It looks like a 2-channel system will work pretty well. However, I will be hard-pressed to find space for a receiver. Is it absolutely necessary to enjoy the higher bitrates, or is there something like the Audioengine A2 with digital sound control?

 

I don't have space for floor-standers either, so bookshelf speakers will have to do.

 

I should probably ask about the higher bitrate DTS and DD soundtracks. Do I need to have a receiver capable of decoding the signals, in order to take advantage of it, or will I utilize it (i.e. hear an improvement over DVD) by simply connecting to my player's stereo out ports?

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post #6 of 17
1/31/12 at 4:57pm
Thread Starter 

hmm, can someone help me check my local craigslist? That might be an option.

 

http://newyork.craigslist.org/

 

These might be a good deal:

http://newyork.craigslist.org/brk/ele/2813516646.html

http://newyork.craigslist.org/brk/ele/2828203637.html

http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/ele/2819310780.html

 

Is it possible for me to just use an amp instead of a receiver?


Edited by blackbird - 1/31/12 at 5:06pm
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post #7 of 17
2/2/12 at 1:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by blackbird View Post

hmm, can someone help me check my local craigslist? That might be an option.

 

http://newyork.craigslist.org/

 

These might be a good deal:

http://newyork.craigslist.org/brk/ele/2813516646.html

http://newyork.craigslist.org/brk/ele/2828203637.html

http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/ele/2819310780.html

 

Is it possible for me to just use an amp instead of a receiver?



The amp has to be integrated with a pre-amp and you can use it in lieu of a receiver which is an integrated amp with a built in am/fm tuner.

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post #8 of 17
2/2/12 at 1:56pm

What outputs does your blu-ray player have??, you need a stereo rca output to use an amp or active speakers the blu-ray player should be able to downmix to 2channel no sound quality should be lost  dts , dolby , dts hd etc offers no audible advantages just more channels.

 

The speakers you linked to look ok, just be wary or second hand amps the caps in an amp have a limited life spane you would probley be better of buying a new amp.

 

Also there are some good active speakers, the a2's aren't very good avoid them theres much better alternatives http://www.amazon.com/Samson-MediaOne-Precision-tuned-Powered-Monitors/dp/B001CS5F40/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1328219417&sr=8-1 , http://www.amazon.com/Numark-NPM5-Active-Studio-Monitors/dp/B003BOCRUS/ref=sr_1_2?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1328219454&sr=1-2.

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post #9 of 17
2/2/12 at 2:52pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by VCRHIFI View Post



The amp has to be integrated with a pre-amp and you can use it in lieu of a receiver which is an integrated amp with a built in am/fm tuner.


That sounds great! The problem is, I haven't really found an amp that interfaces over an IR remote. I think that having to manually change the sound level would be a pain. Does anyone know of one that is relatively affordable, and is controllable via remote?

 

My blu-ray player has HDMI ports, and analog audio (red and white). This should be perfect for a 2.0 system.

 

Here's a picture of the ports:

94|c676b7|ce12_DMP-BDT210-rear.jpg

 

What would be a good source for speakers?

 


Edited by blackbird - 2/2/12 at 2:55pm
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post #10 of 17
2/2/12 at 3:34pm
Thread Starter 

It seems something like this would be a great solution:

http://www.apogeekits.com/remote_volume_control_mk164.htm

 

Yet, I would have to do some soldering, and I've never done it before. That will probably raise the price.

 

In any event, I would rather not have a receiver, if possible. I can't believe an IR-controlled volume device is so difficult to find.

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post #11 of 17
2/2/12 at 5:50pm
Thread Starter 

Hi. I think I've given up with the volume controller.

 

The only reason why I tried to have it is because my parents are not good with technology and would certainly hate to control it manually.

 

Given that the BD player can output sound over HDMI and analog at the same time, what I thought I could do is simply connect bookshelf speakers to an amp, and then turn them off when not in use (e.g. when my parents are using the tv). Then when I use the tv, I can mute the TV's speakers, and turn on the amp, so that I can use the speakers.

 

Here's what I was thinking.

1. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Pioneer+-+4%22+2-Way+Bookshelf+Speakers+%28Pair%29/1148218.p?id=1218224799780

2. http://www.amazon.com/Lepai-Tripath-Class-T-Amplifier-Supply/dp/B0049P6OTI/

 

Would this setup work well?

I've read good things about that Pioneer set, and considering I have a $100 giftcard from Christmas, it would probably be a good item to spend it on.

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post #12 of 17
2/3/12 at 2:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by blackbird View Post

Hi. I think I've given up with the volume controller.

 

The only reason why I tried to have it is because my parents are not good with technology and would certainly hate to control it manually.

 

Given that the BD player can output sound over HDMI and analog at the same time, what I thought I could do is simply connect bookshelf speakers to an amp, and then turn them off when not in use (e.g. when my parents are using the tv). Then when I use the tv, I can mute the TV's speakers, and turn on the amp, so that I can use the speakers.

 

Here's what I was thinking.

1. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Pioneer+-+4%22+2-Way+Bookshelf+Speakers+%28Pair%29/1148218.p?id=1218224799780

2. http://www.amazon.com/Lepai-Tripath-Class-T-Amplifier-Supply/dp/B0049P6OTI/

 

Would this setup work well?

I've read good things about that Pioneer set, and considering I have a $100 giftcard from Christmas, it would probably be a good item to spend it on.

 

The Pioneer speakers seem to have a pretty good reputation at various audio sites so you made a good choice in my opinion.  I've never heard them but going off others opinions they are a very solid choice at that price point. Nice find.

 

I think that Pioneer/Lepai combo would be an excellent choice when factoring in you'll only be spending $30 and honestly almost anything will sound better than your built in TV speakers.

 

Let us know how it sounds if you go that route.

 

 

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post #13 of 17
2/3/12 at 4:32am

I own the Lepai actually and for near field/pc audio paired with some half decent speakers not much can offer as much value but for HT i would say a stereo integrated/non hdmi avr on the cheap with a bit more beef is more apt

 

Here is a Marantz SR 870 for $50

http://newyork.craigslist.org/que/ele/2828630394.html

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post #14 of 17
2/4/12 at 9:15am
Thread Starter 

Thanks guys. The problem is that I really don't have the space for a stereo receiver. If I were to buy one, I don't know where to put it.

 

Of course, I want the highest fidelity given my constraints. How much compromising would I have to do with the Lepai, as compared to an actual av receiver?

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post #15 of 17
2/5/12 at 1:54pm

With the footprint the Blu ray player takes up u can just expand vertically with say a rack/open shelf L3000.gif Peeps who are more hands on can DIY a rack with thick acrylic and tubular aluminium, etc

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