[whiteshadow001]

I'm looking for a system that won't break the bank but will better than my 5 year old Samsung system. I've been looking at energy and Polk systems. Any other recommendations are greatly appreciated. I mainly play video games if that helps.

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[cel4145]

If you want satellite sized speakers, get the Energy Take Classics. You can get them for $299 through today (promo code EMCYTZT3031) at Newegg.

If you want larger more full range speakers, which is better if you have room for them, get the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR while they are on sale for $69 a pair. Add in the matching center, and that puts you at $227 for a 5.0 set. This JBL subwoofer would be a good choice (and better than the one with the Energy Takes). That only leaves you about $100 for a receiver, so you'd have to go over budget a little.

For great deals on receivers, watch Newegg. And then accessories4less.com has factory warrantied and factory refurbished Denons and Onkyos.

 

[yage]

Might want to take a look at the Monoprice 5.1 9774 speaker set ($248):
 
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=109&cp_id=10906&cs_id=1090601&p_id=9774&seq=1&format=2
 
Seems to be a clone of the Energy Take Five. Reviewed here - http://reviews.cnet.com/surround-speaker-systems/monoprice-9774/4505-7868_7-35512507.html
 
I would look for a used receiver on craigslist, if needed.

 

[cel4145]

Agreed. If you can get the Monoprice cheaper, no reason not to go with them. Someone compared the user manual between the Monoprice and the Energy, and found out that they forget to remove Energy in one place from the manual. Same speaker set no doubt.

If the same price, go with the Energy. Better name for potential resale if you ever decide to get rid of them.

 

[whiteshadow001]

I've got the receiver already, my budget is tight right now so I have to go 400 or less. I found some Martin Logan 5.1 systems on Amazon, are those worth the money?

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[whiteshadow001]

Just to clarify, 400 or less on the speakers

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[whiteshadow001]

If you want satellite sized speakers, get the Energy Take Classics. You can get them for $299 through today (promo code EMCYTZT3031) at Newegg.

If you want larger more full range speakers, which is better if you have room for them, get the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR while they are on sale for $69 a pair. Add in the matching center, and that puts you at $227 for a 5.0 set. This JBL subwoofer would be a good choice (and better than the one with the Energy Takes). That only leaves you about $100 for a receiver, so you'd have to go over budget a little.

For great deals on receivers, watch Newegg. And then accessories4less.com has factory warrantied and factory refurbished Denons and Onkyos.

I'm liking the idea of those pioneers, does the energy set sound good. The size of not room is about the size of most Mongolia home theater rooms in best buy so I would need something to fill that sized room

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[yage]

Quote:

 I found some Martin Logan 5.1 systems on Amazon, are those worth the money?
 

 
They could be. From a thread (link below) on AVSForum, looks like they're actually manufactured by Paradigm, which is a well-regarded manufacturer. The Energy Take Five, though, is more of a known quantity.
 
http://www.avsforum.com/t/1376171/martinlogan-mlt-2-vs-energy-take-5-1s

 

[cel4145]

The MLT-2s are considered very good, better than the Energy Takes. And yep. They are rebadged Paradigm Cinema 90s. The sub might be different than what was in the Paradigm HT set, but the speakers are the same. Here's a review: http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_9_3/paradigm-cinema-speakers-9-2002.html

Personally, I would lean towards the Pioneers. But you can ask in this thread at AVS and see if people have compared them to the MLT-2s: http://www.avsforum.com/t/1278774/pioneers-speaker-genius-hits-low-price-point

I'm also being influenced by this recent review at Audioholics: http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/floorstanding/pioneer-sp-pk52fs. That's really good praise for an Audioholics review (they tend not to hype audio equipment like other audio magazines will).

The other option would be to start with 3.1 with the Pioneer bookshelves and center and get you a good sub, then add those Pioneer towers in the full Pioneer set later (see that review) when you can afford them, assuming you have room for towers. Especially if you are into bass heavy music and want a strong sub for movie watching and gaming. The BIC F12 (amazon) is a pretty heavy hitter for $200.

Still, doesn't seem like either the Pioneers or the MLT-2s are a bad decision in that they both have merits as some of the best price/performance options in your budget range.

 

[cel4145]

One other thought is that you could afford the 5.0 set of the Pioneers with the towers, bookshelves, and center, and then wait on the sub. If you are coming from an HTIB Samsung system, that 5.0 set would probably have almost as much bass extension--you might only use a little on the low end (looks like the towers go down to 50hz), but would be a great upgrade in SQ overall.

 

[whiteshadow001]

Thanks for all the help guys, I may go with the mlt-2s. I also stumbled upon a set made by definitive technology called the 60.6 and they look good as well. I'll let you all know what I get.

 

[cel4145]

Know that DTs specs are typically very misleading when it comes to frequency response. So take what they are saying if you care comparing specs with a grain of salt.

 

[whiteshadow001]

Know that DTs specs are typically very misleading when it comes to frequency response. So take what they are saying if you care comparing specs with a grain of salt.

I've learn that comparing specs doesn't show real world performance. It's like benchmarking a phone, it could score really bad in a benchmark, but perform very good in day to day performance.

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[whiteshadow001]

So according to some research the Martin Logan mlt-2 is a rebranded paradigm ct 90 system and it used to be a grand. From what I've read it's good system and I'm going with that one haha, thanks for all the help guys you've been great

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[cel4145]

Awesome. Be sure to come back and share it how sounds. That's always a help to other people researching in the forums