[luke16]

i am gonna but a home theatre in a box. the one i was looking at is the onkyo hts780. this 7.1 channel 1000 watt system is $350, and all that i would need. i would like to know from anyone who has heard these speakers to tell me the pros and cons to them. thanks

 

[VicAjax]

avsforum.com has a whole forum dedicated to HTiB's here. although i'd still advise against it.

 

[warpdriver]

The HTIB usually have crappy speakers, I wouldn't do it. You'll get much better sound if you buy separate speakers.

I'd actually rather get just two separate speakers rather than a 5.1 set of HTIB speakers.

 

[grawk]

http://www.hometheaterdirect.com

Get the set of speakers from them you can afford and a low end dts capable receiver and you'll be much happier...

 

[luke16]

ok, well what do you guys propose for seperate speakers? i would like them to be mounted in the wall or on stands (just no wires). the cost could be no more than $300 and have 7.1 channel and arround 1000 watts.

 

[marvin]

If you're set on 7.1 + reciever for ~ $350, then go ahead, get the Onkyos. You're really not going to get anything good in that price range anyways.

For 300 though, I'd say go with 3 pairs of Athena AS-B1.2 for a 6.0 setup, and wait until you can afford a decent sub. In the long run, you'll be much happier.

 

[digitalmind]

Quote:

Originally Posted by luke16 ok, well what do you guys propose for seperate speakers? i would like them to be mounted in the wall or on stands (just no wires). the cost could be no more than $300 and have 7.1 channel and arround 1000 watts.

Ignore the watts ratings -- there's no way a $300 home theatre will ever reach a true 1000 watts, and if it did, it'd be way too much to put to good use.

In your price range, I'd say a HTIB isn't all that silly. You won't get that much better equipment buying seperate.

 

[rsaavedra]

Ok good guess, we hate you

 

[virometal]

Boy 3.5 bones for 7.1. That is bottom of the barrel. I wouldn't even bother with the seven.

You have a dvd player I take it? I would use it for processing and buy a 5.1 system.

 

[luke16]

ok ill down the system to 6.1 and it never needed a dvd player. ill also bump up the cash to 400 as long as i can take the system anywhere i live (no in wall).

 

[iSleipnir]

I wouldn't reccommend 7.1 just because I don't think there is a huge difference between 5.1 and 7.1 At least, not in a home theater system for ~$350. I bought a 5.1 system a while ago for around that amount and its fine, doesn't match my headphones for sure, but its plenty good for movies in the dorm and such, where hi-fidelity isn't what I'm looking for.

 

[Aman]

You would be surprised how wonderful a movie can sound out of a quality pair of stereo speakers.

You're asking for lack of quality in both sound and build by paying under 400 dollars for 8 speakers + the subwoofer. I mean honestly - do you think that a magician can just make this system for you and still make it anywhere decent and only charge you 400 bones?

Your best bet is to just add on to your system as time goes by. Get the amp and the stereo speakers now, and enjoy your movies like that. I promise you, you'll be able to. Then, if you MUST go for surround sound, then get your two back speakers, and then your center. Then finish it off with a nice, quality subwoofer.

I've been down this road before, at an earlier age, and would not recommend it. Low-quality high-fidelity equipment is easily prone to malfunctioning, not to mention the obvious lack in any aspect of the actual PERFORMANCE of the speakers.

Home theater, just like a stereo rig, is an investment. Make it count.

 

[luke16]

thanks for the advice. what would you recomend for a beginning rig? just sub and some speakers? form where? what model?

 

[ckhirnigs113]

Well, I guess I'll be the one differing opinion in the matter. I was in the same boat a couple of years ago. I wanted Home Theater, but my budget was pretty tight as well. I researched endlessly, and found Onkyo to be the best deal by far.

I have the HTS770 6.1 system, and it is great! I'm sure it's not up to audiophile specs, but it makes a world of difference compared to TV speakers. If you are getting this to enjoy movies, then I don't think there is any way you could be disappointed by the Onkyo system.

One day you might decided to pay the extra cash for a "quality" system, but believe me you could do much worse than the Onkyo (pretty much everything in the same price range is not worth a dime).

 

[Aman]

Check out stuff from Axiom.

I'd start with these bookshelves. http://axiomaudio.com/m3ti_main.html

When you get enough money, buy another pair of those bookshelves, plus one more, to get your 5 speakers. Then, when you get more money, get a subwoofer. Axiom actually makes some pretty good ones.