Upgrade home theatre receiver recommendations?

[PRY4SNO]

Re: Upgrade home theatre receiver recommendations?

The reason I'm looking at this type of system is space, I have a room 24 feet by 20 feet. The Pioneer speakers I have are small and I can fit them on the walls and bookshelves.

I don't want tower speakers as I really don't have the space for those, I need small portable speakers.

I also don't need a lot of power for a room that size, nor do I want a super powerful system, I'm more interested in immersive clear sound at low volume.

My logic is that 5 decent speakers properly spaced and with a proper receiver will give more surround sound than 2 higher quality speakers with a low end receiver? But maybe this is because I haven't tried portable (and affordable) high quality speakers yet.

This is where you need seat time. Any quality dealer will be happy to oblige.

Everyone's ears are different, in my experience. Take time to culture your expectations/budget to your ears and you'll be thankful you did.

Personally speaking, I'd take two hifi speakers and a good amp over a HTIB any day. Even if the aforementioned hifi speakers were high end headphones.

I'd recommend something along the lines of a Paradigm MiniMonitor or Atom Monitor for your price range, and the best amp you can buy for your money that will meet your minimum features requirement. HK does a good job at low wattage and high current to push through lots of sound at a low volume.

In my experience, it's easier to add quality speakers to your set up later when the money is available versus continually changing systems.

[Kor]

Re: Upgrade home theatre receiver recommendations?

Lot of recommendations for Paradigm and although that is a good brand I think that they are at the top of the budget in their class. I wouldn't necessarily call it a bang for the buck speaker, I'd call it a premium speaker. Back in the day they were cheaper but now the word has really spread.

You can definitely get very nice speakers for not a lot of money. Having surround sound with cheap speakers definitely does not sound better than good sound from two speakers!! But you don't have to take my word for it. If you want to become a believer, just stop by one of the many hifi shops in town and ask for a bookshelf speaker demo. Even if you're not buying from them (even the cheaper setups are probably a bit higher in budget at those stores) you will become a believer about bookshelf speakers. In Calgary I recommend Loyalty Sound, The Audio Room, K&W and Sounds of Music for a demo.

Bookshelf speakers IMO are some of the best speakers to get, floor standing speakers are overrated unless you have a BIG room. If you buy two bookshelf speakers you can also always add a subwoofer later for more bass. Bookshelf speakers are also a better buy if you are younger and may move around a bit, they are more flexible in how you deploy them. Down the road if you buy a better dedicated setup you can always put the bookshelves in an office or bedroom.

There are PLENTY of bookshelf speakers available online that will fill a room and sound great for even as low as $100. For a couple hundred bucks you can get speakers that you will love for years and years.