Budget home audio?

[SamN]

I'm bored so looking into home audio. Just a bit bored of the 'standard' sound and fancy something a little more.

 

I'd like to be able to play sound through my PS3 and a V+ virgin media box, which are both linked to my LG TV via HDMI. Is the best way just to link the TV to an amplifier, and then speakers off the amplifier? I'm not sure if both the PS3/V+ box would then play through these speakers? Or would I need to go from the PS3 to the amp, and from the V+ box to the amp separately?

 

This is currently in my bedroom at the end of the bed so I'd probably go for a small setup (2.1) for now, but ideally with the possibility to upgrade (to 5.1) once I buy my own house.

 

I used to have a Cambridge Audio amp with a couple of floor standing speakers but sold this a couple of years ago for some stupid reason. Partly because the floor standers took up quite a bit of room. This was quite a budget setup but the sound was great, from what I remember.

 

Not really thought of a budget but the cheaper the better (as long as it's reasonable quality) as I'm saving to buy a house.

 

Any opinions??

 

Cheers

Sam

[TomS]

You must have some sort of a budget, under £1000? Up to £5000?

[SamN]

I was thinking closer to a tenth of the first number

 

Budget depends on what it is really. I have money, I just don't want to spend it all as I'm saving hard!

[Stutopia]

If it's really budget then Richer Sounds and the Cambridge Audio products give the best bang for buck IMHO.

 

If you want to save space don't go 2.1, just go stereo but buy decent bookshelf speakers and then just make sure you isolate them from the surface you put them on. A blob of Blu-tac in each corner is a good budget isolator. Tannoy's Mercury range were decent last time I was on the hunt I believe. I had some Acoustic Energy Aegis Ones in the end, loved them and not expensive.

 

Whatever you go for, make sure you can demo it first with your own music, so you can find it easier to pick up any improvements in the sound. Good luck and have fun trying stuff.

[SamN]

Yeah Richer Sounds is where I got my last stuff and is probably where I'll go.

 

Why the blutac/isolation?

 

I don't actually have a shelf for them to go on so it's likely they'll be going on the wall or on some sort of floor stands.

[TomS]

Ah ok, was going to say I know of a decent 5.1 setup for around £1200 which is very similar to what I have in the lounge.

 

For around £100 you'll probably be best looking at multimedia/PC speakers that have an optical input or two.

 

Logitech do a few systems such as Z506 and Z906 but you need to make sure they have optical inputs otherwise won't be getting true 5.1 surround sound from a PS3.

 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B003WJR482

 

Decent option for £60 but again, wouldn't be surround sound but not sure how much that would bother you!

[Grundy]

http://www.richersounds.com/product/speaker-packages/pioneer/htp072/pion-htp072 Got that a month or so ago, really worth it!!!

[Stutopia]

Yeah Richer Sounds is where I got my last stuff and is probably where I'll go.

 

Why the blutac/isolation?

 

I don't actually have a shelf for them to go on so it's likely they'll be going on the wall or on some sort of floor stands.

 

Speakers should always be isolated as best you can to avoid the surface they stand on vibrating/resonating. It gives nicer bass. For floorstanders you'd use spikes but for bookshelfs on a flat surface Blu-tac is a nice easy cheap way of reducing vibration, you can buy special pads but I found tac works well for pennies. If you go wall mount it'll depend how the speaker is held by the arm. Also bookshelfs can also be mounted on a floor stand with tack, I had some Atacama Nexus 7 stands, which you could also part fill with sand to stop them vibrating.

 

As per TomS comment at the £100 mark PC type speakers are the best you'll get I'd say. I recently bought these to beef up the sound of my bedroom flat screen.

 

http://www.trustedreviews.com/Creative-Gigaworks-T40-Series-II_Peripheral_review

 

Very pleased with them so far. Nearly went for these below instead, but no space for a sub. They look cool as, but I must admit I didn't get to hear them. Do a search for some reviews by audio sites, not just generic review sites.

 

http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/pc-accessories/pc-speakers/pc-speakers/harman-kardon-soundsticks-iii-2-1-pc-speakers-clear-08843639-pdt.html

[Ekona]

Do it nice or do it twice.

 

I did my audio setup three times before I finally got it right, and I wasted a shedload of cash in the process. I tried to do it cheap, then I tried to do it cheap but with better components, and then I finally gave up and did it properly and now I'm set for the foreseeable future. I do have upgrade options left, though.

 

 

What I did (and what I would recommend to do) is this:

 

 

Buy some decent speakers first and foremost. If you buy good here, then you'll arguably never need to replace them. Speaker technology doesn't move forward as quickly as everything else, hence the huge costs for some vintage stuff that has depth and clarity that modern things simply cannot match, so get the best you can afford. A solid 2.1 or even 2.0 setup here will be a great base for the future. If you don't have the room to go floorstanding and have to go bookshelf, again just spend as much as you possibly can. This is the one part of the setup you really cannot scrimp on IMHO.

 

Buy an AVR to go with it. You don't really need to spend a fortune here, as there's plenty of solid units out there that will give you the basic setup of HDMI inputs in (PS3, V-Box) and HDMI out (TV) with 5.1 audio and DTS. Sure, you can spend more and get 7.1 or 9.2 or THX and twenty gazillion inputs, but this is where technology does move forward pretty quickly. Mine was out of date about a year after I got it, but it still covers the essentials and I can upgrade this when/if I decide I need more.

 

Don't forget the cables and accessories. Cheap speaker cable is a false economy, but you don't need everything to be gold-plated either! I think I spent £3p/m and that was good enough to give me a good balance between cost and quality. I bi-wired my fronts too, so I needed twice as much for that. You can also massively improve your sound by isolating the vibrations: I got some huge inch-thick slabs of black granite off eBay custom made to the sizes of my speakers & sub to isolate everything as my floor is cheapy laminate, and it was a huge boost across the entire spectrum to my ears. Again not a massive amount of cash, but well worth doing.

 

 

 

As a guide, my setup cost me £900 for the fronts, £300 for the rears, £300 for the centre, £500 for the AVR, then about £200 on cables/granite/connectors etc. Scale that down to suit your budget and I'd be looking at something like this:

AVR (I like Pioneer stuff)

Floorstanders

Bookshelfs

Centre (should match the fronts ideally)

Sub

 

Yeah, that's masses over your budget I know, but pick and choose! You can get the AVR and the floorstanders for £600 and that'll give you a great base to work from, and then you can add everything else when budget allows.

 

 

 

Anyways, that's just my thoughts based on my own experience, I'm certainly no expert and I'm sure others will disagree, but I thought it might be worth sharing anyway.

[chirag1988]

I've got a similar set up in my room with my youview box and ps3 hooked up to my onkyo receiver and then feeding sound to my speakers. I know you said floorstanders weren't a good option but if you have the space go for a pair of wharefdale xarus 5000 speakers and bi-amp them. You'll separate the bass from the treble and they sound awesome! I got them for £150 for the pair a couple of years ago, not sure how much they're now

[Ekona]

You mean bi-wiring. Bi-amping means using two different amps, bi-wiring is using one amp but two cables

[Paddy78]

If this is for your bedroom and space is at a premium, then have you considered a sound bar?

 

A full 5.1 with amp is definitely the way forward, but a sound bar would bridge the gap whilst you get your own place. Matching components to the size room you have is as important as the other things Dan mentioned.

Edited December 24, 2013 by Paddy78

[Stutopia]

Hmmmm, now I'm bi curious.

[SamN]

Thanks for all the replies guys. Fortunately when I sold my last audio system I kept the speaker wires, and I went for some good stuff which is very thick. Probably (definitely) overkill for what I need but rather that than using something too slim and losing quality.

 

I think I'll go for an amp and a pair of bookshelf (or maybe even floor standers again) for now. As said above, it's probably worth spending more on the speakers and just getting a mid-range amp for now, then adding more speakers and a better amp at a later date.

 

I'll get myself does to richer sounds soon and have a look around!

[SamN]

If this is for your bedroom and space is at a premium, then have you considered a sound bar?

 

A full 5.1 with amp is definitely the way forward, but a sound bar would bridge the gap whilst you get your own place. Matching components to the size room you have is as important as the other things Dan mentioned.

 

Forgot to mention that! I've seen these but don't know much about them. I'd definitely consider it if I could get the sound from both PS3 and V+ going through it!

 

If I connected it to the TV (same question goes for the amp really), would the sound work fully? As the other boxes are currently connected to the TV via HDMI. Or do I need to connect each individual box to the amp/soundbar?

[Paddy78]

Your components would all connect into the amp/soundbar via HDMI. The amp/soundbar will then pass the video to the TV via an HDMI output. The amp will decode the sound and send it to the speakers.

[SamN]

Interesting. I'll ask for a demo of a couple of soundbars as they're probably a good solution for a bedroom, space-wise.

[Paddy78]

Not particularly "budget" and you could get close to a proper 5.1 for the money... but if a sound bar was the preferred choice:

 

http://www.whathifi.com/Review/Yamaha-YSP-2200/

 

It has 3 HDMI inputs, so no issue connecting your components and will decode all the latest HD sound formats. It's definitely an option to consider if you decide you don't have the space for a full 5.1.

[SamN]

Yeah if I have to spend that sort of money to get a decent sound bar then I'm better off going for an amp and a couple of speakers for value for money.

[Stutopia]

If it's going direct from your TV you'll be looking for active speakers/sound bar, like the ones on most PCs which have an integrated amp. If you go for passive speakers then you'll need the full amp set up.

 

Personally I wouldn't go active if you're planning future upgrades. I'd go with components as you're getting yourself on the upgrade path, so you can replace components one at a time within a separates system, as your taste and budget allow. However, I'm certain there are some very capable sound bars out there if your not fussed about upgrading again in future.

 

Just check with the dude at Richer, they're usually very knowledgable and not pushy. Ultimately, it all comes down to budget. Just make sure you know what outputs you're getting from your sources, like optical or coaxial and make sure your chosen amplifier/active speaker can accommodate them all.

[Paddy78]

Yeah if I have to spend that sort of money to get a decent sound bar then I'm better off going for an amp and a couple of speakers for value for money.

 

Yeah, horses for couses really and they are not upgradeable (Or particularly good for stereo music). I would have to have my arm severely twisted to move away from a 5.1/7.1 setup. As others have said, get down to Richer Sounds and have a chat with them.

[SamN]

Yeah I don't really like the idea of active speakers or a computer setup as it'll be used for both music and movies so I want something a little better. Also a lot of packages come with a dvd/br player which is useless to me as I use the PS3 for that also.

 

I will pop into richer sounds at some point over the week

[mattross1313]

If this is for your bedroom and space is at a premium, then have you considered a sound bar?

 

Forgot to mention that! I've seen these but don't know much about them.

 

Top Idea, Paddy beat me to it.

I have had a sound bar for a few weeks now, was a joint Christmas present from the in-laws and its brilliant. We use it in the living room as we watch loads of Sky & Netflix. There are plenty of sound bars to be had for under £150 - I went for the LG-'something'F-350 at £180. 300w system with wireless sub, etc etc. Drastically improves the sound over the stock TV speakers.

 

Input wise I have an optical cable from the back of the TV, then into the TV I have the Sky, DVD player, Apple TV & VCR(yep.....VCR!! ). So the sound bar will play all of these via the optical out on the TV. I am VERY tempted to buy another sound bar for the man cave as thats where my Xbox is banished to. If like me you are short or space these are very good solutions.

 

amp/system wise. I also looked into the amps and full home systems - but I didn't want/need a DVD player, and I'm not that much of an audiophile that I needed a full amp with 7.1 etc etc. Sound bar fitted the bill as it was good sound, and it just did sound.

Edited December 24, 2013 by mattross1313

[sipar69]

It's also worth asking yourself how much you will actually get to exploit the sound of the equipment when you decide how you much you want to spend and the right equipment for you. I used to have some really good home cinema equipment (Yamaha amp. etc,) but I ended up selling it on Ebay because when we moved to our current place (an end of terrace house) I could never really crank up the volume for fear of upsetting the neighbours. I thought I'd hate just having the sound coming out of the TV but I got used to it pretty quickly. Periodically upgrading your stuff can be quite addictive and expensive too. Unless you're really committed to the whole home cinema/audio thing I'd suggest a decent sound bar.

[SamN]

Yeah good point, I'd go for quality over max volume.