1k for 5.1 Cinema Audio Setup: Doable?

L31mr0d

Ok i'm thinking about shedding my Logitech Z-5500 surround sound system and investing in something a little bit beefier with more input options.

Wondering if it would be possible to get a decent speaker set and sub with a decoder for around €1000? It would need to be able to handle optical and HDMI.

Also, is the basement cinema section in Peats worth buying from? Are their prices reasonable?

Recommendations on cheap places online to shop that will ship to Ireland would be appreciated also.

I'll rep+ for all advice and help given

rednik

Just on the Peats question I bought a system recently and I saved over 1000eu by buying elsewhere,personally I think they are not very competitive,so shop around before buying.

L31mr0d

rednik wrote: »

Just on the Peats question I bought a system recently and I saved over 1000eu by buying elsewhere,personally I think they are not very competitive,so shop around before buying.

where elsewhere did you buy from?

MAJJ

Hi L31mr0d,

2 places the ship to Ireland at low cost and provided me with great services were.

http://www.richersounds.ie

and

Sevenoaks Notthingham
http://www.sevenoakssoundandvision.co.uk/store/midlands/nottingham/clearance.aspx

I reckon is you add your post.

1) Room size?

2) Speaker preference i.e satellite/bookshelf/floor standers.

3) Do you want/can you have stands. For me it was looking at the room and where things could be position and what the wife would tolerate narrowed my search.

4) For the amp with the advent of HD sound - Dolby True HD and DTS-HD - amps without have gone done in price big time.

There are many more out there with more AV knowledge but if you consider the above I will try and suggest something. BTW - I got all of my info from www.avforums.com

Later,
majj

L31mr0d

MAJJ wrote: »

I reckon is you add your post.

1) Room size?

2) Speaker preference i.e satellite/bookshelf/floor standers.

3) Do you want/can you have stands. For me it was looking at the room and where things could be position and what the wife would tolerate narrowed my search.

4) For the amp with the advent of HD sound - Dolby True HD and DTS-HD - amps without have gone done in price big time.

There are many more out there with more AV knowledge but if you consider the above I will try and suggest something. BTW - I got all of my info from www.avforums.com

Later,
majj

Hi, yeah I'm a member of avforums, but most of the recommendations are for UK or US places to buy from. Thought i'd try out here first and see what the recommendations where. To answer your questions

1) The room size would be roughly 25ft x 15ft x 8ft

2) Speaker preference: Satellite

3) Yes, I can have and would prefer speakers that can be attached to stands

4) I really don't know anything about amps. All I really need is an amp that has the ability to take in HDMI, an optical connection, 3 audio jacks from my PC's soundcard and also process a 2.1 input so that it outputs as DD 5.1

eddiem74

On the Peats question, I would agree they are good to get some face to face time or perhaps get a DEMO of what you are after but in terms of buying, well you could find cheaper online I suspect especially if its a high value item, and you don't mind waiting a little longer.

To give one example, I purchased a set of Kef 3005 speakers last year, in peats they were over 1500euro (and still are), but I picked them up from Superfi in the UK for £599 (around 900euro at the time, delivered). I ordered on Monday, and they were delivered the following Monday.

I have to admit I have never tried to push Peats based on research on the internet to see what they would do in terms of a deal though.

Some other websites on this Island:

http://www.munstersounds.ie/
http://www.soundsolutionshifi.com/ (used these online a few times, very responsive & efficient)

You should probably look to narrow down what you are after in term of you spec/budget, how much for amp and speakers, etc.. do you need cash left for speaker cable and other cables ?

Onkyo are doing some of the best spec'd budget Amps at the moment from what I know (I am still a bit of newbie in this area also), and should get something within your budget around the 500mark (I have the 605, the 606's predecessor). I know some folks on boards have the Onkyo paired up with a set of Mordaunt Short speakers which are also within budget at 400euro. I was actually gonna goes for those initially but then ended up with the Kef's in the end.

MAJJ

I too have a Onkyo 605 and matched with KEF3005SE. I really like that combo and the 605 should drop in price. But as you said your budget is 1K. I bought the amp from richer sounds and they price matched UK retailers and I got it cheaper.

As Eddie said you could pair it with his linked speakers or often on boards they mention cantons or jamo's. All I can comment on is way I have as I little experience is this area.

I would call a few dealers and get their recommendations - bear in mind to factor in costs for stands and cables.

rednik

It's funny how some things are timed. I have just recived an e mail from richersounds.ie who are offering free delivery on sales over 75eu. The Onkyo 606 is priced at 499eu and is back in stock. This is a new model AVR and is great value and will take up half your budget leaving you with enough to buy some good speakers.
I shopped around in February including Peats, I already knew the system I wanted so I was just looking for the best value and in the end like others I bought my system in England. As luck would have it I was travelling over for a match. I took a detour to Shrewsbury to Creative Audio and bought the system there.
I bought the Onkyo 705 and paired it with KEF KHT5005.2. But as the lads have said I also bought the stands for these speakers and they were expensive so think about the layout. They also threw in all necessary cables free of charge and an excellent instruction manual to put the system together which the lads in the shop put together.

L31mr0d

I already have the speaker stands and i'm pretty sure I have all the necessary cables.

In regards to speakers, the Mordaunt Short speakers don't really look like they would fit in with my room, what would be the next best speakers to get? Should I get a speaker set with a sub or should I get seperate front and rear speakers and a sub.

What speakers would people recommend from richersounds.ie?

mik_da_man

Having gone through this myself I found it cheaper to go to a local HI-FI store and get all the demos I could, then buy my stuff in the UK.
I used Acton Gate Audio and they were really helpful.
I saved about 40% on the prices compared to my local store and Acton Gate threw in all the cables needed.
I went for a Onyko 605 with Monitor audio speakers and a BK Electronics Sub.
Prob a bit out of your price range but look at the package deals on offer.
The Mission M cube Package is good if you have limited space or the Q acoustics are pretty decent also.

Mik

eddiem74

L31mr0d wrote: »

In regards to speakers, the Mordaunt Short speakers don't really look like they would fit in with my room....

Why not, colour ? They do them in Silver too I believe as well as the Maple finish (you could maybe paint them ). Seriously though, they were just a suggestion, and I don't have them, so can't really comment.

mik_da_man wrote: »

Having gone through this myself I found it cheaper to go to a local HI-FI store and get all the demos I could, then buy my stuff in the UK.
I used Acton Gate Audio and they were really helpful.
I saved about 40% on the prices compared to my local store and Acton Gate threw in all the cables needed.
I went for a Onyko 605 with Monitor audio speakers and a BK Electronics Sub.
Prob a bit out of your price range but look at the package deals on offer.
The Mission M cube Package is good if you have limited space or the Q acoustics are pretty decent also.

Mik

I would agree with Mik, basically it comes down to many factors, and you will need to see what matters most. Colour, size, performance, price, etc. Try and get demo's of various speakers, or even just view them in shops to get an idea of size, look and feel, etc. to assess how they will fit what you want.

In my case I went to Peats and had a look around. I then searched the internet for good reviews of speakers and came across the Kef's which had gotten good reviews and rated fairly high. I then went back to Peats and got their opinion on the speakers, which was also positive. I then sourced them online, and saved !

When you shortlist a few, you can then ask on here, and other forums for feedback from those that perhaps have them to help make your decision.

Good Luck......

L31mr0d

between these 2 sets, which one would be a better buy for an Onkyo 606?

Kef KHT1005

Mordaunt Short Avant Premiere

eddiem74

L31mr0d wrote: »

between these 2 sets, which one would be a better buy for an Onkyo 606?

Kef KHT1005

Mordaunt Short Avant Premiere

Well hearing is believing so they say, and I have not heard either so can't comment.

You could:

1) Ask Richersounds what would they recommend with the 606/your budget?
2) Google around on both sets you have listed, and see what reviews they get.
3) Pop into Peats, and arrange a DEMO of some of their recommendations to go with the Onkyo, and see if that brings up any other contenders.
4) Post over on AvForums, and see what they suggest either in the Speaker forum or Onkyo owners one.

Perhaps some else on here will comment who has/had either set.

shayser

Anyone know what's happening here with Richer Sounds prices?

This link in IE prices the MS Genie Silver 5.1 @ £499.95.
http://www.richersounds.ie/asp/product.asp?ObjectID=938&Mode=0&CategoryID=5&sub=100&productid=166

The same link in FF prices the same set @ €749.99

Why would one browser show £ and the other show €?? It's the exact same link. (could anyone check if the same is happening for them, FF v. IE)


This link on their UK site prices the same set @ £399.95

http://www.richersounds.com/showproduct.php?cda=showproduct&pid=MORD-GENIE-SYSTEM



I see too that the currency seletor (£ or €) is broked. Funnily enough. I visited the page at the first link above yesterday, when I could switch between currencies, and it was either £399 or €749.

I thought Play were bad.

bennyob

shayser wrote: »

Anyone know what's happening here with Richer Sounds prices?

This link in IE prices the MS Genie Silver 5.1 @ £499.95.
http://www.richersounds.ie/asp/product.asp?ObjectID=938&Mode=0&CategoryID=5&sub=100&productid=166

The same link in FF prices the same set @ €749.99

Why would one browser show £ and the other show €?? It's the exact same link. (could anyone check if the same is happening for them, FF v. IE)


This link on their UK site prices the same set @ £399.95

http://www.richersounds.com/showproduct.php?cda=showproduct&pid=MORD-GENIE-SYSTEM



I see too that the currency seletor (£ or €) is broked. Funnily enough. I visited the page at the first link above yesterday, when I could switch between currencies, and it was either £399 or €749.

I thought Play were bad.

Quote:
Originally Posted by johnmc
Guys, John McDonald here MD of Richer Sounds Ireland - I did not know we had our own thread on Boards! Yippie, and thanks to all who have said nice things about us. Just to clarify a few things: 1. Yes we know our richersounds.ie site is a little crap, we are really working to make it better we have a new site in the wings waiting to go - we are just soo damn busy at the moment its untrue. 2. Anything you see on our .co.uk or richersounds.com site we can get in for you(assuming the UK guys have it in stock..), at the same price or cheaper - in fact we will have most of it in stock - just we probably have not had a chance to get it on the .ie site. 3. We will price beat ANYBODY! I saw a few mentions of KomPleet and other online retailers, so long as they have the goods in stock and are authorised dealers we will beat any cheaper price. 4. We are in Ireland! We have a bricks N Mortar shop in Belfast and we also own The Philips Shop in Dublin where our service centre is based so you can feel comfortable shopping with us 5. Once again we know our Euro rate is ropey on some items - it all depends on when we bought them or when we last updated the product - however you are free to choose either the sterling or euro price and we will sell at whicher is the cheapest for you. 6. The best thing is always to give us a call on the dog n bone or on skype - we will always sort you out a price!!!! Thanks again for the Kind comments, Thanks to Boards!


they seem like a good bunch and will give you the cheapest exchange rate...
from http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055308244&page=2

shayser

I agree, they sound like they are AV people, and not just simply sales people, like some I've come across. I was just wondering about the strange pricing situation above, and if this was a problem with my computer maybe.

Shanegggg

Another website you might wanna try is:
http://www.creative-audio.co.uk/

Although they say they only deliver to the uk, they'll let you organise a courier to pick it up from they're shop and ship it here!

Got this system off them about 2 months ago...absolutely amazing! Would pay well over 2k over here for it. Very good customer service aswell.

Don't bother with peats at all. The guys downstairs haven't a clue what they're talking about, will make up sh1te just to sell you something...and they're an absolute rip off. Some eejit was telling me how i needed the €150 monster hdmi cable cos there would be dropped frames and jitter otherwise!! Its digital ffs.

Dont be at yourself

I'm in the same boat as the original poster.

I can get the Onkyo 606 over here for just under 400 euros. However, I've been reading around and apparently the Pioneer 1018 represents good value. It's on sale in the states for $599, but I can't seem to find it on any of the afformentioned sites? Has it been released in Europe yet? How does it compare to the Onkyo?

Also, how do Yamaha and Devon stack up to the Onkyo? Seeing as I'm in Japan, Yamaha may be a slight bit cheaper than home. Do these manufacturers make comparable systems?