Updated 11/23/2008 - HDTV and Surround Sound Recommendations! - Page 81

HondaF1Fanatic · 01-31-2008, 11:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deathwish238

A Pioneer will never be as cheap as most other plasmas...you're paying for the more advanced technology quite simply.

If the Pioneer is out of your budget, get a Panasonic plasma

What he said. If you go look on review sites like HDGuru.com and the AVS forums, the Pioneer Kuro and Pioneer Kuro Elites are definitely the best TVs available right now with Panasonic coming in a close second with their 700u and 750u series. Pioneer is always going to be more expensive because of the technology, but also because much of their technology is developed, produced, and assembled in the US where labor costs are higher. I have always been a big fan of Matsushita (Panasonic) products and would be more than happy with a Panny plasma, I am just holding off to see what Pioneer and Panasonic come out with next (ie: 9mm super black panels like the ones they showed off at CES).

Deathwish238 · 01-31-2008, 12:07 PM

Pioneer and Panasonic are sharing technology btw...so expect to see next gen Pannies to be at least comparable to this gen's Pioneers if not better.

The main difference between the two will be their video processor, not the glass itself. Granted the video processor makes a huge difference in terms of pretty much everything, especially colors

B-Cat77 · 01-31-2008, 12:12 PM

I get paid next week and I'm gonna order the Yamaha AV Package 61 - it looks great for the price which is in my budget so thanks for that Deathwish!!!

Jizzylax · 01-31-2008, 01:19 PM

Hey Death, or pparks, or anyone with experience with Polk.

What do you think of the Polk Monitor 50s and 60s? Crutchfield has a seemingly good deal on these floorstanding speakers, and I know they would be an improvement over my bookshelf fronts right now. I'm just curious as to what you think of Polks. They also have a deal where buy $500 more of Polk, get a free sub (even though Polk subs aren't great, it's free). So I was thinking of combining either the Monitor 50s with a CS-2 center or the monitor 60s with a CS-1 center. Any opinions?

Deathwish238 · 01-31-2008, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dan220877

I get paid next week and I'm gonna order the Yamaha AV Package 61 - it looks great for the price which is in my budget so thanks for that Deathwish!!!

No problem, enjoy it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jizzylax

Hey Death, or pparks, or anyone with experience with Polk.

What do you think of the Polk Monitor 50s and 60s? Crutchfield has a seemingly good deal on these floorstanding speakers, and I know they would be an improvement over my bookshelf fronts right now. I'm just curious as to what you think of Polks. They also have a deal where buy $500 more of Polk, get a free sub (even though Polk subs aren't great, it's free). So I was thinking of combining either the Monitor 50s with a CS-2 center or the monitor 60s with a CS-1 center. Any opinions?

They're good if you can get them for a good price. Outpost.com aka Fry's has sales pretty often.

Check out this thread showing a good setup with the Polks you're looking at

Also, what's your max budget?

Jizzylax · 01-31-2008, 03:16 PM

Looking to upgrade my front speakers and center right now. Budget is really best bang for the buck. I would say no more than $400 or $500 if possible.

edit: Also, do you know if there is much of a difference between the R50s you linked to and the M50s? M50s are newer I believe, and slightly more expensive.

The speakers you posted seem like a great deal though. I could replace my front and centers for less than $230. What I'm doing is replacing the speakers that came with my Yamaha YHT-360 HTIB I bought a year ago. I was planning on moving the bookshelf speakers that came with this system to the rears temporarily and upgrading the fronts and center. Or I have a pair of JBL ControlOnes that I could use as the rears until I can afford to upgrade the surrounds.

One thing I know I'm lacking is a powered subwoofer. I've contemplated the Dayton 120. Seems like it is great bang for the buck, however I don't have the money for that quite yet. Either way, it is a piece by piece process and I figured I would start with the fronts and center, so I'm currently looking around.

By the way, I mostly watch TV and movies on this setup, with the occasional music.

Deathwish238 · 02-01-2008, 03:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jizzylax

Looking to upgrade my front speakers and center right now. Budget is really best bang for the buck. I would say no more than $400 or $500 if possible.

edit: Also, do you know if there is much of a difference between the R50s you linked to and the M50s? M50s are newer I believe, and slightly more expensive.

The speakers you posted seem like a great deal though. I could replace my front and centers for less than $230. What I'm doing is replacing the speakers that came with my Yamaha YHT-360 HTIB I bought a year ago. I was planning on moving the bookshelf speakers that came with this system to the rears temporarily and upgrading the fronts and center. Or I have a pair of JBL ControlOnes that I could use as the rears until I can afford to upgrade the surrounds.

One thing I know I'm lacking is a powered subwoofer. I've contemplated the Dayton 120. Seems like it is great bang for the buck, however I don't have the money for that quite yet. Either way, it is a piece by piece process and I figured I would start with the fronts and center, so I'm currently looking around.

By the way, I mostly watch TV and movies on this setup, with the occasional music.

Well your two most important speakers are your center and sub. Since your sub isn't active, I'ld probably get a new sub first. Given your budget, the SVS PB-10NSD looks like a good choice assuming you don't have a huge room(it's meant for small to medium rooms).

The M50 is from the Monitor series which is higher quality than the R series. It'ld be a similar upgrade as going from the Infinity Primus to the Infinity Betas for example.

I'm not sure if I'ld go for nicer towers as I'ld be afraid of underdriving them.

From what I read, the Monitor series is on the bright side and some find them fatiguing after extended use. Do you know if you prefer bright or warm speakers? If you prefer warm, the AV123 X-LS is a decent alternative...and they look beautiful too. The matching X-CS center would put you right @ $500.

B-Cat77 · 02-01-2008, 09:23 AM

Deathwish, whats the longest optical cables you can buy? I don't think the 2m ones are gonna be long enough

Deathwish238 · 02-01-2008, 01:33 PM

Longest I've seen is 100'

AlMo · 02-02-2008, 11:25 AM

Deathwish

I am still looking into purchasing a plasma and with this week being the Super Bowl there are a couple decent sales here in Canada.

The Panasonic 50PX75U and the Samsung 5054 are both $1699 (remember I am Canada lol).

I currently do not have an HD player (although will eventually get one)
I watch SD tv and am not planning on getting the the HD as I think it is just too expenisve at the moment
Have an Xbox 360 but do not play more than a 3-4 hours a week

I currently have a Hitachi rear projecter and would like the flat screen to make the room less condensed (and for the better picture ofcourse).

Do you think it's worth it? Am i better off waiting?