I am going to make a couple of assumptions here so correct me if I am wrong. For the living room you are wanting to something to watch movies and I would assume with some sort of surround sound. For this you will have the 5 speakers, 3 in front and 2 rear. The .1 in the description is for the subwoofer, that is what is going to give you the glass rattling during the Jurassic Park scene. Now to power the 2 outside speakers you are going to need an additional 2 speakers out. This is where you are going to need the 7.1 receiver. You can set the last 2 speakers as your patio speakers and this lets you watch something inside and listen to something else outside at the same time. Some of the brands you may look at would by Denon, Yamaha, Onkyo and you should be able to find some refurbished that will help with the price.

Speakers. For the rear speakers you can use ceiling mount speakers and pick those up fairly reasonably. I will say speakers will make the biggest difference to the sound quality of any component in the system. Ebay or craig's list are good potential spots for some used speakers that will be a good value. NHT and B&W are some solid choices that you might be able to find used in your price range. Monoprice has a good reputation as well. If you are going to spend more in one area I would go with speakers.

Hope this is a start for you.

You are right about all of those assumptions. I am trying to see a way to use bluetooth speakers on the back porch and thus avoid the 7.1 receiver. I eam cheap and always looking for better options that cost less.. heh Not sure if they will reach that far on bluetooth, and already ran 12awg to the back of the house, so not a huge issue either way.

Just looking at 2 setups so a large cost all at once. Up to this point, all we got by with was the old RCA type connections and 32" tube TVs. Time to step it up and it is all about HDMI, which means eeeeeverything gets changed out.

So, also need to understand speaker to wattage, i.e. if I have a 700watt receiver, do I actually need that split to six speakers, or do a couple front 85watt speakers, a couple back 85 watt speakers, a nice sub and a nice center really do enough?

Don't need to look at 125 watt speakers if each speaker really only uses 85 watts each, but.. also, do not want to max them out. I think I could get better sound if I got a little more speaker than I need so to speak, eh?

Thanks!

R

My husband builds his own speakers and subwoofers, so I can't help with brands there, but I *can* tell you that we have a Denon receiver and used to have a Harmon/Kardon machine of some kind. They're both good brands. He gets a lot of stuff from Craigslist, eBay, and manufacturer refurbished. Sometimes it's even a decade old (or more), and works perfectly.

He also has a tripod microphone thingy for testing sound around the room, but I wanna say it was included with something else he bought (amplifier or receiver).

Jurassic Park is a fun choice for testing, lol. We use the Mines of Moria scene in Lord of the Rings and, strangely enough, the crosswalk scene in Monsters, Inc. :-)

I have decent home audio and home theater experience. Personally I just finished doing the speakers for my home theater and I am using 11 speakers and two subs in my theater. I also have a music room that is just stereo running equipment that I absolutely should be embarrassed to own.

Power is the most important thing in systems, so your receiver is going to be more important than your speakers. I would recommend going with a 7.2 over a 5.1, at this point the industry has moved away from 5.1 so it is simply an inferior product. Most companies maintain the 5.1 lineup because it has little real cost to maintain. All R&D is going into 7.1 or 11.2, so you are more likely to get forward compatibility from these. Most of the mainstream companies do a 1,000 - 1,200 watt receiver that hits that $500 price point. Any of them will be fine, just find the one with the features you like.

Most any in-wall speaker (other than Bose) will be fine. Go listen to them and find some you like. If you are looking at Best Buy I prefer B&W > Deftech > Martin Logan > the rest, but it is really not that big a difference. In-wall speakers just are not as good as on wall speakers until you pay a lot of money, so any differences are marginal.

Edit: Just to reiterate - At the level you are looking at speakers are going to make no difference, other than personal preference. Some will be more efficient and others more pure and which one you like is really your thing.

I like a good Mines of Moria shake-em-up!.. lol

Eh.. I really am only interested in the HDMI aspects for upgrading. I am more of an ebay/clist person myself, but am buying new so I get some sort of warranty since I am doing so much at once.. heh

R

Audio stuff is a slippery slope. I know all to well. And I understand the budget and trying to be frugal. Room size really helps determine the wattage. It sounds like this is just mainly for general, everyday watching tv. Throw in some movies, etc. Definitely not a dedicated theater room, which is a different beast. One thing to know is that manufactures love to overstate the wattage of amps and play games with how they compute it. 2 channel vs 5, etc. Advertising. I would go with speaker that is rated higher than the receiver. Most likely, any of the major brands will serve your purpose volume wise for general viewing. If you have a very large room then you may need something more substantial. Same for a more open area.

Most of the newer av receivers will provide you with a microphone and will run a calibration that will help setup the volume for each speaker. I would recommend getting the same brand/model speaker, at minimum for the front three (left, center, and right). This will help create a more seamless soundstage.

I like a good Mines of Moria shake-em-up!.. lol

No in-wall speaker is going to help you with that. Buy a decent sub. Personally, for the price, I recommend SVS subs. Get a nice PB-1000 or PB-2000 if you have the room, and you will seriously improve your rumble experience far more than any speaker can.

Oh yea, subs can be handled separately... I like a good sub too, and am fine with those, it is matching other speakers to wattage that always confuses me.

Oh, guys.. I am SO used to a $500 setup total.. so, I plan to spend about $300 for 4 speakers and another $300 for the receiver, max.. heh. It is not that big a room and while I enjoy a nice thump once in a while, loudness is not my drive, it is hearing the water droplets in a rain forest etc and the price that drives my purchases... heh

Sorry for the confusion, and love the input, but I am going to keep my wife happy and keep the costs down :P Trying to find where the soft spot is in that range :P

R

I am working on this now for my home. Here is what I have so far. I already own a Receiver (Yamaha Aventage A740). This allows me to control two zones independently for audio only. The goal is to get a receiver that allows me to control multiple zones for Video or get multiple receivers. Still chewing on this aspect.

Here are the rooms that I would like to use a receiver and in ceiling and wall mounted speakers for:

1. Living Room
2. Kitchen
3. Dining Room
4. Deck
5. Master Bedroom

With the current system, I can control video and audio in my living room. I can also control audio on the deck.

I have standardized on Definitive Technology speakers. My living room has wall mount speakers that are being switch out over the upcoming months.

For the kitchen, I have a few options:

1. Get the Yamaha Aventage A2060 Receiver that allows me to control Video in three zones. This is an expensive receiver but will allow me to only have one extra receiver. I would recycle the current A740 receiver into the bedroom and live with audio only on the Deck. This will add up to 4 Video sources.
2. Get two of the Yamaha RX V781 which allows me to have Video in the Kitchen and Video in the Dining Room. Another will supply Video in the bedroom and video somewhere else. This receiver shows up on sales and scratch and dent on a few sites which will bring down the price significantly.

I am surprised that there are not many Receivers that provide video in the multiple zones. Many support audio but not even independent audio. The Yamahas provide independent audio and also allow you to airplay into zone 2 on some units.

I have decided on the following speakers per room:

1. Living room - working with Deftech to come up with a layout because the room has quite a bit of glass. Currently have a Def Tech sub that will stay. Probably a mix of reference in ceiling speakers, bipole speakers and the DI 6.5Rs.
2. Kitchen - Three round in ceiling speakers (DI 6.5R)
3. Dining room - Two round in ceiling speakers (DI 6.5R). Another option is one DI 6.5STR which is a stereo speaker.
4. Bedroom - Four round in ceiling speakers (DI 3.5R) and an in wall center channel speaker (DI 6.5LCR). The smaller in ceiling speakers is due to the size of the room and the fact that the room is 8ft tall. All other rooms have 10ft or taller ceilings.

I write this all to say this is so confusing and expensive. I have used soundbars in the kitchen and they don't do well with sound in a room with few walls. I think if you can figure out how many zones you truly need and if you are comfortable with having a receiver in each room, a cheaper receiver that does not do video in the second zone would be cheaper. The Yamaha RX-V381 would be my choice if Airplay was not important.

Just a note, for the outside speakers, I have the Definitive Technology AW6500. I bought them used on Amazon from the Amazon Warehouse. They came in an unopened box, appeared to never have been used and sound great hooked up to the receiver.

Good luck!

I have a Yamaha Aventage they have a nice line of receivers. The more expensive ones have a phone preamp.

In Wall Speaker Store

If you want good in-walls for almost no money you simply can't beat Monoprice. In fact, for the bang for your electronic buck you really can't beat Monoprice. You can find many reviews of their speakers on Audioholics and AVS forums and they will outperform anything even near their price point.

100% bry911, monoprice is the way to go for your wiring. Especially on the longer HDMI runs.

Bry- That is where I was getting my receiver for the bedroom. They have a Pioneer for 159 I think, 5.1 VSX-324-K... more than I need for a bedroom. I think I will pony up more for the 7.2 in the living room though. I think 85-110 watt in wall speakers should do the trick as well. Then I will worry about the sub and center later.

Monoprice is where I got almost all the wiring for the house.. love that place

Thanks for all the insight guys!

R

Speaker wattage isn't really important. Honestly any of the speakers with the 12db per octave crossover will be fine. Stay away from the 6db crossover.

Some people say that your amperage per channel needs to be 1.5 - 2 times that of the speaker but really it is not a big problem. Sensitivity and impedance are the important pieces of the puzzle and the Monoprice options are solid, with 91db and 8ohms. You are probably not going to put that much power into them so don't worry about it.

Geoffrey - that link is nice. Checking out the following, seeing if they are worth trying out.

http://www.inwallstore.com/InwallTech_M65_1W_p/m65.1w.htm

Price is not bad at all.

Okay, so I found some Klipsch R1650-W speakers for 90 bucks each plus tax. Thoughts? I can get them local for that plus add on like 2-4yrs of warranty for a few bucks more.

Anything comparable or better for that or less with GOOD warranty / rma ability? heh

Will keep looking for good receivers. I am pretty sure I will get a 7.1 for the living room, hate to waste the speakers on the porch ;)

R

Neither the Klipsch R1650-W or the Inwall Tech beat the Monoprice for specs or price. Now whether or not they beat it in sound is something I can't know. Are you using them for surround or everything? The Monoprice should be a little easier to drive (more volume for less power) than the other two but not by much.

Well, I read some reviews about Monoprice and with these, especially being local, I am not sure how well they handle Customer service or returns or warranty etc.

Not sold on them yet, just a little less excited about buying more than wiring from Monoprice.

R

Actually.. yea.. the monoprice one beats it hands down...

If I go Monoprice, these may be the best ones:

http://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=109&cp_id=10837&cs_id=1083702&p_id=7604&seq=1&format=2

or these:

http://www.monoprice.com/product?c_id=109&cp_id=10837&cs_id=1083701&p_id=13682&seq=1&format=2

The monoprice speakers will be better than nothing for sure but until you listen to them, you have no idea what you're getting into. But honestly at that price point, who really cares. If they're bad they're basically priced to be disposable.

Heh...I have had ones that were free or disposable.. no names, I was about to pay almost double for name ones, so these appear, on paper better than those, gotta be wroth something :P

R

I have inwalls pairs installed in the current house.... Good for elevator music... The biggest issue is that the speakers sit in the same chase formed by two side-joists and the floor above. When speaker 1 fires, air movement in the chase affect the second speaker. Both 100+W, so my advise before you install ceiling drywall install joist blocking on both sides of the speaker.

Good point, Brian. I do not think I have this issue, but it does give me an idea on how I may add a little better "support" for each speaker where they will be. Thanks!

R