Home theater revamp

[Paul Wozniak]

My home theater has been undergoing a heavy revamp the past few months. Gone are the JBL and Velodyne subwoofers, replaced by a pair of Polk 505 subs that I bought on Amazon for $400 for both. The Onkyo 805 avr which was getting old and tired, is on the scrap heap, replaced by a Pioneer Elite SC-72. Got a great deal from Amazon - $820. DirectV main unit was replaced with a Genie. PS3 and a Pioneer universal disc players are out, replaced with a Sony bluray s5100. PS3 went to my youngest son's room. Added Netflix and spotify, and I'm good for the foreseeable future. Speakers are still Magnepan. Those aren't going anywhere. They're still dollar for dollar the best speakers on the planet.

 

[dfergie]

I need to do that myself Paul ...

 

[jevans64]

I'm set for a while unless Auro-3D or Atmos makes it into the home. Already mapped out where I'd put the ceiling speakers. Only thing I'll do is probably get a 4K display and a new receiver/pre-amp with either HDMI 2.0 and/or DisplayPort. I'm good on speakers, amplifiers, and players/streaming.

 

[jayn_j]

I'm still happy enough with my 15" Velodyne sub. Also my Onkyo 806 receiver. I know that there is better stuff out there now, but I tend to wait for something that is really compelling. Too much to spend my $$ on as it is.

I do look forward to hearing reports on your progress though.

 

[raoul5788]

My home theater has been undergoing a heavy revamp the past few months. Gone are the JBL and Velodyne subwoofers, replaced by a pair of Polk 505 subs that I bought on Amazon for $400 for both. The Onkyo 805 avr which was getting old and tired, is on the scrap heap, replaced by a Pioneer Elite SC-72. Got a great deal from Amazon - $820. DirectV main unit was replaced with a Genie. PS3 and a Pioneer universal disc players are out, replaced with a Sony bluray s5100. PS3 went to my youngest son's room. Added Netflix and spotify, and I'm good for the foreseeable future. Speakers are still Magnepan. Those aren't going anywhere. They're still dollar for dollar the best speakers on the planet.

Which model of Magnapans? I haven't listened to any for several years. I remember them having outstanding soundstaging and imaging.

 

[John Kotches]

Magnepans are great speakers, their only big "flaw" is that they aren't going to be uber-loud i.e. I wouldn't want to use them for a frat party Oh, and with their 4ohm impedance an amplifier that can deliver current is ideal.

Would love the 3.7s but alas my budget ain't near what it used to be

 

[dfergie]

I've been eyeballing the Pioneers on sale this week at Amazon, along with some Polk speakers...

 

[Paul Wozniak]

Magnepans are great speakers, their only big "flaw" is that they aren't going to be uber-loud i.e. I wouldn't want to use them for a frat party Oh, and with their 4ohm impedance an amplifier that can deliver current is ideal.

Would love the 3.7s but alas my budget ain't near what it used to be

I wish I had the room and the budget for 3.7's. As for loud, well I listen plenty loud, and that has never been a problem. Especially if you ask my wife. The Pioneer Elite SC-72 was my choice because of its 4 ohm capability. I'm still playing with the mcacc sound correction. It's a very versatile piece of software. Plus the sound of the receiver changed significantly since I purchased it,as it burned in. The sound initially was a little thin, but has warmed up considerably in the first month. The mcacc allows for a considerable amount of tweeking, and I haven't had the time to play. The android app for the unit on my phone is actually a better and easier remote to use than the remote that came with it.
Besides the much needed 4 ohm drive capability, another reason for buying the SC-72, was the class d amplification, that runs extremely cool. My last receiver was an Onkyo 805, that ran rather warm, and I suspect was burning out my video boards. I expect that durability will be a non- issue. My receiver is on 10 hours minimum.
Bottom line: highly recommended.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

Which model of Magnapans? I haven't listened to any for several years. I remember them having outstanding soundstaging and imaging.

Sorry this took so long.
My mains are MC-1's. The surrounds are MMGW' s. The center is a MMGC. The MC-1's are a huge step up from the surrounds, and worth the extra $200 a pair.
Subwoofers are a necessity, as they are a little light in the bass region.
As I said before, dollar for dollar, they may be the greatest bargain in audio. They throw a huge seamless soundstage, with a lot of depth and are remarkably accurate. The sound graphs on my receiver show only slight eq adjustments. They sound more like music than anything else I have owned.
If you have the $2000 entry fee, and the space, take a listen to the 1.7's. I previously owned 1.6's (until somebody "borrowed" them), and they were incredible. The 1.7's, which I heard recently are a remarkable improvement. Nothing touches them at that price point, or up to a couple K more, for that matter.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

I'm still happy enough with my 15" Velodyne sub. Also my Onkyo 806 receiver. I know that there is better stuff out there now, but I tend to wait for something that is really compelling. Too much to spend my $$ on as it is.

I do look forward to hearing reports on your progress though.

I wish I could have afforded new Velodynes. Fantastic subs, but I'm a huge believer in the 2 sub system, therefore putting Velodyne out of my realm of affordability. The Polls have been a very pleasant compromise.