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30 Posts
Mod's feel free to move this if in the wrong area.
Disclaimer:
I am not an audiophile by any means but I did put a good amount of time and research into this project. I received a lot of great feedback from people here as well so I figured I would post up my experience in case other people were going the same direction and wanted feedback.
Goals:
My main goal out of this was to get a great sounding home theatre system on a small budget. One of the biggest things I wanted was the pound you in the chest feeling from a good subwoofer. This was no easy task with the size room I was dealing with. In addition I wanted a clear, crisp sounding system that blended well with dialogue and action scenes.
Budget:
Initial budget - $1200
Actual Spent - ~$2726 (Only audio gear, about 300 more for wiring etc etc)
The Specs:
Front room with vaulted ceiling = 1500 Cubic Sq Feet
Opens to kitchen/living room = 6000 Cubic Sq Feet
Setups:
Original Setup
1x Sony receiver
2x PSB Tower T65
1x KLH sub
Experience
This setup sounded ok but wasn't close to the HT sound I wanted.
Initial Setup
1x Denon X-2000 receiver (bought on craiglist)
2x SVS Prime Satellites
2x SVS Prime Bookshelf's
1x Pb 1000 Sub
Experience
This setup sounded ok as well. IMO the bookshelf's actually sounded better the T65's I had before. This could of been because I didn't have a really high end receiver and my room was huge. Overall I was happy with the prime front and rears. The PB1000 sub was not a good match for the room. It did rattle the windows a bit as well and it seemed like the bass lingered longer than it should.
1st change made
Added
1x P-b 2000 Sub
Experience
I stacked the PB1000 and PB2000 prior to returing the PB1000 to see how they sounded. This came close to giving the amount of bass I wanted but it also rattled the windows heavily and had the same lingering issue as the pb1000 (just magnified with the extra sub).
2nd change made
Removed
1x Pb 1000 Sub
1x Pb 2000 Sub
Added
1x Rythmik fv15hp
Experience
This change made a HUGE difference. Prior to doing this I wasn't sure I could get a sub that would fit my needs in the room I was in. Once I hooked this up, I was very happy. It had a bit more bass than the setup above. The KEY point here though was how accurate the bass was. It was loud when it needed to be and cut off immediately once the noises ended on the movie. There is little no window rattling but it feels like it has more bass which was great/surprising at the same time.
Note- I considered the SVS PB-13 ultra at this well, but the cost was too much for my budget. From my research that is the apple to apple comparison between SVS and Rythmik.
3rd change made
Added
1x SVS Prime Center Channel
Experience
At this point I was pretty satisfied with the system and went back and forth on phantom vs a real center speaker. I was already over budget but it didn't stop me this time. I went for the center speaker and am glad I did. It made a difference but the best part for me is being able to adjust the center speaker only depending on the movie I am watching. I don't think you have to have this to have a good experience, but it was worth it to me.
Final change made
Removed
2x SVS Prime Bookshelf's
Added
2x SVS Ultra Bookshelf's
Experience
This was another one that likely wasn't necessary. I think there was a sound difference between the two, but if I was going to leave anything out, it would probably be this step. To be honest, at this point I was pretty far in and knew I wasn't going to be making another purchase for a long time. So I sprung for the Ultra's when they were on outlet at SVS. They do sound better IMO but the Primes already sounded great. The review below also had some impact on the upgrade: "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHSbb7M3qXg"
Final Thoughts
Overall, I am really happy with the set-up and wanted to thank all here for their help in getting it rolling. They system sounds excellent in the current room and I am sure it will sound even better in a smaller room cubic feet wise (likely later down the line). This was done over a few months, but one of the best parts was the ability to test things out. I highly recommedn trying it if you are on the fence. Both SVS and Rythmik were excellent to work with and I would highly recommend them to anyone looking.
Lastly would like to hear thoughts as to my cost versus what i could of gotten had I started with that budget. I am very happy with this and still think it's a pretty good deal but would be great to hear any other feedback now that it's done!
Disclaimer:
I am not an audiophile by any means but I did put a good amount of time and research into this project. I received a lot of great feedback from people here as well so I figured I would post up my experience in case other people were going the same direction and wanted feedback.
Goals:
My main goal out of this was to get a great sounding home theatre system on a small budget. One of the biggest things I wanted was the pound you in the chest feeling from a good subwoofer. This was no easy task with the size room I was dealing with. In addition I wanted a clear, crisp sounding system that blended well with dialogue and action scenes.
Budget:
Initial budget - $1200
Actual Spent - ~$2726 (Only audio gear, about 300 more for wiring etc etc)
The Specs:
Front room with vaulted ceiling = 1500 Cubic Sq Feet
Opens to kitchen/living room = 6000 Cubic Sq Feet
Setups:
Original Setup
1x Sony receiver
2x PSB Tower T65
1x KLH sub
Experience
This setup sounded ok but wasn't close to the HT sound I wanted.
Initial Setup
1x Denon X-2000 receiver (bought on craiglist)
2x SVS Prime Satellites
2x SVS Prime Bookshelf's
1x Pb 1000 Sub
Experience
This setup sounded ok as well. IMO the bookshelf's actually sounded better the T65's I had before. This could of been because I didn't have a really high end receiver and my room was huge. Overall I was happy with the prime front and rears. The PB1000 sub was not a good match for the room. It did rattle the windows a bit as well and it seemed like the bass lingered longer than it should.
1st change made
Added
1x P-b 2000 Sub
Experience
I stacked the PB1000 and PB2000 prior to returing the PB1000 to see how they sounded. This came close to giving the amount of bass I wanted but it also rattled the windows heavily and had the same lingering issue as the pb1000 (just magnified with the extra sub).
2nd change made
Removed
1x Pb 1000 Sub
1x Pb 2000 Sub
Added
1x Rythmik fv15hp
Experience
This change made a HUGE difference. Prior to doing this I wasn't sure I could get a sub that would fit my needs in the room I was in. Once I hooked this up, I was very happy. It had a bit more bass than the setup above. The KEY point here though was how accurate the bass was. It was loud when it needed to be and cut off immediately once the noises ended on the movie. There is little no window rattling but it feels like it has more bass which was great/surprising at the same time.
Note- I considered the SVS PB-13 ultra at this well, but the cost was too much for my budget. From my research that is the apple to apple comparison between SVS and Rythmik.
3rd change made
Added
1x SVS Prime Center Channel
Experience
At this point I was pretty satisfied with the system and went back and forth on phantom vs a real center speaker. I was already over budget but it didn't stop me this time. I went for the center speaker and am glad I did. It made a difference but the best part for me is being able to adjust the center speaker only depending on the movie I am watching. I don't think you have to have this to have a good experience, but it was worth it to me.
Final change made
Removed
2x SVS Prime Bookshelf's
Added
2x SVS Ultra Bookshelf's
Experience
This was another one that likely wasn't necessary. I think there was a sound difference between the two, but if I was going to leave anything out, it would probably be this step. To be honest, at this point I was pretty far in and knew I wasn't going to be making another purchase for a long time. So I sprung for the Ultra's when they were on outlet at SVS. They do sound better IMO but the Primes already sounded great. The review below also had some impact on the upgrade: "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHSbb7M3qXg"
Final Thoughts
Overall, I am really happy with the set-up and wanted to thank all here for their help in getting it rolling. They system sounds excellent in the current room and I am sure it will sound even better in a smaller room cubic feet wise (likely later down the line). This was done over a few months, but one of the best parts was the ability to test things out. I highly recommedn trying it if you are on the fence. Both SVS and Rythmik were excellent to work with and I would highly recommend them to anyone looking.
Lastly would like to hear thoughts as to my cost versus what i could of gotten had I started with that budget. I am very happy with this and still think it's a pretty good deal but would be great to hear any other feedback now that it's done!
