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Audio advice

post #1 of 10
2/18/12 at 1:36pm
Thread Starter 
So I'm moving into a new place and want to set up an audio system on the cheap. I have these things: a PC, a guitar amp (Fender Vibro Champ XD, 5W 4ohm), some game consoles (SNES to PS3), and a TV and I want to hook all of them up to the same speakers.

I have three sets of speakers:

Fisher STV-410M cabinet speakers
Bose 210 Series II wall speakers
Jensen cabinet speakers, unidentified (have two ten inch and one 3 inch speaker per cabinet)



So my question is... What speakers will give me the best sound quality, and what receiver could I hope to get on the cheap that will take HDMI, component, and 6.3mm (or 3.5mm I guess) inputs?

I'm afraid this may be impossible. Help?

I know it's not an uber-cool $5000 setup guys, but I really need some advice on an AVR. And $400 is not "cheap".
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post #2 of 10
2/18/12 at 4:30pm
You know better than to bump early. tongue.gif

I'd be looking for a craigslist receiver personally. Look around for Yamaha, Denon, Harmon Kardon, or a Pioneer receiver (probably in that order). With that many inputs, you'll NEED a receiver.

As for the speakers...use whichever ones sound better to you. I have a feeling the Jensens will sound a little bit better, but that's just a guess.
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post #3 of 10
2/19/12 at 1:08pm
Thread Starter 
Well the problem is that I don't have a receiver, so I can't connect anything to the speakers, so I can't see how they sound, and I'm moving and can only take so much stuff and not three separate pairs of speakers... tongue.gif

Also the problem with Craigslist receivers is that the vast majority are pre-digital or at least pre-HDMI, and I need it to support HDMI.


Here's what I'm going to need in terms of AVR I/O:

Inputs:
2x HDMI
3x Component
1x 1/4" OR 3.5mm jack

Outputs:
1x HDMI
1x Component
speaker (capable of driving ~200W @8ohm)



Sound quality is not ENORMOUSLY important, but someone here should at least know of one or two above average units as far as budget AVRs go.
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post #4 of 10
2/19/12 at 1:12pm
I'd recommend the same unit I've got then if you can find it (its an older model so should be cheaper now). I paid $199 for it at Tiger about a year ago. It's the Yamaha RX 467.

I'd wager to say the Jensen speakers will sound better...but without hearing all 3 pairs, I cannot tell you for sure. You'll have to get something so you can try them out before making a proper decision on the speakers.
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post #5 of 10
2/19/12 at 1:25pm
You can get a pretty nice receiver that has all the inputs you need and HDMI decoding..etc off Amazon for under $200. I'd invest in that before new speakers.

Amazon
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post #6 of 10
2/19/12 at 2:21pm
Thread Starter 
I figure I'll take the Jensens and the Bose (since they're small). Maybe I could make it a 4.0 setup? Maybe. tongue.gif


Thanks, I'll check out that Yamaha and others. Thanks!
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post #7 of 10
2/20/12 at 7:39pm
Thread Starter 
The 467 looks really good, but it doesn't look like it has a 1/4" or 3.5mm jack input.
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post #8 of 10
2/20/12 at 11:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Phaedrus2129 View Post

The 467 looks really good, but it doesn't look like it has a 1/4" or 3.5mm jack input.

In most cases that's just a line level connection anyways. Just use an adapter to go from the 1/4" to stereo RCA and it will connect to any receiver made in the last 4 billion years. Errr.. well, something like that.
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post #9 of 10
2/21/12 at 11:48am
Quote:
Originally Posted by mdocod View Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by Phaedrus2129 View Post

The 467 looks really good, but it doesn't look like it has a 1/4" or 3.5mm jack input.

In most cases that's just a line level connection anyways. Just use an adapter to go from the 1/4" to stereo RCA and it will connect to any receiver made in the last 4 billion years. Errr.. well, something like that.

This. 3.5mm to RCA jacks are usually like a buck or two at most at monoprice. That'll easily give you as many headphones inputs as you could possibly want (just buy more adapters). wink.gif
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post #10 of 10
2/21/12 at 11:53am
  • Schmuckley
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Jensen quadrecs? You could put any kind of speakers you want in those cabinets..
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