Rt800i's born again.....however

begbie

New basement is coming into place so I need a new receiver. Initially I had planned for a 7.2 setup but I see receivers like Onkyo featuring Audyssey 9.2 and I happen to have another pair of rt800i's that I barely use.

Got me thinking if i should jump to 9.2 as wide fronts. However there's little room for the extra fronts. Less then 3 ft. and they come more forward into the room. Will the Audyssey setup calibrate these differences? Worth the upgrade to a 9.2 receiver or shop for a 7.2 receiver?

any help appreciated. thx

pics with wide fronts and without...see below

ps. yes I know my center channel presents a problem for the projection screen :eek:

kuntasensei

Audyssey would calibrate around that... but honestly, I don't know that you'd get much of a benefit from looking at your room. Personally, I didn't feel that Audyssey wides were necessary in my room, probably because my dipole side surrounds do a pretty good job of cross-channel front-to-side pans. And like me, you're running your mains widely spaced anyway due to your screen. That's why I'm running heights instead of wides (though I stick with DPL-IIz Height instead of Audyssey, though both sound nice).

I would focus more on getting a solid 7.1 receiver more than worry about 9.1 in that space. I mean, if you end up with a 9.1 receiver for the price, cool... You're covered if you ever want to do it. Honestly, I had no plan on using the extra channels when I got my Onkyo TX-NR1007, but I picked up a cheap pair of Monitor 30s out of curiosity and once I heard my rig with the heights in place, there was no going back. Ended up selling those Monitor 30s to a friend and snagging a used pair of RTi28s from here so my whole system matched.

begbie

Thx, I forgot to mention I have fx500i (dipole/bipole) for side side surrounds, Rc60i(ceiling) for back surrounds, and Velodyne cht12 sub for front and the Polk psw111 hiding behind the couch.

All are ready for either a 7.2 or 9.2 receiver.

kuntasensei

If it were my money, I'd stick with 7.1 and replace that PSW111 with something that goes a little deeper and with more authority.

begbie

Yes I'll probably end up replacing the psw111. It was used for the bedroom and transferred over for the time being. I thought about the butt-kicker transducer instead but not sure if that's a fad or not.

kuntasensei

I have a Buttkicker LFE under the couch... but it's no replacement for a good subwoofer. It adds a nice tactile response though, and is worth trying. The best way I can describe the effect is that it makes your couch feel like it's on a vibrating wood floor even if it's carpet on concrete (like my HT is). But still, there's no substitute for a solid subwoofer.

begbie

Would the Buttkicker ruin my couch or floors ? They offer "cups" for the couch legs as protection ?

thanks

kuntasensei

No, because you don't have to mount it directly onto your couch. They make a platform that you bolt it to, then set the couch on that platform. Then you can get vibration isolators to replace the feet of your couch as well, depending on how your couch is made. But still, focus on a solid subwoofer first.

begbie

Yes thanks for the input on the buttkicker- will consider down the road.

As for the sub, I've still got the Velodyne 12" which is no slouch. Replacing the 2nd sub isn't a priority (doesn't help cause of the wife factor) but who knows what I'm missing as I see there's many SVS fans out there.

For now, I've got my eyes set on the 9.2 Onkyo trx1009 receiver or anything of better value. :cool:

kuntasensei

I'm a fan of Onkyo, but I gotta say... if I was buying now, I'd probably roll with Denon instead. The Onkyos have been on a gradual slide in power since the x07 line, and it seems like the more they cram into them as far as features, the worse the actual power gets. If I went Onkyo now, I'd definitely budget in at least a 3-channel amp to go with it, depending on the room size. In your space, I guess the 1009 would be fine though.

begbie

Got the Onkyosaurus !!