First system
mcphatty00
Posts: 47
in Speakers
So, I'm a bit late to the party. This is the first time I've set up an audio system. I'm just looking for some opinions. Here's what I've got. All second hand and what I paid:
Onkyo HT-R510 6.1 $50
2 Monitor 40s $50
CS245i $25
2 Monitor 30s $40
CS1 $35
PSW350 $40
Having just gone through a divorce, I was on a pretty strict budget.
Onkyo HT-R510 6.1 $50
2 Monitor 40s $50
CS245i $25
2 Monitor 30s $40
CS1 $35
PSW350 $40
Having just gone through a divorce, I was on a pretty strict budget.
Comments
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Looks like a really nice setup for the money! That’s a lot like my first setup from about 15 years ago but I paid over $500 for it! Obviously lots you could do to improve it, but my main rec would be to save your pennies for a newer AVR with HDMI, maybe something like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-AVENTAGE-RX-A700-7-1-Natural-Av-Channel-230-Watt-Receiver/174269417873?hash=item2893444991:g:kQwAAOSwooxepG2CLiving Room 2.2: Usher BE-718 "tiny dancers"; Dual DIY Dayton audio RSS210HF-4 Subs with Dayton SPA-250 amps; Arcam SA30; Musical Fidelity A308; Sony UBP-x1000es
Game Room 5.1.4: Denon AVR-X4200w; Sony UBP-x700; Definitive Technology Power Monitor 900 mains, CLR-3000 center, StudioMonitor 350 surrounds, ProMonitor 800 atmos x4; Sub - Monoprice Monolith 15in THX Ultra
Bedroom 2.1 Harmon Kardon HK3490; Bluesounds Node N130; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer -
hello and welcome to the forum, mcphatty00.
Tom~ In search of accurate reproduction of music. Real sound is my reference and while perfection may not be attainable? If I chase it, I might just catch excellence. ~ -
I'll tell ya what, Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace were my saviors. I found all but the CS1 on those two places, which I got on eBay and was stunned I got it that low.
I'm particularly fond of the ability to have a rear center channel. All of the speakers look like new. The sub has a few nicks and bruises, but the space I have this in isn't particularly large. -
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Looks like a really nice setup for the money! That’s a lot like my first setup from about 15 years ago but I paid over $500 for it! Obviously lots you could do to improve it, but my main rec would be to save your pennies for a newer AVR with HDMI, maybe something like this: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Yamaha-AVENTAGE-RX-A700-7-1-Natural-Av-Channel-230-Watt-Receiver/174269417873?hash=item2893444991:g:kQwAAOSwooxepG2C
Yeah, this unit will do the trick, for now. You're probably correct. -
Welcome. Good new start. What are your sources? Hope you have a CD player, turntable, tape deck...
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aprazer402 wrote: »Welcome. Good new start. What are your sources? Hope you have a CD player, turntable, tape deck...
I don't have tape deck and turntable because I have neither tapes nor records. I do have a Sony DVD that I use for the hundreds of CDs I have. I use an optical for it. The other sources are a Belkin Songstream HD with a digital coax and the optical out from the television. -
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I live in the loft of a 200 year old building, so the rooms are all a little oddly shaped.
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You need speaker stands.Political Correctness'.........defined
"A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."
President of Club Polk -
Your front speakers would sound a lot better on stands: I was shocked when I first heard the difference! You can build some decent ones for cheap if you have the skills and the tools, but I’m guessing in a loft you don’t have the latter...Living Room 2.2: Usher BE-718 "tiny dancers"; Dual DIY Dayton audio RSS210HF-4 Subs with Dayton SPA-250 amps; Arcam SA30; Musical Fidelity A308; Sony UBP-x1000es
Game Room 5.1.4: Denon AVR-X4200w; Sony UBP-x700; Definitive Technology Power Monitor 900 mains, CLR-3000 center, StudioMonitor 350 surrounds, ProMonitor 800 atmos x4; Sub - Monoprice Monolith 15in THX Ultra
Bedroom 2.1 Harmon Kardon HK3490; Bluesounds Node N130; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer -
Looks like you've got most everything covered. That's a good little system you've pulled together there. I used a similar Bluetooth receiver for a while before I got a Squeezebox Touch.
That space seems kind of cool. Loft in a 200yr old building, you say? Where is that?I disabled signatures. -
Welcome! I just started here to.
Looks great to me. You did a damn fine job putting that together for all the more money you spent. Your system reminds me of mine that I had been using for years. I agree you need something to raise your 40's up some. It will make a world of difference. I had been using a couple of old Sansui monkey coffins for stands for years in my main system. But yeah just what ever works. While you are at it I would lower the 30's to ear level on a couple of stands as well. Put them at the same height as the 40's and you'll be golden. -
I'm working on getting stands for the 40s and the 30s. The 30 on the left could have been on a side wall, but the other couldn't, so I chose to mount both until I locate good stands for them.
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Looks like you've got most everything covered. That's a good little system you've pulled together there. I used a similar Bluetooth receiver for a while before I got a Squeezebox Touch.
That space seems kind of cool. Loft in a 200yr old building, you say? Where is that?
It's in Bellefonte, PA. A little less than 15 minutes north of State College. -
I see the specs for the sub show the lower level of freq. response at 38Hz with a -3dB qualifier. You might want a sub that goes lower. You've done great for the money so far though. https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/read/25421479/psw350-owners-manual-polk-audio
Welcome!George / NJ
Polk 7B main speakers, std. mods+ (1979, orig owner)
Martin Logan Dynamo sub w/6ft 14awg Power Cord
Onkyo A-8017 integrated
Logitech Squeezebox Touch Streamer w/EDO applet
iFi nano iDSD DAC
iPurifier3
iDefender w/ iPower PS
Custom Steve Wilson 1m UPOCC Interconnect
iFi Mercury 0.5m OFHC continuous cast copper USB cable
Custom Ribbon Speaker Cables, 5ft long, 4N Copper, 14awg, ultra low inductance
Custom Vibration Isolation Speaker Stands and Sub Platform -
mcphatty00 wrote: »I'm working on getting stands for the 40s and the 30s. The 30 on the left could have been on a side wall, but the other couldn't, so I chose to mount both until I locate good stands for them.
If you're a bit crafty and you have a saw, I made my stands with three 1x6s and two big sheets of MDF per speaker. Very sturdy, They look pretty nice (At least, they would if I ever got around to painting/finishing them
) and a huge improvement over leaving them on my desk. I had materials for both from Home Depot (or Lowe's, can't remember now) for under $40.
I can post some pictures later today. But currently, that would require going upstairs
Welcome to the forum!
-Micah -
I have the opportunity to get 2 Monitor 60's for $200. Would it be worth it to swap those for the 40's up front and swap the 40's for the 30's in the surround spots?
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Personally I'd focus on obtaining stands and working with what you got.
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$240 for that system??? Seems like a crazy good deal to me. Congrats and well done!!
Also, I agree on the stands recommendation.Things work out best for those who make the best of the way things work out.-John Wooden -
After walking around Home Depot for 2 hours, this is what I landed at.
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You made stands - cool, dude.
When you get a chance, see if you can get a bag of Play Sand (not paving sand), or a big bag of rice or kitty litter from the grocery store to fill the pipes. Mass loading will make them a little sturdier and can tighten up the speaker response, make them a little cleaner sounding.
(do not cook the rice
) I disabled signatures. -
Excellent job!Living Room 2.2: Usher BE-718 "tiny dancers"; Dual DIY Dayton audio RSS210HF-4 Subs with Dayton SPA-250 amps; Arcam SA30; Musical Fidelity A308; Sony UBP-x1000es
Game Room 5.1.4: Denon AVR-X4200w; Sony UBP-x700; Definitive Technology Power Monitor 900 mains, CLR-3000 center, StudioMonitor 350 surrounds, ProMonitor 800 atmos x4; Sub - Monoprice Monolith 15in THX Ultra
Bedroom 2.1 Harmon Kardon HK3490; Bluesounds Node N130; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer -
It definitely makes a difference. I was surprised how easy it was to just walk through a hardware store and figure it out.
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You made stands - cool, dude.
When you get a chance, see if you can get a bag of Play Sand (not paving sand), or a big bag of rice or kitty litter from the grocery store to fill the pipes. Mass loading will make them a little sturdier and can tighten up the speaker response, make them a little cleaner sounding.
(do not cook the rice )
I'm not really sure how I would fill the tubes. I do have a bag of sand, just by chance. -
I also have a set of stands coming to get the 30's in the proper position.
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I'm just thinking more on this.mcphatty00 wrote: »You made stands - cool, dude.
When you get a chance, see if you can get a bag of Play Sand (not paving sand), or a big bag of rice or kitty litter from the grocery store to fill the pipes. Mass loading will make them a little sturdier and can tighten up the speaker response, make them a little cleaner sounding.
(do not cook the rice )
I'm not really sure how I would fill the tubes. I do have a bag of sand, just by chance.
To fill the tubes, normally you assemble either the top or bottom, fill the tube(s) through the unassembled side, then complete the assembly.
In this case, you would probably just remove your top plate, fill the tubes, then screw the top plate back on.
Now that I think about it, though, it might not be such a great idea. It would make the stands difficult to move - you'd have to be sure to remove the speaker, and lift the stand from the bottom plate so as not to risk pulling them apart? PVC glue is meant to seal and withstand water pressure, but I'm not sure how it would stand up in an instance like this. You could try it, though.I disabled signatures. -
Just looking at the stands, I would have sworn they were too tall, but I would have been wrong. Those look great next to the TV.
Nice job!
The reflection in the next to last picture almost looks as if the TV is on😁Things work out best for those who make the best of the way things work out.-John Wooden -
I would say if you have some lead shot, it'd be a good idea to mix some with the sand and fill the bottom 1/3 or so with the mixture, then fill the top with just sand. Play sand is definitely best as previously stated. The sand will fill the voids between lead shot. The greater the density, the lower the resonant frequency. Sand also dampens vibrational energy by dissipating it as heat when the granules vibrate against each other.George / NJ
Polk 7B main speakers, std. mods+ (1979, orig owner)
Martin Logan Dynamo sub w/6ft 14awg Power Cord
Onkyo A-8017 integrated
Logitech Squeezebox Touch Streamer w/EDO applet
iFi nano iDSD DAC
iPurifier3
iDefender w/ iPower PS
Custom Steve Wilson 1m UPOCC Interconnect
iFi Mercury 0.5m OFHC continuous cast copper USB cable
Custom Ribbon Speaker Cables, 5ft long, 4N Copper, 14awg, ultra low inductance
Custom Vibration Isolation Speaker Stands and Sub Platform
