5.1 or 7.1 Lsi...

Snagglepuss1318

Crutchfield has an offer I don't think I can pass up. All their Lsi are on sale plus the free psw10 offer. Split it up into 4 orders and I get 4 ebay-able subs for my SVS Plus/2. Before I place my order I want to get some last minute input on 5.1 vs 7.1 Lsi. My plan is:

Lsi15 - Fronts
LsiC - Center
LsiFX - Surrounds
Lsi9 - Rears

Outlaw 990 PrePro/7700 Pwr Amp

My HT is 13.5' x 24'. Do I need the Lsi9s at the rear or is it overkill??

Also, anyone know of a comparable PrePro/Amp w/HDMI??

Pepi28

Go with the LSi7's for the rears if you can. I think the 9's would be overkill for a rear speaker.

Shizelbs

You can get away with the 7s no problem.

Snagglepuss1318

If I do go 7.1, which Im planning on im going to put up the extra $200 for the 9s. The question I have is how much better is 7.1 going to be over 5.1 Lsi?

MikeC78

There is never overkill will speakers! Get the most you can afford!

malikarshad

I'm very happy with my 5.1 LSi setup though I have a pair of Lsi7 for rears. If you are going to use Lsi9 only for rears then I would suggest go with Lsi7 or LSiFx.
But if you have plans to move it for 2-channel duty then go for Lsi9.
Either way it's killer setup.:)

pblanc

I tried LSi9s in the rear and felt they were wasted so I moved the LSi9s (both of them) front and center and put the LSiC in center back surround position and liked the sound a lot better. I think the LSiFX are great for surrounds and am using LSi15s as mains. I hear no difference between the 6.1 setup and the 7.1 setup, if anything the rear surround info sounds better coming from dead center. If you are set on a 7.1 system I would go with LSi7s for the rear surrounds. I would consider trying two LSi9s for the center channel though. If you use a single back surround you can power everything with a good 7 channel amp.

Snagglepuss1318

Why would I go w/a 7 over a 9?? Doesnt the 9 have just as much to offer as the 7 and then some?? If someone can explain WHY the 7s as rear channel would be better ill order the 7s right now... Thanks

MikeC78

If you have the power, get the 9's.

Sthrndream

i have the setup you're talking about. Note the amp. good setup;)

pblanc

I really don't hear a whole lot of audio info coming from the rear surrounds on the current digital 7.1 titles. I wouldn't recommend LSi7s over LSi9s for surrounds (I prefer the LSiFX) but for back surround speakers they have the following potential advantages over the LSi9s: 1. They are less expensive. 2. They are less intrusive. 3. They can more easily be wall-mounted using the power port brackets. 4. If used on stands, they are much less top-heavy. With the current 7.1 (really 6.1) audio titles, I don't think you give up much in terms of sound quality when used in rear surround position.

sickicw

If you are on a budget i would get a 5.1 setup and spend the extra money on a couple of good amps and a couple of dedicated 20 amp circuits. Or if you have the money, you couple go with something like sthrndream and get a sunfire amp or a couple of cheaper ones. I would also look into dedicated circuits any way you go.

reeltrouble1

I would do 7.1 over a 5.1.

Enjoy your new speaks, it is going to be a killer system.

RT1

Sami

How much are there in terms of 7.1 tracks? The new HD formats are going to be 5.1 as well so I don't really see the advantage of doing 7.1 over 5.1.

MikeC78

Most rooms you could never setup a 7.1 properly unless you have a dedicated theatre room.

Like Sami said, there aren't to many formats that can even do 7.1. Hell, does anyone know of any?

Mike

McLoki

MikeC78 wrote:

Like Sami said, there aren't to many formats that can even do 7.1. Hell, does anyone know of any?

Mike

7.1 is actually 6.1 (the rear channel while using 2 speakers is a mono signal to each speaker). The following films all have a DTS 6.1 track in them. I don't have a list of the Dolby Digital 6.1 films avaiable (and doubt you would want to see it anyway) - also with Pro-LogicIIx it is supposed to modify all 5.1 signals to 6.1.

Michael

Alone in the Dark (Lions Gate) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Austin Powers in Goldmember (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Bad Taste: Limited Edition (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Beastmaster, The (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Blade 2 (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Blade Trinity (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Bones (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Butterfly Effect: Infinifilm, The (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Chicken Run (DreamWorks) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Contamination (Blue Underground) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Crash: Director's Cut (Lions Gate) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Dead and Buried (Blue Underground) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Devil's Rejects, The (Lions Gate) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Dirty Dancing Ultimate Edition (Artisan) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Domino (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Dumb and Dumber: Unrated Platinum Edition (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Evil Dead, The (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Final Countdown, The (Blue Undeground) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Final Destination 2 (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Final Destination 3: 2 Disc Thrill Ride Edition (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1 NEW
Fire and Ice (Blue Underground) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Ghost in the Shell: CE (Manga) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Gladiator (DreamWorks) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1 Discontinued
Haunting, The (DreamWorks) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Highlander (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Hills Have Eyes, The (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (Extended Version), The (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (Extended Version), The (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Extended Version), The (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Lord of War (Lions Gate) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1 NEW
Maniac (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Mask, The (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
My Brilliant Career (Blue Underground) DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Open Water (Lions Gate) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Opera (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Osterman Weekend, The (Artisan) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Q - The Winged Serpent (Blue Underground) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Running Man: SE, The (Artisan) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Running Scared (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1 NEW
Rush Hour 2: Infinifilm (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Saw: Special Edition (Lions Gate) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Seven (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Simone (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Standing in the Shadows of Motown (Artisan) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Stargate: Ultimate Edition (Artisan) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Starstruck (Blue Underground) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Stir of Echoes: SE (Artisan) DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Stunt Man: Limited Edition, The (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Suspiria (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Titanic: Special Collector's Edition (Paramount) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Top Gun: SE (Paramount) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Upside of Anger, The (New Line) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Venom (Blue Underground) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Vigilante (Elite) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1
Watcher in the Woods (Anchor Bay) 754kbps DTS-ES Discrete 6.1

MikeC78

Thanks Michael!

More than what I thought! I'll stick to my crappy 5.1, until I finish my HT room.

Mike

pblanc

Of the above titles I have the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Gladiator and a few Dolby Digital EX titles. The rear surround gives a little more enveloping sound with sound effects like howling winds, rainshowers, etc. Converting 5.1 to 6.1 with Pro-LogicIIx sounds a little different, not sure it sounds better. For me a single rear surround in a center postion sounds as good as a pair (maybe better). If your room is limited in size, or if you are on a budget, I don't think you give up much at all with 5.1 as opposed to 7.1. That's also why I think LSi7s are perfectly "good enough" for rear surround duty. I am using a rear center LSiC with good effect.

McLoki

MikeC78 wrote:

Thanks Michael!

More than what I thought! I'll stick to my crappy 5.1, until I finish my HT room.

Mike

Me too... (when you get back, you will see why 6.1 (or 7.1) would work well in my room though.... )

Michael

Holydoc

pblanc wrote:

For me a single rear surround in a center postion sounds as good as a pair (maybe better).

This is true if your rear speaker is set at a fairly good distance behind the listeners or you have a small, cozy room. However if the rear speaker is close to the listeners and you have several seating positions, you get too much localization with a single rear speaker (i.e, the sound can be determined to come from the rear left or right rather than directly behind you). 6.1 works great if you have a good distance between the listeners and the speaker else you will want a 7.1 system to prevent localization of the sound.

For instance in my room with a 6.1 system where seating is 6 across and the rear wall is 4 feet from the seating position, listeners sitting in seat 1 & 2 would hear the rear as behind and to the left of them, seat 3 & 4 would hear the rear as directly behind them, and seats 5 & 6 would hear the rear as behind and to their right. By changing to a 7.1 system, I was able to distribute the soundstage so that all seats hear the rear speakers as directly behind them as intended.

Snagglepuss1318

Has anyone mounted the Lsi9 as your rear channel to a wall? Im assuming I need to purchase a bracket as well. Or is mounting these a to a wall a "no-no" altogether?

Sami

I had 7's mounted on a wall. I made a plate from wood myself, bolted to the wall and had a screw for mounting the 7 in it. Do not put it straight into a wall unless you have supporting beam right at the spot.

McLoki

Snagglepuss1318 wrote:

Has anyone mounted the Lsi9 as your rear channel to a wall? Im assuming I need to purchase a bracket as well. Or is mounting these a to a wall a "no-no" altogether?

This is what you need.

I have them for my LSi7's and they work great. (and no - you cannot mount the LSi9's from the rear power-port, to heavy)

The btech mounts will handle the weight with no problem though and do look pretty nice. (You can see them in my showcase)

Michael