surround sound speakers?

rallyshark

Hey guys, I was wanting to get a suggestion on small surround speakers. I currently have sony HTIB speakers and sub. I know sony isn't the best when it comes to speakers. They are from one of sony's higher end HTIB(actually have wood cabinets). They are all on mounts, and I want speakers that I can place in the same locations, so they can't be that big. It will all be driven with a marantz sr6003 FWIW. Anyway what would be a good upgrade from the sony speakers. Oh yeah, I'm running 6.1(single surround back). I haven't heard any of the polk ones, how are they? The speakers will mostly be used for HT. I use the 11ts for music. Ideas?

candjhuntley

So you're not interested in replacing the fronts? If you're looking to upgrade your sound, that's where i'd begin personally.

McLoki

+1.... When I went through a similar upgrade - this is how I went about it....

Already had an AVR (with the small polk RM-6600 speaker set).

Purchased what would be my rear speakers (direct radiating) and the center channel. (because the rears were much cheaper than fronts and that was what my budget would allow)

Ran the rear speakers as my fronts - ran the new center channel - ran my old polk RM speakers (similar to your HTiB speakers) as my rear speakers.

About a year later, I purchased my front speakers, moved my fronts to their intended rear speaker position and retired the Polk Rm series.

It worked out really well. There was a decent upgrade from improving the rear speakers, but If my budget constraints were the same - I would do it again.

If that does not answer your question - I must have missed it. Please re-state. (or if you have any new questions - throw them out there)

Michael

zx_toth

McLoki wrote: »

+1.... When I went through a similar upgrade - this is how I went about it....

Already had an AVR (with the small polk RM-6600 speaker set).

Purchased what would be my rear speakers (direct radiating) and the center channel. (because the rears were much cheaper than fronts and that was what my budget would allow)

Ran the rear speakers as my fronts - ran the new center channel - ran my old polk RM speakers (similar to your HTiB speakers) as my rear speakers.

About a year later, I purchased my front speakers, moved my fronts to their intended rear speaker position and retired the Polk Rm series.

It worked out really well. There was a decent upgrade from improving the rear speakers, but If my budget constraints were the same - I would do it again.

If that does not answer your question - I must have missed it. Please re-state. (or if you have any new questions - throw them out there)

Michael

McLoki: agreed, thats a nice way of doing things in a step wise fashion.

Rallyshack: What is your budget? This will help us know what to suggest i.e. RM series, R-series, Rti series, etc.

Look through the product lines on the Polk products page. Polk has nice speakers at every budget level and will all likely exceed your current speakers.

rallyshark

I'm sorry guys, I didn't explain properly. I run the 11ts on front B and only listen to them in 2 channel for music. When I listen to surround(movies), I do not use the polks. I use the sony speakers(center,front,left,surround left/right/back, and sub). I'm not nearly as picky about movies as I am music. I know I can improve the surround though. I know if I get a better sub(sealed maybe), It might actually integrate with the 11ts better. Right now, I don't use it with music, since the polks have plenty of bass for me. The sony speakers are very "peaky". You should see the eq after audyssey tries to compensate,lol! Does that make mor sense now?

zx_toth

rallyshark wrote: »

I'm sorry guys, I didn't explain properly. I run the 11ts on front B and only listen to them in 2 channel for music. When I listen to surround(movies), I do not use the polks. I use the sony speakers(center,front,left,surround left/right/back, and sub). I'm not nearly as picky about movies as I am music. I know I can improve the surround though. I know if I get a better sub(sealed maybe), It might actually integrate with the 11ts better. Right now, I don't use it with music, since the polks have plenty of bass for me. The sony speakers are very "peaky". You should see the eq after audyssey tries to compensate,lol! Does that make mor sense now?

Im still not sure what your budget is .... ?? Since your running them with your Marantz 6003, which by the way is a nice looking AVR, you could run some Rtia 1s or 3s with it for surrounds. It would be a shame to keep running those HTIB Sony speakers off of such a nice reciever.

Ive seen the Rtia1s go for 169.99-230$/pair on the Ebay Polk Direct Store. They pop up from time to time. They will destroy the Sony's you have.

Your AVR wouldnt drive 4 ohm speakers so the LSi series is out of the question and you mentioned you werent that picky. Since the RTia series can be had at a deal from time to time on Polk Direct and during various sales at Big Box stores I would go for them. The lower speaker lines (TSi, Monitor, etc) dont have very much price differential at times so I would just splurge the extra little bit for the Rtias and you'll be happy Im sure. All the reviews on them are very positive. And yes you will want to pair them with a sub.

Z

rallyshark

It's hard for me to put a number on my budget. It just depends on how much I make when I sell something again. I'm a technician and I get paid salary and that's what I budget for my bills and cost of living etc., but when I sell something, that's just gravy:D I could make $500 on one sale or $100, just depends on what I sell. I guess my budget is low as possible while still doing better than the sony satellites/sub. I've even considered building my own satellites/center, but that could be a can of worms since I can't just buy a xover and expect it to sound good in most cases. That would need to be tailored to the speakers, in which case, it can get exspensive and(or) over my head:( I don't need large speakers though. They only need to cover 100-150hz and up I figure. They do need to occupy the same locations(mounts) as well. I love the 11ts for music. I did the RDO swap and xover upgrade and am very pleased with the results. I do know the sonys are holding back the Marantz's potential. I hope that clarifies it a little more. I'm ready for any constructive criticism/advice. Thanks again guys!

Hillbilly61

You've gotta put a number on your budget. Otherwise, there are simply too many variables.

About the uncertainty on your end (how much you make on a sale, etc), my bank allows me to have free multiple accounts. My wife and I keep one for stashing cash for little stuff that we don't want to buy right away, but when we do, we pay cash. She's the "rebate queen" and it's nothing to deposit 20 $1 rebate checks at a time. That 'found' money adds up. Something like that might work for you concerning your speaker upgrade purchases.

jimsvm

what about the VM's.

zx_toth

xcapri79 wrote: »

Rallyshark, do you have any preferences regarding enclosure finish, color, floorstanding vs bookshelf, etc.? There are plenty of great choices but to help you, you need to narrow them down and provide an upper budget. The best way to improve your system is to upgrade your fronts and center as others have suggested.

I believe he is looking for book shelf speakers.


RallyShack: It sounds like you have four requirements to meet

1) money - you will need to create a realistic budget for these. Saving up for your speakers will tell you how much you are willing to spend. Saying as 'low as possible' is not helpful because low to you maybe high to someone else. We come from different backgrounds so I have no idea what low or high means in your mind. As an example, I spent $2500 on two amps in the past 1.5 years which I dont think to be too much but my best friend last night was interested in getting some tower speakers believing he would need some external amp power and asked me how much I spent on my amps. He nearly $h!t himself when I told him how much I spent while I didnt think it was a big deal ... and him and I make around the same income so its a matter of perspective and thus needs to be quantified.

2) Size - you will likely need to look at speakers in store to see the size that you find acceptable. Some people are surprised how BIG real bookshelf speakers can be compared to the dinky little HTIB 'cubes'. So this is a good step so you dont get shocked if you have them sent to you without seeing them in person.

3) Mountable on the stands you have: you will need to do your research into what mounting options those stands you have include (key hole, etc). Certain stands are rated for different speaker weights, this one designed for some HTIB cube speakers may not be appropriate for larger bookshelf speakers. You will need to look into this.

4) Sound quality - it sounds like you want better quality than your current surrounds but you are not too picky. This will again require you to listen to some speakers in person to see what level of sound upgrade you are willing to accept. The more sound quality increase you are going to hear is likely associated with increasing cost so you need to refer back to number 1.

Its not to give you a hard time or anything but you will need to do a bit more thinking or saving about the budget. Go in a store and see what sizes you are willing to accept and check out whether your stands will accept surrounds of certain weights sizes and see what price/sound ratio you are willing to accept.

Z

rallyshark

xcapri79 wrote: »

Yes and Newegg has the the VM20's on for a very good price.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290127
They are also available from Polk Direct.
I've seen VM30's go for about 1/3 of their list price.

Yep! I've been eyeing the vm 20 for a center and the vm10 for the rest. I think that would be a definite improvement over the sony stuff. I have to replace the center first and foremost as it is "custom" center that was built over a year ago with A LOT less knowledge than I currently posses. I'm limited on profile height as I don't want it to be too tall. I know there is no way that I can build a center that would match the VM20 for less money than the deal on newegg. It would also be good to finally have a timbre match on the surround sound. I will probably get the vm20 first and then the vm10 as the money comes in for the rest of the surround. Do you guys think that is a good strategy? I really appreciate your imput guys!

zx_toth

rallyshark wrote: »

I will probably get the vm20 first and then the vm10 as the money comes in for the rest of the surround. Do you guys think that is a good strategy? I really appreciate your imput guys!

Many of us have had to do our purchases in steps because of cash flow, so your strategy makes sense to me. I did this back in the day with my Rms and am still in the process of finishing my LSi 5.1 system ... first came the LSi25s, much later came the LSiC and now on their way are my LSi 15s. So as you see, though it is hard to wait as the anticipation grows and you just want it to be done it is a valid way to build a system.

Z

cocoisaduck

About a year later, I purchased my front speakers, moved my fronts to their intended rear speaker position and retired the Polk Rm series.

candjhuntley

rallyshark wrote: »

Yep! I've been eyeing the vm 20 for a center and the vm10 for the rest. I think that would be a definite improvement over the sony stuff. I have to replace the center first and foremost as it is "custom" center that was built over a year ago with A LOT less knowledge than I currently posses. I'm limited on profile height as I don't want it to be too tall. I know there is no way that I can build a center that would match the VM20 for less money than the deal on newegg. It would also be good to finally have a timbre match on the surround sound. I will probably get the vm20 first and then the vm10 as the money comes in for the rest of the surround. Do you guys think that is a good strategy? I really appreciate your imput guys!

Compared to your Sony HTIB - yes - i believe this is a VERY sound strategy. If it weren't for my wife's insistence on listening to Dave Ramsey, i'd be following the same low budget plan and replacing my Klipsch Quintets (given from B-I-L - not bought). But as you stated before, a superior sub can make all the difference in the world as well. You may wish to start looking into subs also. Piecing together is fun, but can become agonizing for those of us who are impatient - sounds like you're not so much, which is great - and you should feel rewarded when your system is finished!