[chevelle]

If you are not keen on a HTIB. I suggest you get a floor standing speakers with network receiver. You can add other speakers later on to satisfy the home theater experience.

If you don't want hassles of wires, considering getting wireless speakers. It may not fit your budget of 15k but it sure will look pretty in your living room.

Samsung HTD6500W, Samsung HTD5500W are a few wireless HTIBs that you can find in your budget or may be a little over. You can find similar ones in LG, Sony and Panasonic. These HTIBs have wireless rear speakers so you don't have to run wires. The sound quality would be good, but if you are an audiophile, i had stay away from these. Not the best but very VFM.

Hope this helps.

Originally Posted by joslicx

Is there any case for buying a hifi system in these times?

wifey is hankering for sometime now to have a music system at home. We are not big time audiophiles so not considering too big an outlay. Now I am confused if I should go for a hifi system (Sony has some models from 7k till 25k) or a home theater.

I am thinking of keeping a budget cap of 15k. I have a Samsung 5 series LCD that I want to hook to the music system. I am bit reluctant about 5 channel system as it would mean some exposed wires in the drawing room :( will not be a pretty sight.

what are my options? Can any gurus help?

[isldhn]

Originally Posted by joslicx

Is there any case for buying a hifi system in these times?

wifey is hankering for sometime now to have a music system at home. We are not big time audiophiles so not considering too big an outlay. Now I am confused if I should go for a hifi system (Sony has some models from 7k till 25k) or a home theater.

I am thinking of keeping a budget cap of 15k. I have a Samsung 5 series LCD that I want to hook to the music system. I am bit reluctant about 5 channel system as it would mean some exposed wires in the drawing room :( will not be a pretty sight.

what are my options? Can any gurus help?

I had the same predicament. I have renovated my bedroom but forgot to give provision of wires for the HTS in the false ceiling. Now I want something to go with my Samsung plasma. I really am not into audio stuff, and would require a simple enough good sounding system. My room is also not that huge and measures 13' * 14' .
I was thinking of getting a sound bar to serve the purpose. Do you think it should be enough for my requirements. And which soundbar should I go for. I have read some good reviews about Yamaha. I was thinking on the lines of Samsung 450. Anyone got this particular model.

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by isldhn

I had the same predicament. I have renovated my bedroom but forgot to give provision of wires for the HTS in the false ceiling. Now I want something to go with my Samsung plasma. I really am not into audio stuff, and would require a simple enough good sounding system. My room is also not that huge and measures 13' * 14' .
I was thinking of getting a sound bar to serve the purpose. Do you think it should be enough for my requirements. And which soundbar should I go for. I have read some good reviews about Yamaha. I was thinking on the lines of Samsung 450. Anyone got this particular model.

If you would like a good sounding system for movies, games and music, a soundbar won't cut it. It may be able to produce a virtual surround sound but it is no match for a true 5.1 system.

I evaluated sound bar with woofer and didn't satisfy the movie experience i wanted. Even the games were no fun since i didn't enjoy the surround sound that one is use to hear when playing FPS games.

Get a 5.1 system with wireless rear speakers. That way you won't have to run wires in room and still get a good sound in limited budget. You can find these from Sony, LG, Samsung and Panasonic. Try them out, you will be surprised. They are not truly wireless, but good enough not to make you run those long wires. You can manage the clutter near the TV quite easily.

If you would like clean look of your living room, you will have to mount the speakers in wall and redo the wiring in false ceiling.

[isldhn]

Originally Posted by chevelle

If you would like a good sounding system for movies, games and music, a soundbar won't cut it. It may be able to produce a virtual surround sound but it is no match for a true 5.1 system.

I evaluated sound bar with woofer and didn't satisfy the movie experience i wanted. Even the games were no fun since i didn't enjoy the surround sound that one is use to hear when playing FPS games.

Get a 5.1 system with wireless rear speakers. That way you won't have to run wires in room and still get a good sound in limited budget. You can find these from Sony, LG, Samsung and Panasonic. Try them out, you will be surprised. They are not truly wireless, but good enough not to make you run those long wires. You can manage the clutter near the TV quite easily.

If you would like clean look of your living room, you will have to mount the speakers in wall and redo the wiring in false ceiling.

Do you think any 5.1 channel wireless HTS would fall in the budget of 15-20 grands. I wouldn't mind sacrificing the actual surround sound, as first of all I am not an audiophile, and secondly the room size is not that big. Just 13*13.
Moreover I like the aesthetic looks of a sound bar.

[mitrajdeep]

Hello Friends,

Need some help here.
I want to buy a Home Theater system and my budget is like 40,000.
I am really confused because I do not want one of HTIBs. I would like to have an AVR which is some what future ready and also has a USB in the front panel.
I would like to have a pair of tower speakers and a sub-woofer ( preferably powered ), also 3 small surround speakers.
Now can any one suggest a set up within my budget ?

Thanks and regards.

[alexanish]

I am afraid you may have to extend your budget a little bit more for such a combination. Yes, if you compromise on some of the criteria you may be able to match the budget. But the quality of sound may not be as expected. To start with, Denon has one of the best AVRs and only model 1713 onwards have USB and the cost some somewhere 35K. So an ideal value proposition is from Yamaha RX-V373, which is retailed around 29K. On top you can look for JBL SCS 200.5 (5.1 speaker package) which is about 20K. JBL may not sound the greatest if you compare with say, Paradigm Cinema 70CT at 33K or Energy take classic (not sure of pricing). The pricing may be a little bit high or low in your place and if you are able to bargain when you buy all these from same guy.

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by isldhn

Do you think any 5.1 channel wireless HTS would fall in the budget of 15-20 grands. I wouldn't mind sacrificing the actual surround sound, as first of all I am not an audiophile, and secondly the room size is not that big. Just 13*13.
Moreover I like the aesthetic looks of a sound bar.

Honestly, i am unaware of the pricing for HTS in India. In USA, wireless HTS are available for around $300-$500. So may be you can get something around 20k-25k if not for 15k. There is not huge difference in actual surround sound. Obviously you don't compare them to high end system, but for the price, they sound pretty much the same as wired ones.

I would advise you to visit stores and check them out and see if it fits your budget.

[Hells_Fury]

I got the following as the starting step for my HT:
- Denon AVR-1713 A/V receiver
- Polk Audio TSi400 follr standers

Next purchase will be the Polk Audio CS-20 center channel speaker.

[praful]

Folks any known places in Mumbai for one stops home theatre needs? Something in or at least closer to South Mumbai?

Looking to setup am entry level setup for my folks place.

[Tommie]

Folks,
I am looking for a Hometheater system for my new Samsung LED Smart 3D TV. I have been using an old Philips 5.1 DVD home theater system for all this while. I would like to connect my Bluray player, WD TV Live Hub, Sony PS 3 into the receiver. The receiver that I found closest to my requirements is Denon 1913(Eventhough it is not launched in India). My budget is preferrably INR 50K, can extend it to INR 1Lakh, if I can find a future proof system which will meet the needs for the next 5-6 years.

Here are my requirements:
1. Room Size: 12x13 Living Room with heavy furniture and one side balcony window
2. Receiver:
- 5.1 Amp (7.1 is preferrable for bi-amping the front speakers)
- Should have atleast 4 HDMI inputs
- Should have 2 HDMI outputs (preferrable)
- Should have 2 Optical sound inputs (preferrable)
- Should support 1080p upscaling (MUST)
- Should support various 3D formats
- Should have full fledged Airplay feature
- Should have support for WiFi (not too expensive additional plugin)
- Should be good for Music as well (English-Rock)
My current preference is Denon AVR 1913. However, it is not available in India. The US price
is $525 and hence would prefer a budget around it with any other equivalant models
3. Speakers:
a) Front L+R Speakers: I have space for tower speakers on the front and since I am music listener, I would prefer to have a good 3 way tower speakers which can play on Stereo mode with good Bass & Treble effects.I listed to Focus Chorus 716/726(too expensive) and liked it a lot, which was much better than KEF Q series (sounded like 30 year old box) and PolkAudio TSi (Sounded too noisy).
b) Center Speaker: I would need a smaller box which is probably light and size of the standard Sony/Pioneer hometheater center speaker.
c) Rear L+R Speakers: I would need smaller box which could be hung on the walls.
d) Sub Woofer: Preferrably not a too big one(10/12 inch downfiring was being preferred), but should take a good load and should not 'Jar' at high volumes.

Any recommendations on the brand, model, price and the seller details around Bangalore?

[mitrajdeep]

Hello Friends,

People from Delhi,Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad interested in buying Onkyo , Nautilus , Klipsh etc. products look up http://www.onkyoindia.com/.

They have an ' unbelievable but true ' sale going on.

I am in no way promoting this and also not connected with them. This is for information only.

[sandeepmohan]

What is the word on the LG BH7220 htib? The spec chart is most impressive in the 20k bracket of htib's which is all I want to spend. What interested me the most was HDMI inputs and a 2 way speaker system. I require HD format audio decoding too. I am not bothered about how many thousands of watts they claim, as long as those watts are delivered with clarity is all I care about, not loudness. I heard the Onkyo HT-S3500 and it was terrible sound for the money. A 19K Philips DVD Htib sounded so much better.

[Blue Thunder]

Originally Posted by mitrajdeep

...People from Delhi,Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad interested in buying Onkyo , Nautilus , Klipsh etc. products look up http://www.onkyoindia.com/.

They have an ' unbelievable but true ' sale going on.
...

Thanks for the info, mitrajdeep !

I called up the Chennai branch, and came to know it is the sale of the demo/showroom units. I will be trying to visit them over the weekend to see if it is worth a try.

[Tommie]

Originally Posted by mitrajdeep

Hello Friends,

People from Delhi,Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad interested in buying Onkyo , Nautilus , Klipsh etc. products look up http://www.onkyoindia.com/.

They have an ' unbelievable but true ' sale going on.

I am in no way promoting this and also not connected with them. This is for information only.

I am unable to find anything on the Onkyo website. they want me to write to them separately in an email. This is heights of promotion.

[NPV]

Originally Posted by Tommie

Folks,
I am looking for a Hometheater system for my new Samsung LED Smart 3D TV. I have been using an old Philips 5.1 DVD home theater system for all this while. I would like to connect my Bluray player, WD TV Live Hub, Sony PS 3 into the receiver. The receiver that I found closest to my requirements is Denon 1913(Eventhough it is not launched in India). My budget is preferrably INR 50K, can extend it to INR 1Lakh, if I can find a future proof system which will meet the needs for the next 5-6 years.
....
Any recommendations on the brand, model, price and the seller details around Bangalore?

@Tommie, some suggestions/pointers:
AVR - Onkyo NR709 is good, being the outgoing model from last year may get you some great deals. You can look up the specs, will mostly match/better your requirements (except Airplay).
On speakers, you're spot on - Focal 726 is just awesome, that's what I got as well. But also keep in mind these speakers do not support Bi-amping.
Do you have a specific budget in mind for the speakers ?