Starting from scratch
Discussion
In a few months I'm looking to replace my old TV setup and start again from scratch, and I'd like to do a proper job of it - but I don't know a great deal about what I'll need. My current setup is an ageing Panasonic TXP42G10 with a Steljes Erato soundbar, with a Fire TV stick being the main source used. The Panny I bought on recommendations from here 9 years ago and it's lasted really well. Whilst I don't expect to get 9 years out of the next purchase I'd like to future proof as much as possible.
Budget is £1000 all in, although as I say I'm not rushing so I can wait for things like Prime Day or other deals that might come up.
I'd like to have an audio setup that will work as part of a multi-room setup that I can add to, but I'm not audiophile and don't need massive decibel levels - the main time I'll get to appreciate things is watching films when the kids are in bed. I'm usually pretty aware of volume levels so as not to p
s off the neighbours as well.
TV wise, I'm consider 55" and 4K/HDR, with the usual smart-gubbins you'd expect. I'm slowly adding to my smart home kit with cameras etc which I can view through the Fire TV; if everything is onboard on the TV that's a bonus. If it plays with SmartThings then even better.
TV wise, what should I be looking at? I'm really taken by the idea of the Ambilight tech on the Philips TV's but wonder whether it's just a novelty feature that'll wear off?
How should I divvy the budget - will £600 TV, £400 sound system work?
And home cinema setups - am I better buying an all-in-one 5.1 setup, or picking up things individually? I really don't know where to start having virtually no experience of amps/subs/speaker setups.
Budget is £1000 all in, although as I say I'm not rushing so I can wait for things like Prime Day or other deals that might come up.
I'd like to have an audio setup that will work as part of a multi-room setup that I can add to, but I'm not audiophile and don't need massive decibel levels - the main time I'll get to appreciate things is watching films when the kids are in bed. I'm usually pretty aware of volume levels so as not to p
s off the neighbours as well.TV wise, I'm consider 55" and 4K/HDR, with the usual smart-gubbins you'd expect. I'm slowly adding to my smart home kit with cameras etc which I can view through the Fire TV; if everything is onboard on the TV that's a bonus. If it plays with SmartThings then even better.
TV wise, what should I be looking at? I'm really taken by the idea of the Ambilight tech on the Philips TV's but wonder whether it's just a novelty feature that'll wear off?
How should I divvy the budget - will £600 TV, £400 sound system work?
And home cinema setups - am I better buying an all-in-one 5.1 setup, or picking up things individually? I really don't know where to start having virtually no experience of amps/subs/speaker setups.
hi there
If you're happy to go secondhand, you could look at AVFourms.co.uk and get some good stuff on there.
For instance there was someone selling some Kef 'egg' speakers excl the sub (so 5.0) for £150. there was someone else selling a Yamaha 667 (I think) for £150 which leaves you some money for cables but you'd need a sub too. I got a Wharfedale sub on there for £60 so bargains do come up.
That would be a great little starter system for you and the beauty of these modern AV amps are that they are versatile enough to become a hub i.e all sources go in via HDMI, they can upscale, different zones so you could have speakers in your bedroom or Kitchen etc, all app controllable.
we've never had it so good!
If you're happy to go secondhand, you could look at AVFourms.co.uk and get some good stuff on there.
For instance there was someone selling some Kef 'egg' speakers excl the sub (so 5.0) for £150. there was someone else selling a Yamaha 667 (I think) for £150 which leaves you some money for cables but you'd need a sub too. I got a Wharfedale sub on there for £60 so bargains do come up.
That would be a great little starter system for you and the beauty of these modern AV amps are that they are versatile enough to become a hub i.e all sources go in via HDMI, they can upscale, different zones so you could have speakers in your bedroom or Kitchen etc, all app controllable.
we've never had it so good!
I've spent far too much time looking at this stuff, and I've come up with a short list. How does this sound?
Samsung UE55MU7000 - hopefully on a deal for around £650.
Denon AVR-X1400H - currently around £300. That gives some useful support, HEOS, and is due to have Alexa added in Spring.
Denon SYS-2020 5.1 speakers - about £150. 100W sub, and some fairly inobtrusive speakers to dot around looks good to me but I'm open to alternative suggestions.
Nvidia Shield 4K for streaming - although I presume that the onboard apps on the Sammy would allow me to stream 4K Netflix/Amazon/iPlayer etc in the first.
I can then add HEOS 1 HS2 speakers for other rooms as and when funds allow
Does that look like a sensible setup?
Samsung UE55MU7000 - hopefully on a deal for around £650.
Denon AVR-X1400H - currently around £300. That gives some useful support, HEOS, and is due to have Alexa added in Spring.
Denon SYS-2020 5.1 speakers - about £150. 100W sub, and some fairly inobtrusive speakers to dot around looks good to me but I'm open to alternative suggestions.
Nvidia Shield 4K for streaming - although I presume that the onboard apps on the Sammy would allow me to stream 4K Netflix/Amazon/iPlayer etc in the first.
I can then add HEOS 1 HS2 speakers for other rooms as and when funds allow
Does that look like a sensible setup?
gizlaroc said:
Those speakers look absolute ste imho.
With your budget I would probably just look for a soundbar and sub, or at least buy the speakers used.
I'm moving towards the idea that I can upgrade the speakers over time. I'm after decent quality sound for home cinema purposes but without the sort of noise that'll carry, pte imho. With your budget I would probably just look for a soundbar and sub, or at least buy the speakers used.
s off the neighbours and wake the kids up. I'm not sold on the soundbar idea. What sort of budget would I need to look at for a 5.1 speaker bundle that'll do decent sound but at lower volume levels, and can you recommend anything specific?I'm okay with used speakers, but saying, "buy used," is basically meaningless to me - I don't know good used speakers from bad used speakers. If you've got any specific recommendations that'd be great, but obviously just looking through the classified section of AVForums etc isn't necessarily going to net me anything decent because I can't tell a bargain from a lemon.
Last time I bought new, a decent AV amp was £500+, 5.1 speakers a bit more (a half decent sub was £300).
Compare the secondhand prices to what you'd pay for the new equivalent. Denon, Marantz and Pioneer are good amps at fair prices, especially if it's a couple of years old. Arcam if you want domething British, but the early models are a bit limited for connections. Anything with plenty of HDMI inputs will work.
Look for UK made speakers, such as KEF, Monitor Audio, Quad, maybe Wharfedale?
Compare the secondhand prices to what you'd pay for the new equivalent. Denon, Marantz and Pioneer are good amps at fair prices, especially if it's a couple of years old. Arcam if you want domething British, but the early models are a bit limited for connections. Anything with plenty of HDMI inputs will work.
Look for UK made speakers, such as KEF, Monitor Audio, Quad, maybe Wharfedale?
If you're into low level listening, pay attention to the sensitivity spec of the speakers which will help with using lower powered amps and the speakers will generally retain good detail at low levels. Small satellite speakers generally mean that the sub ends up doing a lot of heavy lifting and trying to integrate the sub can be a pain in a normal room, not to mention more boom for the neighbours. So I would try and find speakers with good driver sizes (4 inch or more), so the sub is not doing a lot of work, and you get a nice and meaty midrange from the front/centre/rear speakers for a more immersive experience.
Edited by Dr Z on Saturday 10th February 20:06
tenohfive said:
I'm moving towards the idea that I can upgrade the speakers over time. I'm after decent quality sound for home cinema purposes but without the sort of noise that'll carry, ps off the neighbours and wake the kids up. I'm not sold on the soundbar idea. What sort of budget would I need to look at for a 5.1 speaker bundle that'll do decent sound but at lower volume levels, and can you recommend anything specific?
I'm okay with used speakers, but saying, "buy used," is basically meaningless to me - I don't know good used speakers from bad used speakers. If you've got any specific recommendations that'd be great, but obviously just looking through the classified section of AVForums etc isn't necessarily going to net me anything decent because I can't tell a bargain from a lemon.
Hi mtaes off the neighbours and wake the kids up. I'm not sold on the soundbar idea. What sort of budget would I need to look at for a 5.1 speaker bundle that'll do decent sound but at lower volume levels, and can you recommend anything specific?I'm okay with used speakers, but saying, "buy used," is basically meaningless to me - I don't know good used speakers from bad used speakers. If you've got any specific recommendations that'd be great, but obviously just looking through the classified section of AVForums etc isn't necessarily going to net me anything decent because I can't tell a bargain from a lemon.
Just saw your post on AVFroums and it has occurred to me that I have some Yamaha speakers (two sets of 5 - you can have one set) that can have for free (if you can get to Herts) as a starter package and you can use your money for a good sub before upgrading to better speakers as and when. You'd need brackets really but they're cheap enough of the speakers have screw holes if this works for.
Let me know if of interest.
Dr Z said:
If you're into low level listening, pay attention to the sensitivity spec of the speakers which will help with using lower powered amps and the speakers will generally retain good detail at low levels. Small satellite speakers generally mean that the sub ends up doing a lot of heavy lifting and trying to integrate the sub can be a pain in a normal room, not to mention more boom for the neighbours. So I would try and find speakers with good driver sizes (4 inch or more), so the sub is not doing a lot of work, and you get a nice and meaty midrange from the front/centre/rear speakers for a more immersive experience.
I would completely disagree with this. A sub with everything cut below 80hz going to the main speakers will be much easier to get working in most rooms, and will allow you to have a decent sound at lower listening levels.
The problem is, with the main speakers sat along a sidewall, as is the case in 90% of rooms, you tend to get a lot of bass boom around the 70hz point.
Having a sub off to one side or in the corners gets rid of this, so you can have a much flatter sound.
Plus, when listening at night you will get some weight, some warmth to the sound, where as you have to play your speakers quite loud to make them sound full, you will get that "ooh, better turn it down a bit" much more just using smaller speakers on their own.
tenohfive said:
I'm moving towards the idea that I can upgrade the speakers over time. I'm after decent quality sound for home cinema purposes but without the sort of noise that'll carry, ps off the neighbours and wake the kids up. I'm not sold on the soundbar idea. What sort of budget would I need to look at for a 5.1 speaker bundle that'll do decent sound but at lower volume levels, and can you recommend anything specific?
I'm okay with used speakers, but saying, "buy used," is basically meaningless to me - I don't know good used speakers from bad used speakers. If you've got any specific recommendations that'd be great, but obviously just looking through the classified section of AVForums etc isn't necessarily going to net me anything decent because I can't tell a bargain from a lemon.
When I said soundbar, I meant something like the Arcam Solo Soundbar and a BK sub. s off the neighbours and wake the kids up. I'm not sold on the soundbar idea. What sort of budget would I need to look at for a 5.1 speaker bundle that'll do decent sound but at lower volume levels, and can you recommend anything specific?I'm okay with used speakers, but saying, "buy used," is basically meaningless to me - I don't know good used speakers from bad used speakers. If you've got any specific recommendations that'd be great, but obviously just looking through the classified section of AVForums etc isn't necessarily going to net me anything decent because I can't tell a bargain from a lemon.
Not some cheap £300 sound bar that comes with a £25 sub.
That Arcam can be had for £250 now, down from £700.
If you want to go separates, what do you need from the amp?
Do you need Atmos etc.?
I would buy a last years model TV, one with 4 HDMI inputs, plug everything into that and then send the sound out to an older amp.
Try and find an old Arcam Solo Movie 5.1, can be picked up for £250 and sounds superb.
If you want used spekers I think the Mission 75 series are some of the best bargains of the moment, you can pick up 752 floorstanders for £100 now, 73 centre for £30 and 751 rears for around £100 too.
These will see off many speakers from B&W etc. up to £3000 for a set of 5.
Speakers simply haven't moved on in the last 40 years, not really.
But there are loads of decent amps for little money, I sold an Arcam AVR400 a few months back for £350, that is an £1800 av amp.
heisthegaffer said:
Hi mtae
Just saw your post on AVFroums and it has occurred to me that I have some Yamaha speakers (two sets of 5 - you can have one set) that can have for free (if you can get to Herts) as a starter package and you can use your money for a good sub before upgrading to better speakers as and when. You'd need brackets really but they're cheap enough of the speakers have screw holes if this works for.
Let me know if of interest.
That's a really generous offer, thanks. But I'm probably going to pickup some speakers today and having spent countless hours poring over different speakers, I'm pretty set on one of my top 3.Just saw your post on AVFroums and it has occurred to me that I have some Yamaha speakers (two sets of 5 - you can have one set) that can have for free (if you can get to Herts) as a starter package and you can use your money for a good sub before upgrading to better speakers as and when. You'd need brackets really but they're cheap enough of the speakers have screw holes if this works for.
Let me know if of interest.
For the benefit of the non-AVForums members - I've taken a slightly different route to that originally envisaged. For starters, instead of just sticking everything in the lounge I'm looking to put a separate room aside for this setup.
Secondly, I stumbled into the purchase of the amp first - a Denon AVR-X2400H which does HEOS multiroom, two HDMI outputs etc. And then budget creep kicked in...
Right now the shopping list looks something like this:
Denon AVR-X2400H AV Receiver
Fronts: either Monitor Audio Bronze 1's / Q Acoustics 3020's / Dali Spektor 2's.
Rears: either Monitor Audio Bronze 1's (or maybe FX, depending on the room) / Q Acoustics 3010's / Dali Spektor 1's.
Centre: whatever matches the above setup I go with.
Sub: BK Electronics P12300-SB or XLS200. Depends on space in the eventual room.
I do intend to go Atmos at some point, but those speakers will be the last part of the setup.
And some HEOS 1 HS2's dotted around the house for multi-room.
I'm also looking at a nVidia Shield streamer (although part of me is tempted towards Roku for auto switching.) I'll have my desktop PC in the same room though, so for console style gaming on the big screen it makes sense.
TV wise...I'm veering towards something cheap to tide me over (I fancy a Philips 55PUS6272 just to check out Ambilight at a low price) and then I'll aim for an OLED in a couple of years; depending on price drops over that time, either the LG B7 or something similar.
tenohfive said:
That's a really generous offer, thanks. But I'm probably going to pickup some speakers today and having spent countless hours poring over different speakers, I'm pretty set on one of my top 3.
For the benefit of the non-AVForums members - I've taken a slightly different route to that originally envisaged. For starters, instead of just sticking everything in the lounge I'm looking to put a separate room aside for this setup.
Secondly, I stumbled into the purchase of the amp first - a Denon AVR-X2400H which does HEOS multiroom, two HDMI outputs etc. And then budget creep kicked in...
Right now the shopping list looks something like this:
Denon AVR-X2400H AV Receiver
Fronts: either Monitor Audio Bronze 1's / Q Acoustics 3020's / Dali Spektor 2's.
Rears: either Monitor Audio Bronze 1's (or maybe FX, depending on the room) / Q Acoustics 3010's / Dali Spektor 1's.
Centre: whatever matches the above setup I go with.
Sub: BK Electronics P12300-SB or XLS200. Depends on space in the eventual room.
I do intend to go Atmos at some point, but those speakers will be the last part of the setup.
And some HEOS 1 HS2's dotted around the house for multi-room.
I'm also looking at a nVidia Shield streamer (although part of me is tempted towards Roku for auto switching.) I'll have my desktop PC in the same room though, so for console style gaming on the big screen it makes sense.
TV wise...I'm veering towards something cheap to tide me over (I fancy a Philips 55PUS6272 just to check out Ambilight at a low price) and then I'll aim for an OLED in a couple of years; depending on price drops over that time, either the LG B7 or something similar.
No problem mate, being honest the Yamahas are not a patch on your choices so you're wise to up the budget. For the benefit of the non-AVForums members - I've taken a slightly different route to that originally envisaged. For starters, instead of just sticking everything in the lounge I'm looking to put a separate room aside for this setup.
Secondly, I stumbled into the purchase of the amp first - a Denon AVR-X2400H which does HEOS multiroom, two HDMI outputs etc. And then budget creep kicked in...
Right now the shopping list looks something like this:
Denon AVR-X2400H AV Receiver
Fronts: either Monitor Audio Bronze 1's / Q Acoustics 3020's / Dali Spektor 2's.
Rears: either Monitor Audio Bronze 1's (or maybe FX, depending on the room) / Q Acoustics 3010's / Dali Spektor 1's.
Centre: whatever matches the above setup I go with.
Sub: BK Electronics P12300-SB or XLS200. Depends on space in the eventual room.
I do intend to go Atmos at some point, but those speakers will be the last part of the setup.
And some HEOS 1 HS2's dotted around the house for multi-room.
I'm also looking at a nVidia Shield streamer (although part of me is tempted towards Roku for auto switching.) I'll have my desktop PC in the same room though, so for console style gaming on the big screen it makes sense.
TV wise...I'm veering towards something cheap to tide me over (I fancy a Philips 55PUS6272 just to check out Ambilight at a low price) and then I'll aim for an OLED in a couple of years; depending on price drops over that time, either the LG B7 or something similar.
Enjoy and let us know how you get on.
gizlaroc said:
I would completely disagree with this.
A sub with everything cut below 80hz going to the main speakers will be much easier to get working in most rooms, and will allow you to have a decent sound at lower listening levels.
The problem is, with the main speakers sat along a sidewall, as is the case in 90% of rooms, you tend to get a lot of bass boom around the 70hz point.
Having a sub off to one side or in the corners gets rid of this, so you can have a much flatter sound.
Plus, when listening at night you will get some weight, some warmth to the sound, where as you have to play your speakers quite loud to make them sound full, you will get that "ooh, better turn it down a bit" much more just using smaller speakers on their own.
I'm not clear how that disagrees with what I said? Wasn't suggesting that the OP find slightly bigger speakers and play them full range.A sub with everything cut below 80hz going to the main speakers will be much easier to get working in most rooms, and will allow you to have a decent sound at lower listening levels.
The problem is, with the main speakers sat along a sidewall, as is the case in 90% of rooms, you tend to get a lot of bass boom around the 70hz point.
Having a sub off to one side or in the corners gets rid of this, so you can have a much flatter sound.
Plus, when listening at night you will get some weight, some warmth to the sound, where as you have to play your speakers quite loud to make them sound full, you will get that "ooh, better turn it down a bit" much more just using smaller speakers on their own.
You'd still need good frequency response down to 60-70Hz to set the crossover at 80Hz and expect to integrate well with the sub. Little 3inch drivers aren't going to give you that.
As for low level listening, I'm not sure it's simply a case of having to play loud--it's entirely dependent on speaker sensitivity, voicing/frequency response and the amp that's driving it. Some speakers need some volume behind them to sound good (related to sensitivity & voicing), try and listen to these speakers at low levels and the details simply disappear. Best to just demo with the amp and take it from there.
OP, you seem to be on the right track with putting a decent system together.
Thanks for the vote of confidence. When I first posted I had literally zero clue where I should go, but after countless hours scouring reviews, comparing specs and mostly just listening to the sage advice offered on several forums it seems I've found the solution - blow my entire home cinema budget on just the sound setup, the creep it up even more. And worry about a TV later 
I've currently got in front of me a pair of these:
https://www.monitoraudio.com/en/product-ranges/bro...
5 1/2" bass driver plus a 25mm tweeter. Just waiting on some cable to set them up, then I'll get Audyssey running on the amp.
I was of a mindset to have them as fronts and rears, but I've decided to keep an open mind for the future. Along with the X2400H they should tide me over as a 2.0 setup but it will all eventually be in a dedicated home cinema room. And I'd whilst I'd ruled out floorstanders due to size initially, seeing how discrete (size wise) the Bronze 5's are I'm keeping an open mind. Even if they are more expensive. I'll look at a demo nearer the time. And either way the Bronze 1's are going to be part of that setup - they should be perfect as rears if I do go for something more expressive at the front.
As I'm doing this in stages, could someone just confirm the order I've got planned for the next purchases - with the caveat being that if something on my wish list comes up on a sale, I'll grab it cheap whilst I can:
Current:
AVR
Front's
Next:
Sub
Centre
Rears
Atmos - ceiling firers or ceiling mounted (I'm guessing that the latter will project less noise upstairs when the kids are in bed?)
I just wasn't sure whether there was any case for getting the centre before the sub for the benefit of dialogue. I know I'll be able to afford it much sooner, but I don't really want that to be a deciding factor.
I've currently got in front of me a pair of these:
https://www.monitoraudio.com/en/product-ranges/bro...
5 1/2" bass driver plus a 25mm tweeter. Just waiting on some cable to set them up, then I'll get Audyssey running on the amp.
I was of a mindset to have them as fronts and rears, but I've decided to keep an open mind for the future. Along with the X2400H they should tide me over as a 2.0 setup but it will all eventually be in a dedicated home cinema room. And I'd whilst I'd ruled out floorstanders due to size initially, seeing how discrete (size wise) the Bronze 5's are I'm keeping an open mind. Even if they are more expensive. I'll look at a demo nearer the time. And either way the Bronze 1's are going to be part of that setup - they should be perfect as rears if I do go for something more expressive at the front.
As I'm doing this in stages, could someone just confirm the order I've got planned for the next purchases - with the caveat being that if something on my wish list comes up on a sale, I'll grab it cheap whilst I can:
Current:
AVR
Front's
Next:
Sub
Centre
Rears
Atmos - ceiling firers or ceiling mounted (I'm guessing that the latter will project less noise upstairs when the kids are in bed?)
I just wasn't sure whether there was any case for getting the centre before the sub for the benefit of dialogue. I know I'll be able to afford it much sooner, but I don't really want that to be a deciding factor.
Dr Z said:
I'm not clear how that disagrees with what I said? Wasn't suggesting that the OP find slightly bigger speakers and play them full range.
You'd still need good frequency response down to 60-70Hz to set the crossover at 80Hz and expect to integrate well with the sub. Little 3inch drivers aren't going to give you that.
As for low level listening, I'm not sure it's simply a case of having to play loud--it's entirely dependent on speaker sensitivity, voicing/frequency response and the amp that's driving it. Some speakers need some volume behind them to sound good (related to sensitivity & voicing), try and listen to these speakers at low levels and the details simply disappear. Best to just demo with the amp and take it from there.
OP, you seem to be on the right track with putting a decent system together.
Apologies. I completely misread what you put, I thought you were saying get a big speaker and forget the sub. You'd still need good frequency response down to 60-70Hz to set the crossover at 80Hz and expect to integrate well with the sub. Little 3inch drivers aren't going to give you that.
As for low level listening, I'm not sure it's simply a case of having to play loud--it's entirely dependent on speaker sensitivity, voicing/frequency response and the amp that's driving it. Some speakers need some volume behind them to sound good (related to sensitivity & voicing), try and listen to these speakers at low levels and the details simply disappear. Best to just demo with the amp and take it from there.
OP, you seem to be on the right track with putting a decent system together.
Yeah I agree, find a speaker that does 80hz well, something that only goes down to 100hz properly is hard to integrate.
Sorry!
Nice to see some budget creep!! 
I would always go sub before centre, unless you are sitting off centre, and in most UK rooms the XLS200 is a great sub.
I would be careful on the Philips TV, it uses an IPS panel, so blacks are terrible.
For that money look at a used OLED.
I have a 1080p 55EG910V and the 4K B6, and for 99% of viewing I think the 910 is the better display.
Occasionally with decent HDR the 4K one is better, but even when playing something that is 4k HDR on Netflix and playing the same thing on the 1080p panel next to it the difference is not massive.
I had a Sony 55ED9305 LCD, which is regarded as one of the best LCDs, and it does do somethings very well, sharp, great motion, lovely colours but....and it is a big but, it never looked as good as the 1080p OLED with anything, Sky, 4k, HDR...anything.
Until we get backlit displays with 1000s of zones it never will look as good, being able to control each pixel and do proper blacks is far more important than resolution and being able to go retina burning bright.
ANSI contrast is everything with a display, and when you look at the figures for the very best LCD displays out there like the ZD9, they are still under 5000:1, no better then sets from 5-6 years ago. Plasma were measuring 18000:1 10 years ago.
A screens ability to do contrast in a natural way is everything, or rather its inability to do contrast in a way that seems natural to us means it will never be a believable display.
Good friend of mine has just swapped his 4 year old OLED for a new Sony ZD9, to say he is gutted is an understatement. Like an idiot he sold the OLED before the Sony arrived.
I would always go sub before centre, unless you are sitting off centre, and in most UK rooms the XLS200 is a great sub.
I would be careful on the Philips TV, it uses an IPS panel, so blacks are terrible.
For that money look at a used OLED.
I have a 1080p 55EG910V and the 4K B6, and for 99% of viewing I think the 910 is the better display.
Occasionally with decent HDR the 4K one is better, but even when playing something that is 4k HDR on Netflix and playing the same thing on the 1080p panel next to it the difference is not massive.
I had a Sony 55ED9305 LCD, which is regarded as one of the best LCDs, and it does do somethings very well, sharp, great motion, lovely colours but....and it is a big but, it never looked as good as the 1080p OLED with anything, Sky, 4k, HDR...anything.
Until we get backlit displays with 1000s of zones it never will look as good, being able to control each pixel and do proper blacks is far more important than resolution and being able to go retina burning bright.
ANSI contrast is everything with a display, and when you look at the figures for the very best LCD displays out there like the ZD9, they are still under 5000:1, no better then sets from 5-6 years ago. Plasma were measuring 18000:1 10 years ago.
A screens ability to do contrast in a natural way is everything, or rather its inability to do contrast in a way that seems natural to us means it will never be a believable display.
Good friend of mine has just swapped his 4 year old OLED for a new Sony ZD9, to say he is gutted is an understatement. Like an idiot he sold the OLED before the Sony arrived.
BK seem to get a lot of love online for their subs, so they're definitely my go to for the next item on the list then.
I read reviews, move away from Philips then keep getting suckered back towards them by Ambilight. I'm a sucker for pretty colours, and there are a few half decent reviews of the 6272 from the likes of WH/Stuff. I'm still of a mindset to get something cheap-ish for the next TV - I need a lounge TV and a home cinema TV - before a proper upgrade in a couple of years. But I am tempted by 4K, and I'm guessing I'd struggle budget wise for a 4K capable OLED second hand?
I need to sit down in Richer Sounds or somewhere similar and compare face to face I think.
In other news, the Bronze 1's are now set up. I can't actually set them up properly - they're either side of a mantlepiece, and on the floor as they're a few mm too big to fit under where the TV is wall mounted. Right up against the wall too (although I've put the foam plugs in the back to compensate.) Oh, and they're too close together (i.e. no nice equilateral triangle as per the manual.) But I've run Audyssey and I'm happy. So far I've just been playing music (AAC 256kbps, which means not a lot to me) and I find it really strange walking around the room at quieter volumes and thinking, "it's good," then sitting down into the slot it's clearly aimed for and immediately noticing just how much of an improvement there is.
Ramping the volume really fills the room mind, without feeling like it's at an anti-social level. Just a really good, balanced, bassy composed sound without worrying about being anti-social. I'm really enjoying my music right now and feeling very happy with the purchases so far. And thinking, "if it sounds this good now, just wait until..."
I'm starting to see why people spend lots of pennies on this stuff.
I read reviews, move away from Philips then keep getting suckered back towards them by Ambilight. I'm a sucker for pretty colours, and there are a few half decent reviews of the 6272 from the likes of WH/Stuff. I'm still of a mindset to get something cheap-ish for the next TV - I need a lounge TV and a home cinema TV - before a proper upgrade in a couple of years. But I am tempted by 4K, and I'm guessing I'd struggle budget wise for a 4K capable OLED second hand?
I need to sit down in Richer Sounds or somewhere similar and compare face to face I think.
In other news, the Bronze 1's are now set up. I can't actually set them up properly - they're either side of a mantlepiece, and on the floor as they're a few mm too big to fit under where the TV is wall mounted. Right up against the wall too (although I've put the foam plugs in the back to compensate.) Oh, and they're too close together (i.e. no nice equilateral triangle as per the manual.) But I've run Audyssey and I'm happy. So far I've just been playing music (AAC 256kbps, which means not a lot to me) and I find it really strange walking around the room at quieter volumes and thinking, "it's good," then sitting down into the slot it's clearly aimed for and immediately noticing just how much of an improvement there is.
Ramping the volume really fills the room mind, without feeling like it's at an anti-social level. Just a really good, balanced, bassy composed sound without worrying about being anti-social. I'm really enjoying my music right now and feeling very happy with the purchases so far. And thinking, "if it sounds this good now, just wait until..."
I'm starting to see why people spend lots of pennies on this stuff.
Excellent! I guarantee, those speakers will encourage you to turn the volume up!
Obviously, I would re-run Audyssey when you've got the speakers setup properly. One thing you could try depending on the layout of your space is to run the calibration for the front row only (spots 1-3), you might find that the sound is a bit cleaner.
Obviously, I would re-run Audyssey when you've got the speakers setup properly. One thing you could try depending on the layout of your space is to run the calibration for the front row only (spots 1-3), you might find that the sound is a bit cleaner.
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