Hi,

I am in the process of building an extension at home at the moment , and the wife has given me the go-ahead to buy a complete new system for the new lounge (though she has no idea how much its going to cost yet).
So I would appretiate any product advice that anyone can offer as I'm a complete idiot when it comes to this sort of thing. The items I would like are a plasma TV either 42 or 50 inch, a DVD player or maybe DVD/R as long as the picture and sound quality is as good, an amp/reciever (dont really get what the difference is), a speaker system, and cabling. Oh and I already have sky+ so it would need to be compatable.
I don't really want to spend the earth, but I do want a very good spec. Once I get a general idea what its going to cost then I can say, well I can afford a little more here or less there perhaps.
The room size is about 5 metres by 5 metres (16.5ft square), and needs to be toddler friendly. I'm sure the best speakers will be floor standing and weigh a tonne, but I don't really want my daughter to hurt herself every other day when she pulls them over.
I am going to put trunking in the walls in each corner of the room and the centre rear to take the speaker cable, and the wall the plasma will go on will be false to hide the cables to it, and I already have a unit to go under the TV to take all the equipment.

So if you've made it this far thank you I know this is a long one, but I really do need the help.

Thanks in advance

Bloodybigtiger



P.S is there anything else I need to do at the build stage that will help

The LG DV2000 seems to be a good buy. its a DVD/VCR combo with DD5.1, dts and PL2. it also has an optical input for your sky+ box. it comes with speakers that produce great sound, have long cables and can be hung on the walls (not the sub woofer though). ive seen them in curry's for £300, over all it seems to be great value for money.

It might help a little to leave the floor covering up just incase you want to put wires under there.

[color=red]This may help : R1-DVD “Sound and Vision Home Theatre Tune-Up (HTT)”[/color]

[color=green]*** N.B. this DVD is “Region 1” Please check compatibility before ordering ***[/color]

Suggested Retail Price of HTT is $19.95 (UK£17.99)

USA Website : http://www.ovationsw.com/ - Clickable Link

UK Ordering Website : http://************/e8n9 - Clickable Link

List of Independent Reviews : http://************/e8jy - Clickable Link

For fuller explanation, see this post : forum.digitalspy.co.uk/ Home Theatre Tune-Up Original Post - Clickable Link

[color=red]Hope this has been of mild interest.... "ersking"
[/COLOR]

First of all - invest some time in deciding - if you are building a complete system from scratch, there are so many things to consider. I am currently finding this out. Have a look at www.avforums.com, and buy What Hi-Fi Sound and Vision. This is where I started, and you will be amazed how difficult the decision is for one component, let alone the whole system.

To start with, it sounds like you want a separate amp/speaker combo, and that the room will be used mainly for movies. Deciding that is a big factor - I wanted about 50/50 music and movies, which makes the choice completely different.

You could try out the new Yamaha RX-V440RDS amp, which is receiving excellent reviews at the moment. The Marantz 4300 or 5300 or also in the Yamaha's league in terms of price and quality, although they are a little more musical, less concentrated DVD playback. I went for a 5300 - it's superb. Sony DB1080 is another cracking amp. Going up the scale, have a look at the Denon 3803.

Speakers - given your description, I would suggest a sub/sat combo. Check out B&W VM1s or Kef KHT2001.2 packages - both use small satellite speakers with a subwoofer, and sound much better than you think they will. Mounting these on the wall will avoid any potential toddler collision issues. At least for a few years. If you want to look at separates, I went for the B&W 601/600/LCR60 series 3 combination, again, which suits music better than the sub/sat combos. The Mission Cinema M72 package is worth a look at the cheaper end of the scale of bookshelf packages - but there are loads to choose from if you want bookshelf or floorstanders.

DVD player - Anyone who is considering getting a plasma should have a look at the Harmon Kardon DV25 - it produces a progressive scan picture on both PAL and NTSC discs, as opposed to a normal interlaced picture. This should be compatible with your plasma. It can also rub shoulders with most £200 dedicated CD players in terms of spinning CDs in stereo. If you want to lower the budget, the Toshiba SD330 is a class budget DVD player, although if you're getting a plasma, get progressive scan on your dvd. You will notice the difference.

And the plasma - dunno. I've purposely avoided looking in to plasmas until I can afford one - but I hear the Pioneer PDP433-MXE is class, and Panasonic are bringing out a new range (series 6) of plasmas in the next month or so, which should be worth a look. I always liked the look of the panny TH-42PW5D, so I would hang around to see what the new ones are like.

Regards

Simon

thanks for your advice simon, your right I have started to get a head-ache thinking about the right equiptment, theres so much to choose from and theres only so many hours in the day to look. I am enjoying myself though. I'll take a look at your recomendations tomorrow, I'm knackered.

cheers ricky


oh and ersking thanks for the links, I'll check them out.

You really need professional advice in my view.

After reading various reviews, I installed my own home cinema system which is basically a 42 " rear projector TV, fed by quality DVD, S VHS and a Sky Digital box, with stereo and surround sound by a Sony 5.1 and DTS system...

It's very good, but if you are going to spend a lot of money, you need to get more advice.

Read the mags and talk to some dealers.

My next rig will have remote control over lighting and ambience, maybe you would want to think about that now...

But in saying that, even my fairly modest set up competes with our local multiplex -and there's no smell or noise from popcorn...

Go for it!

Here, here.

Plus you can watch what you want to when you want to. you can here everything from the slightest nuance of sound to the largest explosions. And you can watch that fab bit again and again by hitting the rewind button.

Jim,
Once I have decided what I want and a buget for my set up I will definatly seek professional advice, for one thing if I dont get someone in to set it up I'll always be wondering if I've done it correctly and if I can get it any better.

One more question.

My main expence is obviously going to be the plasma, but its going to be in the lounge which isnt going to be dedicated cinema room, it will probably be on for about 8 hours a day, (kids tv all day, eastenders and whatever other rubish is on in the evening).

Using it like this wont kill it in 12 months will it?

Heres a list of the items I like the look of so far

Marantz SR6300 amp/receiver
Keff KHT2005 speakers
I love the look of crane audio oceana's but unles I could physicaly bolt them to the floor there out of the question
PioneerDV-656A , Denon DVD 1600 (I havent really looked into DVD players properly yet but I wouldnt want to spend much more than £500).
Toshiba 42WP16 (only because of the review in the home cinema mag).
Hitachi CL42PD3000 (better price).

Cheers Ricky

Just spotted this.
http://www.av-sales.com/html/celestion_avr320e.html
Opinions????
Last edited by bloodybigtiger : 24-06-2003 at 14:53

Anyone got any info/oppinions on the longevity of Plasmas. From what I gather these things are made up of tiny fluorescent tubes to do the pixels. Since Fluorescnet tubes don't have a tendency to last long and light output fades pretty quickly I wonder if the same will apply to Plasmas. After all I wouldn't want to spend a few thou for a couple of years decent viewing when I can spend a lot less a an extremely good CRT that should last 5-10 or so.