J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

I am new to the Home Cinema thing, well apaprt from buying an early Technics pro-logic amp about 12 years ago. The missus has insisted on a tiny (21 inch) tv for the living room so I have decided that the garage is ripe for conversion into a Home Cinema, its about 8*13 feet and is integral to the house. The first bit is to get it made habitable, move all the junk, put a proper floor in and sort all the mucky bits out (using this as an opportunity to do the wiring neatly)

So, the fun bit, what kit do you suggest, I am not after Audiophile ultimate quality here, big bang per buck stuff, no brand snobery or chasing the law of diminishing returns but its got to be powerful and last well, do it once and do it properly, no upgrades or messing about, put it in enjoy it, forget about buying magazines and fiddling with things.

I quite fancy a projector and see they have come down in price (800 quid ?) but other than that I dont have a clue, I aim to mount it on the ceiling.

How many speakers are required this week ? and whats the standard called, THX or Dolby Digital, will start doing the reading now but hoping for some pointers !

Sources, er well a dvd player of some sort, any point in getting something other than a proline at 30 quid, will I see a difference ?

I am thinking that 3 grand would do the kit element well, i.e. Projector, Screen, DVD, Speakers (inc Sub), brackets, Amp, cables, sundries etc etc or am I kidding myself ?

I promis to abide by the home cinema rule and bore anybody stupid enough to ask about it, then play them the start of Top Gun until their ears bleed or they beg for mercy.

corradoboy

As with all audio equipment, your ears are the best judge. As a starter, I can recommend Pioneer electronics, they are the front runners at the budget end.
My personal choices would be,
DVD - Pioneer 668 £530ish - Giving you every silver disc based format available (except blu-ray) inc. SACD/DVD-A/MP3 and HDMI connectivity, should you choose to get a Pioneer HDMI plasma.
Amp - Pioneer VSX912 £400ish - Giving Dolby Digital-EX and DTS-ES (the daddy, mmm), support for SACD and DVD-A and 7 speaker surround. I have the 811 and it's superb.
Screen - I don't know the first thing about projectors, but FWIW I'd go for a 42" plasma. The Pioneer HDMI's are too pricey at £4k+, but the Hitachi 3000 was on offer for £2k at Empire recently but seems to have gone now. Panasonic sixes can be had for around £2.5k now, but get JohnLewis to price match the best price you can find to benefit from their free 5yr guarantee.
Speakers - The minefield. I use my 17yr old Mission floorstanders and have added 2 pairs of surrounds and a centre from Mission but there are loads of packages available. If you go 7.1 with the Pioneer amps you will need centre as well as rear surrounds. For the mains you will need to decide on some large floorstanders or sat/subs, or floorstanders and a sub if you want to upset the whole street. I tried a sub but it didn't go any deeper or louder than my old Missions. If you go for the DVD/Amp I suggested and a projector at around £800, you should have £1.6k or so for speakers and cables (lots of cables ).
Of course, then you will need to start collecting the best versions of the best movies to show it off. Thats another £500 spent at least

Mr.Cookie

first glue six thousand egg trays to internal walls

Seriously though 6.1 is the standarrd at the mo, yes there are 7.1's and more but there all just gimicks, dolby ex is 6.1.

A few companies do refurb'd projectors have a look at home cinema choice they have some good links to people who've done similar and also have forums

Si

what would scooby do

On the speaker side B&W give a lot of bang for bucks - ideal for general music and boom boom films.. but you really have to audition the kit at a local specialist (not Dixons LOL) - pick the kit you enjoy listening to - not what's recommended in magazines..& yes it is a minefield - if you only lose a few toes you are doing well

dba

Jacko

I spent 3k,and got some great kit,but you wont get a projector or plasma

you can get 32" CRTs for £500 now,particularly if you go somehwere like Empire direct (i have shopped with them and can recommend them).

It might sound dafdt but start thinking about the lounge and wife first.Can you have big speakers for example? If not,if space and wife say otherwise,then Missions NXT FS2avs or Kefs Eggs might be a better option,also,can you fit a big table under the tele,or wil you need a second stand? if space is an issue you might want to choose smaller separates such as Teac 550,as an example

start with that first and work backwards,also you might need to fit a PS2 somewhere,a VHS and a digi box,so get the space right and agrees in advance

my missus woulnt have big speakers crowding the fire and tele,so i had to get NXTs that can be tucked away,

a sub can be stuck anwhere btw

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

So I could technically use some spare Hi-Fi speakers for the fronts ?

I have some Rega EL8's and sone Tanny 605's (Hexagonal things from the early 90's) ?


On the subjects of Plasma's, I get the impression that they are prone to being unreliable and the screen can burn, are there any downsides to a projector compared to a plasma, the projector seems to do the job cheaper and when its off its not hogging (much) space.

Mr Cookie, the eggbox thing isnt that daft an idea, any tips on improving acoustics are worth having. Are there any methods for keeping kids quiet or stopping women from moaning.

Corrado boy, thanks for that, I have a whole load of new acronyms to learn.

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

dba, have just spent 320 quid on a tv cabinet to house the mounting pile of boxes, its half full at the mo but to be honest our big telly looked stupid on it (Sony 29 inch) so the kids have got that in the other lounge. I want to have a sort of 'den' room where I can watch films with a decent sized picture and proper sound, no nick nacks, pictures, pot pourri, fireplaces, pianos, dogs, kids etc etc, No compromise on speaker placement, the living room is large and doesnt lend itself to speakers (plus I am not allowed)


Also, have seen projectors all over the place for a grand or less or are they just for people in suits giving powerpoint presentations to people bored out of their minds wondering why such a lovely bit of kit is wasted for such nonesense.

what would scooby do

Sell that product and you will make Bill Gates look like Ghandi

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

WWSD, Smith and Wesson got there first but their solution was a little final.

Mr.Cookie

J4CKO

If ya want the egg boxes gimmee a shout sonically it is a cracking idea , athesically it would prolly suck, in fairness you prbably will want to build some form of inner wall (all the ones i've seen have had) i'll try and hunt round for more links

Si

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

Plus, having to eat all those eggs, phew.

Mog

I've recently got a epson projector and screen for £995, Yamaha amp+dvd player £500 and well chuffed, just make sure you use component leads for the best picture quality and yes it does make a difference.

Mog

prodriva

JVC VH70R. You cant go wrong really. Bought this recently after loads of umming and arring and I have to say I, the missus and every person who has watched a film round ours has been nothing but impressed with the home cinema experience.

Unless your a complete audiophile then this set-up is just what you want. I thoroughly recommend it.

Give some thought to the cables. Your going to need to hide an awfull lot unless you spend big bucks on wireless kit!!!

Mog

Give some thought to the cables. Your going to need to hide an awfull lot unless you spend big bucks on wireless kit!!![/QUOTE]








You will never achieve a quality sound with wireless equipment.

Mog

Mr.Cookie

Whilst i don't disagree with that Mog, never is a very long time

If each speaker is a digital receiver, convertor, amp and speaker then i don't see why not although thats alot of information to send.

Si

Steve Perriam

hmmm just contemplating whether to buy cheap and cheerful all in one box solution or save for an extra month or so and get separates meself.

Dracoro

I bought a separates setup for the cost of an 'all-in-one'. Well worth it. It sounds better anyway + you can upgrade if you so desire.

I got the slimline pioneer VSC100 amp and DVD464 mulit region DVD player plus some eltax satellite speakers (+ sub). I'm happy with it. Fills a reaonably sized living room no problem, does DTS etc. and takes little space and looks good.

Amp is now £120, DVD is around £100 and the speakers were £100. Add £30 for cabling and that's £350 all in.