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Topic: Looking to put together a 2.1 HT that can latter be upgraded to 5.1 (Read 2070 times) previous topic - next topic
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Looking to put together a 2.1 HT that can latter be upgraded to 5.1

I'm with the idea of either buying a home theater in a box, or putting together a 2.1 system that can latter be upgraded, if needed to 5.1.

Since I'm out of USA, ideally something I can buy from amazon, 3D and 4K ready, with at least 3 HDMI inputs, ideally 4, and 1 HDMI output, and I would rather not spend more than 300.

Just for reference, the HTIB I'm currently considering are: Onkyo HT-S3500 $280, Sony HT-CT660 $280 (2.1), Denon DHT-1312XP $300
Yamaha YHT-497 $300 (Refurbishid), Yamaha YHT-497 $350.

Any help? THANKS!


Looking to put together a 2.1 HT that can latter be upgraded to 5.1

Reply #1 –
I'm not sure what you are asking for help with...

As far as I know, any 5.1 (or /7.1) channel home theater receiver can be configured for 2.1.    Even "cheap" receivers usually have 50-100 Watts per channel which is plenty for most home situations (and the subwoofer has it's own amp).    Sound quality is rarely an issue.  So, it usually comes down to features, inputs, style, etc. 

I'm not 100% sure about this, but I assume the HDMI will "pass through", so 3D and 4K should be unaffected.

When it comes to sound quality, speakers are by far the most important thing.  And the addition of the rear speakers makes a dramatic difference.  If sound quality is important, I always recommend people go to an audio/video store and listen to a variety of speakers before buying.  Even if you don't buy from the store, it's usually worthwhile to get an idea of what different speakers sound like.  You'll learn a lot more listening to speakers than listening to advide!


Quote
and I would rather not spend more than 300.
I take it, that's your receiver budget, not including speakers, disc player, or TV?

Looking to put together a 2.1 HT that can latter be upgraded to 5.1

Reply #2 –
Quote from: DVDdoug on
I'm not 100% sure about this, but I assume the HDMI will "pass through", so 3D and 4K should be unaffected.

I don't think this is true, the HDMI port needs to support the HDMI bandwidth. One of the shitty issues of HDMI, you need to upgrade your audio equipment to keep up with video formats.
 

Looking to put together a 2.1 HT that can latter be upgraded to 5.1

Reply #3 –
Besides the so important in-store test which has already been recommended to you, a couple main points I've gathered here and there from people who've gone down the same 2.0-to-5.1 path, are:

-try to buy into the same speaker system or else you might risk a situation where, say, a car in a film passing you by from the front channels to sound differently by the time its sound reaches the rear ones, in case they're not from the same manufacturer/range. Not so much for the subwoofer though, but for some other reason besides SQ, it eludes me why active ones seem to be the de facto choice by many. Maybe someone else can elaborate on that.

-Another important factor being of course, the size of the room you're going to use it, it appears that floor standing speakers are more suitable for larger environments than the bookshelf variety.
Listen to the music, not the media it's on.
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