Request Inputs on Home Theater system within 45k budget

[saumitra]

Hi,
I am currently looking to buy a decent budget home-theatre system AVR + speakers (5.1/ 7.1). I read all the recent threads that are relevant. I had been to Onkyo showroom a few times and visited the ProFx showroom in MG Road (Bangalore). I currently have DVD player based 5.1ch HTIB Sony DHC-AZ5D, which I am planning to sell (anyone interested?). It has a total output of 530 W RMS 2 X 100W (from speakers) + 3 X 50W (center and 2 sourround) + 180W (passive subwoofer, 16 cm). I am mentioning this because in terms audio output and clarity, I am looking for something distinctly better.
I initially started with a 25-30k budget, but after a few auditions decided to increase the budget to 40-45k.

I have auditioned a few systems and below are details on my own assessments/ impressions:

1. Onkyo HTS3400 24900 This was my starting point. I thought it was good as a surround system for watching movies, but quite ordinary for listening to music (I thought my Sony system sounds better for music).
2. Onkyo AVR 308 + Pure Acoustics speakers 35000 I surely liked this system. Especially for music, I thought it was really very good.
3. Onkyo AVR 308 + Onkyo Speakers 528 35000 This combo was surely better than HTS3400, but for music it was marginally inferior to #2 above.
4. Onlyo AVR 308 + Onkyo Speakers 728 45000 Purely from the audio quality, this was the best among all I have auditioned.
5. Onkyo HTS5300 50000 (there is a offer for 55k with Blu-Ray player) I liked this system, better than all others as an overall package both for audio quality and also for the features (7.1ch, dual-zone, ipod dock, higher o/p).
6. Onkyo HTS5400 52000 I did not find it any different than 5300. Surprisingly, the store guy (appeared to be knowledgable) actually gave me the impression that 5300 was a better & more VFM model one of the things he said on this was that the 5400 has less powerful subwoofer than 5300.
7. Denon AVR 1311 + Polk Audio RM6750 speakers 32000 I liked the audio, especially clarity/ separation, but did not find it better than anything in the above list (other than Onkyo HTS 3400). I wanted to try out the 1611 AVR, with the same speakers, but 1611 seems to be out of stock and they are waiting for the new model (1612) to replace this (1611) completely when the new stocks arrive.

Most likely, within a day or two, I will get the Onkyo 5300 (or 5400) for a special price of around 45000.
My question to you guys, the audio experts, is
Do you think it is wise and worth spending 45k to buy Onkyo HTS5300? Or do you suggest I should look at something else (if I am not willing to extend my budget (45k))?

 

[Kittu]

So far in your list , I prefer SKS728 package with Onkyo 508 receiver. This should come for 45k . As many have already purchased for that price. Check rahuljonline's thread.

 

[Raghav]

I am not a fan of the HTiB models from Yamaha / Onkyo.

Another option liked by many has been Denon 1611 AVR paired with Wharfedale Moviestar 70+ speaker package. It should cost approx 50k.

This choice was made in the thread given below
http://www.hifivision.com/home-thea...1-warfedale-moviestar-70-warfedale-combo.html

 

[saumitra]

So far in your list , I prefer SKS728 package with Onkyo 508 receiver. This should come for 45k . As many have already purchased for that price. Check rahuljonline's thread.

Can you please explain how the 508 AVR is superior to the 580 AVR bundled as part of HTS5300? And/or how the SKS-HT 728 (5.1 ch) speakers are superior to the speakers (7.1 ch) bundled with HTS5300?

 

[HTuser]

The main difference I could find is in the front speakers
5300 has got 1*12cm woofer and 1*2.5cm tweeter
in 728 front speaker has got 2*8cm woofer and 1*2.5cm tweeter which is also a floor stander.

In my opinion, buy Denon 1611 and buy good bookshelf speakers. Look at speakers having 5.5" or 6.5" drivers, they can produce mid bass well.
You need not buy the entire 5.1 setup now if you don't want to increase budget - go step by step. Buy good AVR and 2 Bookshelves now, later add center, SW, surrounds etc

If you buy 728 or 5300 now, later you will get into upgrade mode
(I upgraded from 728)

 

[saumitra]

The main difference I could find is in the front speakers
5300 has got 1*12cm woofer and 1*2.5cm tweeter
in 728 front speaker has got 2*8cm woofer and 1*2.5cm tweeter which is also a floor stander.

In my opinion, buy Denon 1611 and buy good bookshelf speakers. Look at speakers having 5.5" or 6.5" drivers, they can produce mid bass well.
You need not buy the entire 5.1 setup now if you don't want to increase budget - go step by step. Buy good AVR and 2 Bookshelves now, later add center, SW, surrounds etc

If you buy 728 or 5300 now, later you will get into upgrade mode
(I upgraded from 728)

I actually had demoed the 728 speakers with 308 AVR and liked the audio clarity, but to be honest I did not find any big notice-able difference between HTS5300 and 308 AVR + 728 speakers surely because I dont have the expert ears to feel the difference. I played an audio CD (that I carried) in both the systems in stereo mode (I found it was much better to listen to music in stereo). When a blu-ray was played in all channel mode, I found the HTS5300 to be better than all the other combos (including 308 AVR + 728 speakers) probably because of 7.1ch output. What attracted me towards 5300 was really the fact that overall it looked like a good package, and for 45k (my current final budget), I really couldnt get anything that is as good even in terms of audio quality/ clarity.

All,
Is there anyone in this forum who owns an 5300 and can give his honest impressions/feedback on this system for playing both music & movies?

 

[vj_box]

The main difference I could find is in the front speakers
5300 has got 1*12cm woofer and 1*2.5cm tweeter
in 728 front speaker has got 2*8cm woofer and 1*2.5cm tweeter which is also a floor stander.

In my opinion, buy Denon 1611 and buy good bookshelf speakers. Look at speakers having 5.5" or 6.5" drivers, they can produce mid bass well.
You need not buy the entire 5.1 setup now if you don't want to increase budget - go step by step. Buy good AVR and 2 Bookshelves now, later add center, SW, surrounds etc

If you buy 728 or 5300 now, later you will get into upgrade mode
(I upgraded from 728)

I second HT user here. It might be a good idea to rather go for a good performing setup and take it one step at a time.

I am also in the middle of upgrading to a better setup and chose the route of going slow and steady. I am sourcing the AVR from the US and going for front BS and then the center,sub and the surrounds.

 

[ausyz]

@ saumitra,
First of all i don't own a 5300, but i been tracking this HTiB for a while now. I really wanted to buy it, for being the 'budget all in one' system. Here's what I found out.

Onkyo HT-S5300 PROS:-
Full specs can be found here in onkyo's international website. Specs that attracted me to this system are
7.1 channel, Dolby TruHD, DTS HD Master Audio, Dolby Prologic IIxz Decoders, and 4 HDMI inputs (3D Ready v1.4a)

CONS:- 5300 lacks Video Upscaling functionality of the standard definition video inputs ( via component and composite inputs) through the HDMI out of the receiver. That means if you are connecting 3 devices to this receiver input terminals, say your HTPC via HDMI IN, your dvd player via Component IN (R/G/B) and your mp4player/mobile via Composite IN and to LCD tv via receiver's HDMI OUT. You won't be getting video on you tv when you try to playback your dvd player or your mp4/mobile phone. In order to get video on your tv you have connect it with component and composite cables too.
If it had the upscaling functionality you would only have to run a single HDMI cable from receiver to LCD TV, and never needed to change both tv's and receiver's inputs everytime when you switch between htpc, dvd player or mobile. ( looking from the price point and other features this unit had, i was not at all bothered about connecting a couple more cables to my television )

Problems with 5300, that made me to wait for a newer one are..
1. HDMI Sync Issues. This receiver is famous for audio video dropouts while playback of 1080p videos. Some ppl got remedied it by changing their HDMI cables. For some changing HDMI cables didn't help at all. Some got it remedied by cooling the receiver using a small computer fan (120mm) (known as the overheating issue). For some putting a fan on top of receiver didn't solve the problem, forcing them to buy receivers from other manufacturers (denon, yamaha, pioneer etc).

Some "Techy ppl" fixed this hdmi dropout issues of onkyo's similar class receivers (not talking abt this one, 5300) by changing 'capacitors' in the HDMI printed circuit boards. Videos are available in youtube.‪How to fix an Onkyo receiver - TX-SR606 - By Ed‬‏ - YouTube

2. Second problem onkyo's low budget receivers had was "Swapped Multichannel PCM Surround Channels" (ie, left surround signals come from the right surround speakers and vice versa, when the source audio is multichannel pcm. But has no problem with stereo sources and other digital sources like DTS, DolbyDigital, TrueHD or DTS-HDMA)Both (2010 models) HT-S3300 and HT-S5300 had these problems, and onkyo announced a firmware fix for this. Since these receivers didn't have a USB port or a Network port, updates was not possible, and you have to take it to onkyo's service centers. Recently shipped HT-S5300s have an 'updated' firmware. So if you buy a 5300, make sure it's a recent one. (You can check this by entering receiver's serial number in here. This is onkyo usa support site.)

3. Onkyo 5300 comes with an Ipod/Iphone doc, which connects to the receiver using their proprietary port. Means u cannot connect other music devices to your receiver. I wish it had a USB port instead!!

REMEDY?
Yes. Go for the new 2011 model, HT-S5400.
It has all the features of earlier model-5300, but with a newly designed receiver R-590. It also has a USB port, so you can connect any usb flash drives/ music players to it. And future firmware updates can be done through it (i see the potential, not sure though)

About Subwoofer in 5400 being of low power than 5300, that's not true. The specs mentioned in onkyo's USA site is wrong.(it says max output for 5400 as 120watts and for 5300 as 290watts). But the truth is 5300's 290 watts is its max dynamic power rating, not the normal power. (Refer to respective User's Manuals for details). Also the speakers for both models have not changed technically (power ratings, impedance, cone size etc). So it must be pretty much the same in both models.

As ppl above me suggested, you can spent about 45k for a feature rich receiver (with upscale, network, internet hd radio, thx certification, more power per channel, 7.2 channel to 11.2 channel configuration capabilities etc), rather than a 5300/5400 with a decent receiver+ basic speaker system. And buy high quality speakers later (3 fronts first, then the 4 surrounds later). Personally i don't go with that suggestion. Budget and time i got for entertainment matters!!

I suggest you go for HT-S5400.Home Theater Systems : HT-S5400 | ONKYO Asia and Oceania Website

 

[saumitra]

Ausyz,
Thanks a lot for such detailed inputs!
This really helps in clarifying my doubts on hts5400 vs. 5300. As I said before, I am really not any expert in judging audio quality, but I enjoy my music/movies with a stereo/surround system/setup. And I would always prefer to buy a complete system in one go over building it over a period of time (though I understand the advantages of doing so).

So, I am now considering the following options:
Onkyo HTS5400 (or HTS5300 if 5400 final price doesnt come in my budget)
Onkyo AVR 508 + Onkyo 728 (5.1ch) speakers
Onkyo AVR 508 + Pure Acoustics DreamNano (5.1ch) speakers + 2 good bookshelf speakers for around 10k (Wharfedale Diamond 9.1)

Any comments on the above options? Any other alternate combinations for similar price?

 

[diplomat]

why don't u pickup wharfedale 9 series or 10 series with SW150 sub from group buy option and pair them with denon 1311...
hopefully it will workout within ur budget and beat onkyo on all fronts, i mean even on musical ..

 

[saumitra]

why don't u pickup wharfedale 9 series or 10 series with SW150 sub from group buy option and pair them with denon 1311...
hopefully it will workout within ur budget and beat onkyo on all fronts, i mean even on musical ..

I am sure the Wharfedale 5.1ch speakers combo would be awesome. But the 9 series would cost me a minimum of 47k (with the group buy offer).

I understand most of you audio-experts will find it very difficult to recommend/ advice on HT setups that don't meet your minimum quality standard/ taste - but those that would satisfy you would probably start from 60k.

My question really is - what is my best option within the 45k budget to build a 5.1ch system with an AVR?

 

[Calvin]

Jamo A102 HCS 6 + Denon 1311 should come in your budget.

 

[visaster]

As you have nailed your budget i guess its best to work around it.
To start picking up a home theater, first pick the Brand.

Brand - Which has been around for long, proven quality, good service, satisfied owners and to your liking.

Once you fix your brand of choice its very easy to pick the best out of it in your budget cause it will be a straight forward 2-3 choices you will have.

ONKYO is not a bad choice for an entry level audio system, but just that it is not great for detailed music experience.

S5400 is good keep it simple option you can walk into and save a lot of trouble.

I kind bought into the build your system in stages bug and with the same budget (45K) ended up with just a YAMAHA RX V667 and no speakers yet, only 15K left (no speaker is this cheap)
Thanks to the Zone 2 option and my old HTIB i am living.

So if you decide on building your HT think how much you really can shell out for your sound experience.

I am not sure how mixing onkyo receiver with wharfdale speakers going to sound, may be you should audition.

 

[aakashr]

Ausyz,
Thanks a lot for such detailed inputs!
This really helps in clarifying my doubts on hts5400 vs. 5300. As I said before, I am really not any expert in judging audio quality, but I enjoy my music/movies with a stereo/surround system/setup. And I would always prefer to buy a complete system in one go over building it over a period of time (though I understand the advantages of doing so).

So, I am now considering the following options:
Onkyo HTS5400 (or HTS5300 if 5400 final price doesnt come in my budget)
Onkyo AVR 508 + Onkyo 728 (5.1ch) speakers
Onkyo AVR 508 + Pure Acoustics DreamNano (5.1ch) speakers + 2 good bookshelf speakers for around 10k (Wharfedale Diamond 9.1)

Any comments on the above options? Any other alternate combinations for similar price?

Hi, what did you finally pick up? I would go for a denon AVR 1611/1612 with any 5.1 systems, this would be a lot better than any of the onkyo HTIB systems.

 

[saumitra]

Hi, what did you finally pick up? I would go for a denon AVR 1611/1612 with any 5.1 systems, this would be a lot better than any of the onkyo HTIB systems.

I couldn't stick to my budget
This weekend I picked up Denon AVR 1911 with Tannoy HTS101 5.1ch speaker system. You can see more details about my findings in the other thread