Budget Home Cinema - thanks for the advice

HowardInRct

Established Member
Joined
Oct 21, 2018
Messages
79
Reaction score
35
Points
58
Location
Wales
Hi All

My journey into Home Cinema began two years ago, in these forums. We now have a dedicated Home Cinema room and primarily watch Blu Rays.

I’m really happy with the budget setup and wanted to post about it here, to acknowledge those who have helped, and also provide some info which may help others.

I say “budget” as much of the kit was bought second-hand on eBay. It’s also way behind the curve in terms of tech as it’s squarely a 1080p system. However, I like picking-up standard Blu Rays cheaply 😊

I particularly love the sound from the system, for both effects and film scores.

List of kit below the picture:

IMG_20201125_140159.jpg


AV Receiver: Yamaha Avantage RX-A1010.
Speakers: 5 x B&W VM-1
Subwoofer: 1 x Yamaha NS-SW050
  • Cheap-and-cheerful, new from Richer Sounds
  • Might invest in a BK at some point but can’t crank the sub too much as it wakes the children 😊
TV: 50 inch Sony KDL-Bravia 50WF663
  • Very impressive picture, IMHO
  • A VA panel, which is ideal for us as we sit square-on to the TV and watch films in darkness, fine for sport too
Blu Ray Player: Sony BDP-S6700

Misc:
  • Ikea Byas cabinet
  • Bias Lighting – ideal for when watching in a dark room
  • Perlegear Table Top TV Stand. Nice bit of kit - raises the TV above the centre speaker
Thanks to everyone who gave advice, notably: @Dodgexander @UMAR 3:16 @Joe Fernand @gibbsy
 
Looking great dude. Nice to see you have entered the AV world! No going back now!
 
Great that you grabbed a few bargains - ‘leading edge’ can be great when funds allow and when not you can put together some brilliant systems on a tight budget if you forgo the odd ‘must have’ feature.

Joe
 
Nice wee set up, home cinema can be enjoyed by everyone regardless of their budget.
 
A great dipping of the proverbial toe!
 
This is great. Proof that you don't have to have a large budget to enjoy your own set-up at home.
 
@HowardInRct

Sweet set-up :)

Would you have any way of placing the center speaker on a shelf behind the tv?
 

Attachments

  • HowardInRct.jpg
    HowardInRct.jpg
    246.8 KB · Views: 253
Hi @ddlooping . I like your artistry but no, there's no way of doing that. To be fair, I like the position below the TV. OK, it does overlap the screen by ~1cm but, for films, it only overlaps the black bars. The Perlegear stand would allow the screen to be raised up further, but I understand it's best to get the centre of the TV at eye-level. It's nice to dream about a wall-mounted 65 inch OLED though :)
 
I'm pretty sure you could lift the TV with a simple white shelfing bought from the likes of B&Q in Ponty. Underneath put three pair of Fisual isolation feet and that would give you enough of a rise to get the screen above the centre speaker. I had a bridge made to carry the TV over my centre speaker for the same reason as you and I have a 65'' sitting on it.

Fisual Round Adhesive Isolation Pads Pack of 4 - Spikes & Isolation Feet - AV Online - UK Home Cinema and Hifi Specialists (audiovisualonline.co.uk)

169014423.3oX2AMVS._DSC4302.jpg
 
Very nice set up! how much did all that cost if you don't mind me asking?
 
Hi @Liam_G

Table of rough costs are below. The A1010 is no doubt cheaper now as I bought it 2 years ago; same for the TV.

1 x RX-A1010£300 - used - immaculate, boxed, with setup mic - eBay
5 x B&W VM-1£95 - used - eBay
1 x NS-SW050£100
1 x Sony KDL-Bravia 50WF663£500
1 x BDP-S6700£100
1 x Byas Unit£100
1 x Perlegear stand£20
1 x Bias Lighting strip£10
1 x IR repeater (needed as the centre speaker blocks the IR receiver on the TV)£7

Hope that helps?
 
Hi @Liam_G

Table of rough costs are below. The A1010 is no doubt cheaper now as I bought it 2 years ago; same for the TV.

1 x RX-A1010£300 - used - immaculate, boxed, with setup mic - eBay
5 x B&W VM-1£95 - used - eBay
1 x NS-SW050£100
1 x Sony KDL-Bravia 50WF663£500
1 x BDP-S6700£100
1 x Byas Unit£100
1 x Perlegear stand£20
1 x Bias Lighting strip£10
1 x IR repeater (needed as the centre speaker blocks the IR receiver on the TV)£7

Hope that helps?

yes thank you! thats a bargain set up
 
Hi @gibbsy - going back to your photo above...I see you've got bookshelf speakers on your TV unit itself, rather than stands. Isn't that a big no-no? I've read that the unit will interact with the speakers ,causing a degradation of sound quality. My Ikea unit is pretty flimsy - maybe your unit is very sturdy or do you have the isolation feet under the bookshelfs too? Thanks.
 
Hi @gibbsy - going back to your photo above...I see you've got bookshelf speakers on your TV unit itself, rather than stands. Isn't that a big no-no? I've read that the unit will interact with the speakers ,causing a degradation of sound quality. My Ikea unit is pretty flimsy - maybe your unit is very sturdy or do you have the isolation feet under the bookshelfs too? Thanks.
The cabinet weights in at over 60kg empty and is not self assembly. I have Fisual isolation feet under all the speakers. I'd love to have the speakers on stands but there is no room, wanted the big cabinet to hide all the wires. Thought I could get the stands in but there is a door to the left so no go. Because of the build quality I get no resonance.

If a cabinet is in any way a little flimsy or not well screwed together then that is going to introduce vibration which in turn will resonate within the cabinet.
 
Thanks @gibbsy , that's helpful.
 
Hi All

My journey into Home Cinema began two years ago, in these forums. We now have a dedicated Home Cinema room and primarily watch Blu Rays.

I’m really happy with the budget setup and wanted to post about it here, to acknowledge those who have helped, and also provide some info which may help others.

I say “budget” as much of the kit was bought second-hand on eBay. It’s also way behind the curve in terms of tech as it’s squarely a 1080p system. However, I like picking-up standard Blu Rays cheaply 😊

I particularly love the sound from the system, for both effects and film scores.

List of kit below the picture:

View attachment 1409640

AV Receiver: Yamaha Avantage RX-A1010.
Speakers: 5 x B&W VM-1
Subwoofer: 1 x Yamaha NS-SW050
  • Cheap-and-cheerful, new from Richer Sounds
  • Might invest in a BK at some point but can’t crank the sub too much as it wakes the children 😊
TV: 50 inch Sony KDL-Bravia 50WF663
  • Very impressive picture, IMHO
  • A VA panel, which is ideal for us as we sit square-on to the TV and watch films in darkness, fine for sport too
Blu Ray Player: Sony BDP-S6700

Misc:
  • Ikea Byas cabinet
  • Bias Lighting – ideal for when watching in a dark room
  • Perlegear Table Top TV Stand. Nice bit of kit - raises the TV above the centre speaker
Thanks to everyone who gave advice, notably: @Dodgexander @UMAR 3:16 @Joe Fernand @gibbsy

Hi there..... I've looked at the Bias unit myself but thought the depth was just too little for my Yamaha AV Receiver with the cabling out of the back to fit. Looking at your pics though it looks like you have not fitted the rear panel? Is that the case and if so has this had any effect with regard to the strength and stability of the Bias unit?

Or have you just cut a section out of the rear panel?
 
Hi @waveydavey13 - well spotted...yes, I had to leave the back off the Byas unit. Lesson learned - I looked-up the depth of the Yamaha, and it fitted on paper, but hadn't taken the length of the power cord/banana plugs (protruding from the back) into consideration.

Initially this was fine - everything seemed stable enough. However, I had to slide the unit a few times and this had the effect of making it very wobbly. Cutting-out a section would've been a better idea.
 
Hi @waveydavey13 - well spotted...yes, I had to leave the back off the Byas unit. Lesson learned - I looked-up the depth of the Yamaha, and it fitted on paper, but hadn't taken the length of the power cord/banana plugs (protruding from the back) into consideration.

Initially this was fine - everything seemed stable enough. However, I had to slide the unit a few times and this had the effect of making it very wobbly. Cutting-out a section would've been a better idea.

Cheers for that.

I've bought the unit but not built it after realising about the depth...... I'm now trying to decide whether to return it for a refund or risk building it with modifications.
 

The latest video from AVForums

Is 4K Blu-ray Worth It?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom