I'm doing a complete replacement of my Home Theater this year. Everything is getting dated and I’d like to upgrade. I’m currently using Klipsch Quintet IIIs I bought in 2008. They’ve done an admirable job, but I want to go bigger…
TLDR questions are at bottom, the rest will hopefully answer most questions that might be asked of me.
Space is at a premium - the deep fireplace footing to the right of the TV provides an absolute right bounds, and we don’t want to block too much more of the window behind the TV (we keep the blinds on that side closed and the blinds on the other side half-closed). So every inch used by speakers and TV will encroach on that remaining area, and it's a nice enough view (of a side-yard). For the most part the speakers I’ve chosen to consider fit within both budget and space concerns
AV receiver will be a Yamaha A6A (or A8A if absolutely necessary). I know the A6A can bi-amp on 5.1.2 if necessary, and A8A can bi-amp on 5.1.4.
In-home auditioning isn't possible. I would prefer to work with a local dealer who did our previous setup and was super helpful in the planning stages (when BB wasn’t), and has been very accommodating of my multiple requests auditioning various speakers - but I don't think they have a return policy. For KEF and B&W, they are same price as BB.
I'm looking at the following setups, across a range of quality and budget.
(Subwoofer will probably be SVS-2000, regardless of setup)
TLDR questions are at bottom, the rest will hopefully answer most questions that might be asked of me.
Room Setup
- 65" TV w/ 5.1.2 or 5.1.4 setup
- Room is 13x17, with 8' ceilings and a ceiling fan - out here:
- (Note that the "doors" are actually just an opening, no physical doors to close)
- TV will be along a long wall, offset a little to one side and turned slightly, so the the actual 'theater' area is focused on a 13x15 area (the chair outside that area is not often used). This is the least compromising setup for comfortable seating and viewing, for multiple reasons.
- "Prime" seating is the two chairs opposite the TV, about ~11 feet viewing distance
- Fronts will be directly either side of the 65" TV, so about 60" apart.
- Surrounds go in the opposite (bottom left and right) corners. Not great, but best I can set up. This means the right surround speaker is further from the core listening area than the left.
- Subwoofer goes in the upper left corner
- Usage is:
- 60% video games
- 25% tv shows (mostly action shows)
- 10% movies
- 5% music (wide range from orchestral and symphonic; jazz; classic rock; techno/trance; modern pop).
- … I feel people severely under-estimate the quality, quantity, and importance of music in video games, so maybe this is more like 35% music due to a 30% overlap with video games? ...
- For Atmos, in-ceiling isn't something I want to do, but height mounting on wall or on-ceiling is viable.
- The room isn't sound treated. There are are pictures on the walls, bookshelves tables, etc.
Space is at a premium - the deep fireplace footing to the right of the TV provides an absolute right bounds, and we don’t want to block too much more of the window behind the TV (we keep the blinds on that side closed and the blinds on the other side half-closed). So every inch used by speakers and TV will encroach on that remaining area, and it's a nice enough view (of a side-yard). For the most part the speakers I’ve chosen to consider fit within both budget and space concerns
Speakers
I've already auditioned the following:- GoldenEar (Supersats, Triton 5, and Triton 7)
- KEF (Q350, Q750, R3, R11, and I think the R5). R11 isn’t on the table, but I assume the R5 falls between R3 and R11, closer to R3…
- B&W 704S2
AV receiver will be a Yamaha A6A (or A8A if absolutely necessary). I know the A6A can bi-amp on 5.1.2 if necessary, and A8A can bi-amp on 5.1.4.
In-home auditioning isn't possible. I would prefer to work with a local dealer who did our previous setup and was super helpful in the planning stages (when BB wasn’t), and has been very accommodating of my multiple requests auditioning various speakers - but I don't think they have a return policy. For KEF and B&W, they are same price as BB.
I'm looking at the following setups, across a range of quality and budget.
(Subwoofer will probably be SVS-2000, regardless of setup)
- Goldenear Supersat: Supersat 60s + Supercenter X; S: Supersat 50s or Aon 2s; H: Supersat 3s
- Goldenear Tritons: Triton 5 + Supercenter X; S: Supersat 50s or Aon 2s; H: Supersat 3s
- Goldenear Tritons: Triton 3+ + SuperCenter X (or no center); S: Supersat 50s or Aon 2s; H: Supersat 3s (NOTE: no separate subwoofer)
- KEF Q bookshelves - Q150 or Q350 + Q650C; S: Q150; H: Q50A x4
- KEF Q towers - Q750 + Q650C; S: Q150; H: Q50A x4
- KEF R bookshelves - R3 + R2C; S: Q150; H: Q50A x2-4 (maybe R8A)
- KEF R towers - R5 + R2C; S: Q150; H: Q50A x2-4 (maybe R8A)
- B&W towers - 704S w/ HTM72 S2; S: 607S2; H: ??? maybe KEF Q50A ???
- This is where I’m not sure what I would use for surrounds and heights
The Questions
My thoughts and questions are:- The fronts will only be 5’ apart, and towers will have minimal ability to toe-in; they will be about 6-9” from wall. Bookshelf speakers could potentially be turned a bit more.
- Are the towers going to be wasted improvement over bookshelf if I can’t put them further apart or move them further from wall?
- Thoughts on R3 vs R5?
- After adding stands for the R3s, the R5s are only $500 more, and fit the space better, though R3s on stands. I could audition the R3s vs R11s without subwoofer I was very impressed how well they held up in that competition.
- A wide soundstage is preferred; KEF and B&W seem to deliver better on this vs GE Tritons.
- I’m leaning to Q50A, as I feel the improvement going to R8A probably isn’t worth the difference. Same reason I’m using Q150s for surrounds in every setup, they’re to add to the atmosphere but aren’t needs for the quality
- The KEF R series says it’s 8 ohm nominal but ~3.2-3.4 min. A 3080 had no problem driving R11s or R3s at volumes I would consider the limit of comfort. The Yamaha A6A or A8A seems sufficient (and KEF support confirms). It canbe set to 6 ohm speakers and drive 4ohm min fronts. I’m aware that impedance varies with frequency and all that jazz, really looking for user feedback if anyone has experienced problems here…
- On top of that, is it worth it to bi-amp the R3s or R5s?
- Do the Q750 or R5s have to be on the plinths? We have hardwood floors. (The added width is a concern.)