Personal computing discussed
Moderators: renee, Captain Ned
Shmeal wrote:What receiver should I use for this system? Ideally I would get a refurbished product from Onkyo so I can get a little more bang for the buck
Shmeal wrote:Finally, what kind of speaker wire should I use to connect the speakers to the receiver?
Shmeal wrote:Sorry about all the questions, but I'm used to buying a set of normal computer speakers. I'm ready to step up my game a little bit.
morphine wrote:Shmeal wrote:What receiver should I use for this system? Ideally I would get a refurbished product from Onkyo so I can get a little more bang for the buck
Great idea, and one that is suggested a lot.Shmeal wrote:Finally, what kind of speaker wire should I use to connect the speakers to the receiver?
Anything that's reasonably thick (Monoprice). Don't fall into the "audio cables" religion.Shmeal wrote:Sorry about all the questions, but I'm used to buying a set of normal computer speakers. I'm ready to step up my game a little bit.
Well, you shouldn't be thinking about "computer speakers". Think just plain good speakers, then shop around the smaller models if you have to.
Shmeal wrote:So to check for power do I just match the speaker's output to the power output of the amp for the speaker's specific channel?
Shmeal wrote:Perfect, is there anything else I should look for while trying to get the right receiver?
Shmeal wrote:Perfect, is there anything else I should look for while trying to get the right receiver? The speakers all top out at 120w, while the receiver can only put out 80w per channel, so far so good!
This research part is a lot more enjoyable than I anticipated, just like putting together a PC build
Shmeal wrote:Would I just get better sound using the HDMI from my videocard? I always thought that discrete sound cards were better than audio over videocards but never had concrete evidence.
Shmeal wrote:Okay, two more things. First, should I use banana plugs or just stick with bare wire connections?
Shmeal wrote:One last thing, how important is it to get THX certification?
morphine wrote:Not of any importance, unless you like to pay for logos. The only thing that you know about THX-certified equipment is that it won't completely suck. Just mostly.
Shmeal wrote:Okay, so I'm thinking about using the Onkyo TX-SR608 or something similar for my receiver.
Back of the receiver: http://www.musicorner.nl/pics/Onkyo%20T ... achter.JPG
Captain Ned wrote:When I go to a movie and the THX certification logo/toon plays before the movie (here in the US it's the old moo can that made cow sounds when you flipped it over and back), that's a cue for me to insert earplugs. THX = the audience is deafened.
thegleek wrote:Shmeal wrote:Okay, so I'm thinking about using the Onkyo TX-SR608 or something similar for my receiver.
Back of the receiver: http://www.musicorner.nl/pics/Onkyo%20T ... achter.JPG
Oh man! That's one helluva receiver! How much does the TX-SR608 cost new? Refurbished?
And finally, do they make a newer version of a similar receiver that has a DVI-D input? Nothing really works with that old school VGA crap anymore... Archaic.
Shmeal wrote:It costs about 400 refurbished, but if THX certification isn't important, I might go with this one instead:
http://www.shoponkyo.com/detail.cfm?pro ... &ext_war=1
Any input on this receiver?
just brew it! wrote:There's also the THX Deep Note sound effect... the idea for which was essentially lifted wholesale from the Styx track Krakatoa, which predates the THX Deep Note sound effect by roughly a decade. (Skip forward to 1:20 on the Styx track if you just want to hear the relevant bit.)
(Yes, before they became Top 40 arena rockers, Styx recorded some decidedly odd, non-commercial stuff... I suspect significant amounts of mind-altering substances were involved!)
thegleek wrote:haha awesome! Got the Styx - The Serpent Is Rising LP from 1973 to listen to this track. The entire album is kinda neat too!
thegleek wrote:Now to really test your skrilla (hopefully without google/wiki searches), the last track on that album is called Hallelujah Chorus. What movie was that played in?
Shmeal wrote:Any suggestion on wall mounts for my center channel? I'm not really pulling anything useful on teh interwebs.
just brew it! wrote:And one song ("Plexiglass Toilet", tacked onto the end of track 4) that sounds more like something that would've gotten played on Doctor Demento back in the day.
just brew it! wrote:thegleek wrote:Now to really test your skrilla (hopefully without google/wiki searches), the last track on that album is called Hallelujah Chorus. What movie was that played in?
I'm pretty sure it has been used in multiple films, but can't name one off the top of my head.
thegleek wrote:Yeah, I wasn't asking you in a trivia-stumpy kinda way. I really wanted to know what movies that song was featured in! I think the song originally came from Handel... And I -think- as a wild guess, this was played at some point in the movie Animal House.
just brew it! wrote:Yes, it is indeed Handel. People call it the "Hallelujah Chorus," but it's basically a small snippet from a much larger work, Handel's Messiah.