Kitting out a new apartment with an entertainment system...

Flipper

Hey all, I'm recently after buying an apartment with a decent sized living area and I wanted to kit it out to a reasonably high standard. All I have at the moment is a PS3 and I was going to buy the 52" Toshiba LCD (I can get Toshiba a little cheaper). First off, is it better to go for LCD or plasma and why? I'll mainly be watching TV shows and sports.

Secondly, can you recommend a decent system that will have discreet speakers (similar to that of Bose). I want it to be compatible with the PS3, my TV, any DVD player I buy, my Sky + and I would also like if it had an iPod dock. Does such a system exist?

My budget would be €1,000 - €1,500 but I might stretch a little more. Any advice/links you guys can offer would be great.

dak

Flipper wrote: »

Hey all, I'm recently after buying an apartment with a decent sized living area and I wanted to kit it out to a reasonably high standard. All I have at the moment is a PS3 and I was going to buy the 52" Toshiba LCD (I can get Toshiba a little cheaper). First off, is it better to go for LCD or plasma and why? I'll mainly be watching TV shows and sports.

Secondly, can you recommend a decent system that will have discreet speakers (similar to that of Bose). I want it to be compatible with the PS3, my TV, any DVD player I buy, my Sky + and I would also like if it had an iPod dock. Does such a system exist?

My budget would be €1,000 - €1,500 but I might stretch a little more. Any advice/links you guys can offer would be great.

There have been many arguements put forward on the merits of LCD or Plasma depending on the size of screen and what you intend to watch, and even how far you will be sitting from the screen. I would suggest you go into a few shops which have HE set up or have a variety of screens which you can compare. eg Harvy Norman -Airside ; Peats In town ; DID -Blanchardstown ( Loads of sets -not sure if they have HE set up). I bought a second samll 26"TV for the kids for the PS3 in DID and ended up with a Samsung 26" LCD HD Ready which I thought had the best picture . ( They hadn't got a full HD in that size) . Which is best is really down to personal choice!

I think your main limitation for a sound system will be your apartment. Having lived in one my self previously any full blown HE with subwoofers etc will probably have you on the most hated list! I haven't heard of a system that will satisfy your wish list but most quality AV systems will have plenty of digital/ optical inputs etc . I would sugest you head to Peats and look at there all in ONE BOX - Bose entertainment system which doesn't need any additional speakers . I would have bought one myself except I had purchased a full blown Sony AV with Bose cube speakers with a BOSE passive subwoofer and a SONY active subwoofer. ( I am lucky to live in a detached house with no neighbours close-by hence loads of sound) . I think this BOSE box costs around 1300 euro from memory.

Sony and others do all in one HE packages with 5 speakers and a samll subwoofer etc for starting at €500/600. I have listened to 2 of these in friends houses and the sound is good and would be sufficient IMHO for an apartment. Output Wattage will be more like 30 or 40 watts per channel as opposed to 100 watts in stand alone AV's . But unless you have no neighbours I wouldn't bother with a stand alone AV . . I have had pictures falling of the wall while testing the base setting...you would very seldom turn a system to that level in any case. Sony any others will provide a good ambient sound even at relatively low volumes. The speakers are small and have relatively attractive stands.

Bose do an I-pod docking system and the sound is amazing ...a friend of mine was lucky to have a wife who bought him one. I think they cost around 700 euro.

Best advise if you are into Bose . Go to Peats in town. you could buy an all in one non Bose home cinema package , your Bose i-pod docking station and still come out under €1500.

Or spend 2 grand and get all BOSE!

Hope my comments are of help

DAK

MAJJ

For compatability sounds like you need a modern AV amp something like the Onkyo TX-605. It gives you all the inputs/ouptuts you may need but there are far cheaper options if you don't want/need the HD sounds format available on HDMI 1.3. You can get also buy an ipod dock for it also.

For speakers there are lots of choices but the whole lot depends on how much budget you have per option i.e. how much for the sound system?

What is the 1500 EUR to cover?

Is it the TV and speaker/amp?

Do you want stereo or also 5.1?

You want/need small speakers?

I'm no expert here but have made some purchases recently including that amp above and might be able to help a little.

Majj

Flipper

Thanks for the help guys. Majj, The €1,500 is to cover everything outside of the TV... I want small, discreet speakers just for estethics...

etcetc

steer clear of bose

all marketing no substance

check out advertsfor a second hand receiver/amp

check richersounds website for their satelite speaker sets

MAJJ

Hi Flibber,

Based on the fact that your getting a monster TV, lucky devil. Based on your budget I assume you want separates as well as amp/speakers you may need to consider - cables,interconnects, stands or wallmounts and where things are going to be positioned.

I assume you want 5.1 sound? Most of these as I understand come with a subwoofer. They are usually not too discrete and need a power and sub cable - can you live with that? If not it may narrow your choice right down.

BTW - I am no expert and but you mention price, aesthetics including the need for size and discretion as your criteria.

Purely on reading and not listening, the ones that may fit the bill may be
Jamo A102-HCS5 5.1 Speaker System but I believe are out of stock in a lot of places in Europe, seem very popular. Here's what they look like - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Jamo-A102HCS5-BL-Cinema-Speaker-Package/dp/B000QEB270/ref=pd_sbs_ce_title_1

Garnered from www.avforums.com - Bose get's a lot of poor comments on this site too.

Cheers,
majj

etcetc

check IBOODS offer today

looks like a good starting point

https://www.ibood.com/site/eu/ibood.php