[Mark L]

My existing home theater in a box has crashed and burned (RCA2500). It
slowly died, and now all I can get through any of the inputs (digital
or analog) is static.

I am considering the replacement for this unit now. Here are my
conditions and constraints.

My listening area is a common area living room that is open to both the
kitchen and dining area. I have about a 20x20 space in which the home
theater is setup in.

I currently have two el-cheapo front speakers that came with the RCA
kit, two in-ceiling rear speakers above the rear couch, the cheap
center kit speaker and a cheap passive sub that also came with the kit.

I mostly use the setup for watching movies with DTS encoded content
(from an xbox with a toslink digital connection), but this is also
intended for music listening as well.

I would like to build a system as I can afford it, I don't have
$2000-3000 to shell out initially but would like to build the system
slowly.

I am not an audiophile by any definition, but appreciate high-quality
and purpose built equipment.

I was considering purchasing separate components to build my
theater/music system. Try to aquire some used 5.1 capable equipment
and build on it as I get money. I was looking at a used NAD 906 6x30w
amplifier and then possibly adding a second unit and running them
bridged. I was also looking at a digital preprocessor to provide
line-level analog signal.

Do most preprocessors have the capability of decoding 2 channel as well
as 6 channel digital signals?

Where is my best bet to find used equipment for this endevor? Ebay?
newsgroups?

Thanks for the help....

ML

[https://www.wenterprisesnorthwest.com]

Hello Mark,

If you're looking for used gear, I can suggest either...

- http://www.audiogon.com

- http://www.hificlassics.com

- http://www.echohifi.com

However, there are a lot of good new products out there that will stay
within your budget effectively and purposefully.

Pioneer Elite (for receiver and universal DVD player), Onkyo (for receiver),
or Yamaha (for receiver) all make good choices for home theater. I also
like Outlaw's surround sound components (http://www.outlawaudio.com).
Actually, Arcam makes the best gear before you get into the super high
priced market, but still may be outside of your immediate budget.

As for speaekrs, Hsu Research does a superb job with home theater
systems -especially with their powered subwoofers. Since your room is
pretty large, you will want to consider high sensitivity speakers and at
least 60 wpc RMS into 8 Ohms. If you're into Klipsch speakers, instead of
the over-priced Klipsch home theater speakers, I would recommend the BIC
Acoustech home theater speakers for about $800 market price complete. For
your room, I would get either one of the larger Hsu subs or go for two subs
for your room.

Virtually all surround sound systems will play 2-channel stereo as well as
their host of surround sound modes they feature.

What I have suggested to you will greatly improve the performance in your
listening room while watching movies or listening to music and remain within
your sub-$3,000 budget.

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES:

- http://www.hsuresearch.com

- http://www.acoustechspeakers.com

- http://www.pioneerelectronics.com

- http://www.onkyo.com

- http://www.yamaha.com

- http://www.arcam.co.uk

- http://www.shopzilla.com

- http://www.nextag.com

- http://www.mysimon.com

- http://www.bizrate.com

- http://shopping.msn.com


If I can be of any further assistance, please feel free to e-mail anytime.

Best regards,

-Donald

W ENTERPRISES NORTHWEST
https://www.wenterprisesnorthwest.com


"Mark L" wrote in message
ups.com...
My existing home theater in a box has crashed and burned (RCA2500). It
slowly died, and now all I can get through any of the inputs (digital
or analog) is static.

I am considering the replacement for this unit now. Here are my
conditions and constraints.

My listening area is a common area living room that is open to both the
kitchen and dining area. I have about a 20x20 space in which the home
theater is setup in.

I currently have two el-cheapo front speakers that came with the RCA
kit, two in-ceiling rear speakers above the rear couch, the cheap
center kit speaker and a cheap passive sub that also came with the kit.

I mostly use the setup for watching movies with DTS encoded content
(from an xbox with a toslink digital connection), but this is also
intended for music listening as well.

I would like to build a system as I can afford it, I don't have
$2000-3000 to shell out initially but would like to build the system
slowly.

I am not an audiophile by any definition, but appreciate high-quality
and purpose built equipment.

I was considering purchasing separate components to build my
theater/music system. Try to aquire some used 5.1 capable equipment
and build on it as I get money. I was looking at a used NAD 906 6x30w
amplifier and then possibly adding a second unit and running them
bridged. I was also looking at a digital preprocessor to provide
line-level analog signal.

Do most preprocessors have the capability of decoding 2 channel as well
as 6 channel digital signals?

Where is my best bet to find used equipment for this endevor? Ebay?
newsgroups?

Thanks for the help....

ML