Suggestion for speakers for home theatre set up

[Dreaming]

Hey guys.

I was after a suggestion for some nice sounding speakers for a home theatre set up. Doesn't need to be surround sound as the price is prohibitive (budget up to £150) and extremely complicated from my friend trying to explain it to me. I am absolutely baffled.

So 2.1 is probably the sweet spot, are there any speakers you can set up, plug in to your TV, so your TV doesn't make any noise and just sends 2 channels into the good speakers which make it sound... meaty for want of a better word .

For comparisons sake, it's like when I got my little creative 2.1 system for my PC when before I had crappy oem speakers and was blown away! The TV will be getting sound IN from HDMI (xbox / htpc).

Cheers guys

[Dreaming]

What do you think about these:

Logitech Z-2300 2.1 Speakers 200W RMS - THX Certified - Ebuyer

and simply plugging the jack into the TV's headphone out socket? There may be some analogue conversion, unless there are some good TVs about? Besides, we're not audiophiles, just if you're spending the best part of £1500 on a home theatre set up you may as well get speakers better than the TV's ones (but getting a seperate receiver is for us probably more hassle than it's worth)

[SiM]

Don't get PC speakers for a home theatre setup. With a £150 budget, I would look for some second hand kit on AV forums. Get a separate stereo amp and a pair of speakers, its not that much hassle and will improve upgradablity options in the future

[Dreaming]

Hmm, don't know if we will upgrade it in future... of course we could. But there's only really one 'source' and that will be the telly. I don't know what second hand kit I should be looking for, I see old hifi equipment that has equaliser options on the front and everything (I think we have some realllly old stuff like this in the garage anyway), but my home initially that it would be just like the telly, one remote turns the volume up and down except you have better speakers.

Ideally want less bits and bobs around the telly, I know there's a lot of audiophiles that spend thousands on all their music stuff but I'm just looking for an in budget solution that will offer superior sound than the stock TV speakers 2.1 seems the sweetspot because I don't need to worry about balancing the speakers and the sub should give more range or whatever to the sound than you get with a TV.

[SiM]

Well it looks like you know what you want
For your intended usage, something like those Logitechs would do the job satisfactorily...

[Dreaming]

Sorry SiM I don't want to dismiss your advice or make it sound like that I've just heard people giving me similar advice (get bbc studio monitors, get a quality receiver - some of which cost £300 on their own) and think that kind of scale is out my league and capability!

I just saw them as a simple solution so if they work... but if there's a better (and hopefully equally simple) solution for the same price I would consider getting something better.

[ShenBlade]

For your budget, why not consider these?
Pioneer DCS363 Sys Dol.Dig Dvd/Receiver,Hdmi,5 Sats | EmpireDirect.co.uk Electrical Appliances

[chuckskull]

Those logitechs will do everything you want tbh, but just to throw something in the pot without going into separates etc. Have a look at Computer hardware and software at amazing prices, available online from Scan Computers UK Not a big brand over here but a few of my yank friends swear by them. Trusty hexus review HEXUS.net - Review :: Klipsch ProMedia GMX A-2.1 : Page - 1/6

You can get a decent 5.1 system for £150ish, if that's tempting. Computer hardware and software at amazing prices, available online from Scan Computers UK are pretty good, not to easy on the eye, but just under budget.
If you can find the extra 50 Computer hardware and software at amazing prices, available online from Scan Computers UK might be worth a look.

Does a mean a lot more wire floating around your front room, but anyone who can put a red plug in a red hole and white plug in a white hole can set them up which seems to be the main thing putting you off surround judging from your post.

[Dreaming]

Originally Posted by chuckskull

Does a mean a lot more wire floating around your front room, but anyone who can put a red plug in a red hole and white plug in a white hole can set them up which seems to be the main thing putting you off surround judging from your post.

A bit yea. I've had both one of those cheap jobbys from Argos that was a DVD player with the 5.1 system, and also medusa 5.1 headphones and found I could never get the balance right on all the speakers, things just sounded better in stereo. In 5.1 it always seemed to have different tonal ranges for each speaker. So my reckoning was if I'm going to be spending more money on speakers, getting two very good quality speakers will probably be better than getting 5 not so good ones... (does that make sense?)

I'm open to anything really I mean, at the end of the day it's my mum it's being set up for, I'm only home for 4 months of the year and she's just given up drinking, smoking and landed a new job (all at the same time!) so wanted to treat herself! She's fairly flexible on the overall budget I think (originally saving could have £1500 just for the HTPC ) but I'm trying to hit the 'bang for buck' mark if you get me? I want it to be set up so when I'm not there it just works, she can watch TV, bbc iplayer, DVDs and have nice quality sound and picture. I think I've got everything... except having second thoughts on the vistron TV, but personally I've never used anything other than gaming headphones which aren't designed for perfect studio quality music (believe it or not, I don't listen to music!), so didn't know where to look. I asked some friends and they ARE heavily into sound fidelity and that and obviously anything less than seperates is some kind of sin :/

Thanks for your input though I appreciate it!

[SiM]

Originally Posted by Dreaming

Sorry SiM I don't want to dismiss your advice or make it sound like that I've just heard people giving me similar advice (get bbc studio monitors, get a quality receiver - some of which cost £300 on their own) and think that kind of scale is out my league and capability!

I just saw them as a simple solution so if they work... but if there's a better (and hopefully equally simple) solution for the same price I would consider getting something better.

Its fine, no need to apologise. I always suggest separate solutions, but it doesn't always suit the individual. I don't know too much about PC speakers, but you are looking in the right area

[chuckskull]

If it was for me, and I'd found a couple of grand down the back of the sofa, it'd be separates.

For my mum, I'd probably look at a better TV before speakers. If that £150 cant get you a significantly better TV go for the Klipsch IMO, they'll sound just as good as the logitech and look a hell of a lot better(important to mums). The only real difference is looks and the adjustable tweeters(something I like but your mum probably wont notice), both received good reviews and they're the same price pretty much.

If you do decide to go for surround, something like shen posted would probably be best, but it's probably be overkill for mum.

[dave87]

My housemate has that very Klipsch set, fantastic sound quality, but after 6 months only one of the channels on the mid/tweeter range works.

Was used for a fair few house parties at reasonable volumes though