a $300 hitb will make these logitechs sound like crap. in a room that size of the op's i would stay away from pc speakers.

 

Not sure why you'd say that since I have them right now in a 22'x12' room and they sound absolutely fantastic, especially as opposed to the previous Philips HTIB but okay.

They're so good that 2 of my friends have gone out and purchased sets themselves. I have them running from optical input and until you hear it yourself you'll probably continue believing they must be only mediocre.

I'm just putting it out there since these can also be heard at most stores like Bestbuy and can be judged first-hand.

 

trust me i've heard them. heck, i've owned three sets of logitech speakers before them before finally making the switch to a receiver/speaker setup. logitechs are great compared to other pc speakers, but you can't ignore their distortion at greater sound levels or their boomy bass. and for hitb at less than $300, onkyo is really the only option out there. they're definitely not high end audio, but compared to other hitbs (sony, samsung, and phillips) they sound way better.

 

Check out Aperion Audio. They have a GREAT 30 day return policy that lets you give their speakers a run before you decide to commit. People would argue that you cannot hear the speakers in action before you buy, but that's the same case with Home Theater In A Box.

Aperion has been rated as a very decent well above average speaker manufacturer that delivers a lot of bang for the buck.

For $1000, see what you can put together at their website. But instead of worrying about 7.1, focus on quality sound from good equipment first. I can buy 100 speakers that produce mediocre sound. Just because I have 100 speakers, I'm not going to hear anything more or get better acoustic range out of them.

Further, Bose is a decent company that invests a lot of money into R&D, but in the end, they really shoot for the impossible with most of their products. Side by side with larger systems that they claim to replace, the Bose will not always come out as the better system.

My advice is to at least consider Aperion for their build quality as well as the quality of sound they produce. Check out the link below and take a look around the site...

http://www.aperionaudio.com/catalog/4-Series,35.aspx

If you're going to save money on something, save on the receiver. Make sure you buy something that supports the necessary inputs/outputs for today, but remember that receiver tech changes a LOT in a short span of time. Good speakers can be kept until they blow up or you replace them with something that's 10 times better. A decent $300-$400 Yamaha receiver should be adequate to power anything you plug into it.

 

How is Harmon Kardon receivers? We have an 5.1 HK w/ 3 HDMI inputs. I believe it was like $500 or so.. how does it stack up? Just curious!

 

[QUOTE=espelirS2K,Nov 28 2008, 02:34 PM] How is Harmon Kardon receivers? We have an 5.1 HK w/ 3 HDMI inputs.

 

Depends on what you call "average."

For $1200 for the 5 speakers alone, a whole slew of ideas come into play.

[QUOTE]
Further, Bose is a decent company that invests a lot of money into R&D, but in the end, they really shoot for the impossible with most of their products.

 

Even Harmon Kardon is the same. All all sound about the same, and they don't sound good.

 

Since this is my forte, let's talk about Bose for a second.

Now, to Bose owners, don't get your panties in a twist. I am not here to knock you or your stuff, these are just facts.

First of all, Bose spends very LITTLE money on actual R&D. They spend a SLEW of money on marketing (one of the best in the industry...ANY industry) and a huge amount on design.

Now, their actual speakers (I mean, take the pretty boxes apart and look at the guts) are something you would see in a 1980s Buick. The cones are all paper, and they are all 1ohm (sometimes 2). In case you don't know a lot about speakers, that would be the equivalent of making your dashboard out of melted lunch trays. It's horrible.

Finally, have you ever thought to yourself..."Why is Bose never in the audio department?" Bose is NEAR the audio department, but never in it. That is because Bose makes sure that their products are always on their own, so people don't have the chance to have a REAL side by side comparison.

For the money, they are a huge ripoff, with a genius marketing campaign.

P.S. Ever notice how Bose is the only company not to publish their power ratings?

 

http://www.intellexual.net/bose.html


Go to Axiom's website. i picked up a set of M22's for around 400 and got a nice amplifier for the rest. I do most of my listening on the computer so i don't have surround etc. but use alot of FLAC's and have a nice DAC audio card that sounds amazing.