"oh no, not another newb"...hey guys, i'm new, have a small question

[deucelee]

hello everyone. I'm extremely glad i found this place. It looks like a mountain of knowlege here.

a little intro on me, i'm deuce, software developer by day, dad/husband/big diy guy by evening. I just bought a house and have a 15x24 room to build a HT in...i've installed a dozen car audio systems and built a couple dozen car audio boxes but have done zippo with home audio and home speaker builds...

i'd like to do more studying and build a 7.1 home system based some of the proven designs here and on the net. i've read some good resources on crossovers online too.

to start out, i got a newbie question.

i'd like to purchase the Onkyo 706 for my receiver. the problem is it's only stable to 8 ohms, not 4 ohms, or so i've read.

i want to do a MTM for my fronts and the center channel and MT's for the sides and rear...what do most HT guys do for this? if their receiver is only 8 ohm stable and most MTM set ups are 4 ohm?

I'm thinking i could use 4 ohms mids and wire them in series for a 8 ohm load, but that would mean they're not getting that much power from the amp compared to the single 8 ohm tweeter...

this should get me started...once again, im glad i found this place...

[Hdale85]

Well I believe other people have run 4ohm speakers on that receiver without issues. What's your budget for the speakers? Off the top of the head I'd say Nat P mains WTMW center and Modula MT surrounds. When your starting out unless you have tons of know how as far as crossover design and lots of measuring equipment best to build already accomplished designs

[Brian Walter]

I pretty much echo what Dougie said, but depending on your budget you may find other speakers options would work out better. If you budget is a little lower you might want to take a look at Curt C's Tritrix speakers or if you budget is higher then the Statement series of speakers would be a real great choice. There are other options out there as well, so give us a little more information like your budget, what type of music you listen to and are these speakers to be used for music and movies or just movies? If also to be used for music, what type of music do you listen too?

Don't be shy, keep asking questions and you'll get a considerable amount of input.

Brian Walter

[Hdale85]

Also information about the room they will go in? Dimensions and what not.

[Operandi]

Also information about the room they will go in? Dimensions and what not.

He did mention it was 15x24, no other details though. Still a room that size seems like it would be better suited to a 5.1 (certainly if budget is a concern)?

The Tritrix would be a great first project; inexpensive and easy crossover, ect. And most importantly they sound really good; forget about whatever preconceptions you might have about their budget category.

[alias2]

http://www.us.onkyo.com/model.cfm?m=TX-SR706&class=Receiver&p=s

See "dynamic power" section. This implies the 706 is not 8 ohms only.

[deucelee]

hey thanks for the replies guys.

once again i'm a HT newb so i don't know what is the real big difference between 5.1 and 7.1 and their performance other than one having two more speakers...lol i guess i was just following the band wagon with the new 7.1 craze out there...i think i will just do a 5.1 for now and add 2 more in the future if i wasn't satisfied...

this will be 80% movies, 20% music...I don't listen to that much music at home...

i would say my budget would be $800-1,000 for the front/center/rear speakers (drivers, wood, veneers, hardware, etc...) it is on the budget side...the sub/amp is separate, i already have a 500watt dayton plate amp on hand and plan on getting a Mach5Audio IXL 15 for the sub...any other suggestions are welcomed too...

i'm thinking about a Dayton RS setup, i've fallen desparately in love with the way it looks and from what people are saying about it, it's a $100 speaker with a $40 price tag, and there's plenty of people using them for their set up too...i will have to find a way to stretch my dollars though...

glad to here the onkyo can take 4 ohms...that is a separate budget btw...i was just afraid from reading reviews on amazon about heating issues with some of the onkyo's...

don't worry doug, i have no intention to cook up my own design :P thanks guys

[ahaik]

hey thanks for the replies guys.

once again i'm a HT newb so i don't know what is the real big difference between 5.1 and 7.1 and their performance other than one having two more speakers...lol i guess i was just following the band wagon with the new 7.1 craze out there...i think i will just do a 5.1 for now and add 2 more in the future if i wasn't satisfied...

this will be 80% movies, 20% music...I don't listen to that much music at home...

i would say my budget would be $800-1,000 for the front/center/rear speakers (drivers, wood, veneers, hardware, etc...) it is on the budget side...the sub/amp is separate, i already have a 500watt dayton plate amp on hand and plan on getting a Mach5Audio IXL 15 for the sub...any other suggestions are welcomed too...

i'm thinking about a Dayton RS setup, i've fallen desparately in love with the way it looks and from what people are saying about it, it's a $100 speaker with a $40 price tag, and there's plenty of people using them for their set up too...i will have to find a way to stretch my dollars though...

glad to here the onkyo can take 4 ohms...that is a separate budget btw...i was just afraid from reading reviews on amazon about heating issues with some of the onkyo's...

don't worry doug, i have no intention to cook up my own design :P thanks guys

I think you will be over the budjet with the Dayton RS design (Modula/Nataly P). The tri-Trix might keep you in budjet and they sound great too.

Asi.

[deucelee]

I think you will be over the budjet with the Dayton RS design (Modula/Nataly P). The tri-Trix might keep you in budjet and they sound great too.

Asi.

thanks Asi, i will look at the tri-trix.

i will also study the modula/nataly P and see if i can suck some more money from stone...

i'll use my bonus if i have to :

i don't want to spend $800 and be 90% satisfied when I could have spent $400 more and be 100% satisfied and clear my conscious of any regrets...thanks again

[Hdale85]

If it was 1000-1200 without cabinet stuff (wood screws and so on) then you could probably do the Nat P's, Modula MT's and RS WTMW. Yeah check out the TriTrix or even CJD's MTM's. Or heck the noobsters would be good to you could use 5 of them.

[deucelee]

If it was 1000-1200 without cabinet stuff (wood screws and so on) then you could probably do the Nat P's, Modula MT's and RS WTMW. Yeah check out the TriTrix or even CJD's MTM's. Or heck the noobsters would be good to you could use 5 of them.

dougie, you're talking about Nat's for the fronts, RS WTMW for center and Modulas for the rears? right? just checking to make sure I understand what you have in mind...

[Hdale85]

Yes, all of those except the WTMW I believe can use the Partsexpress enclosures. But that adds a lot of cost. So if your building your own could probably do enclosures before finishing for around 100 bucks for all 5 speakers.

The noobsters are a pretty cheap design (I think it's around 200 for a pair without enclosures) so you could easily use 5 of those and they are supposed to be quite good. I have not heard them but they look like a great design.

[deucelee]

Yes, all of those except the WTMW I believe can use the Partsexpress enclosures. But that adds a lot of cost. So if your building your own could probably do enclosures before finishing for around 100 bucks for all 5 speakers.

The noobsters are a pretty cheap design (I think it's around 200 for a pair without enclosures) so you could easily use 5 of those and they are supposed to be quite good. I have not heard them but they look like a great design.

i wouldn't be doing this if i wasn't building my own enclosures! :B

gotta put that ridgid table saw, router, and all those other tools to work...right now menards got mdf and boards on sale so i'm going to pick up several 4x8 sheets...

i will check out those noobsters as well...thanks for all your replies

[Hdale85]

Just when you go to get MDF try and not get the stuff that's softer it can be a pain later. Especially if your painting the enclosures It's hard to tell sometimes though. Usually the more dense stuff is a lighter color though.

[deucelee]

Just when you go to get MDF try and not get the stuff that's softer it can be a pain later. Especially if your painting the enclosures It's hard to tell sometimes though. Usually the more dense stuff is a lighter color though.

hey thanks for the awesome tip!

i was at menards two days ago just browsing their items on sale...the mdf looked like it was darker, just from briefly looking at it, it wasn't the traditional 49x97 i usually see at lowes (what i usually use for my car audio boxes), and it did look like it was a little mushy...

i will inspect it again just to double check, but you may have saved me from buying some mushy mdf even if it is on sale...

[Hdale85]

That's what my current speakers were cut out of and it's just not the greatest stuff. It's not super soft like the stuff your talking about but it's certainly not the quality stuff I'm used to.

[deucelee]

That's what my current speakers were cut out of and it's just not the greatest stuff. It's not super soft like the stuff your talking about but it's certainly not the quality stuff I'm used to.

sorry, yeah thats what i mean...it's not super soft, but felt softer...when i was looking at it and touched it, my gut instinct DID tell me it wasn't the same stuff at lowes that i usually get for $25...

it's on sale for $18 but if you didn't mention this to me, i would have just bought it cus it was on sale, and it said MDF...it does say 48x96, not the usuall 47x97. like i said, i definitely noticed the slight color difference...i can see how the softer kind could make the end product not as stiff and solid...