Help for an Audiofile converting to Home Theater?

[smashmark]

hey...

I am in the process of converting from an audiofile system to a home theater setup and i was looking for any advice!

My audio system was/is:

Bryston 4B amp
Classe preamp
Dahlquist DQ 20 speakers.

i no longer have the amp/preamp, so basically im working with my dahlquist speakers

I have been considering buying a Rotel 1056 receiver, and running the dahlquist and my plasma thru that setup until i find either speakers to match the dahlquist, or just get entirely new speakers

advice?

should i just scrap my speakers and get a whole new setup?

should i try and incorporate my speakers into a new setup since i love them,?

any advice is appreciated, also would love opinions about speakers, receivers, etc

[Andrew Pratt]

How large are those DQ20's and how much do you like them? If you really like them I'd say see if Dahlquist still makes a matching center channel and buy some matching surrounds...of course its also a great excuss to start over if you have the upgrade bug

[smashmark]

hey andrew,, thanx for the response.

the DQ20s are big.....

they are no longer in business, so finding a matching center made by dahlquist isnt an option.

i do like them alot, but i can be persuaded to switch.

[Chuck G]

I probably would have suggested you keep the amp. Ditto Andrew on the speakers. If you like them, seek a matching center/surrounds from Dahlquist.

Since music is important, I think the Rotel is a pretty good choice. I'd suggest a used B&K 505 receiver. Nice amp/preamp section and is suppose to be very good with music. Cambridge Audio has a nice HT receiver that is suppose to be good with music.

[Chuck G]

Smashmark, don't know your budget but the Aragon Soundstage is a killer 2 channel/home theater preamp. You can find them used for around $1300 or so if you are patient.

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?ddhomeproc&1115258795

[Lex]

I didn't know Dahlquist was out of business. hindsight is 20 20, but I do like a separate 2 channel amp for the mains. That Bryston was a keeper.

You could always move the Dahlquist to the rear and get matching front 3.

Lex

[aud19]

Sucks that you got rid of the Bryston You might consider keeping the D's for a seperate 2-channel system and just get new gear for HT with Dahl being out of business...(I had no idea either Doug!?) You could try the used market to find matching speakers as well but may have limited sucess depending on availability etc.

What's your budget? Is that for speakers, cables, sources, amps, pre/pro, receivers, cables, video display...?

Do you have space for seperate 2-ch and HT systems?

[smashmark]

hey, thanx for all the feedback.

2 separate systems isnt an option, im trying to do 2 in one.

so what im hearing is, you would suggest getting an HT receiver, but only use it to power 3 of the speakers, while running the 2 main ones on separate power (i.e., the bryston and another preamp)?

I guess ideally, I want to start by buying the best HT receiver i can in my price range, i.e, about 1500$

and then work my way up from there...

i liked some of the B&W speakers i heard with the rotel, and they seemed pretty reasonable

[aud19]

Re-reading your first post and your last one it seems as though you still have the Bryston amp! :P Keep that!

If there is anyway you can stretch your budget to include an HT pre/pro and see if you can find a used 3-channel Bryston amp I think you'd be stellar! :yesnod:

You'd still have to sort out your speakers but you'd have a good start on the front end and still good 2-ch with the Brystons

[Andrew Pratt]

Are you sure Dal's out of business? It looks like AudioShop still carries them though I think they did redesign all their speakers so you might not find a perfect match to your current mains. If you still have the Bryston keep that and use it for powering the fronts and then pick up the Rotel 1056 receiver. Ideally as Jason points out the Rotel 1068 would be a better buy for sonics but you'd then also need to buy another amp to power the center and surrounds.

[aud19]

Are you sure Dal's out of business? It looks like AudioShop still carries them though I think they did redesign all their speakers so you might not find a perfect match to your current mains. If you still have the Bryston keep that and use it for powering the fronts and then pick up the Rotel 1056 receiver. Ideally as Jason points out the Rotel 1068 would be a better buy for sonics but you'd then also need to buy another amp to power the center and surrounds.

But then you also wouldn't be wasting amp channels in the 1056, you'd have more and arguably better power and if you got the amp used, for not much more money.

[gd]

Too many complications... no more Classe pre or Bryston pwr (as stated in the first post)... and worse, Dahlquist outa biz (news to me, too).

I say start over... if you're going to be serious about your 5.1 setup, all speakers should be voice-matched -- and that's not necessarily easy to do even when looking at the same brand.

You're obviously no stranger to upscale gear... I think you might enjoy auditioning new speakers, and re-discovering the varied sonic attributes amid the different makes... try Totem, NHT, Vandersteen, B&W, Monitor Audio at the showrooms... as well as several established online-only manufacturers: GR Research, Ascend, SVS, Hsu.

Meanwhile, in the $1500 range, the 1056 would make a great centerpiece to which extra amplification can be added later.