Stereo Sound for the Basment

[atchudy]

I just sold my B&W 805 Speakers for $1,950 on Audiogon. I am looking for a more discrete solution to music in the basement. We currently have a B&W system in our family room, powered by a pioneer Elite Receiver. The B Amplifiers are powering 2 pair of B&W WM2 Outdoor Speakers that are controlled through impedance matching Niles Volume Controls.

I would almost like the basement to be on a separate system since we have a cable box, record player, and XBOX PS3 down there. The room is a litle tight, so i might run the wires to the utility room and control everything via RF. A also could run a pair of RCA cables to capture the 2nd source out.

My problem is the room is set up weird. It is a rectangle, with one half having a billiards table, and the other half having a L Shaped Couch and TV. The room is 13x25x7. I do not know if I should use ceiling speakers or in wall speakers. I am not looking for amazing sound, just some speakers for easy listening.

Any Help would be appreciated. I would also like to stay on a $500 budget. So i will consider used or ebay. I have 100+ feet of Canare 4S11 also.

If anyone knows a place where i could make a quick layout of the room that would also be appreciated.

[Allegiance]

Would you consider mounting a bookshielf pair of speakers on the wall? That's what I would be going for, if not go for in wall, leaving in ceiling last. Whats your location so I can check pricing?

Dynaudio IP17's are pretty good for in wall, but not sure if they are expensive in U.S.

Maybe even consider wall mounting a pair of B&W LM1's? Or even VM1's or VM6's?

Depends on what you want to do with them as well. And does your $500 include amplifier? Or just speakers?

[DM3000 Owner]

If the $500 is just for speakers, try these:

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrmoni&1215660154

They are pretty inefficient (85 db) but nice speakers. I have a pair of ERA design 5's in my office and listen to them about 10 hours a day. I really like them a lot.

If you want to keep the entire system at $500, email me, I can hook you up with a complete system for under that amount. If you want to go a l;ittle higher for speakers I have a really nice pair of B&W DM3000's that I do not use.

[atchudy]

I already have a Amp. The budget would just be for speakers. I also would really like to have them in the walls or ceiling. Wall mounting speakers will be too cluttered for my taste.

I just dont know the difference between the various models of in-wall or ceiling speakers, and how they work with a room of my dimensions.

The goal would be for music while playing pool, no tv or surround sound.

[Allegiance]

Maybe a pair of CWM650's from B&W's custom range. Should sound pretty good, they are $999 AUD which should be about $500 U.S. Mount them in wall.

[WI Rotel]

BW customs are pretty good. I would recommend not doing a ceiling placement, aside from just "general sound" the ceiling is simply an unsatisfactory place for good sound. The walls are much better, but again, don't expect the sound you would get from regular boxes. Note, installation in the walls can be quite difficult even with well engineered ones such as the BW's. I helped a friend of mine install a pair, and it took us a while to figure out that in his case (his speakers are at about knee level below a kitchen counter) the best placement was upside down with the woofer on top! Speaker placement and focusing is not really and exact science. BTW, my buddy is nuclear physicist and he couldn't figure it out, I just happened to remmember installations (like near the roof) where optimal imaging is with the speaker upside down (luckily since I'm a mathematical moron!).

[rmht]

Two things that will help an inwall

Best of all worlds.....open up walls, use B&W's specs for internal volumes and construct boxes made out of 3/4" MDF. Caulk and dampen, throw in speakers and you would have one hell of a speaker without any boxes in room. Drywall repair and paint.

Use a product such as Dynamat or heavy foam, rigid fiberglass for the dyiers. Mimic suggested volume through the opened speaker hole with above. It is all about symmetry and suggested box volume without hard surfaces and bad angles.

[DM3000 Owner]

I heard a pair of B&W ceilign speakers at a deler. They sounded OK until you walked rigth under them, then the sounded fantastic, but a little weird because the sound is comminf from above.

The ERA Design 4 and Design 5 that I mention above have mounting provisions on the back for wall mounting and they are relatively small. I bought the Design 5's because they are much smaller than B&W 805's and fit on my desk very well. The design 4's are even smaller. Check them out, they are very nice.

[atchudy]

i just put a sketch in my original post. The wall with the fireplace is all wood, and i do not want to put speakers in it. That leaves my options of a pair of in wall on each of the pool table, or one of ceiling speakers.

How are the CCM80's? There is a pair on ebay.