2.1 or 5.1 for surround sound?
I am looking to buy a home theatre (BluRay player, AV & speakers). I have a very limited budget of approx £800 to get all this. With the budget constraints in mind, would it be a better option to get a more expensive 2.1 speaker set which offers virtual surround sound than a lower range 5.1 setup?
Primarily this system will be for Sky HD and BluRay TV/movie playback. In a perfect world I'd also like to wirelessly playback hi-fi quality music from my iTunes library which lives on my MacBookPro.
If it was me personally I'd pick up a good budget AV amp (Yamaha RXV-671), £300
Then a good budget BluRay player around £100.
And some good budget speakers around £400 (stereo)
Then I'd save up for sub, centre, surrounds.
But you can pick up something like the Boston Soundware package for £220 (Richer sounds) (5 star WHF review) which includes all speakers and sub.
Add a budget AV amp and BR player and you're set.
Also, are you prepared to consider second hand goods? You can get some bargains on a well know auction site.
I would go for 5.1 though, but if possible, make sure it's something you can improve as time and funds allow. My first "proper" 5.1 involved some £100 Kef speakers and sub (from eBay) and a £350 AVR.
I've considered going for 2nd hand in order to get something decent. The only set back is that I do not know what kit is 'good' and what is 'bad'. There is a lot of choice out there, and you're never sure how well its been kept.
I have only been to Richer Sounds so far as I can atleast get some advice of what is good in my price range (although that advice can vary depending on personal experience of different sales staff).
In terms of what is good or bad, that's what the people on here are for :) My first post was along the lines of, "I can get these for speakers for £100, should I?"
You're right though about how stuff has been kept and any vendor worth their salt will let you listen to the speakers first.
IMO, I'd only spend around £100 or less on a Bluray Player. You can get some bargains on last years models of AVRs too such as this from Richer Sounds. Add in some speakers and there's a bit spare for some cables to connect it all together.
All of this would be upgradeable in future should you decide to go down that route.
I would recommend this as your blu ray, it's excellent, small and a great price.
Take a look at this receiver!!! http://www.froogle.richersounds.com/showclearanceproduct/DENO-AVR2311-BLK/Denon+Avr2311+Blk.html
Take a look at this receiver!!! http://www.froogle.richersounds.com/showclearanceproduct/DENO-AVR2311-BLK/Denon+Avr2311+Blk.html
What is your main aim from the system - movies or music?
From my experience, only the upper end of the "soundbars" get anywhere close to providing a reasonable surround experience, and are still soundly beaten by many budget 5.1 systems. So if surround sound is the main requirement, nothing beats 5 speakers dotted physically around your room.
An all-in-one unit might be the best solution - are you just looking at a Blu-ray system or would you want to connect anything else?