i have in place a HTIB kenwood 5.1, 5 disc dvd changer setup that ive had for about 3-4 years. its okay, but not the best in the world. im looking to replace it but i dont want to spend more than $500. i have a medium size rec room that ill be putting it in. would i be better off going with a HTIB, or actually going out and picking my reciever, dvd, speakers, etc.?
Berny is right it is almost a waste of $500 because at that budget you will not get any improvement. What about slowly putting a system together, receiver and two speakers for $500 then 6 months to a year later upgrade with center channel or sub then later again add the surround speakers.
well im not an audiophile. i mean, i like a nice system, but im not wanting to blow the house down with super loud bass and stuff. i just want to sound decent.
5 disc dvd changer - takes at least 3 seconds or so for the audio to come through when playing a dvd. for instance, on the menu screen, you know how on some movies...say...the matrix or something...that when you select "play" it shows a quick little menu animation with some sound before it actually plays the movie? well when i hit play on mine, i dont hear it because there is a delay. my dvd changer, makes a clicking sound, seemlingly to enable the audio or something. i dont know its weird.
receiver - acts up sometimes like its posessed. ill hit the power button on the receiver, and sound and video come through the tv, but the lcd screen on the receiver doesnt show up. and then randomly after about 30 min. it will just come back on. i know its little, but it sucks.
speakers - ive noticed recently that i get some static in my speakers. i have some decent cables (not the ones that came with the htib). it will only happen every so often, and it will come and go, but ill be watching a soccer game or something and it will get staticky for a a while, and then go away. could that be faulty cabling, bad speakers, or what?
so ive got some problems with my current setup. my dvd player is huge, as big as my receiver. i know its a 5 disc changer, but i really dont care about having a 5 disc changer. 1 disc would be fine. im going to be getting a 50" hd tv this year but im i dont really care about getting an hd-dvd player because i wont be buying hd-dvds. however, i wouldnt mind having one of those dvd players that can convert (as good as can be) regular dvd's into decent hd viewing.
i know thats a lot, but do you have any suggestions as to how i could piece it together? my kenwood system was around $400 when i bought it.
If your going to be buying a large screen HD TV (42 in +) then you can get a lot of mileage out of an upconverting player. You can get one for around 150$-ish. Just remember they do not upconvert commercial disks over component, so you will have to use HDMI or DVI, so ensure the TV you buy has these features (most do).
Secondly, Use the rest of the budget on your receiver. You cannot get a good separate pieced system for 500$, so you have to accept the fact that you will be piecing this together over time. My personal favourite for receiver is HK, but shop around and see which ones you like. You can get a pretty decent receiver out there within your budget, but not new models. For example, you can get a HK AVR 635 for around 500 - 600$, compared the MSRP of around 2k. Shop around online, look at refurbs etc, as long as it is warranty protected, your good to go.
Once you have the extra cash, then it is time to upgrade the speakers.