Surround Sound system help

[Trin]

@Lou - I love my ancient Polk Audio midrange speakers!! I have them paired with a top-of-the-line set of Infinity bookshelf speakers (the kind from the 80's which are like 2 feet tall) for super crisp high end and a Sunfire True Subwoofer (powered sub, 2500 watts, one channel). All run by a Denon AVR-2600 (which needs to be replaced). I don't think I could ever go with a passive subwoofer. It's not the big loud rattly bass that is missing from the passive ones. It's the low ambient almost imperceptible bass. The quiet bass. An active sub just does that stuff better. Plus, you have to take what you get with a passive sub. My active sub can be tailored to the acoustics of the room. I've just upgraded to a plasma tv and need to either get a surround sound system to go with it or move my main stereo system to pair up with the tv. So I'm very interested in hearing how this thread goes.

[LouCipherr]

@Lou - I love my ancient Polk Audio midrange speakers!! I have them paired with a top-of-the-line set of Infinity bookshelf speakers (the kind from the 80's which are like 2 feet tall) for super crisp high end and a Sunfire True Subwoofer (powered sub, 2500 watts, one channel). All run by a Denon AVR-2600 (which needs to be replaced). I don't think I could ever go with a passive subwoofer. It's not the big loud rattly bass that is missing from the passive ones. It's the low ambient almost imperceptible bass. The quiet bass. An active sub just does that stuff better. Plus, you have to take what you get with a passive sub. My active sub can be tailored to the acoustics of the room. I've just upgraded to a plasma tv and need to either get a surround sound system to go with it or move my main stereo system to pair up with the tv. So I'm very interested in hearing how this thread goes. Dude, I've listened to a TON of speakers in my lifetime, and nothing compares to the older Polk Audio speakers from "back in the day" so-to-speak. Believe it or not, waaaay back when Hard Drives were expensive as shit, I traded two 100mb (not gigabyte, megabyte!) hard drives for these speakers from some dude in Baltimore. I believe I got the best end of the deal 'cause those HDD's are worthless now, and I have a timeless, classic set of speakers from Polk. The Polk's I have are these (Model 7A's): ....and maan do I love these things. As far as subwoofers - the one I have is an active Sony sub. I'm not huge on $ony products to be honest ($ony and I have a long, bumpy history together that has left a bad taste in my mouth) but this sub does a really good job. I'll have to find out which model it is, 'cause I really don't remember. I do know this: I've rattled movie posters right off my basement walls while watching some flicks! Mine has a frequency roll-off adjustment, so I can determine the freq's going into the sub - that and the sub has it's own volume adjustment if needed. Usually I control it via the amp, but it does have the capability. Surround sound - there's nothing quite like it, is there? Talk about immersing yourself in a movie. I hope we can get Mike's system going for him. I'd be just as frustrated with the problems he's having. I bet it's a simple adjustment, and it's a shame we don't live closer together as it'd be a lot easier to diagnose problems while actually being in the room with the equipment.

[MikePizzoff]

Thanks for responding, dude. I have the TV's Digital Audio/SPDIF setting on "RAW", which I'm pretty sure is what you want for digital optical. However, I also tried the other option, PCM, and neither worked. There's an MTS/SAP setting that's set to "Stereo" but it's grayed out, so I can't change it. I'm thinking that THAT is my culprit, but I have no clue how to make it accessible. I'm going to do a little more messing around with it today.

[Trin]

As far as subwoofers - the one I have is an active Sony sub. I'm not huge on $ony products to be honest ($ony and I have a long, bumpy history together that has left a bad taste in my mouth) but this sub does a really good job. I'll have to find out which model it is, 'cause I really don't remember. I do know this: I've rattled movie posters right off my basement walls while watching some flicks! Mine has a frequency roll-off adjustment, so I can determine the freq's going into the sub - that and the sub has it's own volume adjustment if needed. Usually I control it via the amp, but it does have the capability. I'll have check to see what my Polks are. They are a fairly small set of speakers. But they blew me away when I first heard them. On their own they wouldn't be enough. But they combine really well with the Infinity speakers (which at the time were the gold standard for nailing the high frequencies) and the Sunfire sub. The Sunfire Subwoofer is really a thing of beauty. Mine is actually the 1996 version from when it first came out. http://www.sunfire.com/productdetail.asp?id=9 It has a built-in variable crossover, volume adjustment, and phase adjustment. Dual 10" woofers pound it out while still hitting down to 18Hz frequency response. It can rattle the front porch railing while still providing a smooth and consistent sound from lighter bass tracks. I have the other speakers rigged with a cutoff to exclude the low frequencies so it can shine.

[LouCipherr]

Thanks for responding, dude. I have the TV's Digital Audio/SPDIF setting on "RAW", which I'm pretty sure is what you want for digital optical. However, I also tried the other option, PCM, and neither worked. There's an MTS/SAP setting that's set to "Stereo" but it's grayed out, so I can't change it. I'm thinking that THAT is my culprit, but I have no clue how to make it accessible. This might sound like a stupid question, but these settings are for the audio output of the tv, corrrect? I know it sounds silly, but I have to ask. One thing you can do is plug the optical cable into your tv, and don't plug the other end in, just look into the end of it. If the signal from you TV is being sent through the cable, you'll see a flashing, usually red, light at the end of the cable. If the cable end is not flashing, your TV is putting out through the optical cable and it's something else. http://www.sunfire.com/productdetail.asp?id=9 Wow that looks like an awesome sub! I like the fact that it has phase adjustment - something mine doesn't have. I bet you could piss off the neighbors 3 blocks away with that kinda beast! Trin, it sounds like you're a serious audiophile. This is great to know, 'cause most people don't like talking tech with me on subjects like this. My setup isn't as kick ass as yours, but that's mostly due to financial limitations (and wifely limitations.. lmfao) Oh, and I said somewhere earlier that I couldn't remember my center channel. It's a Fosgate. Not top of the line by any means, but it does a great job for as a center channel. I'll tell ya what though, I hung it on my wall above the TV and ho-ly shit is it a heavy beast!

[Trin]

Wow that looks like an awesome sub! I like the fact that it has phase adjustment - something mine doesn't have. I bet you could piss off the neighbors 3 blocks away with that kinda beast! It was a $1250 subwoofer when I bought it 15 years ago. Cost as much as the rest of the system combined. Trin, it sounds like you're a serious audiophile. This is great to know, 'cause most people don't like talking tech with me on subjects like this. My setup isn't as kick ass as yours, but that's mostly due to financial limitations (and wifely limitations.. lmfao) In college I built my own subwoofer. A 15" speaker I bought for $45 at a car stereo warehouse auction, a car stereo powered amp (given to me), a crossover, and a box I made out of medite (hardest composite wood availalbe at the time) and carpet. Floor facing bass-reflex design with the speaker offcenter and a porthole. It did okay. Under $100. That was me as a broke audiophile. Then I got outta college and was young and single and making money. And that led to Denon, Polk, Infinity, and the Sunfire. Hard to imagine spending that much money on sound, but I did. My best friend bought Carver and to this day we argue over Carver vs. Denon. Now I'm married and I haven't upgraded my stereo in over 15 years. So I feel your pain brotha!! And I bet there's nothing wrong with that Fosgate!!