[SyntheticDream]

well ive been lurking around these forums for the past few days and been contemplating a low budget audio setup... ive been interested in expanding from my headphone base to something i can feel a lot better and reall rock out to.. i listen to mostly rock/alt/metal, stuff that relys heavily on guitars.. so far i am thinking of using the new toshiba sd-3509 as my source to a panny sa-xr70 driving either some dayton audio br-1's (dont know if im up to the diy yet, i have some expericence in headphone amplifiers though)  or ascend acoustics cbm-170's.  what i was wondering is, since im really only gonna be using 2 channel audio with this setup, is there a way to say bridge the outputs together so i can drive the speakers with more than 100 watts? i really wanna be able to rock the house lol and i know that the 100 wpc they state is probably over rated.. i wanna keep the price in the $500 to $600 range... let me know if im completely off... thanks.

[jackman]

In your price range, I believe the system you suggested looks pretty good.  The BR1's are good sounding and are VERY easy to build.  Don't let the soldering scare you, they are a design made for people who are doing their first project.  I'd add some IC's from Diycable and you will have a nice sounding system.  

You can later add a decent sub.  Rutledge and GR Research make nice subs for very little money.  I also hear ACI and AV123 make nice subs.  If you are looking for a dirt-cheap sub that plays way better than it should, and really rocks the house, the little partsexpress Dayton sub is a real bargain for under a hundred bucks.  http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/pshowdetl.cfm?&DID=7&Partnumber=300-632  

I really don't know how they do it.  

It's difficult to do better than that for the money you have alloted.  I would check the websites of some of the manufacturers on this site for additional details.  That little panny receiver (I have the 45) is very good sounding for the $$$.  It won't replace decent mid-fi gear (IMO) but gets pretty darn close for very little money.  

Good luck,

j

[SyntheticDream]

thanks alot jackman, are those br1's equal to the ascends? its hard to believe Dayton offers quality at such good prices heh.  im still curious about bridging the outputs of the receiver, maybe bi-amping is the term im looking for? the only thing im worried about is the output of the panny receiver.. is there anything that i might be able to look into in the way of strictly 2 channel audio receivers that could provide more power than that HT unit? or are the speakers im looking at even capable of handling more power?

[JLM]

Haven't heard the BR-1's, but own the Ascend Acoustics CBM-170s.  They're the real deal.  Any normal (reasonable, non audiofile) person would wonder why anyone would spend more.  Content value is high, sound quality is higher.  Standard finish best suited for frequent moves or rough environments (not much to look at).  That's the low point, everything else is "stupid good" for the price.  I use them in a 2.1 HT system with a Hsu VTF-2 sub and a factory reconditioned Harmon Kardon 70 wpc stereo receiver.  IMO they're too good for HT (except those with good musical tracks).  Depending on your circumstances/taste you could live without a sub.

BTW the HK receiver is a steal at $160 delivered.  Controls on the unit are scary cheap, but it sounds as good as my $700 Rotel receiver and pulls in more FM stations.  It weighs 35 pounds and is rated at 42 amps of output!  I had trouble with the left channel cutting out and distorting.  HK stood more than fully stood behind their warantee and provided a choice of local repair shops, no charge, no hassle.  In fact they were ready to fire their factory repair guy (they practice a three strikes and your out policy in their reconditioning shop).

[SyntheticDream]

wow that sounds really good JLM, thanks for the info. that gives me something new to look into... audio is my main concern, as i dont watch that many movies, so the better sound quality i can get, the better! where did you find that HK receiver? i found your previous post on it but cant find that kinda of deal on it at all.. are my ideas good for audio only setup, cause i really dont care about movies. heheh. oh and ill definately add a subwoofer... gotta love that bass.

[jackman]

thanks alot jackman, are those br1's equal to the ascends? its hard to believe Dayton offers quality at such good prices heh. im still curious about bridging the outputs of the receiver, maybe bi-amping is the term im looking for? the only thing im worried about is the output of the panny receiver.. is there anything that i might be able to look into in the way of strictly 2 channel audio receivers that could provide more power than that HT unit? or are the speakers im looking at even capable of handling more power?
 
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I've never heard the Ascends but there are lots of Ascend fans out there so they can't ALL be wrong  The BR1's are $139 DELIVERED.  Plus they are a fun entre into the world of DIY speakerbuilding.  You could probably put them together in about an hour or two.  The parts are easy and cheap to replace and you have bragging rights to say you "built" them!  No one needs to know they were an easy kit!  

There are a couple knocks on the BR's, they are not the last word in upper end refinement but that's not a bad thing when paired with inexpensive electronics.  They are not efficient but those new digital receivers have lots of power so that's not an issue, and the bass is not as tight as some expensive speakers.  Bottom line, I've never met a person who has heard them who has not felt they were an excellent value.  I'd look at the new JVC digital or Panny digital (someone was giving away those SR25's recently, do a search) and that Toshiba CDP.   Forget about bi-wire, these only have single connectors but there is no need to biwire these anyway.  They should be fine as-is.  I would be willing to bet that you could use these for a while and then sell them for about what you paid.  It's a pretty low risk proposition.  

Who knows, you may just decide you like DIY speaker building or at least tweeking and step up to something like those Morel 3 ways morelusa.com is giving away with free delivery for something like $600.  There is a crossover mod that is supposed to make them sound very good (ask Birdwizard).  

Good luck.  There are a million different ways you could go with your search.  AV123 has some really nice low cost speakers and gear, Rutledge (Brian) makes some really nice speakers, Louis at Omega has some great sounding inexpensive speakers, Danny at GR-Research offers excellent value, DIYcable has some new kits coming out with some cool looking drivers, and there are tons more.  

Let us know what you choose!

Jack