[kenreau]

(I did a search and the postings were so old it was recommended that I start a new thread.)

I have a good friend that I offered to help out installing a HT sound system to go with his new flat panel HD tv.  He is not a critical audio/video-phile but I want to help him get as much bang for the buck as feasible.  He just wall mounted a 42" LCD above a fireplace mantle and left room for either a sound bar or most likely in-wall speakers just above the mantle.

Given the house space plan, he is only interested in 3.1 (left-center-right) channel at this time.  He has a sub already.  For WAF reasons, most likely in-wall speakers are preferred with the flush speaker grills getting painted to match the wall paint.

For a budget, I imagine he would be comfortable spending up to the $200-$250 range per speaker ( say $750 max for all three speakers).

I've combed a few sites like partsexpress and madisound for their in-wall speakers.  Are the Dayton or MTX or Descant lines worth considering? 

Are there other more main-stream mnftrs. like Polk, Klipsch, PSB, Paradigm that might be a good value in that price range?  Are they more or less a commodity product in this price range?  His quality bench mark is "Bose"


Another question - he was only originally planning to do 2-channel for surround sound  and I convinced him 3-channel minimum for HT due to dialog, etc.  Is the Center channel speaker worth upgrading over the left & right speakers?  By this I'm thinking of maybe a 3 way vs 2 way, or the next click up in the model line.  Or just keep them all the same model? 

Thanks,
Kenreau

[rydenfan]

Take a look at Speakercraft or Triad. They both focus on in-wall and in-ceiling products and have a pretty wide variety of products.

[rodge827]

Hi Kenreau,
My in the walls are from Home Theater Direct, the price is good and the HT sound is very good! They also have a line of on the walls specifically made for wall mount TVs.

I would highly recommend the HD model, all three the same across the front. HTD prices and customer service are so good that your buddy may want to complete the whole surround system. My system is a 6.1 with the fronts the HD W80's and the rears HD R65's.

Good Luck,

http://www.htd.com/

Chris

[kenreau]

Thanks to both of you.  The HTD products price point looks very appealing.  I'll check them out.

Kenreau

[ebag4]

Any other in-wall recommendations?  Does anyone hav experience with the Def-Tech units?  How about JBL or Boston Acoustics?  Are there any that you wouldn't recommend?  These would be for the 4 rears in a 7.1 system.  2 in-wall, 2 in-ceiling.

Thanks,
Ed

[Tone Depth]

Legacy also makes some in-wall high end speakers:  http://legacyaudio.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=70&Itemid=200

Oops, probably out of budget.

[kenreau]

While I've not heard them, I've read great things about the Joseph Audio in-wall speakers.  I recently picked up a pair of the RM33LE's (full range in-room floor speakers) and have been extremely happy with them.  They subscribe to an infinite slope cross over topography that reportedly has many befenfits. 

[JP78]

we use the def tech reference line here at work...they are phenomenal for movies...great bass for the size. i would say they're not ideal for music because of the passive radiator design but certainly provide great satisfaction for film.  your local retailer should be able to provide you with a fair discount to boot!

[levlhed]

Any input on either MTX/Dayton lines @ Parts Express?

Building a home theater room from scratch, realized that perhaps putting in-wall speakers in now would be ideal!
The Dayton and MTX mid-range lines are around my budget.  I was wondering if there were more opinions to go on rather than the ones already @ Parts Express.

cheers