[fcraven]

It's been an annoying day as our new fancy shmancy sofa bed decided to collapse on us http://gallery.me.com/operadad#100083...while we were on it...no just sitting there.

Anyway, I thought I would bring a question to you all. My mother wants to buy a new TV, and with it, a new audio system.  I want here to have something nice, and I'm willing to build something, but I don't want to over-do it like i did with my own system. So here are my thoughts, and I welcome yours.

First we know that the servo sub does wonders, I suspect that a nice end table format will be quite please to grandma Jo.

Next we have the surrounds, but this is a little more complicated then using the A/V1-RS as my mom's TV room has a vaulted ceiling on all sides... thoughts?

Finally we have the fronts, I love my Neo-2X variations, but for my mom? With the servo one can certainly get away with smaller front channels, maybe the Just the base AV1s, maybe with a modified cabinet so they stick out less ( You know, like most of the tiny things at BestBuy).
She won't (intentionally) be listening to any hi-fi, in fact she may connect a casset tape player.

So, what would you suggest for Grandma Jo. What would you do for your mom?

For what it's worth, if I were to suggest something to her to buy I would say the Mirage omni-directional things that I was considering before I decided to build my own.

[drab]

An easy and inexpensive alternative that also happens to come in the small box size like the ones at best buy would be to get four insignias for front and rear and modify them with Danny's upgrade. Not sure what to do about the center though. Otherwise I would go with four of either the A/V-1 or Neo-1 and an  A/V-1c center. Can't imagine mom would want any more than any of these. (Mine wouldn't)    I would put all 4 speakers on stands.

Sorry about your sofa

Good luck!

[Danny Richie]

Yea, the A/V series won't let you down and won't cost much either.

You could even go for a single SW-12B (on sale right now for $89) in a sealed box and still get great results.

[Chops]

What would you do for your mom?

That's a simple question... Just a normal 27" CRT boob-tube and a Sony boom-box with CD and cassette. Makes her quite content.

[satfrat]

Do you really think your mother(grandmother?) is even concerned about bass? Most women I know are turned off from the boom-boom-boom of a subwoofer. I hear about it all the time. You may want to pick her mind before even investing in one. If it turns out that bass is a turnoff, it could really simplify things for ya. Just a thought worth considering. I also think Mirage Omni's would work nice for a home theater setup and I'm sure their small footprint would be to her liking as looks can be more important than the sound. Gotta remember you're trying to please a woman, not an audiophile.

Cheers,
Robin

[fcraven]

Mom to me is Grandma Jo to my kids.

Good point about the bass, she hasn't yet come over to "audition" our system, so I don't know what she will think. (yet), that being said the servo sub doesn't have a loot of "ooooom" to it, just a lot of "B" so it's somewhat of a different experience. Most off the shelf systems have a sub because, they actually have undersized woofers, and that may not be an issue for her.

The most surprising/non-audiophile-observation thing about the neo2x (hey how about we give these a name too...) is that they are real easy on the ears, I guess that's what you get with a good design. and I know she will like that. This IS an issue in that my name sake (her ex) was an early home build speaker guy (so perhaps its genetic) and he liked to turn things up "way too loud", especially Чайковский.

No stands for this grandma speakers will either be mounted to the wall, or sitting on shelf. Although I could nudger towards stands, there are grand kids (my kids) involved...

She's definitely decided that she wants a "flat panel" TV mounted to the wall. size to be determined, probably 40-46" (which will be huge to her).

Point of explanation to my question. My mom is seeking my guidance, ergo I have an opportunity to nudge her in one direction or another. Who knows what our mothers will do? I certainly don't. Each of us could go to our respective parent's house to find a cheep Bose system sitting in a box with "Hun, could you set that up for me?" So, I thought that would make an interesting "philosophical" question here.

[mcgsxr]

If it were my mom, or grandma, I would honestly be looking for a Yamaha, or Polk Audio soundbar type solution, and then augment with one of Danny's excellent subs.

One box under the TV, one on the floor, and decent sound.  Not great, not audiophile, but likely perfect for them, and WAF through the vaulted ceiling vs many speakers on walls, stands or bookshelves.

Just my $0.02.

[JLM]

Agreed, first find out what she wants or her preferences are.  My guess is low spls, little bass, and certainly not making her living room look like an audio/HT showroom.

I've not had very good luck with in-wall speakers.  The smallest, most domestically friendly audiophile speaker I'm aware of are TBI Diamond Majestic.  About $250 each for 5 inch cubes with single driver.  An upgraded version is available with bass extension into the 30's!  They're supposed to be insensitive to shelf mounting. 

[woodsyi]

Most women consider appearance more important than performance.  I would ask her what look she wants. 

[EARGASM]

Removed by member.

[satfrat]

Mom to me is Grandma Jo to my kids.

Good point about the bass, she hasn't yet come over to "audition" our system, so I don't know what she will think. (yet), that being said the servo sub doesn't have a loot of "ooooom" to it, just a lot of "B" so it's somewhat of a different experience. Most off the shelf systems have a sub because, they actually have undersized woofers, and that may not be an issue for her.

The most surprising/non-audiophile-observation thing about the neo2x (hey how about we give these a name too...) is that they are real easy on the ears, I guess that's what you get with a good design. and I know she will like that. This IS an issue in that my name sake (her ex) was an early home build speaker guy (so perhaps its genetic) and he liked to turn things up "way too loud", especially Чайковский.

No stands for this grandma speakers will either be mounted to the wall, or sitting on shelf. Although I could nudger towards stands, there are grand kids (my kids) involved...

She's definitely decided that she wants a "flat panel" TV mounted to the wall. size to be determined, probably 40-46" (which will be huge to her).

Point of explanation to my question. My mom is seeking my guidance, ergo I have an opportunity to nudge her in one direction or another. Who knows what our mothers will do? I certainly don't. Each of us could go to our respective parent's house to find a cheep Bose system sitting in a box with "Hun, could you set that up for me?" So, I thought that would make an interesting "philosophical" question here.

Thanks for the clarification. By all means get her over to hear our system, get her reactions and go from there. Don't the Mirage Omni's have wall mounting brackets available? Will she be happy with wall mounted bookshelf's? Does she even like bass? Lots of questions that need answering from her and not a bunch of audiophiles. She could very well be more than happy with a Bose system with those little cube speakers. AND that type of advise you won't be finding here. There are those women who are strictly tone deaf and wouldn't appreciate the difference between a high end sound system and the tv speakers. So your homework needs to start with your mother, ask the relevent questions to her, then if neccessary come here for advise. You just may find that good quality sound would be wasted on her and a trip to Sears is all it would take to satisfy her. But by all means find out what will make her happy first and foremost.

 That's all I got.

Cheers,
Robin

[corndog71]

I would suggest getting her the best stuff you can get within your budget.

Eventually it will either get passed on or thrown in the garbage.

The stuff that gets passed on will always be "attached" to her memory.

Just something to consider.