# Does this exist? Home Theatre without speakers.



## acrosteve (Jul 26, 2011)

My sister has a "Home Theater in a Box" that she wants to replace. There is nothing wrong with her speakers and I figured she should keep them and try to find a Reciever/BlueRay combo player. Sort of HTIB without the speakers.


Well, I have looked around a few places online and have not found anything that does not include the speakers.


I would almost tell her to settle on a separate receiver and blue ray player, but she lives in a small apt and space is a little concern.


It seems that she could get a better unit for the $$$ if she did not have to buy the speakers again. 


Thanks


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## brembo (Jul 26, 2011)

I doubt there are many receiver/brp combos out there. If you would not mind listing the name of the current setup she has, it would make recommendations easier.

If it were me, I'd go with a small form factor receiver and a PS3 for blu-ray. With the PS3 she would also have a conduit to netflix or other online streaming apps for music as well. Another idea would be to mod up a mini-ATX case with a good vid card (HDMI out), good blu-ray player and smallish solid state HDD for size and heat. Add some wireless network attached storage for CD/DVD/Blu-ray rips and call it a day.


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## NonSenCe (Jul 26, 2011)

av receiver and blueray player combo? i think i have only heard of one DENON S-5BD (mind you i have intentionally kept myself out of the loop for few years)
and.. i might be even wrong with this. (cant bother to google it now. im hungry need food! hahah)


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## Lynx_Arc (Jul 26, 2011)

You won't find a home theater blue ray player without speakers new in the stores, have to get one used or sell the old dvd home theater and get a blu ray setup with speakers. Typically it is rare to find a home theater setup with imbedded dvd/blu ray player that even have video inputs most don't. Sell the old dvd one and buy one for bluray as it will play dvds. Even if you came across a blu ray home theater setup without speakers getting the proper amp/speaker match for these proprietary systems can be problems as the output levels and impedance may not match properly.


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## acrosteve (Jul 26, 2011)

brembo said:


> I doubt there are many receiver/brp combos out there. If you would not mind listing the name of the current setup she has, it would make recommendations easier.
> 
> If it were me, I'd go with a small form factor receiver and a PS3 for blu-ray. With the PS3 she would also have a conduit to netflix or other online streaming apps for music as well. Another idea would be to mod up a mini-ATX case with a good vid card (HDMI out), good blu-ray player and smallish solid state HDD for size and heat. Add some wireless network attached storage for CD/DVD/Blu-ray rips and call it a day.


 

The pc solution is a little more involved than she is looking for. And she has time warner for streaming video. 

I am going to get more info from her tonight and see what her budget is. Probably will recommend a dedicated receiver and separate DVD, with plan B being a complete replacement HTIB.

And you where spot on the Denon, but it looks to be discontinued.


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## acrosteve (Jul 27, 2011)

Her budget is $1k, but she wants the longest lasting best value.



Sony, Samsung, HK, LG so many options.


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## brembo (Jul 27, 2011)

For 1k a lot can be had for someone thats not an audiophile. I'm not good with budget builds, my dvd player cost almost twice as much as her total budget. 

As for bang/buck ratio Pioneer makes some snazzy receivers that have oodles of options. Poke around over at Audiogon some for deals. I snaked some stellar deals there over the years, it trends towards the higher end of the scale (Krell, Meridian, Carver and the like) but there are also big box store brands floating around. Like I said I am horrible at suggesting budget builds as I see what could be done with "just another 500 bucks"....it's a disease. I'd suggest firing up google and searching HTIB, find some solid audio sites and applying sub 1k filters. Look for HDMI, S/PDIF (optical) inputs and if she's really wanting to future proof the setup the HDMI needs to support HDMI 1.4 for 3D rendering. I have issues with HTIB, too limiting but for many folks it's simple and the results are fine. Toss up ideas and I'll be more than happy to discuss pros/cons of the selections.

Lynx_Arc is correct in that the existing speakers might have some oddball Ohm requirement and will be essentially useless unless you find an amp that has Ohm switches. Amps that do that are often expensive and have a narrow focus (operating parameters).


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## acrosteve (Jul 30, 2011)

Well, Here is what I am looking at right now for separates.


Pioneer 3D WiFi Ready Blu-ray Disc Player BDP-430
$229.99
Pioneer VSX-821-K 5.1-Channel 3D Ready A/V Receiver
$349.99
Mirage NANOSAT 5.1 5.1CH Home Theater System
$349.99


The speakers list at $800, and the receiver is $70 off also. They show a total of $520 discount on this list.

What do you think of Mirage speakers? Or the other components?


I am not really married to the Pioneer Blue Ray, but I chose the reciever 1st, and that was the only Pioneer player newegg had. I could probably save a little$$ if I went with another brand, but I kept the brand the same for simplicity.


Edit; I just reread your post. :lol: I chose the pioneer without even thinking about your previous post. It was a tossup between a Yamaha and an Onkyo. The Pioneer did have the most features and was 3D ready with bluetooth and Ipod cable included. Checking out Audiogon now...


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## acrosteve (Jul 30, 2011)

I don't think I mentioned it, but she really does not need ground pounding bass due tot he fact she lives in manhattan with neighbors on above, below and 1 side.


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## brembo (Jul 31, 2011)

I like Pioneer. I have several Pioneer pieces and they have been solid performers. I'm not sure how the regular line of Pioneer stuff holds up as I have all Elite stuff. I'd think that Pioneer is a notch above most retail offerings.

Mirage has a solid rep as well, again with their audiophile level equipment they have a good following. I don't know much about the retail side of Mirage tho. I'd buy a Mirage mini-system sight unseen before I'd plunk down the cash on a Klipsch or the like.

Possibly suggest a really nice set of wireless headphones? She'd lose the full on surround effect to an extent, but could enjoy superb music and good bass without angering her neighbors. I have a sound treated room with some serious speakers and don't have neighbors to worry about and find myself donning the headphones more and more often.


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## acrosteve (Jul 31, 2011)

Thanks for the input.

I will mention the headphones, but she is not always the only one watching/listening.


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