Logitech Z-5500 good for home theatre?

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TechieSooner

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I currently have The Z-5500s. Totally great for using to listen to music off my laptop on the desk.

My question is I want to move them (maybe- seeking your input) and using them as a home theatre setup. I really don't want to spend a whole lot of money on a higher end setup.

I could see myself spending money on a decent 2.1 setup with a subwoofer, but not an all out 7.1 setup. So I guess the question is will these be preferred to a 2.1 setup???
Will I be totally disapointed in these for home theatre use, and gaming? I don't need ultra high end, but just something decent or above average.
 
With the amount of people here in the past that have used them for that purpose, it's my opinion that it's worth trying. And since it sounds like your expectations are already moderated, you might be pleasantly surprised.

Since there's nothing for you to lose except a little time, i say you go for it :)

Disclaimer: i don't own the Z-5500's so take my opinion with a grain of salt, i'm just going by what i've read here and elsewhere.
 
It's awesome! I've tried it and you honestly can't beat the price to performance ratio. I would definitely recommend doing it if you are on ab udget.
 
I think I would rather listen to nails on a chalk board but hey, try it and see.
 
I've had these these things for 2.5 years in my office and I think they are great but I'm not an audiophile. I feel no need to upgrade them at all.
 
criccio said:
I think I would rather listen to nails on a chalk board but hey, try it and see.
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are you the guy that can pick out the the single saxophone that hit a C flat instead of a C sharp during the orchestra?

i'm certainly nowhere near an audiophile, but I don't see how you can say these speakers would be bad. I have them myself and I find them more than enough for anything I'd ever want to listen to on them.
 
kevin82287 said:
It's awesome! I've tried it and you honestly can't beat the price to performance ratio. I would definitely recommend doing it if you are on ab udget.
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heatlesssun said:
I've had these these things for 2.5 years in my office and I think they are great but I'm not an audiophile. I feel no need to upgrade them at all.
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Now, an office environment I'd agree with. However I was just really wondering how they'd sound once you brought them into an open room...

Either of you comment on any ideas of how the heck to wall mount these suckers so they can pivot around???? That'd be my next problem. Logitech just assums everyone wants these things pointed straight forward I guess.
 
berky said:
are you the guy that can pick out the the single saxophone that hit a C flat instead of a C sharp during the orchestra?
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lol I highly doubt he can. :p

Anyways, I'm using the 5500's speakers with a HK receiver and I rather enjoy it. I'm in an apartment so space is an issue but that also helps too since these speakers would totally suck in a moderate to large room.

In short, I love mine but I am using a much, much better receiver with them.
 
berky said:
are you the guy that can pick out the the single saxophone that hit a C flat instead of a C sharp during the orchestra?

i'm certainly nowhere near an audiophile, but I don't see how you can say these speakers would be bad. I have them myself and I find them more than enough for anything I'd ever want to listen to on them.
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Yes. :) Perfect pitch is both a blessing and a curse ....

Oh, and it's rarely referred to as C-flat, but I digress ..

OP, it doesn't sound like you have very discriminating taste, the Z-5500s should be just fine.
 
Oh, I do... more than you know... lol.

It's just I'm not doing that anymore, find myself less picky about such things. I'm just wondering if the Z-5500s would be better than like a couple of nice Polk 2.1 floor standing speakers or if the 5.1 Logitechs will still trump it. I just haven't had these in a big room to really have any idea.
 
I have the z5500 set and have used them in several situations. They are adequate but not great. You have the set though, so you know what they sound like. if you are happy with them for music you will be happy with them for movies. As for your comparison to the polks..."better" is subjective. will the sound quality be better on the Polks? Yes. no doubt. But they wont do surround sound. So I guess pick whats more important. SQ or surround sound.
 
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at first glance, I like the onkyo system. larger fronts and I have had good luck with Onkyo personally over the years. It is my opinion that 7.1 is a detriment at your price points. you would be better off getting a higher quality 5.1 setup. If you want some suggestions for building your own setup on the cheap I can toss some ideas out there. I would like 2 things to make them good though...what are the measurements of the room and what is your budget? I prefer building my own systems because I think box sets dont distribute the expenses proportionately. You would be best off putting the majority of your investment in speakers and going cheaper on the receiver. and box sets have terrible subs.
 
Sure- you can suggest me some stuff. I'm not afraid of running my own lines and such (and would actually enjoy doing it)

The room dimensions I have no idea. This is going into a house I bought- I haven't actually closed on it yet or anything. One end of it is open with a very high ceiling (stairway), but the "room" itself isn't too big. I'd guess maybe 15x20??? Depending where I end up situating everything, it might end up being 15x15 or something like that (moving the seats closer to the screen). Plans was to wall-mount everything, and I haven't quite figured out where the sub would go yet...
 
I just bought the BR player of woot. Problem solved there :D Now I just need my audio system.
 
Here's the general layout. Measurements are all made up but they are rough. Should help give you an idea though. It also demonstrates why floor speakers won't work. They'd have to sit in FRONT of the TV and on the fireplace (the one on the fireplace would obviously be higher).

4499705963_51a01b77c5_o.jpg
 
kevin82287 said:
It's awesome! I've tried it and you honestly can't beat the price to performance ratio. I would definitely recommend doing it if you are on ab udget.
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Newegg wants nearly $400 for the set. I paid just over half that for mine on Amazon (where the set is now $460?! WTF...), so no, the price to performance ratio is very, very high.

I bet it can be beat, without much effort. :)
 
rflcptr said:
Newegg wants nearly $400 for the set. I paid just over half that for mine, so no, the price to performance ratio is very, very high. I bet it can be beat, without much effort. :)
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I got mine on the Dell deal a year or so ago for about half as well... Fantastic set for the price, for sure.
But like I'm debating here, it was designed for listening to music, not home theatre use.
 
first thing that I tell everyone...if you have something, try it before deciding it wont work.

With that said, I think the logitechs would get lost in that room. about the only thing that might be useful is taking 2 of them and using them for your rears with plans to upgrade down the road. your general layout makes 7.1 a supreme waste IMO. roughly how tall is the ceiling in there? 8-10 ft, 20ft?

is that tv cabinet taking up the whole 6' wall? I do see how floor standing speakers would be out. No deal breaker I anyway. in a budget system you are better off with bookshelf speakers and a good sub. saves space and $$.

I am going to operate on the assumption that you use the z5500 speakers for rears for now and that I am tryign to keep the budget around the expense of the HTIB you posted and apply it to the front 3, a sub, and a receiver. ...and honestly, the best thing i can come up with is to get one of these and upgrade the pieces as your budget grows...

http://www.shoponkyo.com/detail.cfm?productid=HT-S5200&modelid=83&group_id=1&detail=1&ext_war=1

http://www.shoponkyo.com/detail.cfm?productid=HT-S3200&modelid=76&group_id=1&detail=1&ext_war=1

You could get a used receiver for around $200 and spend $100 on some polk bookshelfs, another $100 on the center, but that would leave you with only $100 for a sub. that's almost impossible. The cheapest sub I can really recommend that would be substantially better than the onkyo packaged one is $200. Now if you bump that budget to $700 we can play some.
 
IDversusEGO said:
first thing that I tell everyone...if you have something, try it before deciding it wont work.
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Good point. However my problem with that is the inability to wall mount these Logitechs (No ability to mount them other than just dead straight ahead). I couldn't really "try" it... I'd have to spend $$$ on some floor stands or something, and if I didn't like that then it's just wasted money.

Also if I get something else, I'd just leave the Logitech for an office/desk set of speakers- I won't repurpose just the back two.

IDversusEGO said:
With that said, I think the logitechs would get lost in that room. about the only thing that might be useful is taking 2 of them and using them for your rears with plans to upgrade down the road. your general layout makes 7.1 a supreme waste IMO. roughly how tall is the ceiling in there? 8-10 ft, 20ft?
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8' in the carpeted part...

IDversusEGO said:
is that tv cabinet taking up the whole 6' wall? I do see how floor standing speakers would be out. No deal breaker I anyway. in a budget system you are better off with bookshelf speakers and a good sub. saves space and $$.
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Yep- the whole wall. And my TV would take up all of 6' anyway.

So- I need some sort of setup that includes the rear speakers.

IDversusEGO said:
if you had $700...

Onkyo Refrub TX-SR507 - $249
BIC America DV62si bookshelf speakers - $110
BIC America DV62CLRS center - $101
BIC America F12 12" sub - $204

total is $664

if you could squeeze a few more bucks ($130) the 607 is a nice receiver that you shouldn't need to upgrade for a while.
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Same thing on here, I'd need four of those bookshelf speakers which bumps it to about a grand once I factor in wiring and mounting brakets and stuff... I really don't want to spend that much.
 
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$50 rear surrounds from same lineup...brings it to $714

your going to have to mount the rear speakers somehow regardless of what you get so stands, wiring, etc will have to be added to even the theaters in a box. stands or wall mount, straight on wall mounting to the sides of the seating area are the THX recommended positioning. What TV do you have? 72" is a decent amount of space
 
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Getting a bit too high for me, what's in the $500 range (or under)?

So THX recommends you mount these things ear-level 4' off the ground to the sides of your ears? Not actually behind you, or above pointing down?
 
A 5.1 surround system has five discrete audio channels: Left, Right, Center, Left Surround, Right Surround and the Subwoofer.

* Front Left & Right Speakers (L & R): Place the Front Left and Right speakers at ear height, producing a 45° angle as viewed from the main seating position. This delivers a wide sound stage and precise localization of individual sounds.
* Center Channel Speaker (C): Place the Center channel speaker either above or below the TV. Then, aim the speaker either up or down to point directly at the listener. If you have a perforated projection screen, center this speaker both horizontally and vertically behind the screen.
* Surround Left & Right Speakers (SL & SR): Place the SL & SR speakers between 90° to 110° to each side and 2 feet or higher above the listener.
* Subwoofer (Sub): If you have two Subs, put them in the middle of opposing walls. If you have one, place it in the middle of the front wall.
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http://www.thx.com/consumer/home-entertainment/home-theater/surround-sound-speaker-set-up/



for $500 or less, go with a refurb of the onkyo set.
 
forgot about the jamo sets over a vanns. that one plus the onkyo 307 or 507 and your in biz. def better than the onkyo speakers.
 
Just got a chance to measure it, too (at least with my feet). Here's the measurements of that room:
4500504873_95c361b305_o.jpg
 
Have you tried to look for other options for speaker mounts or stands?
Mounts - $5
http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...10828&cs_id=1082804&p_id=3012&seq=1&format=4#
Stands - $15
http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10828&cs_id=1082804&p_id=3022&seq=1&format=2

I'm using the Z5500's in my living room and I love it, I have a rather large room, I wall mounted all the speakers and I replaced all the cable with 16awg from monoprice for very cheap. It may not be "perfect" but for me it works. I consider myself decently technical, but not at the level the audio pro's on this forum, and I am VERY happy with my setup and sound quality, and I get quite a few compliments from anyone visiting.
 
the 507 has better bluray audio support and one more HDMI port, one more digital audio input, and a little more power (65watts vs 80watts).
 
Fonix said:
Have you tried to look for other options for speaker mounts or stands?
Mounts - $5
http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...10828&cs_id=1082804&p_id=3012&seq=1&format=4#
Stands - $15
http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10828&cs_id=1082804&p_id=3022&seq=1&format=2

I'm using the Z5500's in my living room and I love it, I have a rather large room, I wall mounted all the speakers and I replaced all the cable with 16awg from monoprice for very cheap. It may not be "perfect" but for me it works. I consider myself decently technical, but not at the level the audio pro's on this forum, and I am VERY happy with my setup and sound quality, and I get quite a few compliments from anyone visiting.
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those mounts/stands look decent. I use some inexpensive stands from walmart. good weighted bottom and hollowpost to run wires up. as I said before, your mounting options are going to be the same on any speaker so that shouldn't be the deciding factor on using the z5500. buy the moutns, try the 5500 set. if you like it, awesome. if not, buy one of these other options and use the same mounts for those.
 
Fonix said:
Have you tried to look for other options for speaker mounts or stands?
Mounts - $5
http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...10828&cs_id=1082804&p_id=3012&seq=1&format=4#
Stands - $15
http://www.monoprice.com/products/p...=10828&cs_id=1082804&p_id=3022&seq=1&format=2

I'm using the Z5500's in my living room and I love it, I have a rather large room, I wall mounted all the speakers and I replaced all the cable with 16awg from monoprice for very cheap. It may not be "perfect" but for me it works. I consider myself decently technical, but not at the level the audio pro's on this forum, and I am VERY happy with my setup and sound quality, and I get quite a few compliments from anyone visiting.
Click to expand...
So these actually worked to mount your Z5500s to? If so I'll give these a shot first. Did the screws that came with the speakers (or the mounts) work OK?

IDversusEGO said:
those mounts/stands look decent. I use some inexpensive stands from walmart. good weighted bottom and hollowpost to run wires up. as I said before, your mounting options are going to be the same on any speaker so that shouldn't be the deciding factor on using the z5500. buy the moutns, try the 5500 set. if you like it, awesome. if not, buy one of these other options and use the same mounts for those.
Click to expand...
Yea I think that's the plan, especially since now I've been shown some mounts that might work :)

Here's a question- any input on where the sub should go? On the Z5500 system, just keep in mind that it's tied to the base too. So it can't wander too far from the TV.
 
optimal location is as close to centered under the screen as you can. most people cant do that for various reasons so somewhere on the front wall is fine.
 
IDversusEGO said:
optimal location is as close to centered under the screen as you can. most people cant do that for various reasons so somewhere on the front wall is fine.
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What about IN the cabinent? Not with a door closed over it or anything, but inside it?
 
your only real issue there would be resonance...and maybe adding some muddiness to the boom unless the port fires outward. When I say resonance I am just being fancy-pants in saying the vibrations might be tough to deal with.
 
The Z5500 fires outward anyway... I'll give it a shot. Any recommended wiring at Monoprice, keeping in mind that I might ditch the Z5500 for something better?
 
16 gauge is the perfect size/cost IMO. You will notice zero difference in sound quality though with the Logitechs.
 
your Z 5500 should be fine, like someone else said, just plug it up and see how you like it. I've always felt that as long as you had a really good center channel/speaker you're set.

Shouldn't listen to what I say though, my home office currently has some 2.1 dell speakers that I paid 9 bucks for 5 years ago plugged into a 8 series sammy led and I'm totally happy with that. :confused:
 
TechieSooner said:
So these actually worked to mount your Z5500s to? If so I'll give these a shot first. Did the screws that came with the speakers (or the mounts) work OK?
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Sorry I am not using those mounts, mine ended up working out fine with the stock mounts, but looking at the included hardware it looks like you could probably figure something out, and for $5 (and no-hassle returns) I don't think it's a big risk to try out. I've used a bunch of other monoprice mounting hardware and find it to be very complete and good quality - amazing for the price.

TechieSooner said:
Here's a question- any input on where the sub should go? On the Z5500 system, just keep in mind that it's tied to the base too. So it can't wander too far from the TV.
Click to expand...

Mine is to the right of the TV, due to a lack of options cause of the shorter cable of the control unit (and keeping it in easy target of the remote). Just be sure to keep it far away enough from any electronics that may not be shielded.
I replaced the cable with the 16awg not so much for quality, but because I live in an apartment and cannot run the cable in the wall, so I went with white to keep it subtle and the stock cable wasn't long enough.
 
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