My Proposed Home Theater System

[Lost in LOS]

My proposed system. Anyone have any suggestions before I buy?

*Samsung LCD 46" LA45M51B 120,000

there is also one with BX at the end but I cant find any differences

*Yamaha RXV659 AV Receiver 31,000

100 rms watts x7 [i don’t see any HDMI output on any of the medium priced ones, does that mean I cant make a HDMI connection and do I want to? I think so

*Sony DVP-NC66 5 CD/DVD player 4,900

only multiple one I could find

*Yamaha speakers [ 7 ] including bass 100,000

these seemed to handle the power well and great sound to an old deaf guy

I have searched Jomtien [ should i be looking in Bangkok?] and this seems to be the best system I can get for the money [they will make a better deal it I buy it all from one store]. I am looking for a system that plays movies with great surround, reasonably loud and clear and will give me long time playing of music cd’s. I didn’t want to spend this much but I want the killer system since I will be using it for years to come

any suggestions or comments?

thanks Jimmy

[The Coder]

If you are price sensitive, Thailand is not a good choice to buy this type of equipment. "Nice" equipment is where they sock it to you the hardest. Take for instance the 31,000 baht receiver. That is just 12,000 baht in the US! There is even more dramatic savings on the other expensive stuff listed. One option is to make a note of the prices in Thailand, then take a road trip to hong kong to buy. That is what well to do Thai's like to do. But if you want to buy it in Thailand, of course up to you. Just be informed.

[Lost in LOS]

If you are price sensitive, Thailand is not a good choice to buy this type of equipment. "Nice" equipment is where they sock it to you the hardest. Take for instance the 31,000 baht receiver. That is just 12,000 baht in the US! There is even more dramatic savings on the other expensive stuff listed. One option is to make a note of the prices in Thailand, then take a road trip to hong kong to buy. That is what well to do Thai's like to do. But if you want to buy it in Thailand, of course up to you. Just be informed.

I realize they sock it to you here.......seems the lcd is cheaper here though....... hong kong would be ok, what are the problems and cost to get it all to pattaya through customs and delivery?

Jimmy

[The Coder]

seems the lcd is cheaper here though....... hong kong would be ok, what are the problems and cost to get it all to pattaya through customs and delivery?

Jimmy

Don't be ridiculous, LCD's are cheaper by a mile outside Thailand! This is the component you would probably save the most money on. You can get a 46" SONY lcd for half the price of that Samsung in the US. There are simply no "deals" on electronics of any sort in Thailand as far as I can tell. I really don't know how much hassle it would be bringing in from HK/Sing, just passing along that I know of people who value their money do that because of the huge savings to be had. It's to the point that every reputable shop in Hong Kong has a Thai speaker on their staff because so many Thai's do this. For me, I'm personally not going to invest in a wide screen until they bother to broadcast TV in that format here so no personal experiences to pass on as of yet. There are others who can probably help articulate the technical soundness of these components which is the other thing I think you probably are interested in.

[astral]

The speakers you will have to buy in Thailand as they are large,

but for the other components, you will be surprised what will fit in a decent suit case.

Check the measurements on the internet, or at your local shop,

before departing.

Personnally I would go with an Audiolab solution. Much better quality, but a harder hit on the pocket.

http://www.audiolab.co.uk/

Look for good speaker cables as well.

Important with that power level.

[Lost in LOS]

anyone know of a good website that i could check the hongkong pricing online? tried to google but i guess i'm not putting in the right search info

[Firefoxx]

They key word here is "reputable". Most shops in Hong Kong are *not* reputable by a long shot, and you should avoid the shops along Tsim Tsa Tsui like the plague. You're going to have to do your research pretty well on what shops won't scam you with cheap prices, or just plain rip you off.

As for buying the actual stuff here, you can get at least some discount if you buy from the various shops located outside the malls.

[astral]

Check the shops around Rachadamri and 1st floor of Sogo on Ploenchit.

[Meerkat]

Two points:

Get the best speaker cable you can afford. It is often overlooked, but is the easiest way to improve sound quality, bang-for-buck. Same goes for cables from your DVD to the screen and amp, especially the component - YBR - cable (you don't want to be connecting a DVD to a good screen any other way). Also, Coaxial is the way to go for audio from the DVD to the amp. Ignore digital optic; it might be a newer technology, but it's simply not as good as a good co-ax cable.

Why a multi DVD player? Unless it's vital that you only have to get out of your armchair every five movies, spend the money on a better quality single-disc player instead.

[Firefoxx]

I read an article on speaker cables once, I forget where. Basically the article did a comparison between normal stranded wire (not even speaker cable) of various AWGs, and various speaker cables ($$$) from various brands. The article's conclusion? That the only thing needed for a good transfer to the speaker is a normal strande wire of the proper AWG (thickness) for the application (speaker size, resistance, length). Anything beyond that ($$$) is just wasted.

Of course, the audiophiles will probably grill me on this, but I'm no expert, and the article wasn't written by me.

As for interconnects, that's another matter.

[Jing-jo]

My proposed system. Anyone have any suggestions before I buy?

*Samsung LCD 46" LA45M51B 120,000

there is also one with BX at the end but I cant find any differences

*Yamaha RXV659 AV Receiver 31,000

100 rms watts x7 [i don’t see any HDMI output on any of the medium priced ones, does that mean I cant make a HDMI connection and do I want to? I think so

*Sony DVP-NC66 5 CD/DVD player 4,900

only multiple one I could find

*Yamaha speakers [ 7 ] including bass 100,000

these seemed to handle the power well and great sound to an old deaf guy

I have searched Jomtien [ should i be looking in Bangkok?] and this seems to be the best system I can get for the money [they will make a better deal it I buy it all from one store]. I am looking for a system that plays movies with great surround, reasonably loud and clear and will give me long time playing of music cd’s. I didn’t want to spend this much but I want the killer system since I will be using it for years to come

any suggestions or comments?

thanks Jimmy

Hi Jimmy

let me know what interconnects you need

these can be one of the most expensive purchases for a system

no good having reasonable components and using the standard crap thin budget wires they ususally supply

i am back in thailand in early november and have loads i mean loads here

qed monster sound inox to name but a few

also you could buy of ebay and have sent to you?

not fantastic quality but still very good value for money

can bring with me if you give me enough notice

and the price for the lcd is extortionate to say the least 120000bht =£1700

thats about £700 to 800 TOO MUCH

in UK now is buyers market so many shops are suffering from the retail down turn here

sales are on and off all the time

I'm sure i have seen decent large screen lcd's much cheaper in Pattaya at the big stores when i was last there in april might be mistaken though

let me know what U need

cheers

[angsila]

Google is your friend. Do a search for reviews on these items before you buy. Also, why a 7.1 system? How many DVD's have you seen coded in 7.1? (more is not better)

For a reference point, go to the Hi-Fi Center in Bangkok and listen to several systems in the shops there.

After you buy a system, make sure it's setup right. (Room accoustics, speaker placement, and speaker calibration)

[Ian_B]

I'm currently using and recommend the Creative Gigaworks 5.1 Wireless THX speakers my PC & Home Theater system

Hooked up to the Creative Decoder, which has plenty of inputs (3 Optical).

Purchased both in Fortune

Works a treats, no hiss or anything through wireless and does not interfere with my existing wireless network either.

Have a wooden floor and am too lazy to run speaker cables neatly to the rears, so wireless was the way to go

Edited September 18, 2006 by Ian_B

[johnh101]

I have searched Jomtien.............

Great place to search for electronics..........NOT !

[Lost in LOS]

I have searched Jomtien.............

Great place to search for electronics..........NOT !

i agree

places i have found

home works [ next to sukemvet Bic C ]

Numg Chong { next to Index on sukemvet ]

sorry no idea how to spell the highway

[Lost in LOS]

Two points:

Why a multi DVD player? Unless it's vital that you only have to get out of your armchair every five movies, spend the money on a better quality single-disc player instead.

I excercise quite a bit daily so that is not the factor ........ i would like the multible cd changer for the "random" feature where i can put in seveal CD's and the player randomly selects cuts from all the CD's for a varity of music

[johnh101]

I have searched Jomtien.............

Great place to search for electronics..........NOT !

i agree

places i have found

home works [ next to sukemvet Bic C ]

Numg Chong { next to Index on sukemvet ]

sorry no idea how to spell the highway

We got some ggod deals at the Electronic shops in Naklua, the big difference is thay are willing to haggle and more often or not their starting price was the same as the big stores.

Might be worth a look.

[astral]

Take a run to Sri Racha Tuk Com

I think it is on the 1st floor in the back right corner,

there is a very well stocked and helpful shop.

[solo siam]

Your system sounds fairly well designed, although as a professional home cinema installer I feel that your ratio (and choice) for speakers is not proportionate.

Technology prices here in Thailand are pretty close to US/HK etc... prices and are probably on par with the UK. You can NOT buy the 46" Sony in the US for less than $1500 like one poster stated.

Personally I would suggest buying speakers from a speaker manufacturer (mordaunt short are exceptionally good value here in Thailand) and spending perhaps 40-50k on speakers, with about 40k on an amplifier.

make sure the amplifier at least upconverts to 720p on component, and use component leads instead of HDMI for now. Forget the multi-DVD player and just get an ipod or smething for music.

Marantz has a good deal on the Marantz SR7500 here at the moment, Its cheaper here than in the UK and possibly the US, its a slightly older model but sports THX select and upconversion to 720p over component as standard. I have one and love it.

Must disclose that we are a Marantz and MS dealer, to us teh best bang for your buck is in these products.

The Samsung LCD's are great but UBC can look quite crappy on them.

[Jing-jo]

My proposed system. Anyone have any suggestions before I buy?

*Samsung LCD 46" LA45M51B 120,000

there is also one with BX at the end but I cant find any differences

*Yamaha RXV659 AV Receiver 31,000

100 rms watts x7 [i don’t see any HDMI output on any of the medium priced ones, does that mean I cant make a HDMI connection and do I want to? I think so

*Sony DVP-NC66 5 CD/DVD player 4,900

only multiple one I could find

*Yamaha speakers [ 7 ] including bass 100,000

these seemed to handle the power well and great sound to an old deaf guy

I have searched Jomtien [ should i be looking in Bangkok?] and this seems to be the best system I can get for the money [they will make a better deal it I buy it all from one store]. I am looking for a system that plays movies with great surround, reasonably loud and clear and will give me long time playing of music cd’s. I didn’t want to spend this much but I want the killer system since I will be using it for years to come

any suggestions or comments?

thanks Jimmy

Hi Jimmy

let me know what interconnects you need

these can be one of the most expensive purchases for a system

no good having reasonable components and using the standard crap thin budget wires they ususally supply

i am back in thailand in early november and have loads i mean loads here

qed monster sound inox to name but a few

also you could buy of ebay and have sent to you?

not fantastic quality but still very good value for money

can bring with me if you give me enough notice

and the price for the lcd is extortionate to say the least 120000bht =£1700

thats about £700 to 800 TOO MUCH

in UK now is buyers market so many shops are suffering from the retail down turn here

sales are on and off all the time

I'm sure i have seen decent large screen lcd's much cheaper in Pattaya at the big stores when i was last there in april might be mistaken though

let me know what U need

cheers

did price check on the exact samsung you mention and cheaapest here in the UK is £1300 inc vat

so that is cheaper here but this is only by pitting one seller against another

the Tv's I saw in Pattaya my brother has just reminded were not HD ready or compliant

so my mistake on that count

apologies

[solo siam]

ALL largish LCD TV's (40" +) will be HD, so no worries there. That UK price is cheap but I'm sure you could get the same price here if you haggled, didn't include delivery etc...