I feel torn between trying to point out some defects in the research that this home theater enthusiast attempted and being welcoming.

So ... "I welcome this new member and like a trusted friend I will now whisper some things that only a close pal would say without fear of upsetting their relationship" --

Originally Posted By: Musicianized
Hi guys, new to forums here and pretty much new to surround sound too. I have been researching different products for a few weeks and finally pulled the trigger on a new system without hearing any part of it first. Probably not the smartest decision but what the hey, live and learn lol.


Yep, not real smart. This stuff ain't like a dishwasher that you can trust a "consumer organization" to put standardized dirt on a plate and tell you which comes cleaner. Audio systems interact with one's home. One ought to listen to 'em.

Originally Posted By: Musicianized

I actually based my purchases on reviews, lots and lots of reviews.. I feel like I am an expert in my own mind on a lot of brands now after researching so much. I'm a little ocd about that I guess.


Nope. You are now an expert at reading reviews. Unfortunately LOTS & LOTS & LOTS of people on the interwebs are too. Nothing to be proud of. Most "reviewers" on the interwebs specifically do not mention the sweet sweet sweet deals that are cut to them by folks that supply the devices under review. Nor do they mention the bizarre history of brands that have little to do with previous incarnations of firms that may have made products bearing those monikers...

Originally Posted By: Musicianized
Anyways, I've been home theatering for the last 4 years on a 32" Sharp Aquos with an LG soundbar and a little active subwoofer that came with it. We thought it was great for awhile, but lately the sound seems all garbled to me and the once "decent" bass has become laughable I guess.

So after a lot of financial consideration I decided to upgrade to a 5.1 system and a new television. I started with a $1200 budget (lol) and ended up going about $1500 over that.


Not an uncommon path at all. Welcome to the club!

Originally Posted By: Musicianized
I started with a 55" LG 120hz led. Wanted a plasma but my kids leave games and carrtoons paused all the time so I opted out of that idea.


WHOOPS! Which outdated interweb "expert" gave that lousy advice?!? Plasma set produces a superior picture and has had not issues with imagine retention for generations.


Originally Posted By: Musicianized

I originally was going to buy a Klipsch Quintet 5.0 speaker set, then I changed my mind to Energy Take Classics and finally pulled the trigger on Infinity bookshelf speakers. I based this decision on my personal experience with Infinity speakers which is I have never heard any that sounded bad, they always took all the power you could give them within their range and didn't distort and sounded great and loud! So I bought 3 163BK speakers, 1 for my center and 2 for my L/R fronts and I bought 2 162's for my rears. I know there's a lot better top of the line speakers but I tried to do the best with what I could afford.

I topped these off with an Outlaw LFM 1 Plus and I'll be pushing these with a Denon 1713 receiver.

Just these purchases put me way over my budget lol. So the other day my first speaker came in. (I ordered from different places due to sales, Fry's had the 163's and 162's for $50 a piece but a limit of 2 each). I got thrown for a loop when I opened the 163 up and saw that there are no wall mounting options for it. So I had to order a couple more speaker stands in addition to the two I had already ordered for the rears.


I think that your past experience with Infinity is kind of meaningless -- The whole "brand" thing has been destroyed by decades of mergers and "product repositioning". While there are certainly worse choices out there I also know that you could have gotten speakers that are much more capable. Some are available from Atlantic Technology, a firm with close ties to Outlaw. Others from RSL, NHT,Tekton or other "internet direct firms" that offer very generous term to TRY THEM OUT AT HOME... Now I am not saying the Infinity selection is fit for the trash, and I have read a decent review or two or 'em, just that whether they sound awesome in your home or awful you are stuck with 'em...

Further, while I won't really criticize your choice of the LFM-1 Plus you could have spent less than HALF as much for the M8 which is an OUTSTANDING value / solid match to the kind of setup you seem to have assembled (and frankly the bass output for your home is probably a better match) AND THAT WOULD'VE given you the cash to buy something like this http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-TX-NR717-7-2...0287&sr=1-5 this WHICH is about the cheapest surround receiver with PREAMP LEVEL OUTPUTS that allow you to STEP UP to more powerful external Outlaw amps. Better amps have a HUGE impact on sound, NOT JUST VOLUME, and allow you to upgrade in a more 'stepwise' manner down the road.

Originally Posted By: Musicianized

Then we decided we needed room darkening blinds and I ended up ordering some blackout curtains for our 2 windows.

So now I'm sitting here waiting for Fed-Ex.. Impatiently lol. The worse part about it is I'll have everything delivered today except for my Outlaw Sub which isn't scheduled for delivery until Wednesday.. That's going to suck huh lol.

I'm sure hoping it's worth the wait and I hope this is all going to be the improvement I'm wanting. My room is 15x16x9 so I'm thinking judging by the size of these Infinity bookshelfs that my house is going to be rocking! They are a lot bigger than I expected. Five of them plus a 12" 350w sub is going to be crazy, I probably wont even be able to turn it up past 1/4 without my wife yelling about turning the kids deaf lol.

Anyways, thank you for reading if you did lol. I'm really excited and anticipating a whole new level of sound when I get this all hooked up!!


I have no doubt that you will enjoy this much more than the previous very low quality LG setup, but I feel bad that you did not come here first for a little advice about what might have been a better use of your funds. The differences at the "near entry level" are quite dramatic.