A system under $4500 for the living room

Roy asked:
(4 Jan 2001)

First of all, I would like to commend you for doing a wonderful  job to this site. It provides tons of information, tips and knowledge about Hi-Fi for people.  May I give you many thanks for I have learnt quite a bit about Hi-Fi just be surfing on your site.... I am defintely a novice at this Hi-Fi thing and very "SOTONG" "Blur" about the equipment.... Currently living in HDB 5 Room and looking to purchase a new system. Hope that you can give me your comments and recommendations. I basically require a system for my living room which is currently only furnished with a wooden TV console cabinet and a 5 seater, full leather sofa set. Need the system to fulfill the  following requirements : (a)To perform as a home theater unit with capabilities of THX, DTS & Dobly Surround etc. (b)To provide Hi-Fi sound for Jazz, Guitar and Concert type of music ... Now comes the tough part ... budget below $4,500 I have asked around and people have commented that it is only  possible to suit both needs if I purchase 2 sets of speakers and Receivers/AMPs  for the 2 very different purposes... this would cost a BOMB and I certainly do  not have that amount of cash ... I hope that you can recommend me a system, package or mixture  that would be suitable for my needs and within my budget... I also understand that one cannot expect too much from a system  that has to fulfill both roles .. as the saying goes .. You pay peanuts cannot  expect monkeys ... !!! By the way, someone recommended me the following for about $3,000 - what do you think ? -Cambridge Soundworks Tower Home Theater -JBL System 1 -Marantz SR5000 -DVD Player Please provide me with your comments ....Thank you...Regards.

Joe Lee responded:
(4 Jan 2001)

Hi Roy, thank for your support. Dr Jon Wong is very sick and so...let the intern...answer you. The main concern is the speakers. You see, speaker designed for AV use is quite different from audio. The angle of dispersion is different. You can't expect to obtain pin-point focusing and precise separation from ordinary AV speakers. However, years ago when I was runnung Hi-Fi Corner, NHT came out with a model that suit both purposes with a switch. Please check with NHT dealer. If I were you, I will forget about what other people say, just buy a pair of good quality audio speakers (depending on how much you have left after spending on other components) for both purposes, perferrable higher efficiency speakers, and use an AV amp to drive it. Please go to our 'Columnist section' and use Mr Pen's system as a guide. And read the article 'Creating Wonders from Nothing' (under our Article Section). I went to listen to Mr Pen's system for a few times (both audio and A/V) and he was using the same pair of  Monitor Audio throughout, the effect is stunning and the sound quality is admirable. Don't believe me? I can always arrange with Mr. Pen for you to visit him... Roy, this message will be posted under our forum section. I hope you don't mind.

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