Home Theater Upgrade Help

[RonJ]

Hi, I'm new to the forum, but been an Aeon/Cinema/Descent owner for years. I'm currently upgrading my home theater setup and looking for a little advise from the pros here. I use the setup for 80% movies & TV and about 20% music.

I've been running my home theater with a Lexicon MC-12 processor, Proceed AMP 5 (and old Denon AVR 3802 to drive two of the surrounds), Aeons and Cinema in front, old NHT VS-1.2a's for the surrounds and, of course, the Descent sub.

I recently sold the Lexicon in favor of an Integra DTC-9.8, and am contemplating replacing the Aeons with the Vantages or Vistas. Right now I'm leaning toward the Vantages, but am not sure.

I'm also replacing the NHT surrounds with either the Vignettes or Fresco's for surrounds. And I'm going to replace the Denon with a 2 channel amp to drive the new fronts. Maybe a Bryston 4B-ST, Proceed HPA-2 or something else, but don't know what yet.

So the question is which would you do? Get the Vantages or Vistas and pair them with the Vignettes or the Frescos? And what 2 channel amp would you pair with the new fronts to go with the Proceed AMP 5 (which I plan to keep)?

I'm torn, and looking for opinions.

Thanks!

 

[jjcarr]

On a total side note, how does the Integra compare to the Lexicon?

 

[cstory]

You pays your money and takes your choice. All the above options are good ones as far as the speakers go so in the end you have to make the value judgement on how much of your money you want to spend.

I have the Vista's and I like them a lot. I listened to the Vantages when trying to decide which speaker to get, and I thought there were some differences between them, but not huge differences. In the end, I got a deal on the Vista's that made it no brainer for me to get the Vista's and keep the extra cash, which I later invested in a Stage center channel. I have to be honest that with the Vista's and my SVS PC-Ultra sub, when I sit down and listen to music, the music sounds so good that I really don't feel like I am missing much. I have heard much more expensive systems that do sound better, but to my ears the difference in sound was not proportional to the extra cost.

So I think both speakers are great, you just need to make the value decision that works best for you.

Sorry I can't comment on the rears. I use Mirage Omnisats.

Chuck

 

[tsmooth]

I am running Vistas/Motif/Vignettes with a Denon AVR-3808 and Sunfire Cinema Grand (200Wx5). For the space provided, price, functionality, and the look, I am not sure I could have done much better. Once again, it is all based on what you hear and can spend. I found the Vignettes brand new for $700/pair so for me it was a no brainer. To go along with cstory, I had the same experience and it landed me with Vistas. Then again, I just love the sound of the new line and it matches my tastes in sound reproduction.

You really can't go wrong with vista/vantage and vignette/fresco, but you will get different performance with each mix and match. If I were you, and already dropped the coin on the Descent, I would go for Vistas. But if you want the slam of the powered subs in the Vantages, go that route. :rocker:

 

[RonJ]

I am waiting for the Integra, so I can't compare yet. Just thought I had to get rid of the Lexicon given it's inability to decode new audio codecs and how much it was starting to loose its value. It was a really great piece though and I'm sorry to see it go.

On a total side note, how does the Integra compare to the Lexicon?

 

[Spike]

Given your preference for movies (instead of music), the Proceed AMP5 is a very good, musical amplifier so you're off to a good start. I'd keep the AMP5 and focus more on the speakers. Go with the Vantages for the fronts and you'll find a whole new level of performance due to the L+R channels of the AMP5 are now relieved of bass-duty. If you can swing it, get the Fresco for the surround to match with the rest of the MLs. Now, after all these upgrades and you still want more refinements, then you should turn your focus on better pre/pro & amplifier(s), but not until then.

Good Luck
Spike

 

[Pcar928fan]

I would go with a bigger better center channel. I went up from a Cinema to a Theater and it really did make for a nice upgrade. I would then put the Aeon's in the back as the surrounds and move the NHT's (or whatever) a rear surround position. That way you can run a 7.1 system... The Descent is a great speaker, so no need to do anything there...

I run Rotel separates and like them pretty well. I like the TFT screen on the RSP1098 processor, but I wish I had a newer one w/ HDMI (though it is still just 1.1 HDMI)...

Best of luck!

 

[kcl]

I would go with a bigger better center channel. I went up from a Cinema to a Theater and it really did make for a nice upgrade ...

I agree completely. HT is very important to us, and when my high-end dealer talked me into demoing the Theater in place of the Cinema on my original Ascent/Descent 7.1 system, I was amazed at how much better the HT was! (I never even plugged the Cinema back in. )

 

[Brian_74]

Since your preference is HT, I'd say go with the Vista over the Vantage for the $$ you'll save. The main difference is the Vantage powered woofer, but with your Descent you're not gonna notice. If you were more a 2 channel guy, I'd say go for the Vantage. Some argue that the Vantage gives you better sound because it has more panel area to the rear. Look closely, the Vista woofer box is taller. I can't imagine you'd really hear a difference between the two in a HT application, but 2 channel you definitely will!