Purchase advice for newbie

'd like my TV shows to sound decent, and occasionally listen to some music. I sit 5 meter (16 feet) from the screen and can put the speakers at about halfway. My tv is a 55EG910V, as far as I can tell it only has an optical output. I have no other sound devices/speakers/amp/dac.

Initially I was charmed by studio monitors like the JBL 305P with a Dayton sub, but I was told to stick to consumer gear.

The budget is max €500 (USD550), but certainly no need to spend it all.
(I’ve posted the same question on /r/audiophile/)

Many thanks in advance

I can’t see why someone would reasonably say that. Why should it matter what category a product is in?
Anyway, what about the Klipsch r-15pm? Self powered and includes an optical input. Also has a sub out, so you could spend the remaining budget on a sub. Also has a remote

Edit: the jbls would be great too, they are just for more near field listening and would also want a dac with volume control, and that might exceed your budget if you want to include a sub as well

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I think I’ve figured out why this particular piece of bad advice keeps coming up: it’s grumpy old farts who are used to poor-FR old-school monitors where the only way to do good mastering on them was to learn to work around/with their defects, probably most often their excessive brightness. They haven’t adapted to the fact that Actually Good Monitors exist today, which you can directly trust for mastering and just as well use for listening enjoyment. I’ve yet to hear “don’t use monitors for music consumption” from anyone but old farts. :slight_smile:

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Having heard older Yamaha, jbl, and altec studio monitors, I see what you mean. It’s definitely about mixing on what your comfortable and most familiar with.

You could also take a look at the Klipsch R-51PM as I think it’s the newer model

Allright! I will drown out the old farts with my new monitors :smile:
The R-51PM sounds like a fantastic piece of kit, although here in Europe they are quite a bit more expensive than in the USA (USD 490). What subwoofer should I pair this with? Maybe I can convince the comptroller (wife) to budget this.
Do I just look for cables with the right connectors or is there something to look out for?

Those are quite a bit more there lol. In the US we can get them from Amazon for about 380 USD, so sorry for the more expensive rec. It would already come with all the cables you would need, including an optical cable, and if you wanted to add a sub, you would just need a “y subwoofer cable”. Sub wise, you might be able to get a Klipsch R-100SW to match, but I don’t know the prices where you are. You may be able to find refurbished units for both the sub and speakers and score a better deal.

Edit: a Dayton sub would also work nicely. The Polk audio psW10 would also be good. Most decent subs will work :+1:

I was able to find it (on the french amazon, no less) for USD 300. We will see if they actually deliver for that price, most stores are almost twice as expensive.
The R-51PM’s have also been ordered, you all have been instrumental (g) in shaping how my living room looks and sounds, thank you!

Well I hope you enjoy your new setup! You also might find that you don’t need a sub, so I would wait to get your speakers and see if you really want to buy a sub. If you don’t enjoy them, I wish you a quick and easy return lol, but those Klipschs are pretty impressive so I doubt you will have any issues

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Look at wharfedale and a decent receiver…

If I read the manual correctly the cable to connect the R-51PM to the R-100SW is not included in the box. Looking online it seems “subwoofer cables” are an esoteric, specialized topic with as many different recommendations as there are amazon affiliate links. Can I please ask for your input on what to buy?

A “Y subwoofer cable”. It is a single rca jack that splits off to a left and right rca jack. Here is one from Amazon basics

AmazonBasics 1-Male to 2-Male RCA Audio Stereo Subwoofer Cable - 8 Feet https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01D5H8N8K/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ntUoDbB6E35Z4

Edit: and like I said, if you are on the border about a sub, I would wait to get your speakers and see if you might not need a sub if you don’t want to spend more. But if you want one, it’s definitely not a bad thing

Ok, you will need some imagination for this: picture a 6 year old dancing on the couch with the quote “the music sounds so good dad”. Thank you very much M0N, abm0 & SmittyJonz!

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Well I hope you enjoy them! (And entirely forget about this hobby before it consumes you lol)