Need help in setting up Home Entertainment System

skn

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Sep 20, 2017
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Mumbai
Hi all,

I have bought a new 3BHK house in Mumbai. Currently the interior works are going on. Wiring work has just started. I need help on planning the entertainment set up for both my living room and master bedroom. Below are few details –

1. Room Size : The living room comprising of the living area and the dining area. The living area which would have the entertainment system has dimension of 16 ft X 14 ft X 9’5 ft. The wall on which the TV would be hung is 16 ft while the viewing distance would be 14 ft or a little less. I have excluded the dining area.
2. Television : I am planning to buy LG OLED 55 or Sony 4K 65
3. AV Receiver : I am planning to buy Marantz SR 6011. I expect to use it 80% of the time for watching movies and the balance 20% for listening to music
4. 5.1 Home Theatre : Player : I have zeroed down to Wharfedale Diamond 230 floorstanding speakers, 220 Centre Channel Speakers, 10 DFS Rear/surround speakers & Wharfedale D -10 subwoofer. I have been strongly recommended to check out the SVS SB-100 sub woofer as a upgrade to the Wharfedale D-10 subwoofer, though I am yet to take a demo.
5. Currently I have an Onkyo HT bought about 8 years ago. The movies that I play in my living room in the present house are stored in a Seagate 2TB drive. This is connected to the USB slot of my Philips BlueRay Player viz Philips BDP2900. I do not have any Blueray discs. The sole purpose of using the BDP2900.
6. I also have a Xbox 360 (bought 6 years ago) which I move from my old house to my new house.


7. Also in my current bedroom I have a 1TB iOmega Media Player (which has my downloaded movies) which is connected to by LED Tv though HDMI Cable. However for the new house, I plan to install 2 in-ceiling speakers in the bedroom. I want to have the option of getting the output of the Set top box / I omega Media player / Radio onto the 2 speakers. I believe I would have to buy a AVR (which has built in radio) for this

While I have listed down what I want, there are the following issues that I am facing

1. A few days ago the iOmega media player that I use my master bedroom konked off. While I searched for similar media players, I realized that these have gone out of the market given that newer technologies such as streaming have become popular. Fortunately for me, the vendor from whom I have bought the iOmega media player was able to repair the motherboard which had become faulty.
2. Operationally it is a headache to remember to copies all my new movies in both the i-Omega Media player and the Seagate drive (to be able to watch them in both the living and master BR)


I was recommended to look at Synology / QNAP NAS as a solution to have all my movies / music / photos at one location. This solution has been given by my office IT guys who understands networking but has no idea about integrating the same with the AV system.

So here are a few questions. I hope I am able to get a solution from this forum

1. Will NAS help me achieve a solution which takes away the need to keep multiple copies of the same movies to play on different devices.
2. Will I still need an interface such as Blue Ray player in both my rooms to play movies from the NAS to the 5.1 set up in the living room and the 2 speaker set up in the master BR.
3. Given that investment in NAS will take anywhere between 30k-50k by itself, is there any better / cheaper solution to play all my movies/music.
 
NAS is the best way to have all the files in one place. if you do some research, you can setup your own NAS server at home with your old PC. A mid range PC with a dual core processor and enough RAM ( 1 gb ram for 1 TB ) will help you to setup NAS at home. Thsi will set you back by around 20k for a 4tb NAS server.

Once you have a NAS server setup, you need a compatible device which can stream from this server. if you want the best, go for Nvidia shield ( 12k if you get from US) or any android box will do the purpose.

All these might sound very complicating, but a little reading from internet and youtube videos will make this easy :)
 
As long as you are using a wired network connection, a raspberry pi 3 with libreelec can act like a server and a player. It will be good enough for 1080p movies. You can keep the pi as a player in your primary room and you can stream in other room using either another pi or in built dlna player of your smart TV.
 
Please post some actual pics and room layout of the planned room.. This will help get more suggestions..

Also your max budget for each item..

Hi all,

I have bought a new 3BHK house in Mumbai. Currently the interior works are going on. Wiring work has just started. I need help on planning the entertainment set up for both my living room and master bedroom. Below are few details –

1. Room Size : The living room comprising of the living area and the dining area. The living area which would have the entertainment system has dimension of 16 ft X 14 ft X 9’5 ft. The wall on which the TV would be hung is 16 ft while the viewing distance would be 14 ft or a little less. I have excluded the dining area.
3. AV Receiver : I am planning to buy Marantz SR 6011. I expect to use it 80% of the time for watching movies and the balance 20% for listening to music
4. 5.1 Home Theatre : Player : I have zeroed down to Wharfedale Diamond 230 floorstanding speakers, 220 Centre Channel Speakers, 10 DFS Rear/surround speakers & Wharfedale D -10 subwoofer. I have been strongly recommended to check out the SVS SB-100 sub woofer as a upgrade to the Wharfedale D-10 subwoofer, though I am yet to take a demo.

Marantz SR 6011 is a good choice.. It is a 5.2.4 out of the box and 7.2.4 capable using additional power amplifier.. But you have limited to 5.` set-up.. Since you also said you will use this mostly for movies, i would suggest you to reconsider speakers & subwoofers to complete a full 7.2.4 set-up... (or) a 6.2.4 set-up..

Look for a Book shelf speaker that are wall mount capable and that has provisions with mount threads.. This will give you extra flexibility in mounting them & tilting (if necessary) them to your listening position..

Get 5 pairs of a Book shelf speakers.. So 10 indentical speakers, with which you can complete 6.2.4 (single surr back) set-up...

For subwoofer, SVS can be expensive here.. Atleast two subs are recommended over one for good bass.. So in that regard, choose 2 subs over one SVS sub..

2. Television : I am planning to buy LG OLED 55 or Sony 4K 65

The room size is good.. Have you considered projectors + screen?.. I think a minimum of 120 inch screen (or) more is possible..

5. Currently I have an Onkyo HT bought about 8 years ago. The movies that I play in my living room in the present house are stored in a Seagate 2TB drive. This is connected to the USB slot of my Philips BlueRay Player viz Philips BDP2900. I do not have any Blueray discs. The sole purpose of using the BDP2900.

3. Given that investment in NAS will take anywhere between 30k-50k by itself, is there any better / cheaper solution to play all my movies/music.

No expereince with NAS here.. If most of your collection is BR Rips on external hard disk and prefer not to spend much, consider Android TV Box on anazon.in (two of them).. They come with Kodi installed.. So it is juz plug & play.. It also bitsream to AVR thru HDMI.. Which also gives you the flexibility to swap the external HD between living room & bed room for movie playback..
 
Hi,
I have the Synology DS716+II NAS where I store all media and use Plex. Installed the NAS to avoid moving the USB disc between rooms. I use Xbox One S as the 4K Blu Ray player and also run Plex via it. Using for past 6+ months & works great. Planning to add a 4K HEVC Android TV box (Himedia Q5Pro) for HEVC 4K content.

If you predominantly use media files and not discs, then the 4K HEVC Himedia Q5Pro can connect to the NAS using Kodi player. No need for XBox. Suggest you use wired ethernet as some of the media files can be very large to play over wifi.

I also have a Wharfedale speaker setup (220+ 220C+ 10DFS+D10). Sounds great for movies & music. Planning to upgrade to D240 floor standers + add ceiling atmos speakers in next few months along with a 1080p Epson projector..
 
Hi,
I have the Synology DS716+II NAS where I store all media and use Plex.

How much did the Synology NAS cost you? got it from India itself?

Installed the NAS to avoid moving the USB disc between rooms. I use Xbox One S as the 4K Blu Ray player and also run Plex via it. Using for past 6+ months & works great. Planning to add a 4K HEVC Android TV box (Himedia Q5Pro) for HEVC 4K content.

If you predominantly use media files and not discs, then the 4K HEVC Himedia Q5Pro can connect to the NAS using Kodi player. No need for XBox. Suggest you use wired ethernet as some of the media files can be very large to play over wifi.

I also have a Wharfedale speaker setup (220+ 220C+ 10DFS+D10). Sounds great for movies & music. Planning to upgrade to D240 floor standers + add ceiling atmos speakers in next few months along with a 1080p Epson projector..
 
I am currently evaluating the QNAP TS-251A which supports 4K video playback and transcoding. It also has an HDMI output which means I could connect it directly to my Marantz AVR. I guess I will then be able to bypass the need for Xbox one S / Himedia Q5 Pro. As I said this is my guess. I should be getting a demo QNAP TS-251A to try out sometime next week. Will check it out and post here.
 
You may want to verify if the QNAP NAS supports bitstreaming of digital audio (DTSHD-MA and Dolby TrueHD) to your AVR via its HDMI. Since you are using an AVR, I would recommend a media streaming box like Nvidia shield or Minix Neo that will support multiple audio and video formats and easily scalable with future software upgrades.
 
I am currently evaluating the QNAP TS-251A which supports 4K video playback and transcoding. It also has an HDMI output which means I could connect it directly to my Marantz AVR. I guess I will then be able to bypass the need for Xbox one S / Himedia Q5 Pro. As I said this is my guess. I should be getting a demo QNAP TS-251A to try out sometime next week. Will check it out and post here.

Once you demo, please do report if the QNAP can directly play movies to the AVR. I guess it can only play music directly and you will need some player. Also during the demo, can you please check if it can directly play 4K HEVC files ?
Good luck..
 
Hi,
I have the Synology DS716+II NAS where I store all media and use Plex. Installed the NAS to avoid moving the USB disc between rooms. I use Xbox One S as the 4K Blu Ray player and also run Plex via it. Using for past 6+ months & works great. Planning to add a 4K HEVC Android TV box (Himedia Q5Pro) for HEVC 4K content.

If you predominantly use media files and not discs, then the 4K HEVC Himedia Q5Pro can connect to the NAS using Kodi player. No need for XBox. Suggest you use wired ethernet as some of the media files can be very large to play over wifi.

I also have a Wharfedale speaker setup (220+ 220C+ 10DFS+D10). Sounds great for movies & music. Planning to upgrade to D240 floor standers + add ceiling atmos speakers in next few months along with a 1080p Epson projector..



How much did the Synology NAS cost you? got it from India itself?
 
I am currently evaluating the QNAP TS-251A which supports 4K video playback and transcoding. It also has an HDMI output which means I could connect it directly to my Marantz AVR. I guess I will then be able to bypass the need for Xbox one S / Himedia Q5 Pro. As I said this is my guess. I should be getting a demo QNAP TS-251A to try out sometime next week. Will check it out and post here.
The QNAP guy who came to give me the demo had little knowledge about plex. He spent 4 hours but failed to play the movies. There was too much buffering. He was not sure what the issue was. His guess was that the NAS was underpowered with 1 gB RAM. He said he will get a better version for demo on his next visit.

Can anyone recommend a Mumbai based integrator of NAS with the HT system using Nvidea Shield. I have ordered one from the US and should get it by March end when one of my relatives flies back.
 
The Sony 65inch 4k TV runs on Android so you can install Kodi or any other application which will let you interface with a NAS without the need for a separate player. It also plays most formats from the USB including HEVC.
 
If you are getting the Nvidia Shield from US, try to get the NAS as well. You will get a much powerful NAS (atleast 2-3 models higher) in US at the same price as India !!
 
Purchase the Audiolab 6000A Integrated Amplifier at a special offer price.
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