I finally bought HD tv, upgraded my DTV to HD and even bought an OPPO BD. I was going to get a HTIB for my surround sound, but I see many come with a BD player which I do not need. I want a center, sub, 2 front, 2 surround speakers and a receiver. I really cannot go over $500 though - is it even possible to get anything other than a HTIB?

For example, I was looking at the Yamaha YHT-493...but figured I would ask around here if anyone has experience with the Yamaha HTIB or if there is a better choice. I have not bought speakers in like 15 years, so no idea what it would cost to get them and the receiver as separate pieces.

 

I spent $200 on mine. It's no where near the best, but it works well and gives me room to upgrade over time. I bought a display Denon AVR-589 for $50, and some trash JVC speakers for $150.

Look for open box or display units. Put your money into the receiver.

 

I spent $300 on my panasonic 5.1 HTIB with 5 disc changer a few years back. I never use the dvd disc change, juts my PS3 as my Blurray player. Works and sounds great.

 

I am wondering why someone would spend the money to get an Oppo BD player but then want to go cheap on surround sound. That's kinda like buying a Porsche 911 turbo and throwing some 87 octane in it.

 

I would recommend either the DHT591BA Denon Home Theater System [http://tiny.cc/i40g4] or the Bose CineMate Series II Home Theater System [http://tiny.cc/ypsql]. Although these two systems are about $100 more than what you wanted to spend, they are the most popular relatively inexpensive systems at work.

 

+1...maybe save your money and get a good system!

 

I agree with what they are saying; you should definitely not skimp on audio. A good audio system is as important, if not more important, than your picture!

 

IMO go with a DENON receiver and play around with speakers till you find the ones that give off a sound you like!

 

Sell the Oppo and take a look at this deal... (only good for today)
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-BDV-E370-...3DVNFZGCD0E09B

 

yeah, since I posted I did some looking around and $500 is not going to get me what I want - so I am going to wait...maybe after tax return $$ comes in.

I can get a good receiver for that much, but will need more for the speakers.

 

I ordered a Denon DHT-391XP on Amazon today for $343.00 I'll let you know how I like it. Reviews sounded quite positive.