Greetings people.

A friend of mine has expressed interest in purchasing a home theater system for his PS3 and HDTV set. At the moment, he is using the TV speakers for audio.

We went to survey around Lowyat Plaza and after several test drives of various combination of amplifiers and 5.1 speakers, we came across a pair which particularly struck our fancy, namely the KEF KHT2005.2 (RM3999) paired with the Harman Kardon AVR 255 (RM2999). We were thoroughly impressed by the performance in respect to the relatively diminutive stature of the speakers. I have a few questions for our resident experts to help in our decision.

1) Are these equipments priced reasonably in respect to current local market prices? If not, what is the proper price range and where can such prices be attained.

2) Does THX certification warrant additional cost? Does it make a difference in respect to overall sound reproduction quality?

3) Are there any other known combination of speaker/amplifiers that perform equally/superior to my stated system at equal/lesser price? If so, please list the name, price and location of these systems.

4) Is there anything else that I have overlooked? Please advise.


These are the questions that I have at the moment. Thank you for your time.

This post has been edited by Iskandar Zulkarnain: Apr 5 2009, 04:29 PM

1. The price for KEF is ok considering it is being sold at abt 680pound in UK. I would give the Harmon Kardon a miss. Better opt for Denon 2309.

2. THX is only a standard. But given our environment (house), it is near to impossible to set up a THX certified gears as it just cost too much. Every single equipments need to comply with its std, even the room itself has to be transformed to a proper sound room.

Many companies knowing that THX does make a product 'sellable', has applied this so-called std to its products, which translte to higher pricing that we could do without.

3. What's his budget? Same amount of money?

Thank you for the reply.

Regarding the budget, at the current price which is RM7000, he did express some concern whether it is worth the amount. Let us consider it the absolute maximum we can spend. The best case it would seem is to find a system that performs better and is under RM7000 if possible.

Regarding your mention of the Denon 2309, what is the current price in the market?

I would like to add a few question while I'm at it.

5) How does the Q Acoustics 1010i 5.1 perform in respect to the KEF KHT2005.2? According to WhatisHifi.Com , it seems to be priced lower yet received a higher rating then the KHT 2005.2. Also, is it available locally and if so, what is the current market price and where can it be purchased?

6) What are your opinions on the Sony-STR-DA2400ES?

7) What additional costs are incurred when such systems are imported into the country? As in what is the tax percentage etc.


Thank you once again for your reply.

This post has been edited by Iskandar Zulkarnain: Apr 5 2009, 04:25 PM

RM7,000 is a decent budget.

May I know the size of the room? If it is small, then this spkr system will be ideal. Else, he could opt for packages.

AVR-2309 sld be a little over RM3K.

Q Acoustics 1010i 5.1 performs very well for the price range only. Moreover, the rating in What Hi-Fi is only a guidance and they lean towards Brit speakers (a bit bias).

Not abt this model but having owned a Sony AVR before, its SQ is too safe (bass) and the surr steering aint the best in the mart. My take would be Denon or Yamaha.

Tax system : 20% + 10% (if my mem didnt fail me)

Interesting. Thank you for the reply.

Regarding to the size of the room it is approximately 12 square feet.

What is your opinion regarding the Yamaha-DSP-AX863SE?

Also, please explain what you meant by packages.

Thank you for your time.

Are u sure it's 12 square feet? Seems too small for a room. 12 square feet is around 3 feet x 4 feet. Maybe you mean 12 feet x 12 feet. HT Kaki is right. Room size is very important. If you room size is big, better opt for bigger speaker. Pay more attention to the center speaker and subwoofer if you main application is movie or PS3 games.

Swap the HK w. Onkyo & u have a THX certified AVR.

At that price point mayb can get the TR606

Thank you for the replies.



Yes it is 12X12, my mistake.

I'll take note of these recommendations and check for availability.

I am however unfamiliar with the places that actually sell these systems besides Lowyat Plaza.

Could you people recommend places known for their good selection, service and deals? Preferably within Selangor.

Thank you for your time.

This post has been edited by Iskandar Zulkarnain: Apr 6 2009, 09:56 AM

Try Amcrop Mall in PJ, there is a cluster of Hi-Fi & HT shops - pricing oso reasonable

Iskandar,

Just curious on your purchase. What's the status at the moment.

From the angle of just an AV amp, I would recommend a decently powered NAD T763, now brand new can be bought at A&L (puchong branch) at around RM3600+/-, used to be more expensive than that, now superceded by newer T765, but at much higher priced. It does not have the latest HD-DTS, but very powerful amp with Holmgren's Toroidal Transformer built in.

He then can get the set of speakers according to his room size as recommended by others.

fyi, NAD is characterised on par with Arcam AVR, better in sound quality than onkyo, Yamaha or Mission of almost the same price range. This 763 is of older batch but sound quality is very decent indeed.