How do you match a receiver to speakers?

[Jeff Henry]

Hi guys, I'm using a Logitech Z5500 in my bedroom which connects to my PC and HDTV, I'm mentioning this as to my surprise these speakers are fairly decent overall and I have no lip sync issues no matter what I do with the speakers.

I'd like to eventually buy a 3.1-5.1 system for my lougeroom{which will probably be 3x4m approx}, but I'm a complete noob and have no idea where to start, but lip sync must be compensated for, so that needs to be factored into the price/model of receiver.

So a few questions I have are....

Is 3.1 acceptable, ie, 2x floor standing+ center +sub, or will that compromise audio performance?....I ask this as my 5.1 z5500's mainly seems to use everything but the 2 rear speakers, even with 5.1 HDTV, the 2 rears are on, but the bulk of the sound comes from the 3.1 part of the speakers.

I'm in Australia, and have noticed the crazy price disparity between us and you guys, so let's say my budget must not exceed $1200US for 3.1-5.1+amp.

Let's take for example, Pioneers VSX520....if I choose this, how do I go about matching speakers and sub as far as specs are concerned and will this unit have options for audio sync control...?

Also, what's more important, would it better to match a Yamaha 667 to cheaper speakers or the VSX520 to more expensive speakers?

My usage would be primarily DVD/BD and I'd like to connect either my 2010 model laptop with HDMI output or a media player to the receiver so I can playback my store of 5.1 HDTV music vids....I know that the WDTV player is cheap as chips, but can it be connected to a receiver via HDMI and output 5.1 ac3 and DTS from HD rips?

[rnatalli]

The short answer is, you don't. You buy a receiver for features and price and buy speakers for the sound you want. Modern receivers will all pretty much sound the same when run in pure mode and levels matched. Where they will differ is when you engage their EQ as there are several systems depending on the brand of receiver you buy. I personally like receivers equipped with Audyssey.

[Jeff Henry]

WHARFEDALE DIAMOND 10.4 Floorstanding Speakers

Format Floorspeaker
Bass Driver 125mm
Bass/Mid Driver 125mm
Tweeter 25mm
Suitable Amplifier Power 20 - 120w
Nominal Impedance 6 Ω
A/V Shielded no
Sensitivity (1W @ 1M) 88 dB
Nominal Frequency Range 38-24kHz
HF Limit (-10dB) 44kHz
Freq. Fb 40Hz
Dimensions (mm)(H*W*D) 850*194*278
Crossover Frequency 140Hz / 3.8kHz
Height on spikes/feet (mm) 905

KEF iQ50 Floorstanding Speakers

Model iQ50 Design Two and a half-way bass reflex

Drive Units 130mm (5.25in.) LF, 130mm (5.25in.) Uni-Q, 19mm (0.75in.) aluminium dome HF
Crossover Frequencies 2.5kHz
Sensitivity (2.83V/1m) 88dB
Maximum Output 109dB
Input Impedance 8 Ohms
Amplifier Requirements 15-130W
Magnetic Shielding Yes
Frequency Range 40Hz - 40KHz
Plinth Dimensions (H x W x D) 28 x 250 x 295 mm (1.1 x 9.8 x 11.6 in.)
Weight 10.2kg (22.5lbs)
Dimensions (H x W x D) 815 x 175 x 261 mm (32 x 6.9 x 10.3 in.)

So even the VSX520 would run these adequately?....and can u tell from the specs which "might" be the better speaker?
I can't posts url's atm...

[jp_over]

"
Is 3.1 acceptable, ie, 2x floor standing+ center +sub, or will that compromise audio performance?.."

Depends on your goal. I plan to use 3.1 for watching TV and movies but I don't care about surround effects. Also, my music listening is 2 channel only so again, no impact. However, if you want surround sound you'll need to add rear speakers.

Is there a way you can get to listen to some of these speakers?

[Jeff Henry]

I could certainly listen to some, but I'm on the verge of moving house, so my room size is an unknown atm, but I also want to try and decide which AV to buy etc.

[jp_over]

I could certainly listen to some, but I'm on the verge of moving house, so my room size is an unknown atm, but I also want to try and decide which AV to buy etc.

Here's what I recommend, 1st, as a guy who moves often, wait until you move to buy your new nice stuff. 2nd, check out this part of audioholics to get some fantastic info/advice:

http://www.audioholics.com/buying-guides

[Pyrrho]

Hi guys, I'm using a Logitech Z5500 in my bedroom which connects to my PC and HDTV, I'm mentioning this as to my surprise these speakers are fairly decent overall and I have no lip sync issues no matter what I do with the speakers.

I'd like to eventually buy a 3.1-5.1 system for my lougeroom{which will probably be 3x4m approx}, but I'm a complete noob and have no idea where to start, but lip sync must be compensated for, so that needs to be factored into the price/model of receiver.

So a few questions I have are....

Is 3.1 acceptable, ie, 2x floor standing+ center +sub, or will that compromise audio performance?....I ask this as my 5.1 z5500's mainly seems to use everything but the 2 rear speakers, even with 5.1 HDTV, the 2 rears are on, but the bulk of the sound comes from the 3.1 part of the speakers.

I'm in Australia, and have noticed the crazy price disparity between us and you guys, so let's say my budget must not exceed $1200US for 3.1-5.1+amp.

Let's take for example, Pioneers VSX520....if I choose this, how do I go about matching speakers and sub as far as specs are concerned and will this unit have options for audio sync control...?

Also, what's more important, would it better to match a Yamaha 667 to cheaper speakers or the VSX520 to more expensive speakers?

My usage would be primarily DVD/BD and I'd like to connect either my 2010 model laptop with HDMI output or a media player to the receiver so I can playback my store of 5.1 HDTV music vids....I know that the WDTV player is cheap as chips, but can it be connected to a receiver via HDMI and output 5.1 ac3 and DTS from HD rips?

For the most part, it is as rnatalli says; you buy your receiver for its features and price, and speakers for the sound. The only times you need to worry about compatibility with speakers are if the speakers are low impedance, or very inefficient, or you listen at literally deafening volumes.

In my case, I went from a $600 receiver to a $1700 receiver that is about twice as powerful, but with my speakers, they sound the same, unless I engage a feature that affects the sound. That is because my speakers are an honest 8 ohms (with no nasty dips in the impedance) and of normal efficiency, so I have no need of the extra power. I bought the more expensive receiver because I wanted its features.

And with the subwoofer, since they generally have their own power amplifier built in (or if not, are typically powered with a separate power amp anyway), there is no compatibility concern with a modern surround receiver ever.

For sound quality, the speakers will matter far more than the receiver. For features, the receiver will obviously matter more than the speakers. However, they are always coming out with new formats and features to sell which many feel the need to upgrade to get, so speakers are by far a better investment. I have well over $6000 worth (retail price, not current used value) of speakers, and my old $600 receiver sounded great with them. For great sound, put as much as you can afford into the speakers, and as little as possible into your receiver (just make sure the receiver has all the features you need, and that the speakers you are selecting are not particularly difficult to drive).

As for the lip sync issue, download and look at the owner's manual from the manufacturer's web site for any receiver you are considering. You might find that information listed in the general information at their site, but if not, you will want to consult the manual. I doubt any decent receiver these days lacks lip sync delay adjustment, but you will want to look to be sure, particularly on a low end model.

[Jeff Henry]

HDMI overlay of the menu system

What's this feature?
The Yammy 667 has it...

[Jeff Henry]

For sound quality, the speakers will matter far more than the receiver. .

thx Pyrrho.

Hopefully I can post some url's after this post, and I can show u some speakers I had in mind.

http://apollohifi.com.au/products/WH...ers-704-0.html

Actually here's those Wharfedales I had in mind.

[Pyrrho]

thx Pyrrho.

Hopefully I can post some url's after this post, and I can show u some speakers I had in mind.

http://apollohifi.com.au/products/WH...ers-704-0.html

Actually here's those Wharfedales I had in mind.

I have not heard them, so I cannot comment on their sound. Ideally, you will listen to a variety of different speakers, with music with which you are familiar, and of all the types of music that you listen, and then pick the ones you like best. No speaker is perfect, and so it is a question of which virtues you require and which vices you can tolerate. Different people are quite different on these issues, so their opinions (and mine) will have very limited value in your selection.


With a home theater, one typically uses a subwoofer, and so one can often save money (or buy a better line of speaker if one wants better sound) by buying bookshelf sized speakers that do not reproduce the deep bass, which is not a problem because one sends the deep bass to the subwoofer. However, the speaker must still go deep enough in order to not have too high frequencies go to the subwoofer, which would be a problem because one can localize upper bass by sound, and therefore sounds that are supposed to be coming from a particular speaker in the surround system will come from the wrong place and be noticeable. The THX standard for this is 80Hz, and I recommend making sure that the main speakers have a -3dB point below that to ensure that this will not be a problem. In my case, I am using the original U.S. version of these for all channels (except subwoofer, of course):

http://www.kellsieavdesign.com/products/Leisure2SE.htm

It would cost a good deal more for me to have tower speakers in the same line. Of course, I could have gone with a lesser speaker line and gotten tower speakers at that price point.

The main drawback to this approach typically is that bookshelf speakers usually cannot play as loud as tower speakers of the same line, though that is somewhat compensated for by proper setup and use with a subwoofer; one typically sets the main speakers to "small" and sends the bass below 80Hz (or whatever frequency seems best for the particular speakers in question) to the subwoofer. In the case of my speakers, tower speakers of that line:

http://www.kellsieavdesign.com/products/MG.htm

use the same tweeter and [mid]bass driver, but add an additional woofer for the deep bass, and have the crossover altered to be higher for the tweeter (3.2kHz vs. 3kHz for mine) and at about 150 Hz for the lower woofer, so it could theoretically play louder than my speakers could, because with mine the tweeter is being asked to do more of the frequencies, and the woofer is being asked to do more bass (80Hz to 150Hz). However, my system plays louder than I ever want to hear it, with great clarity, so this is not a problem in my case. But it could matter if I had a much larger room, or were crazy enough to listen at volumes that would do permanent damage to my hearing. And obviously, this is a very specific example; different lines of speakers can play louder than others, and so what one should do when auditioning speakers is to make sure that they can play as loud as you ever will want to hear them. Keep in mind, maximum loudness has nothing whatsoever to do with the quality of the sound, so when one does not have enough to buy what one really wants, one may be faced with a decision between a speaker that does not play quite as loud as one would like or a speaker that does not sound as good, and for that sort of question, you must decide for yourself what you value most in a speaker.


As for whether a speaker is difficult to drive, I recommend looking for the minimum impedance rather than the nominal impedance, as some manufacturers of speakers are essentially lying when they label the nominal impedance of a speaker (there are no precise standards required for the claim of "nominal impedance", and therefore they can say pretty much whatever they want to say). If you can find a professional review in which the speaker has been measured, this can tell help you tell if you need to be concerned about the impedance.

Here is a brief article explaining what impedance is:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electri...ic_loudspeaker