Good Receiver to buy

[alphasig246]

I am looking for a good receiver to start my home theater. I have looked at Onkyo, Denon, Yamaha and Pioneer. I know a lot of last year's models are on sale which is ok with me. Does anybody have one they prefer over another. I would like to stay under 600.00 if possible. Thanks.

 

[tyhjaarpa]

I myself like Marantz receivers. Out of those given I would pick Onkyo most likely. Haven't been looking for that price range myself. But I would suggest that you try them out yourself with your speakers at home if possible and decide after that.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I would watch for the Denon X4000 getting serious sale soon with the X4001 in stores. I think $650 shipped on the X4000 brand new would be the target.

Amazon and Best Buy (recently) have been known to offer 50% or more off!

For example, some members here recently bought the Denon 4520 for $1K!

A while back, I bought the Denon 3312 for 50% off on Amazon as well.

The X4000 has Audyssey XT32 + dual Subwoofer EQ, among other great features. Be vigilant on the sale daily.

 

[j_garcia]

+1 for Denon. Marantz has long been a favorite of mine, but Denon is currently a better value. Onkyo - no.

 

[jkgsxr]

Denon x4000, 4520ci definitely.

 

[herbu]

I would watch for the Denon X4000 getting serious sale soon with the X4001 in stores. I think $650 shipped on the X4000 brand new would be the target.

Starting to come down. On Amazon today: $799

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Starting to come down. On Amazon today: $799

Kind of like stocks, huh?

$800 is not too far from the target price of $650.

If Amazon is selling the X4000 for $799 today, I bet Electronics Expo can do $650 shipped today.

 

[herbu]

If Amazon is selling the X4000 for $799 today, I bet Electronics Expo can do $650 shipped today.

I looked at Electonics Expo. They show $799, and even show a link to Amazon for Prime members free shipping.

On Amazon, they show 7 companies that list the X4000 for $799, and Electronics Expo is one of them. Is EE one of those places you can negotiate a better deal on the phone sometimes?

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Is EE one of those places you can negotiate a better deal on the phone sometimes?

Oh yes indeed!

I've negotiated with them 4 times in the past.

Other members here have done the same.

 

[GIEGAR]

I am looking for a good receiver to start my home theater. I have looked at Onkyo, Denon, Yamaha and Pioneer. I know a lot of last year's models are on sale which is ok with me. Does anybody have one they prefer over another. I would like to stay under 600.00 if possible. Thanks.

I might be misunderstanding you, but please don't start your HT with an AVR purchase. It should be towards the end. Start by looking for speakers and sub(s). Actually... start with a total audio budget and allocate at least 75 to 80% of it to speakers and sub(s). If you're spending up to $600 on an AVR, are you prepared to spend around $2.5K on speakers and a sub? If not, you’ll be overspending on the AVR at the expense of speakers/sub and most likely not getting the best audio quality you can get for your budget.

To directly answer you question though… I’m a big fan of what Audyssey MultEQ can do, and my advice is to get yourself as far up the Audyssey pecking order as you reasonably can (within your budget). At present, the brand that leads the way in trickling down their Audyssey implementation to their more affordable models is Denon.

Right now, you can get this Used - Like New for $549: Denon AVR-X3000 In-command 7.2-Channel 4K Ultra HD Networking Home Theater Receiver with AirPlay : Multi-Room. Or Factory Refurbished for $500: DENON AVR-X3000 7.2 4K Ultra HD Networking Receiver w/ AirPlay | Accessories4less.

 

[OdinGOW]

I'm having a hard time finding denon x4000 for less than 870$ in Canada. If I can get it for 800$ to my door I'll buy today.... Tho the x3000 for 550-600$ seems like a good option too... What the biggest differences between the two?

The yamaha rxv777 was recently on for 600$ as well and seems to gone back up to 900 ish, and it has built in wifi and Bluetooth.

I can also find the rxv1075 for 600$ ATM... What should I do? Just wait?

 

[GIEGAR]

I'm having a hard time finding denon x4000 for less than 870$ in Canada. If I can get it for 800$ to my door I'll buy today.... Tho the x3000 for 550-600$ seems like a good option too... What the biggest differences between the two?

The yamaha rxv777 was recently on for 600$ as well and seems to gone back up to 900 ish, and it has built in wifi and Bluetooth.

I can also find the rxv1075 for 600$ ATM... What should I do? Just wait?

The only biggie is the step up from Audyssey MultEQ XT to MultEQ XT32 (with SubEQ HT). There's a bit more rated power (105W vs 105W), but it only equates to <1dB continuous. There's also HD Radio if that's important.

I know you can't buy from them, but US Crutchfield have one of the better comparison tools. Hit the Hide Similar Features button when you open this link to see all differences:

Denon AVR-X3000 IN-Command vs Denon AVR-X4000 IN-Command

 

[fourdegrees]

I managed to snag a Yamaha RX-A830 from Amazon as a Gold Box deal on Sunday. It was running at $450. Should I be good to go? I'm a little concerned that the dual sub out is just a single channel. Will that effect my ability to integrate two subs into my room?

 

[GIEGAR]

It will, particularly if your subs need to be at disparate distances from the listening position and you have no ability to set individual delays.

Do you have any acoustic measurement gear? If not, the first step - and really worthwhile investment anyway - is to get yourself setup with something like a miniDSP UMIK-1 ($75) and Room EQ Wizard (free). This will at least show you what you're dealing with in your room and allow you to experiment with sub placement and see the results. Then if you need to, get a miniDSP 2x4 and relevant plug-in to derive and process individual signals for each sub.

Welcome to the forum!

 

[fourdegrees]

Would I be better served returning it for something like the X4000? I believe that is the cheapest receiver one can get XT32 with Sub EQ. Although I'm interested in the room measurement equipment, I'm trying to ease myself into to it. I've managed to get over my seperates only with no room correction mindset. I'm still a bit I intimidated by the room correction process. I'm under the impression XT32 does a decent job all things considered.

 

[GIEGAR]

Yes, the X4000's XT32/Sub EQ HT would do a much better job, particularly with dual subs. Amazon now have them for $800. (http://www.amazon.com/Denon-AVR-X4000-7-2-Channel-Networking-Receiver/dp/B00CALM17C)

I have an older MultEQ XT enabled AVR and I wouldn't be without it and what Dynamic EQ brings to the table. XT32 is a clear step up again with it's higher filter resolution. (http://www.audyssey.com/technologies/multeq/flavors)

It'd still be worthwhile getting a UMIK-1/REW or a Dayton Audio OmniMic v2 to measure and place your subs, before letting Audyssey loose to apply the finishing touches.

 

[3db]

I would watch for the Denon X4000 getting serious sale soon with the X4001 in stores. I think $650 shipped on the X4000 brand new would be the target.

Amazon and Best Buy (recently) have been known to offer 50% or more off!

For example, some members here recently bought the Denon 4520 for $1K!

A while back, I bought the Denon 3312 for 50% off on Amazon as well.

The X4000 has Audyssey XT32 + dual Subwoofer EQ, among other great features. Be vigilant on the sale daily.

If you buy a receiver from Amazon, does the manufacturer warrant still cover it?

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

If you buy a receiver from Amazon, does the manufacturer warrant still cover it?

Oh, absolutely yes. Amazon is an authorized dealer for Denon, Marantz, Yamaha, Pioneer, Onkyo, Sony, HK, etc.

But just make sure that it is sold by Amazon or fulfilled by Amazon. Most 3rd parties may also be authorized dealers, but you would have to check with the manufacturer.

Amazon is selling the X4000 for $800 (sold by Amazon) now. This means if I wanted to, I could most likely get it for about $600-650 from some other authorized dealers that are willing to negotiate.

 

[fourdegrees]

Would I be able to keep the Yamaha and use the mini DSP to set sub levels, or is the ability to set the delay critical to the operation?

 

[GIEGAR]

Would I be able to keep the Yamaha and use the mini DSP to set sub levels, or is the ability to set the delay critical to the operation?

A few aspects to this...

• You have scope to adjust levels via the volume knob on the subs (however, without at least an SPL meter it won't be particularly accurate).
• The ability to set individual distances/delays is clearly only an issue if the subs will be at significantly different distances from the listening position.
• A miniDSP with the appropriate plug-in can be used to set individual levels and delays for each sub.

I don't think you'll get too many arguments that the filter resolution and processing devoted to the sub bass frequencies by Audyssey XT32 is significantly greater than that assigned by Yamaha's YPAO. This increases your chances of achieving a superior result with XT32. The addition of SubEQ HT to calculate filters based on a summed sub response is the icing on top for those with dual subs.