Have Several Receivers & Speaker Sets & Need advice for Best Configuration

[RK-KY]

I'm new to high end audio, but have several receivers and speakers sets and a new subwoofer on order and need advice. My main interest is which setup would be best for 2.1 music listening. I also have a 5.1 setup in the same room for video but TV sound is not a big deal for me. Thanks in advance for your advice. My list of equipment is as follows.

Receivers

Denon PMA 1060 (4 ohm capable)
Currently in use with my 2.1 music setup
I love this setup but I'm thinking the Integra might be much easier to configure with my new sub

Integra DTR 6.3 (4 ohm capable)
Currently in use with my computer (seems like a waste)

Marantz SR7000 (seems like a good receiver but not 4 ohm capable)
Not currently in use

Denon AVR 1611
Currently in use for my 5.1 theater setup

Speakers

ROR Audio Research G Series - 4 Ohm (Ted Rothstein?)
Currently in use with my 2.1 music setup
These have been recently refurbished by Miller Sound out of NY City
These are my favorites and what I'll likely use.

Ohm Walsh 2 - 4 ohm
Currently in use for my 5.1 theater setup (Front)
These have seen very little use and are in excellent condition except for the caps which were broken in a move.

Energy Connoisseur C-3 Bookshelf Speakers - 8 Ohm
Currently in use with my computer (seems like a waste)
These are in pristine condition but are perhaps not the right fit for my 2850 cubic foot room with two open doorways.

NHT SuperOne Bookshelf Speakers - 8 ohm
Currently in use for my 5.1 theater setup (Rear)

NHT Center Channel - 8 ohm
Currently in use for my 5.1 theater setup (Center)
I'm not sure of the model and would need to disassemble my setup to check.

Subwoofers

Hsu Research VTF-3 MK5
I've ordered this and it should arrive next week

Klipsch Sub8
Currently in use with my 2.1 music setup
I plan to move this for use with my 5.1 theater setup

Cheap polk 10"
I plan to move this for use with my computer

 

[MrBoat]

I wouldn't even know where to begin. With all that gear, it seems you should be able to work out some kind of combination of hardware that at least consolidates part of your requirements before adding yet more to it.

I started with older gear. First thing I did when getting back into this is researched what the consensus was with regard to what the actual quality was of what I owned already, the why's and why not's. Then came the work of actually spending some time with everything getting to know it and analyzing what I felt it was lacking.

2.1, to me personally, equates to more of a really good, near field type experience in the space where I spend most of my time. Anything beyond that ends up being rather superfluous comparatively. I'd end up with a lot of other gear that I didn't care as much about.

I guess what I am saying is, take that one favorite space, optimize that with what you have (or any combination thereof) and see if that's enough. Instead of trying to find a general solution for all at once.

A personal computer, a good AV receiver, a pair of good, powerful main speakers and a sub woofer should be able to knock your sox off or at least be a good start. If you're new to this, then you're going to have to teach yourself things about EQ, bass management and your system settings. You may already be sitting on gold there that has simply never been optimized.

 

[lovinthehd]

Why do you say the SR7000 isn't 4 ohm capable? IIRC Marantz avrs are normally fine with 4 ohm loads (even if the spec only mentions 8 ohm). In this thread someone mentions he had no problem with his 4ohm speakers...

Why are you going to put the Klipsch 8" in the 5.1 setup? That's more your computer style sub along with the Polk IMO. Just use the Hsu for both music and movies or get another if you're going to have separate setups.

 

[RK-KY]

I wouldn't even know where to begin. With all that gear, it seems you should be able to work out some kind of combination of hardware that at least consolidates part of your requirements before adding yet more to it.

I started with older gear. First thing I did when getting back into this is researched what the consensus was with regard to what the actual quality was of what I owned already, the why's and why not's. Then came the work of actually spending some time with everything getting to know it and analyzing what I felt it was lacking.

2.1, to me personally, equates to more of a really good, near field type experience in the space where I spend most of my time. Anything beyond that ends up being rather superfluous comparatively. I'd end up with a lot of other gear that I didn't care as much about.

I guess what I am saying is, take that one favorite space, optimize that with what you have (or any combination thereof) and see if that's enough. Instead of trying to find a general solution for all at once.

A personal computer, a good AV receiver, a pair of good, powerful main speakers and a sub woofer should be able to knock your sox off or at least be a good start. If you're new to this, then you're going to have to teach yourself things about EQ, bass management and your system settings. You may already be sitting on gold there that has simply never been optimized.

 

[RK-KY]

Thanks for the quick reply. Perhaps I was not totally clear. I'm not looking to buy anything else. I'd like advice on what the best setup would be, with the receivers and speakers I own, and the new subwoofer that will arrive next week. Questions and concerns are as follows.

The Denon PMA 1060 is my favorite receiver, but while it does have preouts, it doesn't seem to have all the tweaking options that the Integra DTR 6.3 has. I have, what I consider, a really good subwoofer on the way. Wouldn't the tuning options available with the Integra be simpler for me to achieve optimal quality sound?

My favorite speakers are the RORs. They are rated to 250w and the bass output is fantastic to my ears. My Walsh Ohm speakers and My Energy speakers are rated at 125w and 150w. Both sound really good but the Denon pushes 180w into 4 ohms & the Integra pushes 210w. For some reason the Denon seems more powerful, though. However, since I have a 15" 600w subwoofer on the way, is the bass output, from the speakers, still important?

 

[lovinthehd]

Hard to know what your preferences are. You want how many setups in how many rooms? I wouldn't worry about the speaker wattage ratings, they're fairly meaningless, and the difference in power among your avrs is trivial, all within a few dB of each other. The wattage on your sub isn't revealing of anything in particular either, would depend on the sensitivity of the sub....

Pick your favorite gear for what you want to do would be my suggestion, and have setups in different rooms, making your favorite room the most capable so you can spend the most time in it....and the sub should take over the primary bass duties, yes.

 

[RK-KY]

Why do you say the SR7000 isn't 4 ohm capable? IIRC Marantz avrs are normally fine with 4 ohm loads (even if the spec only mentions 8 ohm). In this thread someone mentions he had no problem with his 4ohm speakers...

Why are you going to put the Klipsch 8" in the 5.1 setup? That's more your computer style sub along with the Polk IMO. Just use the Hsu for both music and movies or get another if you're going to have separate setups.

Again, I'm a novice. I was under the impression that running 4 ohm speakers with a receiver rated at 8 ohms would damage the receiver. Not so?

Theater sound is not a priority for me. However, if I could create a seamless way to integrate the new sub into both receivers, that would definitely appeal to me. I do have an Amazon Echo connected to my 2.1. The receiver is left on all day, so I can ask for it to play anything that strikes me. So, could I have both receivers connected to the sub at once when they would both be on? They would not be used at the same time. How would I do this?

 

[RK-KY]

Hard to know what your preferences are. You want how many setups in how many rooms? I wouldn't worry about the speaker wattage ratings, they're fairly meaningless, and the difference in power among your avrs is trivial, all within a few dB of each other. The wattage on your sub isn't revealing of anything in particular either, would depend on the sensitivity of the sub....

Pick your favorite gear for what you want to do would be my suggestion, and have setups in different rooms, making your favorite room the most capable so you can spend the most time in it....and the sub should take over the primary bass duties, yes.

Thanks for the quick reply and advice.

 

[MrBoat]

Thanks for the quick reply and advice.

The reconditioned speakers you mentioned that were your favorites, I remember those back from when I first started listening to music seriously back in the 70's if that's the same vintage. Those were/are actually pretty good. I don't know how long they kept making those after, or what vintage yours are, but if it's the same I'm thinking of, that's not a bad start for 2 channel, and 2.1 better yet.

That's kind of where I am coming from with my reply. I recently just revisited audio and am by no means an expert but I did manage to get some older JBL's to shine. I took the same speakers, hooked them up to a more modern Denon AVR and got even more out of them. The key being, I had newer equipment with comparable power ratings to the older amps that used to power the older speakers.

Larger spaces these days require a bit more learning. If that Integra receiver has a bass management feature, you're well on your way, I would think. The Denon I have is older but it does have some bass management features. I ended up using the pre-out section of the receiver to a separate amp for the subwoofer. There are options with DSP to EQ the subwoofer with that receiver if it does not have bass management.

I would read the (they are available online if you don't have them) manual and see what it mentions about subwoofers. At least that's where I started.

 

[RK-KY]

The reconditioned speakers you mentioned that were your favorites, I remember those back from when I first started listening to music seriously back in the 70's if that's the same vintage. Those were/are actually pretty good. I don't know how long they kept making those after, or what vintage yours are, but if it's the same I'm thinking of, that's not a bad start for 2 channel, and 2.1 better yet.

That's kind of where I am coming from with my reply. I recently just revisited audio and am by no means an expert but I did manage to get some older JBL's to shine. I took the same speakers, hooked them up to a more modern Denon AVR and got even more out of them. The key being, I had newer equipment with comparable power ratings to the older amps that used to power the older speakers.

Larger spaces these days require a bit more learning. If that Integra receiver has a bass management feature, you're well on your way, I would think. The Denon I have is older but it does have some bass management features. I ended up using the pre-out section of the receiver to a separate amp for the subwoofer. There are amp options with DSP to EQ the subwoofer with that receiver if it does not have bass management.

I would read the (they are available online if you don't have them) manual and see what it mentions about subwoofers. At least that's where I started.

Thanks for the advise. Is this what you had?

 

[RK-KY]

The reconditioned speakers you mentioned that were your favorites, I remember those back from when I first started listening to music seriously back in the 70's if that's the same vintage. Those were/are actually pretty good. I don't know how long they kept making those after, or what vintage yours are, but if it's the same I'm thinking of, that's not a bad start for 2 channel, and 2.1 better yet.

That's kind of where I am coming from with my reply. I recently just revisited audio and am by no means an expert but I did manage to get some older JBL's to shine. I took the same speakers, hooked them up to a more modern Denon AVR and got even more out of them. The key being, I had newer equipment with comparable power ratings to the older amps that used to power the older speakers.

Larger spaces these days require a bit more learning. If that Integra receiver has a bass management feature, you're well on your way, I would think. The Denon I have is older but it does have some bass management features. I ended up using the pre-out section of the receiver to a separate amp for the subwoofer. There are options with DSP to EQ the subwoofer with that receiver if it does not have bass management.

I would read the (they are available online if you don't have them) manual and see what it mentions about subwoofers. At least that's where I started.

Below is the Bass management info from the Integra manual. I'm assuming I should set the speaker size to small. What Hz setting should I use?

Adjustable Crossover (80/100/120 Hz) for Bass Management
This setting allows you to set the crossover frequency for your
speaker system. This setting is valid when “Subwoofer” is set to
“Yes,” or for speakers that are set to “Small,” at the “Speaker
Config” menu. The crossover frequency is the minimum
frequency delivered to a speaker and can be set to 80 Hz, 100 Hz,
or 120 Hz. Frequencies below this are cut from speakers set to
“Small” and sent to the subwoofer (or to speakers set to
“Large”).

 

[MrBoat]

Start with 80. You can experiment with Large/Small, being as those are full range speakers to start with. They may well work on Large.

Also, research "mini DSP," or ask here after you try what you have first. I have just started to touch on mini DSP myself, but so far I don't need it. There will likely be some tuning options on the sub as well if it's an 'active' (with a built in plate amp) subwoofer.

 

[MrBoat]

Thanks for the advise. Is this what you had?

View attachment 20090 View attachment 20091

I didn't own them but that's the same ones I listened to way back when. Those did sound great.

Do yourself a favor though. Don't start digging around some of the newer offerings that are meant to be paired with subs if you are really attached to those speakers. It will turn your expectations around, along with this 'sucking sound' near your pockets. Things have come a LONG way since then.

 

[MrBoat]

Check to see if your receiver is 4 ohm capable. I 'think' my Denon is. That may be your deciding factor.

 

[RK-KY]

Check to see if your receiver is 4 ohm capable. I 'think' my Denon is. That may be your deciding factor.

Both my Denon & Integra receivers are 4 ohm compatible and loveinthehd seems to think the Marantz receiver is as well.

 

[PENG]

The so called 4 ohms capable or compatible has much more to do with regulatory requirements such as UL, CSA etc than the actual capability of the amp itself. For example the older Denon avr-3808, 4308 are more powerful than the newer units such as the avr-4200, SR6010 yet the less capable ones are so called 4 ohm compatible while the more capable ones are not.


Practically speaking, all D&M AVRs from the AVR-3000 series and SR5000 series or higher can drive 4 ohm rated speakers if used within their limits. Conversely, just because an integrated amp or even separate power amp is rated for 4 ohms does not mean you can drive 4 ohm speakers to the point beyond the amp's capability. For example, a 140W 9.1 AVR used for 2 ch stereo will be more 4 ohm capable than a 75W or even 100W Yamaha integrated amp that is rated for 4 ohm speakers. In real world applications, everything is relative, not absolute so let's be practical and not fixated on terminologies and technicality.