Need advice with choosing a receiver

[Nazxul360]

Hi all,

So my Pioneer SC-LX82 finally died and now I'm in the market for a new receiver.

PREFACE:
I'm not really an audiophile or savy with all the technical stuff speaker related. I did try doing some research myself, but the watts and ohms and watt ranges and RMS and receiver manufacturers all listing their specs differently and actual wattage rating getting diluted down when using more than two speakers... it's just a bit much for me to wrap my head around.

CURRENT SETUP:
I'm currently running a piecemeal 7.1 setup which is good enough for me for the foreseeable future. I'm not really worried about upgrading to Atmos or adding height channels any time soon.
Front: A pair of old Kef Q65 floor standing speakers. Specs here. On the back it says they are 6 ohms and 10-200W. Specs I find online say RMS 175W.
Centre: A big (200x545x305mm) Definitive Technology C/L/R 1000B. It has no power ratings on the back and for the life of me I can't find any specs online. All their other speakers are 8ohms though so I guess that's a safe bet for this one. Looks like this.
Surrounds: Little 3ohm LG things that came packed in with a cheap home theatre in a box. I would like to upgrade these to something half decent at some point, but from what I understand better speakers will be higher ohm which means they will need less power, right?
Sub: Jensen SPX-17 but subs are self powered so I don't think this is all that important.

Until now this has all been powered by a Pioneer SC-LX82. Specs here. At the time I bought it 14 years ago I was young, had the money to blow and was pretty ignorant to the specs. My thinking was essentially "big expensive receiver good". It's served me well though and has always sounded good to my ears.

BOTTOM LINE:
I'm on a bit tighter of a budget now than I was then, and from what I can glean the receivers in my current price range seem to have significantly less power output than the Pioneer.

I'm currently eyeing the Denon AVR-S970H. Specs here. It's recent, has all the features I want and claims to be able to power low ohm speakers (good for my surrounds). The only thing I'm worried about is that it looks super weak compared to the Pioneer... but then again the expensive ones don't seem all that more powerful, so I don't know if I'm reading the specs wrong or spec listing conventions have changed or what.

What do you guys think? Will it be enough to power my setup or do you recommend something else? I'm open to suggestions. In terms of other features all I really care about is that it have at least 2x HDMI 2.1 inputs and that it be able to handle all the latest video stuff (4K@120hz, HDR, Dolby Vision, VRR, ALLM, Quick Frame Transport, etc). If I need to shell out more cash then so be it but I would like to keep the cost down if possible.

My deepest thanks to anyone who has taken the time to read this and can give me any advice at all.

 

[PENG]

The AVR-X3800H is on sale now for $1499.

 

[lovinthehd]

When it comes to Denon I prefer a full set of pre-outs and the highest version of Audyssey (XT32), and as large a power supply as possible (so generally only avr X3xxx and above models). The relationship of power for impedance varies somewhat, ideally an amp can "double down" so that it doubles wattage output at 4 ohm vs 8 ohm, or 2 ohm vs 4 ohm, etc.....but rarely is that actually accomplished (and more often by tweaking of the specs rather than actually hitting the ideal). Many avrs won't even give a 4 ohm rating, tho, let alone 3 or 2 ohm. The LX82's power level is more along the lines of that of the Denon X6700.

As far as speaker wattage ratings, they're largely useless. The sensitivity spec and full profile of impedance load (not just a nominal rating) is more useful in determining amp power. Those HTIB type 3 ohm speakers can be an issue, altho for surrounds if not asking for great distance to your seat, might be fine. This can be a useful tool http://www.hometheaterengineering.com/splcalculator.html

 

[PENG]

BOTTOM LINE:
I'm on a bit tighter of a budget now than I was then, and from what I can glean the receivers in my current price range seem to have significantly less power output than the Pioneer.

You got it, "seem" is the right word! That's because the Pioneer's 140 W vs an AVR-X3800H's 105 W ($1,499 listed price on Denon website) means the Pioneer only offers 1.25 dB more of spl (sound pressure level) in real world applications, and 1.25 dB more spl is noticeable for sure, but barely.

That 1.25 dB more is only a factor if you are currently pushing the Pioneer to output close to 105 W into those KEF speakers. In that case, you would be listening with the volume close to 0. As an example, if you typically have the volume at say, below -15, then the 105 W Denon will have enough headroom for your application.

I'm currently eyeing the Denon AVR-S970H. Specs here. It's recent, has all the features I want and claims to be able to power low ohm speakers (good for my surrounds).

No AVRs are truly rated for 4 ohm speakers. They have the 4 ohm rating only since they offer the impedance setting. So if you select 4 ohm, the AVR will either reduce the output voltage when the output current exceeds a preset limit and that could mean a 105 W rated unit, or the 90 W rated S970H may be limited to less than 40 W before the nanny shuts it down. Ironically, almost any Denon AVR can handle 4 ohm speakers depending on you listening habit, speaker's impedance, phase angle characteristics, and your seating distance.

If you are concerned, you should use the calculator HD linked, to find out how much power you really need, for peace of mind. Don't be surprised if the calculator shows you only need 50 W for the maximum peak spl you typically listen to. Show us the calculated result if you need help interpretating it.

 

[kini]

Hi all,

So my Pioneer SC-LX82 finally died and now I'm in the market for a new receiver.

PREFACE:
I'm not really an audiophile or savy with all the technical stuff speaker related. I did try doing some research myself, but the watts and ohms and watt ranges and RMS and receiver manufacturers all listing their specs differently and actual wattage rating getting diluted down when using more than two speakers... it's just a bit much for me to wrap my head around.

CURRENT SETUP:
I'm currently running a piecemeal 7.1 setup which is good enough for me for the foreseeable future. I'm not really worried about upgrading to Atmos or adding height channels any time soon.
Front: A pair of old Kef Q65 floor standing speakers. Specs here. On the back it says they are 6 ohms and 10-200W. Specs I find online say RMS 175W.
Centre: A big (200x545x305mm) Definitive Technology C/L/R 1000B. It has no power ratings on the back and for the life of me I can't find any specs online. All their other speakers are 8ohms though so I guess that's a safe bet for this one. Looks like this.
Surrounds: Little 3ohm LG things that came packed in with a cheap home theatre in a box. I would like to upgrade these to something half decent at some point, but from what I understand better speakers will be higher ohm which means they will need less power, right?
Sub: Jensen SPX-17 but subs are self powered so I don't think this is all that important.

Until now this has all been powered by a Pioneer SC-LX82. Specs here. At the time I bought it 14 years ago I was young, had the money to blow and was pretty ignorant to the specs. My thinking was essentially "big expensive receiver good". It's served me well though and has always sounded good to my ears.

BOTTOM LINE:
I'm on a bit tighter of a budget now than I was then, and from what I can glean the receivers in my current price range seem to have significantly less power output than the Pioneer.

I'm currently eyeing the Denon AVR-S970H. Specs here. It's recent, has all the features I want and claims to be able to power low ohm speakers (good for my surrounds). The only thing I'm worried about is that it looks super weak compared to the Pioneer... but then again the expensive ones don't seem all that more powerful, so I don't know if I'm reading the specs wrong or spec listing conventions have changed or what.

What do you guys think? Will it be enough to power my setup or do you recommend something else? I'm open to suggestions. In terms of other features all I really care about is that it have at least 2x HDMI 2.1 inputs and that it be able to handle all the latest video stuff (4K@120hz, HDR, Dolby Vision, VRR, ALLM, Quick Frame Transport, etc). If I need to shell out more cash then so be it but I would like to keep the cost down if possible.

My deepest thanks to anyone who has taken the time to read this and can give me any advice at all.

Based on your above statement, current components, get the least expensive AVR that has the features you need. Don't worry about how much power they have or don't have.

 

[Nazxul360]

Thank you everyone for your responses! Based on replies here and on other forums, I've decided to go with the 970H after all. I did consider spending a bit more, but it seems like more expensive amps with more power have more channels (which I assume that extra power is intended for) and all kinds of other features that I just don't care about or need right now. Ultimately decided to put that extra money towards replacing the surrounds. To the classifieds!

The LX82's power level is more along the lines of that of the Denon X6700.
Those HTIB type 3 ohm speakers can be an issue, altho for surrounds if not asking for great distance to your seat, might be fine.

As mentioned, I was largely ignorant to specs when I bought it, so it was probably overkill for my needs.
The surrounds are very close. Furthest one is less than 2m away. But I do plan on replacing them ASAP.

As an example, if you typically have the volume at say, below -15, then the 105 W Denon will have enough headroom for your application.

Yeah I usually listen comfortably at -25 to -20DB. Sometimes -15 if the source is particularly low. -10 for special occasions but that's rare.

Based on your above statement, current components, get the least expensive AVR that has the features you need. Don't worry about how much power they have or don't have.

Great, thank you!

Thanks again, everyone. I really appreciate the time you took to read and respond. One day I may post here again when it comes time to build a proper dedicated setup from scratch.