First apartment, first audio setup

[pincell]

Hello everyone,

I have recently bought a new apartment and am in the process of moving in. I have never had a "real" audio setup and listened to everything through a pair of headphones or integrated TV speakers. Thus I am looking for help.

My living room area is ~ 3.7m x 3m (~ 12f x 10f - I hope the converters are correct here) with the longer side being open towards dining area,kitchen on one side and windows, balcony on the other. Shorter side will have couch on one side and TV + audio stuff on the other.

I'm hoping to build a setup similar to this:
1. 4k TV with PS4 and laptop plugged in through HDMI
2. Turntable (inherited bunch of records and would like to finally listen to them)
3. BT gadget for streaming music with TV off
4. Some sort of amp + speakers + sub?

Usage: Youtube, Netflix, Movies, Streaming and Vinyl music (mostly rock, metal, dance)

I guess having every part of audio chain separate is ideal (is it?) but I don't have any experience setting it up and would prefer a simple solution for now. I might not like vinyl and won't need phono stage. I might like it so much I will buy separate phono stage in the future.
Basically, I'm looking for a device(s) that could handle all of above easily and hassle free.

Questions:
1. Is a device like Yamaha A-S301 or A-S501 good enough for my purpose? Any alternatives?
2. What kind of speakers should I use with a device from previous question? Do I need sub?
3. Is it possible to use the sound from PS4/laptop when I use optical out from TV to reciever?

I don't really have a max budget but would to keep the cost reasonable.

Thanks for your time and answers,
Mark (from Europe)

 

[Grant.M]

Congratulations! What’s your budget so we can help you out better?
Edit: I missed the no max budget part. But if you can give a dollar amount that would help a lot.

 

[pincell]

Let's say $1500 excluding the turntable.

EDIT:
I'd prefer to get good speakers first and upgrade everything else later if I decide to.

 

[Leemix]

Its usually best to connect everything HDMI into the reciever/processor because its easier and will give the best sound, ARC/optical from tv is limited. Sources selected with reciever and tv just working as a monitor.

A sub will help a lot if you like bass at all.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Grant.M]

Alright, sweet! You’ve got a lot of great options in that price range, especially if you’re good with starting out with 2.1 setup. And I actually use an optical out from my TV running to my AVR when I’m watching movies from my laptop (HDMI inputs on the AVR don’t like the laptop I guess as it’s just a froze screen). The PS4 would work as well.

 

[Pogre]

Its usually best to connect everything HDMI into the reciever/processor because its easier and will give the best sound, ARC/optical from tv is limited. Sources selected with reciever and tv just working as a monitor.

A sub will help a lot if you like bass at all.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Agree whole-heartedly with getting a sub, but you gotta be careful in an apartment. I'd be evicted after a week with my setup...

 

[markw]

Are you looking for 2 channel with a subwoofer or 5.1 channel audio?

 

[pincell]

Are you looking for 2 channel with a subwoofer or 5.1 channel audio?

I'm looking for 2.1 setup.

 

[mtrycrafts]

Welcome to AH.I'd forget the sub unless the apartments are well isolated from sound transmission.
Are you in Europe or Canada? European buildings mostly are stone/brick construction that may be ok.

 

[markw]

Before getting into specifics, some general observations.

If you're really, really sure you won;t want to grow into a full blown multi-channel system, you should be fine with a stereo amp/receiver, but they generally don't have bass management.or subwoofer outputs. You can live with that. Get a sub with speaker level inputs.

Very, very few receivers of any type have a dedicated phono input. Count on getting a separate phono preamp or going for a turntable with a built in phono preamp.

You can start with an AVR and use two speakers and a sub and grow into a full blown multi-channel system over time.

Ball's in your court.

First thing I would do is listen to speaker keeping in mind that, within a given budget, that amount can but two really good speakers of five mediocre speakers.

 

[Gmoney]

Man, your going to have a lot of enjoyment! Welcome to the rabbit hole!

 

[Grant.M]

@pincell Have you checked out the NAD D3020 V2 integrated stereo amp? It has an optical input, a phono stage input, and Bluetooth compatibility. The reviews have been rather glowing, and from what I’ve heard it’s outperformed quite a few amps above it’s price range from both a performance, and functionality. I’ve also seen it for as low as $400 new. If I were looking for a 2Ch integrated this would definitely be on the top of my list for under $500, and a little above.