S

swank501

Audioholic Intern
Figure this is the best place to make my first post since I'm a total newb to this home theater gig.

Let me start out by saying that after 12 years of listening to music/TV/movies through a hand-me-down Aiwa bookshelf system, I'm due an upgrade. So, I figured I could just go down to the local Walmart, shell out a few bucks on their nicest HTIB and be on my way. I quickly learned that is not the way. I have been trolling around this website for about a week now trying to soak up as much as this info as possible and now feel like I have a basic foundation of knowledge on which I can build my system.

Here is what I already have:
42" HP Plasma HDMI ready
XBOX
Wii

Here is what I'm after:
I want a nice A/V Receiver with HDMI
I want to be able to have the home theater exp as well as be able to listen to music
I would like to minimize any extraneous hums hisses pops fizzes or otherwise annoying things that shouldn't be
I would like nice speakers, even if that means I start with a couple.

HDMI, as I undersand it, cleans up and simplifies the the final connection b/t the processor and TV all while providing the best signal quality poss? Am I missing anything? If I ran component from the XBOX, Could its signal then be passed by HDMI?

If I use a 1080 Upconverting DVD player, would all I need from the receiver is to pass the signal, or would it be better to find a receiver that upconverts as well?

Since I'm in college and don't bring home any real money, I have been seriously shopping around for sales so I can get my hands on some nice equipment that will last awhile. I have a small list of receivers that I found on clearance that are prob last year models or something:

Pioneer Elite VSX82TXS for about 600 (which is a bit out of my range, but sounds nice!)

Yamaha RXV1600 for about 350 which is right about what I would like to spend and sounds pretty nice as well

Those two receivers I could go buy tomorrow locally, but I was also considering the Onkyo 605 and the Yamaha V661 which I can order online in the 400 dollar range.

I still don't know what speakers to get or which DVD player. All things considered, I would like to keep my initial setup under 1,000.

I appreciate any input you guys can throw my way esp regarding the receivers!!!!!
 
N

newaudiofile

Audioholic
The yamaha is good expecially if you are on low budget. I use an RX-V461 with Wharefedale front and JBL sub and surround. And they sound very nice.
 
Seth=L

Seth=L

Audioholic Overlord
The Harman Kardon AVR-247 is another good option in your budget (ignore the lower power ratings, it has just as much power if not more than competitive models).

If you are using a DVD player for scaling you want it to pass through the receiver, you shouldn't use a scaler with another scaler.;)
 
S

swank501

Audioholic Intern
Yeah I was checking out the Harmon Store for refurbished ones. Looks like that 247 could be had for little $$$$$$$$ if I went that route.

Any thoughts on that 1600? I know it has been around awhile, but the store has it marked down from 1,000 to 350!! I always figured you get what you pay for and if it originally cost that much, it should:)be a decent unit.
 
Alamar

Alamar

Full Audioholic
Figure this is the best place to make my first post since I'm a total newb to this home theater gig.
Welcome aboard. I'm a newb too but I'm happy to let you know what I've figured out ....

Here is what I already have:
42" HP Plasma HDMI ready
XBOX
Wii
Do you have the "HD AV Pack" for the XBox?? This allows both component video connections and optical output. I assume that you do but if not then that will be a good investment.

I assume that the video output coming from the Wii is component .. correct? I also assume that the audio output is analog stereo ... right??

Here is what I'm after:
I want a nice A/V Receiver with HDMI
I want to be able to have the home theater exp as well as be able to listen to music
I would like to minimize any extraneous hums hisses pops fizzes or otherwise annoying things that shouldn't be
I would like nice speakers, even if that means I start with a couple.
Questions:

1. Do you think that Dobly Digital / DTS 5.1 would be good enough for you or do you need the best of the best in HiDef audio support [Like TrueHD 7.1]?? Note you probably don't need to worry about this until you get a BluRay or HD-DVD player.

2. Do you need the A/V receiver to do bass management of the signal that it gets over HDMI? Is it OK if the receiver just acts as a audio passthrough? Do you mind running optical or other cables to the reciever so it can get 5.1 surround sound or do you need that to go through HDMI??

HDMI, as I undersand it, cleans up and simplifies the the final connection b/t the processor and TV all while providing the best signal quality poss? Am I missing anything? If I ran component from the XBOX, Could its signal then be passed by HDMI?
HDMI does tend to simplify your cabling needs. Depending on how buff your AV receiver is you may be able to plug all your video sources into it and output everything via a single HDMI cable to the TV. From that aspect it is very handy to simplify cabling.

HDMI won't necessarily help if your input signal quality is poor. A lot of this would depend on noise reduction or other things on your AV receiver. I wouldn't expect much on a 300$ receiver.

If I use a 1080 Upconverting DVD player, would all I need from the receiver is to pass the signal, or would it be better to find a receiver that upconverts as well?
For upconverting DVD you shouldn't need to worry about the receiver. If the DVD player upconverts well I would turn off video signal processing in the receiver and have it just pass through the data straight to the TV.

********************************************************

If you're on a 1K budget and are looking for a new receiver, speakers, DVD player, cables, etc. then I'd:

1. Think about getting a decent 2.0 speaker system to start with. You can add more speakers and a subwoofer later on. With a 1K budget I would probably look in the 200-275$/pair neighborhood. You might want to look at the bookshelf speaker faceoff to get some ideas.

2. If you don't like the quality of the XBox as a DVD player [it scores badly on many video quality tests] you can certainly get a good upscaling DVD player. [If you don't mind the quality then upgrade later ...] 200$ [if well spent] will certainly get you a nice unit. However there may be less expensive models that are "good enough" to your eyes. Do your homework, do comparison test, etc. and you'll be sure to pick something good.

3. I would put the rest in the best receiver that you can get. If you don't need SACD support ; TruHD support ; HDMI audio & bass management ; etc. then you should be able to find good receivers in your price range. If you need all of the above then I'm not sure what that will do to your budget.

4. Don't buy into any salesperson that wants to sell you 100$ speaker / HDMI / "digital coax" / etc. cables.
 
Tarub

Tarub

Senior Audioholic
Hey Swank,

I didnt know that you join this forum few days ago now. Welcome to Audioholics forum my fellow TTORA off roaders. Did you get the speakers that you like?
 
R

rnatalli

Audioholic Ninja
Start by choosing speakers. They have the biggest impact on sound so the majority of your budget should be allocated to them. Then you can choose an appropriate receiver. That said, the Yammie 661 and HK 247 are both fine receivers.
 

Milkdud35

Enthusiast
The Yamaha v663 is on its way. I was debating between the HK 247 and the Yamaha v661. The v663 has all the features and then some. I'm waiting on it. Will probably pick up the Yamaha v461 in the meantime and give it to dad for fathers day once the v663 comes out.

I'm in the process of buying Klipsch RB-61, RC-52, and RS42 with the Klipsch Sub-12.

Good luck with whatever you decide!
 

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