Need audio only HT receiver

[Tmyer]

I am looking for a basic home theater receiver that decodes 5.1 DD and DTS and has a tuner. I don't need DSP modes, video upconverting or any other bells and whistles.

To back up a few steps though I have a Yamaha RX-V2095 receiver that is on the fritz. The right front channel is much louder than the others and a repair shop told me it's not worth fixing. That receiver isn't cheap so I'm a little upset about it possibly being a total loss.

Primarily I use my system for home theater, but some for cds and radio. The rest of my system is as follows:
Sub - B&W ASW3000
Center - B&W CC6
Mains - B&W CDM7SE
Rear - Infinity SM120

The newer stuff on the market seems to be loaded with features and buzzwords which looks to me more like marketing hype. I don't want to pay for the features I don't need, just the decoders and a decent amp. I suppose my price limit is around $1,000, but I typically make purchasing decisions based on bang/buck ratio and diminishing returns.

Any help is appreciated.

 

[MichaelJHuman]

It's true that some needed features come along with uneeded features.

You should decide if you want HDMI or not. HDMI 1.1 is required to run lossless audio from Blu-ray or HD DVD. If lossless audio from Blu-ray or HD DVD is something you don't see yourself wanting, then you can save a lot of money.

Are you using your receiver for AV switching, or your display?

Receivers have really added a lot without going up in price since I bought my first stereo only Yamaha. I bring this up, because I don't really think you are paying much more for some features. And large manufacturers seem to be able to amortize the development cost over a large base of receivers.

So I would not be too concerned with paying for DSP, just don't use it.

The Yamaha RX-659 got a good review on this site. It lacks HDMI, so it's a good fit if you don't need it. It probably has upconversion to component video, but that's helpful if you want to use it for video switching and all your video components don't have component video. There is also an HTR model which is almost identical.

 

[Tmyer]

No, I don't use my receiver for av switching. My only video source other than analog antenna is DVD and my TV accepts S-video so I just connect the DVD to the tv directly.

 

[j_garcia]

With S-video, that means you aren't even getting progressive scan, so you are already a bit behind the times in that respect. This is something I would look to improve upon.

$1k is around the price point where you get less marketing fluff and more real funtionality. If you like Yammie, I'd stick with them. I'd look at the 1700 and 2700, which you should be able to find within your budget, or even look at last year's models since you don't need HDMI at the moment.