need help picking AV receiver for $1500 and under

[dtat64]

I am very new at this and need advice. Which AV receiver should I go with from $1500.00 and under. I currently have a 7 yr old Sony 36 in Triniton Wega, palin old DVD and denon cd player. I am in the process of upgrading to a 1080 np 52" LCD TV. Any help would really be appreciated.

thanks

D

 

[avaserfi]

I am very new at this and need advice. Which AV receiver should I go with from $1500.00 and under. I currently have a 7 yr old Sony 36 in Triniton Wega, palin old DVD and denon cd player. I am in the process of upgrading to a 1080 np 52" LCD TV. Any help would really be appreciated.

thanks

D

More importantly than what TV you have/will be getting is the speakers. In general you want to know the speakers you will have to make sure the receiver would push them.

With your price range I would look into the Onkyo 805 ($900) as I think that given the market you can't find better features/functionality for the money. If you want to spend more of your budget then look into the Onkyo 875 or the new line from Denon either the 2808 or the 3808.

 

[Adam]

D, welcome to the forum!

It seems like the best bang for the buck choice out there at the moment is the Onkyo 805 that can be found for around $900. However, there are a lot of good choices out there in that price range. Are there any features in particular that you are wanting to get?

Adam

EDIT: Quick-draw avaserfi got in first, so I'll just second the 805 recommendation.

 

[dtat64]

I want to make sure that it is compatible with the new TV and DVD I purchase in the future. I want it to sound great when watching movies, TV and listenting to music. I am new at this so forgive my simplistic answers.

 

[avaserfi]

I want to make sure that it is compatible with the new TV and DVD I purchase in the future. I want it to sound great when watching movies, TV and listenting to music. I am new at this so forgive my simplistic answers.

The onkyo will do all of these things. In fact most any receiver that is built now will especially in the price range you are looking at. What speakers do you have/are you planning on buying?

Adam, I like to race you, its fun .

 

[dtat64]

The main speakers I have ar Accoustic Resarch S-40s they are made in all places Poland.
hope this helps

D

 

[avaserfi]

The main speakers I have ar Accoustic Resarch S-40s they are made in all places Poland.
hope this helps

D

Those speakers should be pushed pretty well by any receiver mentioned previously. I will warn you though: most likely you will not get huge increases in sound quality by buying a new receiver. Room acoustics and Speakers make up about 95% of the sound with everything else contributing to the rest (this is assuming gear works properly). So if you like how your speakers sound currently good, don't worry and get a receiver, but if you are looking at a receiver to make your speakers sound better I would suggest looking into new speakers or treating your room first.

 

[dtat64]

Thanks for the advice. Are these spkrs not very good. they sound fine to me. I am replacing the HK I have because it only plays through on side. My left side spkrs only work for my TV. It is about 8 yrs old.

 

[dtat64]

what are the differences in the 875 vs the 805? I found a few places I could ge the 875 for around my price range. Is it worth it to go to the 875 instead?
D

 

[Adam]

The biggest difference is that the 875 has a better video processor for upscaling video to 1080p. Other than that, I don't think that there's much of a difference. From everything that I've read, unless you're really interested in that particular video processor...save the cash and get the 805. Your TV will already have an upscaler, and you can get DVD players that do it too.

 

[dtat64]

Hey thanks for all the help and advice. Would you go w/the Onkyo or aDenon model?

 

[avaserfi]

Hey thanks for all the help and advice. Would you go w/the Onkyo or aDenon model?

For the money I would get the Onkyo, but some people prefer Denon just because of the name and in general it seems build quality on Denon is higher, but I have heard it might have switched this generation.

 

[Adam]

Hey thanks for all the help and advice. Would you go w/the Onkyo or aDenon model?

I would get the Onkyo, but that's mostly because I've had good experience with that brand and have had no real personal experience with Denon. My brother had a Denon several years ago and loved it.

 

[dtat64]

how difficult is the Onkyo to set up? I 'm not really adepet at this a/v stuff yet.

D

 

[Adam]

how difficult is the Onkyo to set up? I 'm not really adepet at this a/v stuff yet.

D

Hmmm, can't help you there because I've never used one. However, once you get something (whatever you decide on), you can always ask questions here. People are generally quick about helping others get their systems hooked up.

 

[avaserfi]

how difficult is the Onkyo to set up? I 'm not really adepet at this a/v stuff yet.

D

If you set it up with the manual in front of you it shouldn't be too bad. Plus if you really hit a brick wall you can ask us and we might be able to help .

 

[AVRat]

Do what many people do here and download the manuals of the gear you're interested in.

 

[jimfitz]

I have a new Onkyo 805. I really like it. Setup is pretty simple.

 

[Seth=L]

Room acoustics and Speakers make up about 95% of the sound....

82% of statistics are made up.

The TX-SR875 has HQV Reon processing for video. It upconverts all input sources to 1080p. It is one of the best upscalers available in this budget. It will upconvert from your DVD player, I would suggest connecting it via component video to the receiver you chose and use the upscaling abilities of the receiver to output HDMI to the new television in question.

The 805 has a decent, but dated upconverter. The TX-SR805 presents the best value among any receiver you could get for around $1000. I personally don't like the look and design of the Denon receiver slew they are releasing. I vote for Onkyo.

 

[Addy]

i personally think the onkyos are cheap..if you want each an every dollar accounted for go for onkyo but if you want more features an a higher quality sound go for denons