Old high end or new?

[jigsawb]

I am setting up a home theater. I bought a Harman/Kardon AVR 7300 several years ago and have never used it. I wish it had HDMI inputs but it doesn't.
So the question is, am I better to just use componet cables, or would I be better off setting a new receiver like the Marantz SR7002?

I am not sure that it matters, but, I Polk speakers and a 71" Samsung DLP.

Thanks for any input that you can give me.

 

[AVRat]

Welcome jigsaw. It really depends on whether you'll be running a HD A/V source like BluRay or not. What is the native and input resolution capability of the Sammy? What Polk speakers are you running?

 

[markw]

the only source that puts out the 1080p that only HDMI can pass if Blu-Ray. Everything else (up to i080p) is easily handled by component video and the maximum sound available on these is DD/DTS.

Even then, assuming you had HDMI inputs on your TV and you had a Blu-Ray player, you could simply run HDMI video directly to the TV and use the hi-rez analog audio outputs on a Blu-Ray player to feed the MC analog audio inputs on the receiver.

 

[Herr Eickhorn]

I am setting up a home theater. I bought a Harman/Kardon AVR 7300 several years ago and have never used it. I wish it had HDMI inputs but it doesn't.
So the question is, am I better to just use componet cables, or would I be better off setting a new receiver like the Marantz SR7002?

I am not sure that it matters, but, I Polk speakers and a 71" Samsung DLP.

Thanks for any input that you can give me.

Its really a question of how much money you have. If money is no object, go with new stuff. If your supply of money is finite, you can make the old stuff work fine.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Besides more features, I feel that most new stuffs are much better made than 10 - 20 years ago in terms of performance.

I mean even a new $400 Onkyo receiver has specs (THD, FR, SNR, Crosstalk) that are better than some $4000 components that were made 10 - 20 yrs ago.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I am setting up a home theater. I bought a Harman/Kardon AVR 7300 several years ago and have never used it. I wish it had HDMI inputs but it doesn't.
So the question is, am I better to just use componet cables, or would I be better off setting a new receiver like the Marantz SR7002?

I am not sure that it matters, but, I Polk speakers and a 71" Samsung DLP.

Thanks for any input that you can give me.

I think Markw has the right idea. If your TV has HDMI inputs, some of your sources have HDMI outputs, your TV can have that for video and your audio hi res is also satisfied with the analog audio cables. No new investment is needed at this time.

 

[3db]

the only source that puts out the 1080p that only HDMI can pass if Blu-Ray. Everything else (up to i080p) is easily handled by component video and the maximum sound available on these is DD/DTS.

Even then, assuming you had HDMI inputs on your TV and you had a Blu-Ray player, you could simply run HDMI video directly to the TV and use the hi-rez analog audio outputs on a Blu-Ray player to feed the MC analog audio inputs on the receiver.

Good call. Should save the OP some hard earned money.

 

[MatthewB.]

My Onkyo 805 (cost me 600.00) matches the sound quality of my Denon 4802R (which retailed for 2,200) But the Onkyo has the new lossless audio and HDMI features. If your reciever has Preins then you can also get lossless audio from a Bluray player that has analog preouts. As mentioned then you can hook up HDMi to your TV for picture and still use your older reciever for the new audio formats. I have used both and the sound is almost the same (with the exeption of having the Bluray player do bass management, but as far as picture quality goes, it was almost impossible to tell the difference between Component hookups and HDMI. Basically the main differnece would be ease of hookups and less cables by using HDMI connections, but you can make what you have work also.

 

[CraigV]

Hello all

New to the boards, but not to the lusting over high end audio & video. It’s interesting that I found this post because it relates to me also. I had an Onkyo TX-SR605 which does all the decoding, but never really sounded right – always kind of flat, 2 dimensional. I pulled out an older HK receiver (non-HDMI) and noticed an improvement in sound right away. More dynamic, more fleshed out, more organic & natural. I know what I wanted out of current offerings, but the amount of $ needed to bring out the best just wasn’t there.

So, I decided to hit Craigslist & Ebay and ended up piecing together a retro setup, including Paradigm 5SEMK3 speakers, CC-300 center, a pair of AR for the surround, a Rotel RSP-1066 preamp and a B&K Video 5 amplifier, cranking out 105 watts per channel. I went with a Panasonic BD55 player, so it does all the decoding internally & outputs via analog. The sound is the best I’ve ever had in home.

The newest offering from top speaker makers include metal domes, which I find to be too bright & cause listening fatigue. The sound any component makes is subjective, more so with speakers than any other component. I would however put my Rotel & B&K up against any receiver made today. Full, rich, round, warm, powerful, organic…any superlative you want to can be said about this setup. And I did it all for less than some people spend on just speakers or a receiver. Just because it’s new & has a lot of bells & whistles does not mean it’s great sounding.