Receiver questions

[DaveB78]

Hi, This my first post. I am a 67 year old man who is just getting into AV. Over the years I had some decent stereo systems. Now I have nothing. I have a very modest budget to put in a surround system in my small apartment. I have found speakers I like that will consume slightly less than 50% of my budget. These are older high end speakers. I need a receiver. Again I will likely buy used or at least refurbished. My question is how far behind the state of the art can I buy without having an instantly obsolete syste.? I am looking at a 5.1.2 system based on the speakers I have located. However I might want to add a second subwoofer later if needed.
i have found an Integra DRX 2.1 at a very reasonable cost. Likewise a Marantz 5012, and several others at 7.2. So, what do members think of the two listed models and what other receivers can be recommended. The budget for this device is 400 dollars or less.

if it helps the speakers are AR holographic M series speakers from the 1999s.
thank you all.

 

[lovinthehd]

I'd say pick whichever avr gives you the features/connectivity you want, both are relatively up to date with currently available tech. What specific model speakers?

 

[Pogre]

Are these your speakers? There appear to be multiple models in the line.

They are 4 ohm speakers but have good sensitivity at 88 dB so they shouldn't be too difficult to drive unless you like it really loud. Of the 2 receivers you mention I do like Marantz but know little about the Integra. The Denon X3500H has been discounted for a bit now and would have a touch more power as well as some other cool features, namely Audyssey XT32 room correction that works nicely for integrating a subwoofer or 2.

Amazon.com: Denon AVR-X3500H 7.2-Channel 4K Ultra HD AV Receiver with HEOS, Black: Electronics

Amazon.com: Denon AVR-X3500H 7.2-Channel 4K Ultra HD AV Receiver with HEOS, Black: Electronics

www.amazon.com

It's still plenty current for most of today's needs too. If you can squeeze a little more out of the budget that AVR should keep you in business for quite a while.

Accessories 4 Less also has a pretty big selection of older models and factory refurbished receivers too, like this Denon X3300W. That's a very nice receiver, but it's a few models older so make sure it would have the features you need. A4L is where a lot of us have gotten some of our gear and had great experiences, tho I've heard a couple of hiccups. Make sure to check out their return policy before purchasing.

Search result for "Receiver"

Accessories4less: search result for "Receiver"

www.accessories4less.com

 

[DaveB78]

The speakers will be M4s for front, M1s for surround and M.5 for rear. I have not decided on a powered subwoofer yet, I am looking for a M series center speaker.

 

[Pogre]

The speakers will be M4s for front, M1s for surround and M.5 for rear. I have not decided on a powered subwoofer yet, I am looking for a M series center speaker.

Alright. Well, for vintage speakers I'd say you did okay. Here's the review for the M4s I got that image and impedance info from. It looks like they measured really well too.

Acoustic Research M4 Speaker System Review price specs - Hi-Fi Classic

www.hifi-classic.net

Doesn't change my suggestions above tho... thoughts on the X3500H?

 

[DaveB78]

Here is a link to the AR product brochure from back in the day.

http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/_Media/ar-holograms.pdf

 

[Pogre]

Here is a link to the AR product brochure from back in the day.

http://www.classicspeakerpages.net/_Media/ar-holograms.pdf

Gotcha. I'll check that out. They do look like some pretty decent speakers. Plus they're kinda unique.

So... receiver. Gave you a few suggestions, and..?

 

[DaveB78]

I think the speakers will be fine. Part of my indecision about receivers stem from my ignorance of the featured and specifications in AV that differ from 2 channel stereo. In short, I don’t know what the most important things to consider are. I just want something that performs well, simple to use and will not be obsolete by Christmas.
The receivers I mentioned seem to be fairly up to date on features and have adequate power for 4 ohm speakers.
Things I don’t need are extra room capability, bluetooth, or really streaming capacity as I will be using this stuff with a Roku 4K tv that has just about every streaming option that is available.
So, my thought is to look for maximum performance and accept fewer features that I won’t use. That is why the Integra and the Marantz appealed to me is they are performance oriented. And at under 300 dollars both seem attractive. Mind you I am looking at used products.

 

[DaveB78]

The Denon 3500 is appealing if I can find it in my price range. I am trying to consider 2 channel musicality as well. Denon is not noted for that with its AV receivers. Marantz makes an issue of emphasizing the sound quality of their receivers. Integra, I don’t know much about except it is a custom install product from Onkyo. Again I am looking at it for performance and not extra features.

 

[lovinthehd]

Another thought is warranty, nice to have if at a reasonable cost. Used can have its pitfalls. The musicality thing is largely internet bullshit IMO. Marantz is trading on a reputation from several owners ago....

ps Did you own this series of AR before? Or going off its reputation from a previous owner?

 

[DaveB78]

That Denon 3300 does look good.

 

[Pogre]

I think the speakers will be fine. Part of my indecision about receivers stem from my ignorance of the featured and specifications in AV that differ from 2 channel stereo. In short, I don’t know what the most important things to consider are. I just want something that performs well, simple to use and will not be obsolete by Christmas.
The receivers I mentioned seem to be fairly up to date on features and have adequate power for 4 ohm speakers.
Things I don’t need are extra room capability, bluetooth, or really streaming capacity as I will be using this stuff with a Roku 4K tv that has just about every streaming option that is available.
So, my thought is to look for maximum performance and accept fewer features that I won’t use. That is why the Integra and the Marantz appealed to me is they are performance oriented. And at under 300 dollars both seem attractive. Mind you I am looking at used products.

The Marantz 5012 is a solid unit and 300 bucks isn't bad. I think it will do everything you need it to. It's still pretty current too. I have a SR6011 (one step up, but model year older) and it's still plenty current for me.

That X3300W I linked above for 399 would be a nice step up from the 5012 and I *think* they're the same model year even. If not it's only 1 year previous, but has HDMI 2.2, is compatible with the Audyssey App Editor and has MultEQ XT32. All desirable features, imo. Denon and Marantz are the same company, btw and their products often look the same internally.

 

[DaveB78]

I agree and 399 is not out of the question so long as the 2 channel stereo sound is good.

 

[lovinthehd]

I agree and 399 is not out of the question so long as the 2 channel stereo sound is good.

Do you know of an avr where 2ch stereo mode doesn't work well?

 

[DaveB78]

Another thought is warranty, nice to have if at a reasonable cost. Used can have its pitfalls. The musicality thing is largely internet bullshit IMO. Marantz is trading on a reputation from several owners ago....

ps Did you own this series of AR before? Or going off its reputation from a previous owner?

No, I I kept a pair of Advents for 40 years. I went through a number of receivers, amps and pre ams and ended up with some McIntosh equipment a co-worker’s wife made him dispose of.
amp, pream and tuner. I don’t remember the numbers the tuner was excellent M?78, pre amp was M? 26 as I recall and the amp I believe was M? 2205.
i had to sell them when I lost everything. Painful story and I don’t want to get into it.

 

[DaveB78]

Do you know of an avr where 2ch stereo mode doesn't work well?

Only that I have heard many AV receivers do not have as good of 2channel stereo sound as dedicated 2 channel systems. All anecdotal information. Denon is one brand named specifically for having less than great stereo performance.
Much of my listening will be music in 2 channel stereo.

 

[Verdinut]

The Marantz 5012 is a solid unit and 300 bucks isn't bad. I think it will do everything you need it to. It's still pretty current too. I have a SR6011 (one step up, but model year older) and it's still plenty current for me.

That X3300W I linked above for 399 would be a nice step up from the 5012 and I *think* they're the same model year even. If not it's only 1 year previous, but has HDMI 2.2, is compatible with the Audyssey App Editor and has MultEQ XT32. All desirable features, imo. Denon and Marantz are the same company, btw and their products often look the same internally.

Agree. The OP might as well opt for the Denon X3300W as it is compatible with the Audyssey Editor App and has MulltiEQ XT32 , while the SR5012 doesn't have either of those features.

 

[lovinthehd]

Only that I have heard many AV receivers do not have as good of 2channel stereo sound as dedicated 2 channel systems. All anecdotal information. Denon is one brand named specifically for having less than great stereo performance.
Much of my listening will be music in 2 channel stereo.

Anecdotal information in audio is generally of little value IME. I have two Denon avrs, use them for both 2ch and multich audio (music and otherwise). I don't have any complaints. Nor with my Onkyo or Sony avrs in that regard....and I still have 2ch analog only separates, which simply aren't as useful but the sq differences are negligible.

 

[3db]

Hi, This my first post. I am a 67 year old man who is just getting into AV. Over the years I had some decent stereo systems. Now I have nothing. I have a very modest budget to put in a surround system in my small apartment. I have found speakers I like that will consume slightly less than 50% of my budget. These are older high end speakers. I need a receiver. Again I will likely buy used or at least refurbished. My question is how far behind the state of the art can I buy without having an instantly obsolete syste.? I am looking at a 5.1.2 system based on the speakers I have located. However I might want to add a second subwoofer later if needed.
i have found an Integra DRX 2.1 at a very reasonable cost. Likewise a Marantz 5012, and several others at 7.2. So, what do members think of the two listed models and what other receivers can be recommended. The budget for this device is 400 dollars or less.

if it helps the speakers are AR holographic M series speakers from the 1999s.
thank you all.

Did you come across any Yamaha models in your search?

 

[DaveB78]

Did you come across any Yamaha models in your search?

Just some of the Aventage models, but not finding what I want at a price I am comfortable with.