It seems the more I read that there is a split between those who can & those who can’t hear an audible difference between electronic gear. It’s not a matter of my wanting to believe in something that isn’t true, I immediately notice going from an Onkyo & HK receiver. I also asked 2 guys I work with who are “enthusiasts” and they both proclaimed “hell yes there’s a difference”.
It seems those who claim there is no difference take the matter rather personally, banding together to call others out, and even one of the members who called me “delusional” for my claims. I know I’m not alone in my agility, as others have posted they too can discern a difference. Why is this so hard to believe? Just because one person can’t tell a difference does not mean no one can.
I have an HK right now, I can't say it sounds any different than any Onkyo I've owned. Speakers/room/accoustic control dictate 95% of sound. The rest is making certain that you've met your power requirements and not buying garbage that adds noise/distortion/sounds that weren't present in the original program material. Amplifiers, preamps, and DACs shouldn't have a sound signature, they should be neutral and it's more than feasible to make them so that they are. DACs are processors, they are very simplistic compared to the processors found in computers or an iPhone. DACs are easy and inexpensive to make for anyone that manufactures them. When DACs operate they don't run hot, which means they don't clip or have a lot of errors. If a DAC is designed and executed properly it's rate of error will never have a sonic deviation from what was intended. Apply this same logic to preamps and amplifiers and you have neutral sound. With all the technology that's been solidified over the past several decades why would making receivers, amplifiers, DACs, and other integrated electronics that countless manufacturers produce every single year be a difficult task? What about making neutral equipment is such a mystery? The function of these parts is isolated to handle a small handful of tasks which includes switching, level output, post processes, and amplification. None of these functions requires that you have your room arranged in a certain way to get the most out of your amplifier. The real differences come when you get into speakers, each of which has a different sonic signature due to it's cabinet construction/configuration, the choice of drivers used in the speaker, reflective and absorbitive surfaces, countless differences from each room that a speaker may be used in. With amplifiers it's simple. If the room is bigger then you may need more power for a particular speaker. If you are looking at changing speakers because the room is bigger then may encounter more issues other than just more output necessity.
People want to hear differences that aren't there to justify their purchases. There is nothing wrong with being happy with your purchase. I am very happy with my current stereo rig using separates and I'm very happy with my AV rig as well. However, I am not going to say that my stereo rig's amplifier sounds better than the receiver in my other rig, because it's simply not true.
To the OP, I would say that getting a receiver that has upscaling abilities is pointless on mid-fi receivers because most Blu-ray players upscale DVDs better than mid-fi receivers. If you have other video sources such as a VCR or Laserdisk player then upscaling on the AVR could become useful, otherwise it's a waste of money when another product can handle those functions as well as if not better than a receiver can. Currently the most cost effective receiver that offers a significantly better upscaler than your average Blu-ray player is the Onkyo TX-SR875/876. Since they are far from your budget I would recommend sticking with a receiver that supports HDMI 1.3 without unless you find a great deal on an upscaling receiver that has all the other features you need as well.
The Marantz SR 5002 appeals to me for it's fit and finish and the 5 year warranty. If additional power was ever needed the preamp stage in the Marantz is probably of very good quality.
