Simple question for stereo receiver

K

karlmalone1

Enthusiast
Hi everyone this probably a ridiculously easy question, but i'm a man of a lot of questions, big and small. Anyways, if i buy a stereo receiver and a pair of speakers, and hook up the receiver to the tv, will the sound play through the speakers when i hook up ps3, xbox, cable via hdmi to the tv? Being that a stereo receiver doesn't have hdmi. Would it be easier for me to buy an a/v receiver, even though i'd only have stereo speakers? Also, if i had a 5.1 receiver with 80 watts per channel/5 channels, would that equate to 200 watts a chanel for 2 channels? THANKS everyone, and excuse the newbie in me.
 
N

Nestor

Senior Audioholic
You want video switching, but only have two speakers, correct?

You could get away with just a receiver, but all of the video switching will need to be done with the TV. The AVR will simplify things in this regard.

Most 5.1 AVR's have 5 discrete channels, and usually aren't bridgeable down to two channels. In your example, you would most likely have 80W for the L and R mains, and have the other three 80W channels unused.
 
Swerd

Swerd

Audioholic Warlord
Hi everyone this probably a ridiculously easy question, but i'm a man of a lot of questions, big and small.
Welcome to AH! The only dumb question is the one you have but don't ask :D.
Anyways, if i buy a stereo receiver and a pair of speakers, and hook up the receiver to the tv, will the sound play through the speakers when i hook up ps3, xbox, cable via hdmi to the tv?
Problably not, unless your TV can switch the audio from the ps3 etc. out to the receiver.
Being that a stereo receiver doesn't have hdmi. Would it be easier for me to buy an a/v receiver, even though i'd only have stereo speakers?
Yes. Just because you have an AV receiver doesn't mean you must use 5 speakers.

Also, if i had a 5.1 receiver with 80 watts per channel/5 channels, would that equate to 200 watts a chanel for 2 channels?
Definitely not, although we all wish that were true. Federal Trade Commission requires that AV receivers state their rated power while two channels are driven. Most, if not all, AV receivers deliver less than their rated power per channel when all channels are driven. In your case, that AV receiver would be able to deliver 80 watts per channel with two speakers.
 
Pyrrho

Pyrrho

Audioholic Ninja
Hi everyone this probably a ridiculously easy question, but i'm a man of a lot of questions, big and small. Anyways, if i buy a stereo receiver and a pair of speakers, and hook up the receiver to the tv, will the sound play through the speakers when i hook up ps3, xbox, cable via hdmi to the tv?

Yes, it should. A TV with stereo line level audio outputs generally will output whatever sound is input into the TV. That means, of course, that if you had a 5.1 source, it would be output as 2.0.

Just to be sure, I recommend that you consult the manual for your particular TV.


Being that a stereo receiver doesn't have hdmi. Would it be easier for me to buy an a/v receiver, even though i'd only have stereo speakers?

It depends on what you want it to do. If you need more inputs than your TV has, then yes, it would be easier to get a surround receiver that had enough inputs.


Also, if i had a 5.1 receiver with 80 watts per channel/5 channels, would that equate to 200 watts a chanel for 2 channels? THANKS everyone, and excuse the newbie in me.

No, it would put out 80 watts per channel for two channels.
 
KEW

KEW

Audioholic Overlord
Also, if i had a 5.1 receiver with 80 watts per channel/5 channels, would that equate to 200 watts a chanel for 2 channels?
As others have said 80 watts is really all you should expect. Assuming it is a well designed unit, you should gain some extra dynamic headroom from not using the other channels, but the continuous power is as rated.
For a more detailed understanding of the power output as you drive more or fewer channels, scroll down to the table labeled "Marantz SR6004 Tabulated Power Measurements":
http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/receivers/marantz-sr6004-1/sr6004-measurements
Naturally, different manufacturers have different philosophies about how liberal or conservative their ratings are and there is also a good deal of variation within the same manufacturer (high end gear is usually very conservative, while many claim every watt they can out of their budget models); however, this chart should give a decent idea for a well designed receiver.
This receiver has a MSRP of $1250.
 
Z

zumbo

Audioholic Spartan
I skimmed the thread:eek:, but just in case it was missed, I believe HDMI has to stay HDMI.

So, an avr is needed. Stereo receivers that I know of don't have HDMI.;)
 
TLS Guy

TLS Guy

Audioholic Jedi
There is another solution.

You can get an HDMI switcher, and connect the HDMI out of of your peripherals to the switcher and the switcher to the TV. I have one that switches automatically to what is playing.

Then you connect all the analog outs of your peripherals to the receiver.

Then you don't have to limit yourself to a receiver, and can get a really nice vintage preamp and amp if you wish.

I use the above approach in one of my systems and it works really well. If you use a preamp you can use a dual channel external crossover to drive one or two subs. I drive a couple of subs.

I personally think that is much better than using a multichannel receiver if you are just going to use two channels always.

I recommend against using the audio outs of a TV, if it even has them. I tried this first, but the audio quality of the analog outs of my Bravia TV was awful.
 
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