So I bought a Denon AVR 688????

[murl]

Over the weekend I purchased a Denon AVR 688 because it was discounted to $199.99, which I thought was an upgrade from my Kenwood VR606. I have a very low end home theater system which consist of:
2 Bose 301's III series for Front L/R
1 Kenwood Center channel
4 Kenwood Bookshelf speakers of which I am only using two for surround, I could use the other two for 7.1
1 Kenwood 12" powered sub

I may upgrade some speakers in the distant future but I will probably stay with what I have for now.

My TV is a 50" Panasonic 720P Plasma and a Panasonic upconversion DVD player.

One of the things I don't like about the Denon is that it is not very user friendly, I don't mind so much but I think my wife will have a hard time with it.

I thought about sending it back and getting the ONKYO sr tx606 because it is a bit easier to use, processes the audio, and utilizes more audio formats.

My question is this, how important is it to utilize those formats like Dolby TrueHD in the future? Am I really going to get anymore "bang for the buck" switching to a receiver that processes the audio via HDMI? What if I get a Blu Ray player in the future, will I want a better Receiver? I think I already know the answer to my question which is that I probably couldn't tell the difference between Dolby digital and Dolby TrueHD, is this correct?

If you think I should purchase another receiver and take this one back, which would you recommend in the $400 range?

I am very happy with the audio quality of the Denon, it just isn't that easy to use and I'm not sure if I will need more features in the future, I would say my speakers are the limiting factor at this point.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Davemcc]

The 688 is a great deal for 200 bones. Once it's setup, it's pretty much set it and forget it. Your wife should have no trouble with normal use. In fact, last year I set up a 688 for a friend, a single, 50 year old non-techie woman, and she hasn't had any issues since setup and hasn't needed to ask for a single bit of advice or assistance since.

As for the Blu-Ray player, I'm pretty sure the 688 will decode LPCM. All you need to look for in a player is that it will decode the formats and send them out as LPCM or choose a player that has multichannel analog outputs. Then you're good to go.

 

[highfigh]

Over the weekend I purchased a Denon AVR 688 because it was discounted to $199.99, which I thought was an upgrade from my Kenwood VR606. I have a very low end home theater system which consist of:
2 Bose 301's III series for Front L/R
1 Kenwood Center channel
4 Kenwood Bookshelf speakers of which I am only using two for surround, I could use the other two for 7.1
1 Kenwood 12" powered sub

I may upgrade some speakers in the distant future but I will probably stay with what I have for now.

My TV is a 50" Panasonic 720P Plasma and a Panasonic upconversion DVD player.

One of the things I don't like about the Denon is that it is not very user friendly, I don't mind so much but I think my wife will have a hard time with it.

I thought about sending it back and getting the ONKYO sr tx606 because it is a bit easier to use, processes the audio, and utilizes more audio formats.

My question is this, how important is it to utilize those formats like Dolby TrueHD in the future? Am I really going to get anymore "bang for the buck" switching to a receiver that processes the audio via HDMI? What if I get a Blu Ray player in the future, will I want a better Receiver? I think I already know the answer to my question which is that I probably couldn't tell the difference between Dolby digital and Dolby TrueHD, is this correct?

If you think I should purchase another receiver and take this one back, which would you recommend in the $400 range?

I am very happy with the audio quality of the Denon, it just isn't that easy to use and I'm not sure if I will need more features in the future, I would say my speakers are the limiting factor at this point.

Thanks for your help!

It's not hard to use, it's just different from what you're used to. Denon are actually pretty easy to set up and operate. Read the manual for input/output assignments and unless you're the kind of user who likes to mess with things after setup, all you need to do for normal operation is switch inputs, Vol Up/Down and ON/OFF. I'm not the biggest fan of their remote, which may be why you don't like it but if you use a universal remote, the codes are all discreet.

Plus, you bought it for a lot less than regular dealer cost, which isn't a bad thing. If you do decide to buy something different, get the AVR689, which is HDMI 1.3 compliant.

 

[murl]

Yeah the remote does suck, it puts out great sound. Would I hear any difference in dolby digital vs dolby truehd?

 

[murl]

One other thing to add, this site is a great resource, a friend turned me on to it and I am very impressed. My knowledge of Home Audio is very limited but I am learning. I worked in an electronics store installing remote starts, keyless entry, and security on cars for several years so I know cars pretty well but I am just now trying to learn about the home stuff.

 

[Highbar]

To answer your question about hearing the difference in audio... well I'm not sure yet. I'll find out hopefully in less than a month when I have the money to go get a Blu Ray player As for what I've read here and heard a couple of people talk about, there is some difference but not alot. If you read around the site some more you will find a good bit of talk about it. I'm not expecting leaps and bounds but then again I got a huge step up in sound quality just going from my Sony to a 2808.

 

[danno567]

denon

hello all
i saw this thread and had to join. i am a complete NEWB at configuring my system. i have two fronts ( paradigm 5se's - i know they are old) a klipsch centre, a klipsch sub, and two klipsh bookshelfs in the rear. I want my sub to do all the work, to take the brunt off the paradigms. What is the proper way to set this ? I have been kinda guessing at this and really not good. I did the room calibration and it sent my two fronts to be assigned different db settings. I fixed that easily enough but other than that i suck.

Also, i have my dvd player ( just a philips ) plugged into my receiver. it says analog- is there a way to change this or is it based on my cabling from the dvd player?

thanks for any advice.

dan

 

[zumbo]

hello all
i saw this thread and had to join. i am a complete NEWB at configuring my system. i have two fronts ( paradigm 5se's - i know they are old) a klipsch centre, a klipsch sub, and two klipsh bookshelfs in the rear. I want my sub to do all the work, to take the brunt off the paradigms. What is the proper way to set this ? I have been kinda guessing at this and really not good. I did the room calibration and it sent my two fronts to be assigned different db settings. I fixed that easily enough but other than that i suck.

Also, i have my dvd player ( just a philips ) plugged into my receiver. it says analog- is there a way to change this or is it based on my cabling from the dvd player?

thanks for any advice.

dan

It would be a whole lot easier to inform you on how to set-up your receiver if you told us what it is.

 

[murl]

thread hijacker! jk

If you are running a digital coaxial or optical you should get a digital signal into your receiver. If you are running RCA's you will get an analog. With your digital signal you may want to try changing the setting in your DVD player to bitstream rather than PCM.

Now my turn to ask a question. If I buy a blu ray player in the future should I just get one that decodes the audio and send it to the receiver via analog inputs from RCA's as 7 different channels? I am using the Denon AVR 688 still.

What is LPCM?

I'm sure these get redundant so if there is a thread or article that describes it I'll be happy to look there, I just couldn't find one.

 

[zumbo]

What is LPCM?

Look under PCM.
http://www.rane.com/digi-dic.html

I am not technical with definitions, so please forgive me. LPCM(pertaining to audio output by dvd player) is when your dvd player decodes the audio, and sends it out via HDMI.

So, you basically answered your question, and then asked it again.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linear_pulse_code_modulation

 

[danno567]

unit

sorry i have a denon avr-688.

also here is another issue i am having. my front left speaker ( paradigm 5se ) the woofer makes this crappy noise only in low low level bass sounds, like the begining of a move where the paramount sign shows up, and when in a movie people are talking and there is a low bass sound of music in the background.
the only way i could describe it is it sounds like when you touch your woofer with your finger and it makes that distorted sound.

i really apologize but i am new at this and am inexperienced. any help would be great. would it be an air leak on the woofer? is it shot? i called paradigm and the cost of a woofer is about 100. future shop has some energy c-300 for a hundred each. do i just buy these instead? my speakers are old, (fronts anyways)

thanks for any advice.

 

[danno567]

recever

my receiver is an avr-688
i would also like to know what to set the mhz to on the receiver to make the fronts sound as best as possible.
thanks

d

 

[AVRat]

danno, set the crossover in the receiver to 80 Hz, and turn the crossover on the sub to max.