Suggestions for a $1,500 A/V Receiver and Speaker Budget

[TINZ]

I know you might get a lot of people like me who don't have a clue, but I would really appreciate some help in selecting equipment for my home theater.

I'll be as comprehensive as I can, because I guess there are a great deal of variables!

Budget:

$1,500

Existing equipment:

DVDO Edge, multiplexing the equipment below to our Samsung HDTV (1080p):

PS3 (video and audio streaming)
Oppo BDP-83 (audio CD & blu-rays)
PC (video (DVI->HDMI) and audio (optical))

New equipment desired:

A/V Receiver
5.1 or 7.1 Speaker arrangement

Uses:

We watch a lot of television, especially movies and shows. We also listen to a lot of music, such as classics, Queen and The Beatles. We often stream our home videos and music to the HDTV via the PS3, or use an audio CD via the Oppo.

We need a system that is awesome for both music and movies, with the following notable features:

OSD via HDTV (nice to have).

Sound damping mode so that we do not disturb our neighbors at night, or the baby (essential).

HDMI inputs and outputs (essential). 4 inputs sounds good.

Optical audio inputs (essential).

Customizable settings that may be recalled easily via a one-touch button / option (nice to have).

Suitable for a small living room - we sit around 8 to 9 feet from the HDTV and the room is 20x15 (essential).

Headphone front connection (essential).

Line In (front) - useful if we connect up an MP3 player (nice to have).

Latest HDMI format (essential) - we don't care for 3D TV, but want the latest HDMI format anyway.

Pass through for audio and video (essential) - we don't mind if it upscales video / re-shapes audio, but we want the ability to turn the features off and pass through raw. We don't need upscaling as we have a DVDO Edge, but we don't mind it, if it happens to be included with a great Receiver.

Easy set-up (nice to have) - we are not audio experts, so we need a system that helps us to set up the speakers correctly.

Future-proofing (nice to have) - if there's something huge that is up and coming, it's nice to be covered for it. I don't plan to spend for another 7-10 years on this type of equipment.

Sound fields / effects / equalizer - whatever allows us to tweak the sound a little (essential).

Firmware updates (nice to have) - it seems most products are shipped with faults these days, so a way to fix issues in the software is great to have.

Quiet (essential) - we hate loud fans and need to hear pins dropping in the audio ;-)

Solid speakers (essential) - we prefer a sturdy construction.

Dimmable screen (essential) - we like watching movies in the dark.

THANK YOU!!!!

 

[davestradamus]

i set up my system for less than $1500. Everything encluded.

http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67315

i am a nooB as well, but think i did OK. You already have a display, so you should be able to do better far than me.

things i wouldnt skimp on:
reciever
matching fronts and center

i bought an entry level reciever and am looking to replace it, its the weakest link.

monoprice.com for cheap cables and interconnects.

proper setup and decoding is crucial. use a mic, or decibel meter to measure speaker levels. and use the best decoder for your source (by your own ears). Just because your source supports dts, prologic, etc, doesnt mean that setting is the best to YOUR ears. after all, its your system.

a good start would be this:
http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?p=737978#post737978

most premium speaker makers have good sounding entry level speakers.

craigslist is your friend!!

hope this helps!

keep us updated on what you get.

-davestradamus

 

[jostenmeat]

I know you might get a lot of people like me who don't have a clue, but I would really appreciate some help in selecting equipment for my home theater.

I'll be as comprehensive as I can, because I guess there are a great deal of variables!

Budget:

$1,500

Existing equipment:

DVDO Edge, multiplexing the equipment below to our Samsung HDTV (1080p):

PS3 (video and audio streaming)
Oppo BDP-83 (audio CD & blu-rays)
PC (video (DVI->HDMI) and audio (optical))

New equipment desired:

A/V Receiver
5.1 or 7.1 Speaker arrangement

Uses:

We watch a lot of television, especially movies and shows. We also listen to a lot of music, such as classics, Queen and The Beatles. We often stream our home videos and music to the HDTV via the PS3, or use an audio CD via the Oppo.

We need a system that is awesome for both music and movies, with the following notable features:

OSD via HDTV (nice to have).

Sound damping mode so that we do not disturb our neighbors at night, or the baby (essential).

HDMI inputs and outputs (essential). 4 inputs sounds good.

Optical audio inputs (essential).

Customizable settings that may be recalled easily via a one-touch button / option (nice to have).

Suitable for a small living room - we sit around 8 to 9 feet from the HDTV and the room is 20x15 (essential).

Headphone front connection (essential).

Line In (front) - useful if we connect up an MP3 player (nice to have).

Latest HDMI format (essential) - we don't care for 3D TV, but want the latest HDMI format anyway.

Pass through for audio and video (essential) - we don't mind if it upscales video / re-shapes audio, but we want the ability to turn the features off and pass through raw. We don't need upscaling as we have a DVDO Edge, but we don't mind it, if it happens to be included with a great Receiver.

Easy set-up (nice to have) - we are not audio experts, so we need a system that helps us to set up the speakers correctly.

Future-proofing (nice to have) - if there's something huge that is up and coming, it's nice to be covered for it. I don't plan to spend for another 7-10 years on this type of equipment.

Sound fields / effects / equalizer - whatever allows us to tweak the sound a little (essential).

Firmware updates (nice to have) - it seems most products are shipped with faults these days, so a way to fix issues in the software is great to have.

Quiet (essential) - we hate loud fans and need to hear pins dropping in the audio ;-)

Solid speakers (essential) - we prefer a sturdy construction.

Dimmable screen (essential) - we like watching movies in the dark.

THANK YOU!!!!

Whoa.

You splurged for the EDGE and the Oppo 83, but all you are willing to spend on a 7.1 (yeah 7 speakers and subwoofer), and a receiver that does all this, for $1,500? Really? Not being sarcastic, but I gotta ask . . .

Ok, well the speakers/sub are by far the most important choices. So much so that I would rather focus on a single pair of stereo speakers atm. JMO, you do what you want.

For the receiver, most of the things you listed will be on most receivers. For "dimmable" screen, that has to do with your TV. (c'mon now!)

The few things that I see that will narrow down the field quickly are the "sound dampening" (really it's EQ), OSD volume (I think Denon can, and I think Onkyo cannot). It may prove impossible to get EVERYTHING at your budget, but that's how it goes sometimes.

For the "sound dampening", you will want Dolby Volume and/or audyssey dynamic volume and dynamic Eq. Here is the list of products with Dolby:
http://www.dolby.com/consumer/understand/volume/dolby-volume-products.html

Click on dyn vol and eq, to narrow down this field here:
http://www.audyssey.com/products

What is difficult for me in helping you is knowing what kind of EQ tweakability you have with any product, down to the nitty gritty such as if you did, will it defeat your "sound dampening" or other auto EQs. For instance, to use dyn vol-eq, you need to run Audyssey calibration, and that is known to be rather inflexible as far as adjusting to taste (outside of a couple of target curves).

Good luck.

 

[TINZ]

Thanks for those pointers!

I did some delving online today and found the Onkyo HT-S9300THX, which could be a good entry level all-rounder for a newb like me. It looks very tempting, but I bet most of the price went into the features, rather than the speaker quality.

The "dimming" I referred to was the receiver's own display dimming ;-)

I snapped up the Oppo and the Edge, then got laid off. Now I am earning 45% less than before, so my budget is lean. Had I manged to keep my hard earned career, I would be drooling over something very cool and pricey!

Monoprice is an awesome store! Been very handy.

I'll rummage through those links that you both very kindly posted and start hunting for ideas.

Thanks!

 

[jostenmeat]

Thanks for those pointers!

I did some delving online today and found the Onkyo HT-S9300THX, which could be a good entry level all-rounder for a newb like me. It looks very tempting, but I bet most of the price went into the features, rather than the speaker quality.

You're welcome. You know, I have dubbed Onkyo HTiBs like that one as the "gateway drug". Very addictive for the money. The problem is that you will likely be moving on to harder drugs within 6 months, if not sooner, like I did. IMO, the sub is the weakest link, but then again, those aren't cheap anyways.

If you are handy, and have the time, you can save money by building your sub and speakers. There are "kits" that can make it as a nice in between compromise. If you are further interested, run searches and ask in the DIY subforum.

The "dimming" I referred to was the receiver's own display dimming ;-)

Oh right, I'd be surprised if there was any of them that couldn't. That said, my couple/few yr old Onkyo is pretty bright still even at lower setting (the resistor they designed it with isn't "strong" enough). Some people have changed out the resistor as DIY. You know what I have used liberally, many times, on various components, throughout the years? Window tint. Bought a big roll at Home Depot years ago. I just put some on last week on my Cambridge integrated. (even low setting is too bright for me).

I snapped up the Oppo and the Edge, then got laid off. Now I am earning 45% less than before, so my budget is lean. Had I manged to keep my hard earned career, I would be drooling over something very cool and pricey!

Ah. I'm sorry about that. Then all the more reason to choose carefully the path you take, IMO . . .

Monoprice is an awesome store! Been very handy.

I absolutely agree. I'm one of their bigger fans here.

I'll rummage through those links that you both very kindly posted and start hunting for ideas.

Thanks!

Good luck there. Parting words: remember how I said it's hard to get everything? Well, Onkyo is pretty darn easy to use, IMO, but Denon is known to have very difficult manuals (some say it could be poor translations from Japanese to English; there even has been incorrect instructions before, I can't remember which model). However, I've told you that I think that OSD volume is on Denon, and not Onkyo. Which would you go for, in this hypothetical scenario?