Thought I was done....

[tmurnin]

Alright, I thought I was done with my new basement system and was planning on reusing a Denon 2809ci for my AVR, but my kids insist they will actually watch 3d movies on a regular basis, so now I'm looking for a replace,mt. I think I've narrowed my choices to the new Marantz 5008 or the Emotiva UMC-200 and the UPA-500. I've never used separates before so I'm a little intrigued by the Emo, but not sure about that particular amp. The room is 18 x 14 x 7.5, mostly hard surface flooring with a large area rug (planning on installing some acoustic panels in a few months). Speakers are Aperion Verus Grand bookshelves, Intimus 4bp surrounds, Verus Forte center and Hsu VTF-2 subwoofer. System will be 80% movies/games, 20% music. Source components are DirecTV, Panasonic blu-ray, AppleTv and an Xbox.

any thoughts?

 

[Pyrrho]

Do you already have a 3D BD player? If not, you might want to consider buying one that has two HDMI outputs that will allow you to send the audio to your receiver and the video directly to your TV. Like this one. That way, you do not need to replace your receiver at all.

Also, you might want to do some searching online about eyestrain and 3D. I would suggest not letting your children watch too much of it. To get you started:

Is 3D Bad for You? | MIT Technology Review

The zone of comfort: Predicting visual discomfort with stereo displays

 

[rnatalli]

The switch mentioned is the easiest fix, but to answer the original question, I would go with the EMO combo myself.

 

[tmurnin]

Never thought about the dual outputs on the blu-ray player as an option, thanks. Still tossing around the original question too.

appreciate that you would go for the Emo but why? Just the cool factor of separates or is there more to it?

thanks also for the 3d warning. My kids aren't huge tv watchers, so when I say they plan I watching 3d movies, it's probably in the neighborhood of 3-4 times/month.

 

[fuzz092888]

Never thought about the dual outputs on the blu-ray player as an option, thanks. Still tossing around the original question too.

appreciate that you would go for the Emo but why? Just the cool factor of separates or is there more to it?

thanks also for the 3d warning. My kids aren't huge tv watchers, so when I say they plan I watching 3d movies, it's probably in the neighborhood of 3-4 times/month.

There really is no benefit to separates unless you want them or your speakers/output levels dictate that you need them. I'd go for the Marantz because:

1) They make a product that performs really well

2) While they lack some of the most up to date bells and whistles, they are pretty reliable and easy to use

3) Audyssey

4) It has a full set of pre-outs so can always move to separates in the future while keeping the 5008.

 

[Pyrrho]

Never thought about the dual outputs on the blu-ray player as an option, thanks. Still tossing around the original question too.

appreciate that you would go for the Emo but why? Just the cool factor of separates or is there more to it?

thanks also for the 3d warning. My kids aren't huge tv watchers, so when I say they plan I watching 3d movies, it's probably in the neighborhood of 3-4 times/month.

Given the level of your receiver, it would be cheaper to buy that Oppo BD player (which should be superb in other respects as well) than to replace your receiver with something equivalent that is new. I highly recommend that you go that way instead of replacing a respectable receiver with something newer.

If I were buying a receiver today, I would probably go with a Yamaha, as their reliability seems to be as good as it gets. Marantz and Denon would be other brands I would consider. But really, with your level of receiver, I would not want to replace it when I could instead buy a great BD player that would solve the problem for far less than the cost of a comparable new receiver. If you really want to spend more money, think about upgrading speakers or getting another subwoofer.

 

[tmurnin]

ALright, I'm going to go with the Oppo solution. Running the dual hdmi's won't introduce any goofy sync issues, will it?

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

A few weeks ago, I would say I did not care for Audyssey. But after using Audyssey Flat Dynamic EQ, I'd get something with Audyssey XT32 like the Denon X4000.

 

[Pyrrho]

ALright, I'm going to go with the Oppo solution. Running the dual hdmi's won't introduce any goofy sync issues, will it?

Ask Oppo about it (and download and read the manual before ordering). I would imagine that they have a delay that can be used (because I have that in my old Oppo DVD player), but I am not certain about this specific model of BD player.

To put this another way, I don't think it will be a problem, but I am not absolutely certain, and therefore do not wish to tell you definitely that you will not have a problem.