Receiver Suggestions Please

Scottishgraham

hi everyone new to the forum and starting to embark on the wonderful journey of building a great sound system.

I recently purchased 2 TSI 500's and a CS20. I have not bought the receiver yet but i am looking for one that will adequately power my speakers and eventually a sub and rears when i get around to buying them.

not trying to spend a ridiculous (above $700) amount of money since i just spent a bunch on the speakers.

any suggestions would be great!

cnh

WELCOME TO CLUB POLK!

Nice HT system...I run something similar. For me Onkyos are nice with Polk speakers...perhaps a TX-SR707 or 708 *the newer model. But other options would be the Pioneer Elite VSX21 or the newer VSX31.

Also the Harman Kardon AVR354 or the newer 3600. Listen, if you can to some of these...and see which 'sound' 'you' prefer! They're all pretty good!

Enjoy...

cnh

cnh

cnh wrote: »

WELCOME TO CLUB POLK!

Nice HT system...I run something similar. For me Onkyos are nice with Polk speakers...perhaps a TX-SR707 or 708 *the newer model. But other options would be the Pioneer Elite VSX21 or the newer VSX31.

Also the Harman Kardon AVR354 or the newer 3600. Listen, if you can to some of these...and see which 'sound' 'you' prefer! They're all pretty good!

Enjoy...

cnh

I wanted to make a correction here...in terms of 'features', the Pioneer Elite VSX-32 is really the New VSX-21 not the 31 as stated above...

no pre-outs on the VSX-31?

cnh

mudwrx

Hi there,

I have similar speakers except TSi400's. I just added this to a different post but it is a similar topic so I will paste it below, hope it can help:

I have an Onkyo TX-SR608 and so far am very pleased with it. I have it connected to TSi400 fronts, CS20 center, PSW505 sub and FXiA4 surrounds.

I got 14AWG wires and connected them using banana plugs.

I have a very large room and so far I am finding if I turn the volume up above 75 (goes to 100 I think) it gets scary loud. The Onkyo is having no trouble driving these and the setup was relatively simple. Plus the 6 hdmi in and one hdmi out is pretty neat and simple. I have my FIOS box and PS3 going in hdmi, the Wii goes in via component and it all goes out hdmi to my Samsung 55" LCD. The receiver does some upconversion if needed, basically everything is looking and sounding awesome.

I used the included mic to calibrate the Onkyo and it did a good job but I ended up tweaking it to my preference afterwards.

I also thought about bi-wiring but after some research (lots on this forum and elsewhere) I decided against it. Since I'm not a mad audiophile I probably would not appreciate any difference it would make. Maybe at some point I'll try it since I do have some extra cable but as of now I am more than happy with the overall performance.

By the way, this receiver can also run 2 subs simultaneously if desired.

Also, I go this receiver for well under $500 from newegg.com.

Zeros

I'm a Denon Fan, so here is a link on how to get the AVR-1910 for $330 shipped:

http://slickdeals.net/forums/showthread.php?sduid=38416&t=2104646

Here is the Denon AVR-2310ci for $469:

http://www.6ave.com/shop/product.aspx?sku=DENAVR2310CI

used code AFL4COUPON for $20 off the $488 price.

mudwrx

Keiko wrote: »

I've been reading a lot of good things about Yamaha's RX V765.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001S2RD90/ref=s9_simh_gw_p23_i1?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=1NQKVYDPDB1T6G33FBZV&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846

You have lots of choices that will fit your 700.00 budget. Denon, Onkyo, Pioneer, etc. I'd recommend whatever you decide on, be sure it has preouts on all channels. This will allow you to expand and add more power if you so choose later on down the road. And more than likely, you will if you hang out here long enough. These guys have helped me spend more money than you could possibly imagine and it's been a fun, learning experience along the way.

Welcome to Club Polk.

I too was told to consider a receiver with preouts since the Onkyo TX-SR608 does not have them (about the only thing it's missing). However now that I have the receiver and have had a chance to listen to it I cannot see why I would ever need preouts to allow me to add amps to the system. Currently it sounds so good and too loud to ever turn the volume up to the max I don't feel I would need a preout AVR. And I have a large room (about 25'x30' with cathedral ceilings, it's a family room over garage).

I have no doubt a preout AVR does allow you to increase the performance, but unless you are a serious audiophile I can't see the need for the extra cost of the preout AVR and whatever amps may be added.

I say this with all due respect to all who post here as it certainly seems that these people know their stuff. If budget is not an issue then by all means get all you can, however in my personal experience a quality stand alone receiver does a more than adequate job.

Zitro

mudwrx wrote: »

I too was told to consider a receiver with preouts since the Onkyo TX-SR608 does not have them (about the only thing it's missing). However now that I have the receiver and have had a chance to listen to it I cannot see why I would ever need preouts to allow me to add amps to the system. Currently it sounds so good and too loud to ever turn the volume up to the max I don't feel I would need a preout AVR. And I have a large room (about 25'x30' with cathedral ceilings, it's a family room over garage).

I have no doubt a preout AVR does allow you to increase the performance, but unless you are a serious audiophile I can't see the need for the extra cost of the preout AVR and whatever amps may be added.

I say this with all due respect to all who post here as it certainly seems that these people know their stuff. If budget is not an issue then by all means get all you can, however in my personal experience a quality stand alone receiver does a more than adequate job.

...until the bug bites... :eek:

Seriously though, if you think you will be content with just a standalone AVR, don't worry about pre-outs. A good AVR is all many people need. The speakers you have are fairly efficient, so you won't need tons of power to drive them. It's just nice to know you CAN upgrade if you choose to. So, if you are in a toss-up between two different AVR's, and one has pre-outs and the other does not, go with the pre-outs. You never know what kind of system expanding you'll do in the future, and if you do decide to expand you don't want to have to buy another AVR just because you didn't get one with pre-outs.

kawizx9r

A sick and twisted hobby indeed, go with pre-outs...cause you will upgrade. The real question is when.

-Freddy

Zitro

If I were in the market for an AVR I would definitely consider this:

http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-HT-RC180-7-2-Channel-Surround-Receiver/dp/B002L6GEKG/ref=cm_cr_pr_sims_t

mudwrx

Zitro wrote: »

...until the bug bites... :eek:

Seriously though, if you think you will be content with just a standalone AVR, don't worry about pre-outs. A good AVR is all many people need. The speakers you have are fairly efficient, so you won't need tons of power to drive them. It's just nice to know you CAN upgrade if you choose to. So, if you are in a toss-up between two different AVR's, and one has pre-outs and the other does not, go with the pre-outs. You never know what kind of system expanding you'll do in the future, and if you do decide to expand you don't want to have to buy another AVR just because you didn't get one with pre-outs.

No arguments here. If I had to choose and the price/features were similar then of course an AVR with preouts would win.

I think I may have subconsciously went with no preouts to make sure I did not keep adding on!

Also, I prefer to have a system that looks good as well. Right now everything fits in very nicely and looks real good. If I were to add amps in the future then I would have those components to find a place for.

Of course in the end it's all on what your preferences are and if you are happy. I guess I am lucky enough to be more than pleased...so far.:p

Zitro

mudwrx wrote: »

Of course in the end it's all on what your preferences are and if you are happy. I guess I am lucky enough to be more than pleased...so far.:p

You better go knock on wood.

In reality, with efficient speakers, like most of Polk's new offerings (save the LSi series), you don't need gobs of power to drive them. A lot of guys on this forum will steer you towards externals amps and such, but its their hobby and their passion. That's what they like and that's what they want. I am guilty of this, too It does help eek out some more performance, but it is by no means necessary. Most of the market would be content with a quality AVR, and if you aren't super critical about your sound (and most of the market isn't) and just want a good sounding HT rig, a quality standalone AVR will work just fine.

That being said, if you REALLY want to reach your rigs potential...well, you know the drill :cool:

mudwrx

Zitro wrote: »

You better go knock on wood.

In reality, with efficient speakers, like most of Polk's new offerings (save the LSi series), you don't need gobs of power to drive them. A lot of guys on this forum will steer you towards externals amps and such, but its their hobby and their passion. That's what they like and that's what they want. I am guilty of this, too It does help eek out some more performance, but it is by no means necessary. Most of the market would be content with a quality AVR, and if you aren't super critical about your sound (and most of the market isn't) and just want a good sounding HT rig, a quality standalone AVR will work just fine.

That being said, if you REALLY want to reach your rigs potential...well, you know the drill :cool:

Agreed. And holy cow, a lot of you guys are definitely deep in to this and that is awesome. I have learned so much just from this forum alone, I appreciate all the information posted here. And the best part, from what I can tell, it is usually correct and accurate.

Thanks.

cnh

Keiko wrote: »

I got two words for ya; vinyl and tubes.

Mike, we don't want the OP to fall into the rabbit hole this early???

On AVRs...I agree with much of what Zitro has said above. Of course Onkyo 60x are plenty of AVR for a TSI or M Polk series. Rti-8s and Rti-A5s are also easy to power...but anything above those models...I'd get pres.

I'd buy an AVR that had a lot of features and a decent pre section....those are usually in the 1000 dollar Plus (new) category. That's pretty much what I run and it's ready for any and all upgrades I might want to make.

But you gotta start somewhere and budgets are important.

cnh