Good receiver for rti4's?

zim18

Based on a sound point which receivers would justify pure audio performance with my rti4's? (front + rear)

Pioneer (non elite lineup 2011)
Denon avr591/avr1712
Yamaha rxv667
Harmon Kardon avr2600

Leaning towards a certain model but want some club polk input first lol

polkfarmboy

I would go with the denon for audessey but it has no pre outs

I have heard great things about yamaha for movies and it has the pre outs for hooking up a amp later

Harmon kardon is the best for music and pioneer is a good all rounder

zim18

polkfarmboy wrote: »

I would go with the denon for audessey but it has no pre outs

I have heard great things about yamaha for movies and it has the pre outs for hooking up a amp later

Harmon kardon is the best for music and pioneer is a good all rounder

Preouts are not a concern, budget based

Almadacr

On the Pioneer the VSX-921K its also a good choice

HTguru1982

Harman and Denon are both good choices. The Pioneer and Yamaha might be too bright for your RTi's. I had the Yamaha RX-V630 and it was too bright for my older Polk RT's.

PSOVLSK

Harmon Kardon avr2600

I like the warm H/K sound.

zim18

Almadacr wrote: »

On the Pioneer the VSX-921K its also a good choice

Dont quite see the value in having upconversion...or usb inputs to be quite honest

HTguru1982 wrote: »

Harman and Denon are both good choices. The Pioneer and Yamaha might be too bright for your RTi's. I had the Yamaha RX-V630 and it was too bright for my older Polk RT's.

Ive heard this as well...i think i might stay away from yamaha/pioneer

PSOVLSK wrote: »

Harmon Kardon avr2600

I like the warm H/K sound.

Leaning towards this receiver so far...actually might opt out for the 1600 as upscaling is not necessary

Almadacr

zim18 wrote: »

Dont quite see the value in having upconversion...or usb inputs to be quite honest

Leaning towards this receiver so far...actually might opt out for the 1600 as upscaling is not necessary

It`s funny that you say that , but you chose a receiver with up-conversion and USB . :rolleyes:

zim18

Almadacr wrote: »

It`s funny that you say that , but you chose a receiver with up-conversion and USB . :rolleyes:

I meant upscaling, and none of the receivers i mentioned have usb...except for the avr2600 which is strictly for updates

Theheadsn

How much are you willing to spend, I think that should be the first question you ask. Then its easier to narrow down the brand for likes and dislikes

If your interested, I might sell my Pioneer 1020k to you if pre outs arent a big deal to you. Im in the market for a reciever that does. Never had any problems with it and works great on its own standards

cnh

You should, of course, listen to a few of these AVRs first. But here is my take. I have a pair of Rti-4s I run in my bedroom. Of the receivers mentioned above, I found my Denon (with pre-outs) to sound the best with Rti-4s. A 'warmer' sounding receiver is best for Rtis IMO.

But I've also found that I like my Onkyo 604 (older 600 series--TX-SR609 is the current model) with the Rti-4s in my bedroom and an 8" sub (Onkyo is not a 'warm' receiver--but for some reason--probably the small room size, it does a nice job with my Polk bookshelves?).

Happy Listening!

cnh

SRTer

zim18 wrote: »

Dont quite see the value in having upconversion...or usb inputs to be quite honest



Ive heard this as well...i think i might stay away from yamaha/pioneer



Leaning towards this receiver so far...actually might opt out for the 1600 as upscaling is not necessary

I have to ask, after owning 2 H/Ks and 2 Pio Elites, why do you want to stay away from Pioneer?

Is there something I need to know that I'm missing are is it just personal taste?

zim18

SRTer wrote: »

I have to ask, after owning 2 H/Ks and 2 Pio Elites, why do you want to stay away from Pioneer?

Is there something I need to know that I'm missing are is it just personal taste?

Based on what ive read on these boards they arnt a good match for polks as they are 'too bright'...if that wasnt the case i would probably settle for a vsx521k (mcacc is just about all i would utilize) as i can get a hold of one in the box for $200

JimAckley

While the Pio is undoubtedly brighter than Denon (what isn't?), I don't think there's much out there that touches the brightness of Yamaha. I feel that my Elite has a pretty balanced sound compared the whole spectrum of receivers. I haven't used a non-Elite Pio though, so I could be wrong.

tonyb

Pioneers are more neutral, but if you want to warm up the sound you could always use a warmer sounding speaker cable. Regardless, plenty of members here use Pioneer with their Polks and are happy campers. Keep in mind on these entry level receivers, if you plan on running a 5.1 system, thats when their power starts falling off a cliff. A 100 watt receiver in 5 channel mode is probably pushing only 50 watts. Of coarse it varies a bit from model to model but you get the jist. If you ever plan on upgrading your speakers in the near future,preouts is a must have to add an amp down the road. Just sayin' is all,I know budget is a concern but if you could swing it,you won't regret it later.

zim18

tonyb wrote: »

Pioneers are more neutral, but if you want to warm up the sound you could always use a warmer sounding speaker cable. Regardless, plenty of members here use Pioneer with their Polks and are happy campers. Keep in mind on these entry level receivers, if you plan on running a 5.1 system, thats when their power starts falling off a cliff. A 100 watt receiver in 5 channel mode is probably pushing only 50 watts. Of coarse it varies a bit from model to model but you get the jist. If you ever plan on upgrading your speakers in the near future,preouts is a must have to add an amp down the road. Just sayin' is all,I know budget is a concern but if you could swing it,you won't regret it later.

Budget and preouts dont exist

Cheapest avr I can find is the rxv667 for preouts...

Dont know anything about onkyo's lineup

cnh

Onkyo pre-outs start with the 70X series. TX-SR 708/9. Might be able to find a sale price on those if you wait it out or try www.accessories4less.com for a ONE year warranty refurb Onkyo if you go that way.

http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/ONKTXNR708/Onkyo/TX-NR708-7.2-Channel-3-D-Ready-Network-A/V-Receiver/1.html

Looks like 499 and free shipping on this refurb?

cnh

SRTer

Well, since most people are allowing the automatic room calibration to adjust their EQ and speaker response, who can really say the components that make up the internals really offer a warm or bright sound once adjusting of the EQ has occurred during auto tune.

A person might as well adjust their own EQ to create a sound pleasing to their ears if auto calibration seem too bright.

Just my opinion.

JimAckley

SRTer wrote: »

Well, since most people are allowing the automatic room calibration to adjust their EQ and speaker response, who can really say the components that make up the internals really offer a warm or bright sound once adjusting of the EQ has occurred during auto tune.

A person might as well adjust their own EQ to create a sound pleasing to their ears if auto calibration seem too bright.

Just my opinion.

Who's to say that everyone is even using equalization? I'm definitely not. It jacks with the true sound of the speakers too much. I turned it off on every single MCACC profile I have, and really only use the DSP for time correction and group delay.

SRTer

JimAckley wrote: »

Who's to say that everyone is even using equalization? I'm definitely not. It jacks with the true sound of the speakers too much. I turned it off on every single MCACC profile I have, and really only use the DSP for time correction and group delay.

Well, I said most people. Not everyone.

Secondly, I too run a MCACC profile without a automatic EQ and no channel leveling. I did adjust the EQ after listening to several songs and music types over time.

Then I run a full auto calibration for HT with slight adjustment to the EQ.

JimAckley

I do keep the leveling on (thank you for reminding me of that), but the EQ was bleh. It made my TL2s sound like poo. What other gear do you have in your system? Sorry for threadjacking OP!

SRTer

JimAckley wrote: »

I do keep the leveling on (thank you for reminding me of that), but the EQ was bleh. It made my TL2s sound like poo. What other gear do you have in your system? Sorry for threadjacking OP!

Sent PM, and to the OP.

EQ may be your friend with what ever AVR you choose. Pre outs and HDMI 1.4, on board DAC quality for my iPod and iPhone, and internal power in 5 channel mode was some of the key points in my choice of AVR's.

What is your top priorities?

zim18

Funny, i thought the keypoints to manufacturers were they calibration devices...hence why denon gets such rave reviews.

I also read somewhere that pure direct is the true test of a receiver..

I had a vsx1125k (vsx32) hooked up to a pair of rtia5s and then again with the avr791 (1911) and was a night and day difference, the denon sounded much better.

PSOVLSK

I don't know your budget because I'm being too lazy to look up the AVR's listed, but here's all the receiver those RTi's will ever need.

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=120344