Receiver for S60 setup

mlurie31

I am looking to purchase a sound system for my living room in a new house. I'm thinking about getting the S60's from the front L/R, the S35 for the center, and I haven't decided on the surround speakers yet (they may have to be in ceiling due to the open floor plan). I've read that some of these towers are power hungry, so I'm not sure what to get for the receivers. Looking at specs, the Onkyo's seem to have more power for the price when compared to the Yamaha. I'd like to spend not much more than $600 or so. For that price range, the Onkyo TX-RZ720 gives 110 W/Ch (8 Ohms, 20 Hz–20 kHz, 0.08% THD, 2 Channels Driven), while a similarly priced Yamaha, like the RX-A670 or RX-V683 don't get any more than 90 W/Ch. However, I've heard some horror stories about Onkyo's reliability.

So, the question is: How much power do I really need to power the S60's? Should I be worried about the less power that the Yamaha receivers have when compared to Onkyo? Denon also seemed less. Or is the power going to be important? Do you have any other suggestions for receivers? Also, should I be bi-amping these towers using two of the unused channels on the receiver? Will that help? Thanks!

F1nut

The S60 is an easy load.

Pioneer Elite

Do NOT try to bi-amp with an AVR because it's not even close to actual bi-amping.

mark090852

What he said. ^

A lot of people here, myself included, have had success ordering from Accessories4less. These two come with 3 year warranties.

https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/pionsclx501/pioneer-elite-sc-lx501-7.2-ch-x-120-watts-networking-a/v-receiver/1.html

https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/pionsclx701/pioneer-elite-sc-lx701-9.2-ch-x-135-watts-networking-a/v-receiver/1.html

deronb1

Not sure if Pio has changed their bass management, but my Elite went from 50 to 80 hz and up. Really stuck in my craw.

mlurie31

Hmm, I've only been looking at Onkyo, Yamaha, and Denon for this pricerange. Is there a reason you think Pioneer Elite is better?

F1nut

Yeah, their rated power for 5 channels driven is the same as it is for 2 channels driven. I don't know of any other AVR's that are. Their calibration program is much better.

Edit: I just noticed you have a $600.00 budget. You're not getting a Pioneer Elite for that money.

ken brydson

F1nut wrote: »

Yeah, their rated power for 5 channels driven is the same as it is for 2 channels driven. I don't know of any other AVR's that are. Their calibration program is much better.

Edit: I just noticed you have a $600.00 budget. You're not getting a Pioneer Elite for that money.

Maybe a gently used one...

F1nut

There is that.

tonyb

mlurie31 wrote: »

Hmm, I've only been looking at Onkyo, Yamaha, and Denon for this pricerange. Is there a reason you think Pioneer Elite is better?

In your 600 buck price range, new receivers will have fairly weak power supplies in them, no matter the brand. Yamaha, you want the Avantage series, Pioneer you want the Elite series. Pioneer will have ice amps in them, which hold their power ratings better across all channels driven.

The Sig series of Polk speakers are not power hungry, they are fairly easy to drive. However, keep in mind you may want to move up some day. So grab a receiver that has preouts, which will enable you to add an amplifier someday should you need to in order to drive a different speaker you may have your eyes on.

WLDock

mark090852 wrote: »

What he said. ^

A lot of people here, myself included, have had success ordering from Accessories4less. These two come with 3 year warranties.

https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/pionsclx501/pioneer-elite-sc-lx501-7.2-ch-x-120-watts-networking-a/v-receiver/1.html

https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/pionsclx701/pioneer-elite-sc-lx701-9.2-ch-x-135-watts-networking-a/v-receiver/1.html

Yes, that refurbished SC-LX501 for $449 with a three year warranty is a great option if you want a powerful feature rich AVR for cheap. You really can't beat this for the money....you really have to experience Pioneer's D3 amps in a home theater to know what all are talking about. The only drawback is there are no preouts if you want to add an amp later...but you will have to make that call.

As far as Onkyo / Integra reliability, they had some major issues with BGA style chip solder failures on some of their units. BGA chip solder failure has been a problem in the electronics industry as they are used in computer motherboards, gaming consoles, etc. Onkyo had a major recall and reworked the chips and performed some firmware updates to help keep the units cooler. Which is another conversation as these BIG multi channel receivers make a lot of heat. Make sure to give them room to breath which will help any AVR or amp.

Anyway, this Integra DTR-50.4 is a beastly AVR as well: https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/intdtr504/integra-dtr-50.4-7.2-ch-x-135-watts-thx-networking-a/v-receiver/1.html

If you wanted to jump right into the separates here is a nice combo. This refurb Integra DHC-80.3 Pre/Pro for $524 with a 2 yr warranty. This was a $2999 top of the line unit some years ago. https://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/intdhc803/integra-dhc-80.3-9.2-ch-thx-networking-a/v-preamp/processor/1.html
Then add in a new B-Stock Outlaw Audio 5000 5-ch amp for $549: https://www.outlawaudio.com/mofcart/bstock.html
Now you are in the a/v world of separates for $1073 to start.


You just have to decide what surround formats are important to you as well 4K, etc. over the next 2-5 years then decide what equipment works for your budget. If ATMOS and 4K are not important too you then that opens up a TON of options.

rooftop59

I second Accessories4less.

The marantz sr5011 will work really well. Ask @mrloren how he likes his setup!

I love my denon, and they have the avr-x4100w for 5 bones. Look at the measurements for the 4200w:

https://www.soundandvision.com/content/denon-avr-x4200w-av-receiver-review-test-bench

He marantz measures very close. I slightly prefer my denon for home theater, but it is in a much larger room with a larger system.

firsttimer

Driving S60 towers in a 7.2 set up with a Denon avrx 3300w and it works just fine. Love the setup. Drives the speakers without any issues

halo

The power ratings put out by most receivers aren't going to amount to much difference in your living room. A receiver putting out 80 wpc isn't that far behind a receiver putting out 110 wpc.

Try to get a receiver that has preamp outputs for you main L + R speakers, at the very least; that way the receiver's built-in amp section is only driving the center channel & the surrounds, which should be relatively easy. Powered subs or a single powered sub can handle all the low notes so, really, the receiver itself isn't being pushed very hard.

The slimline Marantz receivers don't take up much space and they offer pre-outs for the front L + R and 1 or 2 subs. 50 wpc may not seem like much but these slimline receivers deliver the goods to the center & the surrounds.

dolbyd

I agree with Halo.
I just helped a neighbor with his set up. Slimline Marantz was what he went with. He is looking the week to add a 2 channel amp to it. Should great for S60 setup.

mrloren

My SR5010 did drive the S60 very nice. Now I'm powering them with a BasX-A300 and oh yeah my setup is sweet to me. Marantz sounds great on music. My son and his 18 year old ear bud wearing friends like coming over and blasting there tunes on real speakers.

rburgess714

The 60s are easy to drive and sound great. Pioneer Elite, Marantz and the Yamaha Aventage line are all good options. Just make sure you get a unit with preouts so you can add a separate amp down the road.

Derico

Everyone here keeps saying the S60(e) are easy to drive. And i'm just here thinking, my Denon AVR-X1600H is too weak to drive them even if no other speakers are currently running...

tonyb

I'd say that receiver is on the light side for power. Add an amp if it has preouts and power won't be a concern anymore.

DaveHo

Derico wrote: »

Everyone here keeps saying the S60(e) are easy to drive. And i'm just here thinking, my Denon AVR-X1600H is too weak to drive them even if no other speakers are currently running...

No near BOTL receiver will power an easy load with authority. Some people just want something that "works". That's where that Denon fits into the food chain.

marc_sloan@msn.

Check out Sony ES units. I have ES,5300 12 years old solid runs cool. In fact it is a pre/pro. The only thing not driven by Emotiva XPA5, are pair i FXI3's.

ugeshanm

Regarding the Polk ES60 biamping capabilities, does anyone know how the internal speakers are separated? I have a Rotel 985 MK2 100wpc 5 channel driven that I am using on my front stage bed with the ES60 in biamp mode. It seems like the the power delivery to the speakers have the woofers separate from the tweeters. So if i am biamping, does that mean I am delivering 100 watts to the woofers and another 100watts to the tweeter? I am concerned as that does that sound excessive for the tweeter?

F1nut

For starters you are not truly bi-amping as that requires two completely separate amplifiers each with their own power supply AND the use of active crossovers.

So, to address your question about the internal crossovers. The high frequency circuit is indeed separate from the mid/low circuit when the jumpers are removed.

So then, is the high frequency circuit (tweeter) being overpowered? No. Basically, due to the components/topology in the crossover the high freqency circuit will only use 5 to 10 watts of power, so the rest of that
channel's watts are wasted.