Seperates or not?

NCrewson

Help! It is time to replace my receiver and I would like to go to seperates, I think. I need to find a preamp that will do multi-room. There aren't many options for shoppong locally so I need to know what I'm looking for before I drive an hour or 2 to go shopping. I would also go used if anyone has a good piece part with. The other option is a new receiver with multiroom capabilities, in which case I'd probably go HK again as I really do like my current HK AVR 310 but it just doesn't have the capabilities I need anymore.

LiquidSound

Check www.outlawaudio.com That's the direction I'll be going.

thehaens@cox.net

I, as many was one that kept trading out receivers every 2-3 years to keep up with the "current" technology... I decided to splurge and go with all separate amps, (parasound hca-1500's) front and rear and a Marantz Ma-500 for center duty), and use a receiver to handle pre/pro duties. I think in the long run, it has saved me some money, as I will buy a demo/floor model receiver and hook it to the amps, of which I really don't think I will ever have to "upgrade", replace maybe in the event of failure, but they have enough power to suit me. I know there are a lot of pre/pro's out there that are better, but I'll stick with what I know. and when I trade "up" the receiver, I have another garage stereo.

del44

Rotel offers good entry level separates. The RSP-1068 Pre Pro and RMB-1075 power amp can be had for less than $2500. And even less than that on ebay.

gregure

You can actually achieve stellar sound w/ a receiver that has multi-zone capabilities up the yin-yang, and that would be the new 5805 from Denon. The unit is a beast, but it offers up to 10 channels, 5 of which can be assigned to different rooms if only 5 are used in the main theater setup. It can also be rigged for up to 3 subs as well. It has endless possibilities, 170 watts per channel and sounds great. The inner structure is also very "separates" like in its construction, with all processing and amplification being separately housed and layered. Really a nice unit. It costs $6000, but it would be a great investment if multi-zoning is one of your primary concerns.
Read more about it here:
Denon Website
Recent Sound and Vision Review

heiney9

Originally posted by gregure
You can actually achieve stellar sound w/ a receiver that has multi-zone capabilities up the yin-yang, and that would be the new 5805 from Denon. The unit is a beast, but it offers up to 10 channels, 5 of which can be assigned to different rooms if only 5 are used in the main theater setup. It can also be rigged for up to 3 subs as well. It has endless possibilities, 170 watts per channel and sounds great. The inner structure is also very "separates" like in its construction, with all processing and amplification being separately housed and layered. Really a nice unit. It costs $6000, but it would be a great investment if multi-zoning is one of your primary concerns.
Read more about it here:
Denon Website
Recent Sound and Vision Review

While this unit will not approach the sound of $6000 worth of seperates, it certainly offers unparalleled flexibility. Probably more flexibility than you could achieve with a seperates system. There are some excellent pre/pro's out there, as always sound quality and features will increase as $$$ goes up as a general rule.

jdhdiggs

If you want to go true seperates with a lot of multizone capability for not a lot of dough, talk to the guys at HTD. The have a 12 channel amp that's decent and will be coming out with a pre amp that will handle all six channels independently and you can control for each room. This would run you about $1050 for the seperates plus ~$50-$65 per room for in room controllers. Just a thought...

Lsi9

The new AV123 Emotiva LMC-1 pre/pro has 2 zone capability with two 25 watt amps built in, for only 699$
it has 7.1, dts and all the rest
their matching 7 channel amp is going for 599$ & both look sweet

NCrewson

Thanks for all the help guys. Looks like its going to be at least the fall before I pull the trigger on this one. I just got a new toy in my HD PVR Sat receiver and my wife wants her new dining suite before I buy any more goodies.:mad:

janmike

You must be into some heavy duty gear when Rotel is considered "Entry Level."

del44

Michael, I actually own the Rotel 1068/1075. Don't get me wrong, I love my Rotel. The sound is fantastic. Unbelievable bang for the buck. However, there's not a whole lot of Pre/Amp HT combos that cost less than the Rotel 1068/1075.

marker

Originally posted by Lsi9
The new AV123 Emotiva LMC-1 pre/pro has 2 zone capability with two 25 watt amps built in, for only 699$
it has 7.1, dts and all the rest

Isn't that sort of defeating the whole purpose of having seperates though, having any power amps at all built into the pre-pro? Just as well have a receiver. Of course, these "seperates" are about as cheap as a receiver, so I guess you can't complain too much.

hamzahsh

What a waste that DENON 5805 is? I feel sorry for someone whose going to spend $6000.