ideas for new receiver

[david l]

I have been doing a lot of reading around the forums lately since the wife has given me the ok to spend some dough on the 13x15 media room; I just purchased a infinity beta 360 and 2 beta 20s to use as L/C/R, I need a receiver to power them,

sources are oppo 971, htpc and dishnetwork sat box, I have a 720p tv, I probably won't be getting hddvd or bluray anytime soon so my primary concern is dd/dts movies, I don't really need upscaling

should I buy a refurb marantz 7001 for about 650 shipped or should I get a refurb onk 705 or would a 605 be enough, I can also get denon at cost...or maybe even a refurb marantz 7500 for 460 (there are some real deals out there if you look)

budget is 600 or less but could have some wiggle room if the deal was right

[brent_s]

The Onkyo's seem to be the deal to beat right now, if you want to future proof for HD-DVD/BluRay. I would at least go for the 705 for the extra DSP processing and full preamp outputs.

If you don't mind the silver finish, Circuit City currently has the Onkyo 805 for $699...that's NIB for the refurb price from Accessories4Less and ShopOnkyo, when they have them. 805 gets you a little more power over the 705 (THX Ultra vs. Select) and Burr-Brown DACs.

-Brent

[david l]

there are too many good choices in this price range, I have several friends who are pro installers and they seem to prefer the marantz stuff, but I think the 705 is the the reciever to beat in this price range

[Sonnie]

I agree... it's hard to beat the features the Onkyo 705 can offer for the price. I suspect there would be very little difference in sound quality. Vann's and OneCall have the 705 for $649.

[MrPorterhouse]

Chalk up another vote for the Onkyo 705. Even if you don't plan on using the features now, the 705 has Pre-outs that allow you to add external amps later on, if desired. The 605 doesn't have these. The 705 allows you to grow at your own pace or just stay where you are enjoying that sweet sweet sound.

[david l]

has anyone here had any experience with emotiva products they have their lp1 amp for 450 gets pretty rave reviews, but then I would have to find something to use as a cheap pre/pro, my reciever doesn't have preouts....hmmm, I could take it apart and find the signal stuff though..

[Sonnie]

If you had speakers that presented a difficult load for your receiver, I would consider a separate amp, but those Infinity speakers will not really benefit from a separate amp. Plus there is no such thing as a cheap prepro unless you buy a receiver and use it as a prepro, but that would cost more than buying the right receiver to begin with.

[david l]

I have a couple of friends in the home theater industry that highly recommend marantz, and can get me a smoking deal on a 5002 or 7002 so I am thinking that may be the route I go, it seems to me that the marantz recievers are a little higher end then the onkyo stuff. I was wondering if anyone here uses marantz stuff as there are not a lot of posts about it

[tonyvdb]

Marantz has some great receivers but the Onkyo has better features and more options plus I guarantee that the Onkyo is on par if not better than the Marantz in that price range. I have the Onkyo 805 and for the price you cant do better. For a little more ($100) you should go with the 805 if you can.

[mazersteven]

David,

Are you from Houston?

Is this you?

http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/member.php?u=13082

[jerome]

The new generation of receivers from Onkyo, Yamaha and Pioneer are excellent. Only minor differences for a standard user and they all sound neutral. In my opinion, their technical features and sound quality is better than what other brands can offer for the same prices (Marantz, H/K and Denon included).

For 2-channel listening then the Onkyo receivers are the best in their price range.

If you're only interested in watching movies (DD/DTS/HD) then I would consider (in any particular order) the Onkyo 705/805, Yamaha RX-V1800 and the Pioneer LX50/60. All of these are really close to each other. I choose the Yamaha RX-V1800 over the rest because of the better price I could get.

Depending on what you can find in the US, you might get a better deal on these than we have in Europe. But you really can't go wrong with Onkyo, Yamaha or Pioneer.

[david l]

Thanks for the input, I have not had this much difficulty deciding what to purchase in a long time. There is quite a few good products in this price range, and what makes it even more difficult is that for a 100$ more there are some really nice products.

Mazer, I am from Lubbock

[Luclambert]

If you're willing to wait 5 to 6 months, I think that would be your best bet. This year, we will see a change in A/V receivers because they will incorporate in their mid value products all the bells and whistle that we find in the higher end ones. Don't take my word for it, just look at the (as example) announced Pioneer VSX-1018TXH-K. It has everything you might want plus is ready for the coming years. The beauty is that the msrp is $599.00 :raped:

http://www.reuters.com/article/press...008+BW20080106

With Pioneer pulling this out of their hat, you can be sure that the other big names will follow if they didn't already.

[david l]

I would wait, but I have the wife on board for spending the money now, so it is one of those get while the getting is good situations and my current reciever is about 50 watts a channel (rated) which is way underpowering the speakers I bought, my deal on the marantz stuff won't last forever either, I can get the 5002 for 325 and the 7002 for about 700, which is quite a deal so I need to make up my mind...

[tonyvdb]

Luclambert wrote:

This year, we will see a change in A/V receivers because they will incorporate in their mid value products all the bells and whistle that we find in the higher end ones.

Very true, You already see this in the new receivers by Onkyo and Denon as they are all firmware upgradeable so just like the HD and BluRay players now you will just upgrade the firmware as new features are available.

[Luclambert]

For music, go with the Marantz but for home theater go Onkyo. The choice is still yours

[jerome]

I would not be so sure in that choice Luc.

First, it's all a matter of personal taste. Some people like the sound from one type of receiver. The new receivers from Onkyo are quite neutral and sound very balanced, even in a 2-channel system on a budget. They have really good DACs, probably better than the older Marantz have.

I have nothing for or against Marantz and Onkyo (I don't own anything from them). But the Onkyo receivers I have heard sounded much better than I expected. If I were you David, I would go for a new receiver. 705 or an even better model from Onkyo is a really good choice.

[david l]

I pulled the trigger on a Marantz 5002 today...paid 375..shipped and tax...It took me a while to decide what to get...I know I got a good deal, hopefully it will be as good as everyone says it is...(I have a couple of installer friends who highly recommend marantz)

(now moving on to the IB sub forum......that could be next....told the wife for a couple hundred bucks I could get
"rid" of the sub....)