Another "Oldies But Goodies" Receiver Thread... (1 Viewer)

[Adam Scott]

Was just wondering, based on an older thread I had read in here, how many of you home theater enthusiasts running receivers

are running older models that are still serving you quite well? For me personally, I am running an Onkyo TX-SR600, rated at only 80 watts x 6 at 8ohms, and Im in a huge media room for my home theater, and the unit has been serving me absolutely fine for years now; since the release of this amp, Onkyo has released successive replacement models for the 600, and still, this unit does everything I need....DTS, DTS ES, DD EX, Pro Logic II....and it shakes the foundations of the listening room pretty good during loud action DVDs that were authored well.

How about you guys? Any older gear in your rack like my '600 thats a good few years old but you have not replaced yet because it has simply been unnecessary? Do we necessarily have to get rid of gear when other models replace our units or just because they're a few years old?

After this, I'll have some "power" and volume questions for fellow Onkyo owners.

 

[Angelo_Petralba]

Sony STRDA5ES...Still running strong after all these years....The only reason I would replace this unit is for the Up-Conversion models like the RX-V2600 From Yammy...

No Issues wahtsoever on this thing.

 

[mylan]

Yamaha RXV-2092, still going after eight years. I almost retired it to the greatroom system but had bought some other gear and really, it does what I need for it to do for now. It does not, however, have test tones for sub calibration or DTS, or even support for DVD-audio/SACD, minor quibbles,all of it.

 

[Adam Scott]

Thanks alot for your thoughts Angelo! They are much appreciated!

How old is that Sony? Im not familar with the unit, probably because I dont personally care for Sony gear that's non-ES badged; obviously, yours IS ES badged! How many years have you been running it as the heart of your system? Does it have enough power for you?

 

[Adam Scott]

Hey Mylan,

Thanks for your thoughts! Wow, eight years huh? Now that's a strong receiver! Are you planning on keeping it for awhile even without those features you mentioned? How's the power for you, alright?

 

[mylan]

Adam, it is not so much want to keep it at this point, it is a have to. I need to finish paying for the video gear I bought and just blew through some cash getting my whole house audio system up and running so I am tapped out at this point. I had purchased a Denon 3806 to replace the Yammy and was going to use the 2092 to power the whole house set-up but changed my mind when I found that the power would be split between four pairs of speakers so I went in a new direction.
The Yamaha still sounds good and I guess "blissfully unaware" is how I would describe not having heard any of these new formats, DTS, Pro Logic II, etc. I think my next upgrade is going to be a sub though. I guess i'll see if I can break some kind of record of longevity with that Yamaha!

 

[DonnyD]

Another great thread for those of us who have resisted the upgrade bug over the years and are still hanging on to an old receiver that fulfills our ht needs. Sometimes, when you hang out in several other forums, as well as this one, there are those who make you feel that your equipment is "ancient", so you never mention that you still use it.
I have a friend who still has my old Yammy 2095, and another who still has a RXV-1000 I set up for him several years ago. They are both happy as they can be with their old stuff and I don't see them changing out for anything less than a lightning strike!!!!
Glad to see a thread that, again, allows some of us to "admit" we've got old stuff , nevertheless still enjoying it.

 

[Angelo_Petralba]

I believe these units were available in early 2000 (2001 Maybe)..I got mine in 2002 and paired it with a parasound 855a (5 Channel amp) and no issues whatsoever...It switches fine, no delayed voices and works great for DVD-A using direct outputs.

Happy ES Owner here.

Angelo

 

[Adam Scott]

I hear what you're saying about "needing" to keep the receiver; same situation with me and my Onkyo TX-SR600; finances have been awfully, awfully tight recently and with my dad very ill in the hospital for almost nine months, I dont know whats gonna be with the entertainment system...I cant really afford a monster multi-channel power amp and separate pre amp, which is what I really want, or a much higher powered receiver from Onkyo (which Im a fan of), but this 'SR600 seems to have enough power for now and decodes all I need it to for my DVD collection -- DTS, DTS ES, etc.

You never heard DTS, did I understand you right? And you dont have a sub in your system? You're missing out on a GREAT deal of home theater excitement!

 

[Adam Scott]

Oh, so you're using the receiver as a pre amp only and letting your Parasound do the muscle?

 

[MarkO]

Im still using a haman kardon signature 2.0 and 2.1 combo. Bought them in 2000. http://www.audioimports.com/reviews/rev_dec_98_2.html I have the dts version.

 

[Adam Scott]

Thanks for your thoughts, Mark!

 

[Dave Simpson]

Yamaha 795a, purchased Oct 99, here. Have used it with, and without, outboard amps (currently without). It's been a real champ the whole time I've owned it, other than the motor-driven volume knob sticking (and eventually unsticking itself) from time to time. I've also got a Yamaha 1500 going un-used at this time (moved, and haven't set up a dedicated movie room yet). I decided to use the 795a instead of the 1500 simply for the sake of simplicity of use (I'm running a routine 5.1 config in my new house). The room I'm in now is too small to make use of 7.1, so all I really miss about the 1500 is PLII for TV watching. DD and DTS decoding and the movie modes on the 795 are as awesome as ever!
However, I think I really need to take issue with what is being considered "old" in this thread. I definitely don't consider my Yamaha old. It's been supplanted in the model line-up many times, and the newer units decode everything under the sun, but my idea of an old receiver is the vintage stuff. I've got two mighty Marantz receivers (see my avatar) each about 29 years old, and two Pioneer receivers only a couple years newer. To my ears, nothing beats the sound of the Marantz receivers for straight two-channel, and I'm stickin' with 'em.

Quote: "Wow, eight years huh? Now that's a strong receiver!"

This is exactly what I'm referring to. To my mind, there's nothing strong about a receiver doing what it's supposed to do (not for nothing did the 2092 have a roughly $1K price-tag; kindly correct me if I've got this all wrong). I think some of us are waaay too easy on the manufacturers. For the amount of dough we spend on some of these receivers, they sure as hell better last a lot longer than 8 years. I truly think this constant up-grading, this silly keep-ahead-of-the-Joneses sensibility, is just playing into the manufacturer's hands, and encourages them to build a less than robust product ("the obsolescence goes in, before the name goes on!") and I can't abide the idea of rewarding a particular brand a second sale if the first unit fails after only a couple years. Lastly, it's surely beyond me why anybody would spend a significant amount of change on a new receiver over say, the next ten or twelve months, given that the HDMI spec has been up-graded and that receivers that will decode DD+, DD True HD and DTS-HD have yet to appear on the market.
My apologies for the rant, and apologies also if I've offended anyone. In the end, though, it's obvious that we all agree that there are just as many thrills to be had with a receiver that wasn't purchased within the last year. Cheers, guys.

DS.

 

[Alan M]

In my bedroom setup,I'm still using an old sony str-d590.Matrix surround at its best.No dd,no dts,no 5 channels of anything.

4 channels of sound matrixed into,sorta,maybe,almost surround.Its still pumping out sound with no equipment failures to date.I think I bought it when Abe Lincoln was a kid and selling them door to door

 

[Adam Scott]

"However, I think I really need to take issue with what is being considered "old" in this thread. I definitely don't consider my Yamaha old. It's been supplanted in the model line-up many times, and the newer units decode everything under the sun, but my idea of an old receiver is the vintage stuff. I've got two mighty Marantz receivers (see my avatar) each about 29 years old, and two Pioneer receivers only a couple years newer. To my ears, nothing beats the sound of the Marantz receivers for straight two-channel, and I'm stickin' with 'em."

I understand your point here, totally, but perhaps I should have made the topic a bit clearer; I did not mean "vintage" equipment in the line of your Marantz, I meant modern-day surround decoding gear, in the spirit of home theater and this site, that is perhaps a few years old but is considered "ancient" by fanatics that jump down your throat on other sites (as someone else on here mentioned) when you tell them what model you have: God forbid I mention I have an Onkyo TX-SR600; the flaming wars begin: Onkyo has replaced that model succinctly a few times over already, and owners like me are forced to feel like we're running something obsolete, worthless, powerless, etc. The core issue of this thread was to ask other members about their receivers that may be a few years dated, but whose models may have been replaced by newer ones, yet THEIR receivers are still doing what they need albeit a few years old.

"Quote: "Wow, eight years huh? Now that's a strong receiver!"

"This is exactly what I'm referring to. To my mind, there's nothing strong about a receiver doing what it's supposed to do"

Okay, I see your point; but my reaction to this gentleman was simply based on a desire to explain that I felt his receiver was doing pretty good considering today everything seems mass marketed and not designed to last very long, which leads me to this:

"I think some of us are waaay too easy on the manufacturers. For the amount of dough we spend on some of these receivers, they sure as hell better last a lot longer than 8 years."

That was my point/issue, not so clearly unfortunately, that just because we are spending $500-plus on a decent-leveled receiver doesn't mean the quality will necessarily be there, and it seemed surprising that other folks had gear that was still running good for all these years -- but I understand where you are coming from with your point about the quality of these receivers. I guess what I was getting at with the point of this thread was that I was wondering if other folks, like me with my TX-SR600, were still using gear even a few years old that may have been replaced by other models already, and are still happy with the performance; not so much asking about vintage stuff like the Marantz models you mentioned.

"I truly think this constant up-grading, this silly keep-ahead-of-the-Joneses sensibility, is just playing into the manufacturer's hands, and encourages them to build a less than robust product ("the obsolescence goes in, before the name goes on!") and I can't abide the idea of rewarding a particular brand a second sale if the first unit fails after only a couple years."

Well, its not so much of "keeping ahead of the Joneses," but more of looking through a catalog or going to a store and seeing the latest receiver that replaced your model and thinking "Shit....does this thing outperform mine? Is the increase in power justifiable in terms of making my system more powerful or robust?" etc.

"Lastly, it's surely beyond me why anybody would spend a significant amount of change on a new receiver over say, the next ten or twelve months, given that the HDMI spec has been up-graded and that receivers that will decode DD+, DD True HD and DTS-HD have yet to appear on the market."

Indeed; my next purchase will surely be to a receiver/processor that decodes the new HD formats (but I wonder how good the internal processing of these new formats are handled by the HD DVD and Blu ray players now through analog connections to our current receivers...), but to answer your "beyond me" question, I think it is more a matter of perhaps extra power and muscle that would make someone upgrade to a new receiver over these next months; in reality, you are probably correct in that why spend now when the new decoding models are surely on their way?

"My apologies for the rant, and apologies also if I've offended anyone."

No offense taken, really, I was just surprised that you cited my quote as "this is what Im talking about...." but I understood your point regarding that we give the manufacturers too much leadway with what they should be turning out; my point, again, to that gentleman I replied to regarding his Sony, was that "good for him" and "that's great" that his receiver is giving him that kind of performance all these years.

"In the end, though, it's obvious that we all agree that there are just as many thrills to be had with a receiver that wasn't purchased within the last year. Cheers, guys"

I guess this is getting back to the essence of this thread and it's a good point; can we all agree that because we have receivers that were not purchased within the last year it does not mean our home theaters are obsolete?

 

[Adam Scott]

Thanks for your thoughts, Alan. What are you running for serious DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 decoding in a main room, anything?

 

[mylan]

Yes Adam, I do have a sub, a Velodyne HGS 10 servo that was pretty decent in my old home but I need something larger for my new, dedicated space. I have heard DTS but it has been awhile.
Dave, the retail price of the RXV-2092 was $1,600 but I got a floor model for $1,200. it amazes me what you can get for half that now. That thing about waiting for the new formats was in the back of my mind when I returned the Denon but we must all pull the trigger at some point, mine just wasn't now.

 

[Adam Scott]

"Yes Adam, I do have a sub, a Velodyne HGS 10 servo that was pretty decent in my old home but I need something larger for my new, dedicated space. I have heard DTS but it has been awhile."

When you get a chance, audition DTS and definitely include it in future plans for your HT in terms of processing....it's a world of difference on some DVD titles. If you would like, I can prepare a list of standout titles for you when you are ready...

 

[mylan]

Excellent, I look forward to it!

 

[Dave Simpson]

Quote: "I did not mean "vintage" equipment in the line of your Marantz, I meant modern-day surround decoding gear, in the spirit of home theater and this site"

Adam,

Perhaps it is I who should have been more clear. I gathered your point from the get-go; I invoked my vintage units simply to illustrate that some of this gear can, and ought to, last a considerable period of time, as we might rightly expect.

Quote: "fanatics that jump down your throat on other sites when you tell them what model you have: God forbid I mention I have an Onkyo TX-SR600; the flaming wars begin"

Gotta say I've precious little time for such elitists. Talk about sucking the fun right out of an otherwise blast of a hobby!! They can have their new receiver/pre-pro/doo-dad. I'll keep the $1K in my pocket, and enjoy what I've got. The PQ/AQ of The Island knocked me out last night (and the movie itself was less poor than I'd been led to believe).

Quote: "...whose models may have been replaced by newer ones, yet THEIR receivers are still doing what they need albeit a few years old. "

I think we're all in agreement on this.

Quote: "Well, its not so much of "keeping ahead of the Joneses"

I suppose I'm a good deal more cynical than you may be Adam, but I think, for some, it is. See the elitists referenced above. The more sensible among us, I like to think, are satisfied with the size and performance of their equipment.

Quote: "No offense taken"

Thanks, Adam.

Quote: "can we all agree that because we have receivers that were not purchased within the last year it does not mean our home theaters are obsolete?"

We can, and we do. The proof of the suitability of the gear lies in the experience.

Quote: "Dave, the retail price of the RXV-2092 was $1,600 but I got a floor model for $1,200. it amazes me what you can get for half that now."

Thanks for the correction, Mylan. And it amazes me no less.

Quote: "but we must all pull the trigger at some point"

Despite my remarks, I whole-heartedly agree with this. It's an issue of priority, and to each his own. One can enjoy it today, and possibly suffer buyer's remorse down the road, or one can wait. And still possibly suffer buyer's remorse down the road. What a past-time! Cheers, guys.

DS.