$500 receiver for newb

tstrenuous10 · 09-12-2006, 07:08 PM

looking to put together a full setup piece by piece. Dont really know much about brands besides what is talked about here, onkyo, denon, yamaha and pioneer elite. Can anyone suggest a good receiver for me to start off with and use for about 7 years? I will probably be moving into a bigger place in the next 4 years but i think the biggest room my audio will be in is 2000 ft^2. It will be 50/50 music movies and 600 bucks might be possible if its truly worth it.

I was thinking on 5.1 for a while and moving on to 6 or 7.1 later on if possible with the receiver. I really like it to put out some sound. think Ice Age intro, Top Gun or Days of Thunder for surround. The only real home audio store around here is best buy.

also, if people can explain what each feature truly is that would help so i can look at one if i see it on sale.

lastly, I would like to be able to hook up high def for tv, dvd player, playstation video camera. if possible i would also like to be able to hook up a computer or ipod.

Alon Goldberg · 09-12-2006, 09:35 PM

Before selecting a receiver please let us know what speakers you own. In any case, here are some receivers I would consider in your budget:

Pioneer Elite VSX-80TXV
Yamaha RX-V1600 (if you're willing to stretch your budget a bit)

The Denon AVR-2106 and Marantz SR-4001 may also be worth considering, though they offer less video features than the Yamaha or Pioneer models. Another excellent receiver might be the Yamaha RX-V659, though it doesn't offer HDMI.

If you're looking to future proof yourself for 5 years I would recommend a 7.1 receiver with HDMI switching, 1080p passthrough, iPod integration, XM or XM-HD Radio.

These receivers wouldn't suit a 2000 sqft room (40x50), you would need to increase your budget to $1,000-$1,500 in that case.

Seth=L · 09-12-2006, 09:43 PM

I would recomend, to future proof for the next 5-7 years, would be wait untill HDMI 1.3 hits the shelves along with Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby Digital TrueHD, and DTS-HD become mainstays in the audio world. It should take, I hope no less than a year hopefully the begining of '07, to get these new formats into receivers and processors. HD-DVD and Blu-Ray mark the eve of the coming of these new higher bit-rate and bit-to-bit transfer audiotracks.

I would also like to know what kind of receiver you currently have to see if you can hold out just a bit longer.

tstrenuous10 · 09-13-2006, 11:42 AM

i looked at that pioneer earlier and the yamaha i believe is around 700 and i thought about that.

i have read mixed reviews about the 1.3 coming out. some say stick with it others say forget about it. i WOULD wait for everything else to come out though. if im going to wait to save up the extra 100 or so bucks then i might as well get as many reccomendations or suggestions as possible. what kinds of features should i look for? is there a link i havent found that explains what each is used for? i dont know how many different hookups i will need and what each is for.

Luis Gabriel Gerena · 09-13-2006, 01:23 PM

I am getting a Harman Kardon avr-635 after a longgggg research. no hdmi though but I dont need it.

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JGiampa · 09-14-2006, 12:45 AM

on a side note...

you might be the first person ever to have a 2000 square foot living room and only want to pay 500 for a receiver.

DorianBryant · 09-14-2006, 05:19 AM

There is no future proofing! Even when HDMI 1.3 comes out it is not like this will be the standard for 5 years. At the current rate of change it will be the standard for 12-18 months.

Get a decent receiver now and enjoy it.

Arthur S · 09-14-2006, 12:35 PM

For about $500, the Pioneer 1016 is well regarded.

tstrenuous10 · 09-19-2006, 10:55 AM

never said i have a 2000 ft^2 room. said thats the largest it would be in. i would like to have hdmi because im planning on getting a playstation 3 along with an hdtv by next christmas and want to be able to use everything i buy. thanks for some suggestions. ill have to look into these over the weekend. i just really know nothing about some of the brands and harmon kardar seems to be popular among most people here next is pioneer elite.

Arthur S · 09-19-2006, 05:10 PM

Yes, however the Pioneer 1016 is $400 from Amazon.com

tstrenuous10 · 09-20-2006, 10:18 AM

what should i look for as far as connections? how many of each one is/are reccomended. obviously want to be able to hook up HD but i just dont know much about the connections. porbably have tv, playstation, ipod, xm (until sirius comes to receivers), sattelite or cable, video camera, vcr (never know when you will get a vhs) dvd player and if possible a computer (laptop or desktop)

Alon Goldberg · 09-20-2006, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tstrenuous10

what should i look for as far as connections? how many of each one is/are reccomended. obviously want to be able to hook up HD but i just dont know much about the connections. porbably have tv, playstation, ipod, xm (until sirius comes to receivers), sattelite or cable, video camera, vcr (never know when you will get a vhs) dvd player and if possible a computer (laptop or desktop)

Hi Scott - here is how I would cable you setup. Make sure to purchase a Universal Remote, you're going to need one!

1. Cable Box -> HDTV (or connect via receiver), HDMI
2. Cable Box -> Receiver, Digital Coax or Optical Audio
3. DVD Player -> TV (or connect via receiver), HDMI
4. DVD Player -> Reciever, Digital Coax or Optical Audio
5. Computer -> TV, DVI or D-Sub (15-pin)
6. Video Camera -> Receiver, Composite Cable
7. iPod -> Receiver, RCA Audio
8. XM -> Receiver, Antenna
9. Playstation -> Receiver, -- is this PS2 or PS3?
10. Receiver -> TV, HDMI

The only tricky one is the VCR - there are multiple ways to connect this. Are you looking to record digital channels? Or do you prefer to record an analog channel, while having the ability to record another digital channel? Are you looking for PIP functionality?