dreday

What do you guys look for in a receiver?

Hey I'm new to the audio portion of the home theater. I know video pretty well, but as far as sound go's I am lost. What do you look for besides obivous components such as hdmi or connections?

LanceJ

Re: What do you guys look for in a receiver?

(not in any particular order)

* Features that are truly useful: multiroom capability; different channel level setting capability for specific input sources or soundfields, displays that can be *completely* turned off and not just dimmed, etc.

Some features that aren't useful to me: wads of DSP modes, which are usually barely different from each other or sound gimmicky/unrealistic; HDMI capability, which is a total joke right now and AFAIK most receivers can't even use the audio portion of that connection (so you'll still need a separate audio cable); and any sort of THX certification.

* A good solid amplifier section, in whatever price range you're looking at: if the wattage spec uses a 1% THD rating along with a 40Hz-20kHz or just a single 1kHz frequency range, start getting suspicious of its REAL capabilities.

* a well designed remote: crappy remotes with tiny buttons w/dimly printed labels or volume buttons buried in the middle of the remote or next to the power/function buttons drive me up the wall.

* Build quality: impressive specs mean squat if the thing keeps breaking down all the time or knobs fall off.

* Ergonomics: if it's difficult to use, it had better sound reeeeeally good, otherwise forget it. Those little things that seem trivial on the showroom floor can turn into major hairpullers when used on a day-to-day basis. And most receivers nowadays all sound very good so this aspect can make or break a decision for me.

John Garcia

Re: What do you guys look for in a receiver?

THX cert doesn't mean it IS better than another similar receiver, however given the choice of two that are very similar, I'll take the one that has it over one that doesn't. I never use the processing, but the amp sections tend to be sufficiently stout due to the cert. Not a feature I look for either, but if it has it, it doesn't hurt anything.

I agree on most of the other stuff. I MUST have a display that can be completely turned off and a solid remote (or plan on a good universal). How they rate the amp is always a good indicator of how good it is.

What it comes down to for me is after I've compared specs, is to go listen to them and use them to get an idea if it is what I really want. I spent a bundle on my current receiver and I have not had any reason to change it in years, so in reality, it was cheaper to just get a solid receiver that would meet my needs for longer.

"The trouble with the world is not that people know too little, but that they know so many things that ain't so." - Mark Twain

HT: Marantz SR-8300, MA500 monoblocks x 2, 5X GR Research A/V-2s, Adire Audio Tempest sub, Denon 2900, Oppo 980H, Toshiba HD-A2, RC2000MkII remote, Panamax 5100, Panamax Max2 sub, Slim PS2, PS3 60G + 320G USB

Bedroom: Marantz PM-7200 Integrated, GR Research A/V-1s, Sony 222ES SACD, RC3200 remote, Panamax M8EX

Audio: Audioquest * Video: Bluejeans

My DVDs My HT

ChrisWiggles

Re: What do you guys look for in a receiver?

I would not agree with this.

Please see my: Advanced Guide to Source Options

mackie

Re: What do you guys look for in a receiver?

I tend to feel that the main difference in receivers in similar price ranges are the features. Most newer receivers are basically sonically transparent, so I focus on the features that I like the most. That said, I would be careful not to pair a lower priced receiver with a hard load such as a martin logans or theils, and I wouldn't use a lower end receiver to power tower speakers full range without a sub.

My favorites are Yamaha and Denon.

My .02

JeremyErwin

Re: What do you guys look for in a receiver?

Two nice features are:
4-ohm capability (or, as a half measure, "high current") , so you can use any speaker.
pre-outs, so you can add an amplifier. (see above)

Seth=L

Re: What do you guys look for in a receiver?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChrisWiggles I would not agree with this.

That really isn't a rebuttal.

JeremyErwin

Re: What do you guys look for in a receiver?

If the only thing THX adds is cost, then, well...

Seth=L

Re: What do you guys look for in a receiver?

Look for power ratings like this one: 90 watts x 7 @ 8ohms, all channels driven, (20hz-20khz @ 0.07THD). You won't likely see "all channels driven" in many receivers power ratings.

Look to be sure it has Dolby Digital EX, DTS-ES, and DTS 96/24. Also look for 192/24 bit DACs.

Preouts, as mentioned before, are quite handy for future amplifier upgrades.

Universal remote with macrofunctions are nice, as well as Zone 2.

Things to consider with most receivers: Weight, Power consumption, discrete amplifier stage, and Capacitor size (for the Tech minded) Capacitors are round shaped items in the interior of the receiver likely to be visible through the ventilation. If those are as big a pill bottles or bigger then that is good.

A receiver with some oomph will likely weigh over 30 lbs. and have a power consumption of around 5 amps or around 500-600 watts (this will be posted on the rear of the receiver were it says power consumption and will be accompanied by voltage and 60hz.