[gcadidas13]

First, I mistyped the title due to my years of car audio fanaticism, it should be "Cheaper Receivers with Less Features"

Hey everyone.

I'm looking for a pretty cheap receiver that will meet all of the following:
- Woofer preout
- 80hz highpass capable
- Ability to turn off speakers (but still allow sound on headphones) via remote

The goal of purchasing this receiver is to be able to run a 2.1 setup immediately.
Currently, I have a receiver that fails the three above requisites.

As far as speakers go, I have the Adire Audio KIT51 which I put together, which has a 5" mid (Adire AV5) and 1" tweeter (Audax TM025F1) in 5 liters, having a frequency response of 80Hz-20kHz. I also have a 8" sub that I intend on buying a plate amplifier for (Image Dynamics IDQ8).

I have:
- Standard definition television (intend on buying a HDTV monitor within one year)
- a Wii with component outputs (480p)
- a computer with dual video output (DVI or VGA, intend on using HDTV monitor to watch ripped movies)
- a PS2 for playing some games and watching DVDs

I'm 20 and living in my parent's house. I don't intend on getting HDTV service or a HD DVD player or even upgrading past a 2.1 speaker setup for at least 2 or 3 years, after I move out.

So, should I buy what I need for now, which is a stereo receiver with woofer out, 80hz highpass capability, and the ability to turn off speakers (but still allow sound on headphones) via remote,

ORRR, should I buy for the future, and look for something with 5.1 or 7.1 outputs, HDMI, video switching, upconverting, etc etc?

If you advise getting a stereo receiver, could you help me out with a few suggestions?

I'm pretty sure that if I am going to get a HT receiver, it will be the Onkyo SR-674.

Thanks a lot,
Brian

[JohnRice]

What you are looking for is not an amp, but a receiver. Actually, pretty much any 5.1 or 7.1 surround receiver has what you ask for except the ability to (easily) turn off the speakers by remote. Typically, they automatically turn off the speakers when you plug in the headphones. Anyway, you can configure a 5.1 surround receiver for 2 channel, 2.1, 3.1 or 5.1, so it suits what you need now and also allows room to grow.

BTW, I recommend setting the sub crossover higher than 80Hz. I know the specs say your speakers are good down to 80, but if you set it to 100-120Hz you will be better off in the end. I also know you will probably not want to follow this advice, but it absolutely is the better way to go. Let the sub take that burdon away from the speakers. It will do a better job and those specs are always exaggerated.

[gcadidas13]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnRice

What you are looking for is not an amp, but a receiver.

I typed amplifier but meant receiver. My mistake, fixed in post above.

As far as turning the speakers on and off: the receiver I currently have has two buttons on the front, Speakers A and B, that I have to press every time I want to hear music on my headphones only. This occurs pretty frequently, as I play Counter-Strike using headphones from the headphone out of the receiver nearly every evening. And then, nearly every morning, my iPod with attached dock serves as my alarm clock. So, needless to say, I have to turn on and off the speakers by pressing the button on the face of the receiver every day, and my receiver being near the floor in a TV stand, it gets bothersome. Just wondered if that could be made more convenient by being on the remote instead.

[FeisalK]

Panasonic XR55, or XR57 (or a used XR25 off eBay would be really cheap but great sounding)

[gcadidas13]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnRice

What you are looking for is not an amp, but a receiver.

Oops, I meant to type receiver but typed amplifier instead. I fixed it above.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnRice

Typically, they automatically turn off the speakers when you plug in the headphones.

That's a bummer on the headphones thing - I use my receiver to hear my computer over headphones just about every evening (10 ft headphone cord with the receiver about 6 feet away). The current receiver (Sony STR-DE335) plays sound on the headphones if connected at all times.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnRice

BTW, I recommend setting the sub crossover higher than 80Hz. I know the specs say your speakers are good down to 80, but if you set it to 100-120Hz you will be better off in the end. I also know you will probably not want to follow this advice, but it absolutely is the better way to go. Let the sub take that burdon away from the speakers. It will do a better job and those specs are always exaggerated.

I did a little bit of RTA testing on the current speakers and they do indeed extend so the rolloff starts at 80Hz. Plus I only said 80Hz because that seems like the most commonly featured crossover point.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnRice

Actually, pretty much any 5.1 or 7.1 surround receiver has what you ask for except the ability to (easily) turn off the speakers by remote. Anyway, you can configure a 5.1 surround receiver for 2 channel, 2.1, 3.1 or 5.1, so it suits what you need now and also allows room to grow.

I'm looking at the Onkyo TX-SR674 as a possible purchase. It features upconversion from Composite, Svideo, or HDMI to a single HDMI, which would offer the convenience of not having to switch the TV input when I go from Wii to, in time, HD DVD (if I ever buy one) and HDTV broadcasts (if I ever get HDTV cable programming). Otherwise, a standard analog video cable will still have to be run and I will still need to change the input on the TV when I want to watch the computer or the PS2.

I suppose that's why I'm not buying into video switching so much... unless someone can explain more to me about the whole situation.

[LanceJ]

This only has one feature you're looking for - remote controled speaker selection - but *is* inexpensive: the Sherwood RX-4105. Circuit City has it on sale a lot, usually for around $90-$100. It's straightforward Spartan looks are not going to win a style contest, but it looks and feels decently built (buttons have a solid "snap" when you push them, volume knob doesn't wiggle when you grasp/turn it, interior component layout is very tidy, etc). I would definitely buy this way before Sony's own stereo receiver.

The only 2.0 receiver I know with a full bass management system i.e. with crossovers for the sub AND the satellites is the Outlaw Audio RR2150 (and fortunately for users of the vinyl and sacd/dvd-a formats, it's an ANALOG b.m. system). But it costs $600. Though there are many 2.0 receivers with sub outputs now, except that they aren't filtered.

So.................

I know this will sound like audio heresy but you can run your Adires directly from the receiver's speaker outputs i.e. full range and also connect a sub's high level inputs to those same outputs. If the Adires are ported they will naturally have a fast rolloff below their specified bass cutoff. So if the sub's crossover is set for 80Hz, there should be little if any audible cancellation (i.e. phase problems) occuring between the three speakers.......and heck this still happens to an extent with electronically bass-managed systems since their crossover slopes also overlap one another! And even if the Adire's are sealed which means a less steep rolloff, I still wouldn't worry about the phase issue.

And unless those little Adires are incredibly inefficient I'll bet even the Sherwood would have no problem driving them to stupidly loud levels* though you would have to be careful not to overdrive them since they are receiving a fullrange signal.

* my trusty Pioneer SX-6 receiver with 45watts/channel (into 8 ohms with .01% THD, 20-20kHz) did the same thing in the 80s with my first set of speakers, a pair of 3-way Realistic kit speakers with a 12" woofer, 5" midrange and 1" soft dome tweeter.

[gcadidas13]

LanceJ: Thanks a lot for the suggestion and your insight on the information of rolloff and etc, but I got into contact with a good friend of mine who knew a lot more about home audio than me. I really didn't know anything of home audio because I am and always have been a car audio fanatic, and I never had any contact with audio of more than one channel. Until today when I talked to him I didn't know how 5.1 or 7.1 channel sound is transmitted, and I didn't know anything about SPDIF (optical or coaxial).

Turns out that I have a S-Video connector for my PS2, and the PS2 also has an optical SPDIF out. The computer has a Coaxial SPDIF out, and when I get a HDTV monitor I have a second VGA port to run a rather lengthy VGA cable. The Wii has component video and coaxial audio.

All of this is upconvertable to a single HDMI cable with the Onkyo TX-SR674, and leaves much room for improvement in the future when I buy into HD DVD and HD Cable Programming and 5.1 channel sound. Plus, it has the crossovers I need.

Therefore, I have decided to go with the Onkyo TX-SR674. Tomorrow I'm going to call up all the local home audio stores and small businesses, and then on Tuesday I'm going to go to each one using a clever purchasing strategy:

Step 1. Go to a store
Step 2. Get a price, name of representative offering said price, item condition (NEW), and date.
Step 3. Go to another store
Step 4. Show price information from previous store, asking if they can beat previous store's price
Step 5. Repeat steps 2-4 until step 4 is failed by all but one store
Step 6. Purchase!

Thanks for the help, and pardon my lack of knowledge of SPDIF and even my own equipment.

Brian

[JohnRice]

Brian, that sounds like a good wa to go. FWIW, on the issue of crossover, despite all the spec arguments to the contrary, it really is best to use the sub crossover in the receiver and set it just a bit higher than the minimum usable frequency on the speakers. The end result is, the sub is more capable of reproducing these frequencies than your speakers. Don't think of it so much as not using the speakers to their full potential as not using the sub to its full potential. Plus, relieving the speakers of those lowest frequencies has many benefits in overall sound quality. 100Hz is a good place to set.