Ref 30 vs. Anthem AXM-20 for movies only (1 Viewer)

[Adam Gregorich]

2 or 6 channel analog audio is not important to me. I would just be using it for movies. I realize based on comments here that the AVM-20 beats the B&K when it comes to 2 channel sound, but I haven't heard any thought on movies. Does anyone know what the AVM-20 $300.00 upgrade will add later this summer? My local dealer B&K dealer is doing 18 months no interest and giving me a competitive price, but I am going up to Canada this summer and could pick up a AVM-20 for cheaper that I could from my local Anthem dealer who has no special financing or any price breaks. The dilemmas we face in Home Theater.....

 

[Evan S]

Adam, if you are planning a trip to Canada and don't mind buying a very expensive unit so far from home, by all means get the Anthem. I have not heard the Ref 30, but the Anthem is all you can want for movies and more. The thing is crystal clear for movies..very good separation of sound and creates a very spacious soundstage for music. My motto is if something can reproduce music well (electronics or speakers), than it can produce HT well. Not all will agree with me on that credo, but in the case of the Anthem, it's the truth.
The only one who I know of on this board who has heard them both is John Morris and he said the Anthem is better than the B&K for BOTH music and movies.
The upgrade will bring DTS-ES and Dolby Pro Logic II. Further upgrades will be to add various sound processing modes (I have heard of a Music Logic), but I think those will be downloadable via internet. I have heard that there might be a THX Ultra 2 upgrade either after the DPL-II/DTS upgrade or one big all inclusive upgrade. The retail cost of the unit will go up by the price of the upgrade so if it's something you may not want or need, get the unit now and save yourself the added expense. You can always get it later.
The Anthem is the best buy I have ever made in HT.

 

[Jeffrey_S]

Adam,

I auditioned the B&K AVR307 in my home for a couple of weeks this past January. It's pre/pro section is supposed to be very similar to the Ref 30. By the way, it sounded very good and had great bass management capabilities. I have also just bought the Anthem AVM-20 and have just today, installed it into my system. I expect it to sound better than the B&K AVR307 but if you'd like, I'll report back to you in a couple of days. I haven't as yet watched my group of reference DVD's.

As far as getting your Anthem in Canada, just do some research first to make sure that you will still have a full warrantee doing it that way.


Jeff

 

[Adam Gregorich]

Jeff-
Thanks for the post. I look forward to hearing the results of your comparison. What AMP will you be using with the Anthem, and are you using 7.1?

 

[Jeffrey_S]

Adam,

I currently have a 5.1 setup. I'm using a Rotel 1095 amp.


Jeff

 

[Mifr44]

"The only one who I know of on this board who has heard them both is John Morris and he said the Anthem is better than the B&K for BOTH music and movies."

Add me to the list of people that has auditioned both in their own system at home. I chose the Anthem AVM-20 because our system sounded better with music than with the B&K Ref 30. I didn't test very much for movies (which was Adam's original request), but what little I did I thought that the dialogue was a bit clearer, voices had more body and a fuller sound, and of course the movie's soundtrack was better with the AVM-20.

Still, if it weren't for the AVM-20, I might have considered the Ref 30 if my audition of the Bryston SP1.7 had not been to my liking. The Ref 30 has much going for it and you would do well to audition it in your own system before deciding.

Michael