been out of the game for a while, in need of a new receiver (1 Viewer)

Hey all. I haven't really looked at anything HT for about 2 years now since going to college. But now i'm gonna be living back home for the next little while. I just discovered this morning that the right channel on my sony receiver is shot. It plays muffled quiet sounds. I don't know if this happened recently or not but i just realized this morning when i put in a CD that it's shot.
Anywho. I'm lookin for a new receiver, in the $ 200-400 range. 6 or 7 channels is essential. Just powering some JBL bookshelves so i don't think that's too speaker demanding. Are denons still good these days? I remember the pioneer 1015 being a hot little item a couple years back aswell. how about the 1017 these days? Future Shop: Audio: Receivers & CD Players: Pioneer 7.1 Channel HDMI Receiver (VSX-1017TXV-K)
any good?

also, what's with the new HD audio stuff. I'll probably be hooking up HD dvd. will any of these cheap receivers that I'm looking at be able to take advantage of the new DD+ and whatnot audio tracks, or is that only for higher end stuff?

Only high-end receivers can decode the new HD formats internally through HDMI; but most cheaper (or older) HDMI-capable receivers can accept lossless PCM sent by the player, which gives you HD.

Even very old receivers can deal with HD through their analogue inputs (as long as the player has 5.1 (or 7.1) analogue outs.

If I were you I'd get a used higher-end model. A cheap new one won't sound as nice.

It's at the top end of your price range, though I think it can be had for under $400 if you look hard enough. I know accessories4less sells refurbs. I'm the proud new owner of it's big brother, the tx-sr805 and it's an outstanding machine. This receiver also decodes all of the new high-definition audio formats if you happen to have a player that can output the bitstream. I'm not sure you can do better for your money.

Amazon.com: Onkyo TX-SR605 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black): Electronics

I bought a 1017 a couple of weeks ago, which I'm very pleased with. It does not play or process audio from its HDMI inputs, which is not a problem for me, but is for many. My speakers are cheap and disparate, my room a little peculiar, but the 1017's MCACC auto-calibration copes really well, I think.

ok so I don't have an HD player, and probably won't for a while :frowning:
so i'm down to the Pioneer 1017 or the Yamaha 6060. Never had experience with either. how do you guys feel about them? It'll be paired with JBL Northridge speakers if that makes any difference...

i have the pioneer 1016 and love it, i'll be upgrading this fall to an elite just for the hd sound. The 1016 does everything most people need in their HT. I know this isn't the 1017, but they're very similar.

I am looking to upgrade my HK7200 to a HD receiver. Any bargains out there that are close to the power and quality of the HK7200?

I would look at the Yamaha RX-V661 (Same as HTR-6060), the Onkyo TX-SR605, and the Harman Kardon AVR-247. The AVR-247 is an outstanding deal because it has the same heft as the Pioneer VSX-1017, so you can expect to get about the same amount of power from it (regardless of specifications) and it has preouts (to add amplification if needed) has HDMI (and supports audio processing and scaling) and it looks pretty nice too IMO.

The Pioneer, as mentioned does not decode audio over HDMI nor does it scale. It is pretty powerful however.

The Onkyo TX-SR605 processes Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD bitstreams over HDMI, and is the least expensive receiver listed that can. However, most HD DVD and Blu-ray players can do this internally and send it out to a receiver as LPCM multichannel with the same fidelity. the Onkyo has no scaler.

The Yamaha can also process audio over HDMI, but no scaler. It also features preouts like the Pioneer and the H/K. It doesn't have the some heft as the Pioneer and H/K.

IMO, the Harman Kardon AVR-247 is a killer deal, and you can get a refurbished one for amazingly cheap.

Also consider the Marantz SR-4001, it is highly comparative to the H/K AVR-247 and is offered at Accessories4less at $299.99, it is a refurb however.

MARANTZ SR4001 Dolby Digital EX®/DTS ES® Surround Receiver | Accessories4less

Good luck.

thanks seth! I was actually looking at the Marantz 3001 the other day. what do you think of that one?
I probably should have mentioned earlier, I'm in canada. so buying things american online isn't going to fly, cause i'll get dinged with atleast 100 bucks in border fees and taxes etc.
also, are there any receivers that will upconvert dvd and pass through HD tv over component? My set up is as follows, dvd player over component. and HD tv box over component. I can't do the HD box over dvi or HDMI cause my tv provider doesn't do that apparently. I called them and they said they didn't activate the dvi output or some crap.
My Tv also does not have HDMI. Only components or DVI
Will most receivers take a SD and HD comonent source and pass them through as HDMI, and the I can just use a HDMI/DVI cable to my tv?? I can just leave everthing connected as I do now aswell. which is separate components to the tv...but i'm trying to streamline the system. I was also thinking of just getting a cheap 5.1 receiver like the HTR6030 and just waiting till I get and HD player anyways. cause by then the DD HD and DTS capable receivers should be a bit more mainstream and reasonable priced I'd imagine.
Do you think if I got something like the 6030 could I bridge the back speakers so I could atleast use the 7 speaker config I have now? they would both be playing the same thing. but it would still do better to fill up the back of my room. Would it be driving the amp unacceptable hard to wire 2 speakers into one amp? The speakers are all 8 ohm from what I can tell...my surrounds are just old speakers that were my dad's 20 years ago, they still work great though. The fronts sound stage is just JBL bookshelves. nothing serious.