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New house pre-wired for 5.1 and two other rooms/Newb question (1 Viewer)

tcdawg

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Hello
New member and audio/vidio Newb.

I just moved into a new house, new to me at least, and it is pre-wired. Problem is, I don't know what equipment to get to make it work properly.

Living room is wired for 5.1

Kitchen has two speakers in the ceiling and the wires route back to the same location as the 5.1 wires. There is a volume knob in the kitchen for these speakers.

Outside patio also has two speakers on the exterior wall and the wires route back to the same location as the 5.1 wires. There is a volume knob for these speakers as well.

What is my equipment solution for this? I would like to be able to have 5.1 sound in the living room and also be able to hear it in the kitchen and patio.

Thanks for the help!
 

schan1269

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Straight to the good stuff...Most people asking go..."but I only want to spend $300".I'm a fan of Onkyo...and yes, very worthy and will easily do what you want.Another to consider(It Amazon still has any open box) is the Pioneer 1523.The 929 is last years, just like the 1523.If you need HDMI 2.0...Pioneer hasn't announced their new ones...and the 1030 is the "New 929".
 

FoxyMulder

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Might be worth waiting for the new ones, they will have Dolby Atmos and this means you are future proofed should you ever want to upgrade to it, of course HDMI 2.0 so that's future proofing for 4K (60hz ) and a good AV Receiver will last a very long time.
 

tcdawg

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schan1269 said:
Straight to the good stuff...Most people asking go..."but I only want to spend $300".I'm a fan of Onkyo...and yes, very worthy and will easily do what you want.Another to consider(It Amazon still has any open box) is the Pioneer 1523.The 929 is last years, just like the 1523.If you need HDMI 2.0...Pioneer hasn't announced their new ones...and the 1030 is the "New 929".
Amazon does still have the 1523...$999, same price as the Onkyo 929.
Is there any strong reason to go with one over the other?
In reading various reviews, it looks like Zones 2 and 3 are analog sound only. What exactly does that mean? I am connecting Zone's 2 and 3 to regular speakers.
Thanks for all the help!
 

schan1269

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Zone 2 on the 1523 is net/USB/ digital. Says so right on the Pioneer website. Zone 3 is analog.I could have sworn the 929 had(at least) digital and USB zone 2.I know the 737/838 etc do...but the new higher ups for Onkyo aren't out yet.If the 929 doesn't...Yamaha RX-A 10x0/30x0 do. (The x is because these have been out 4 years...3000/1030 etc)Denon 4520And the aforementioned 1523...along with the Elite versions...75/77/79 (Elite 75 is the 1523...and Elite can only be bought in a store)
 

tcdawg

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schan1269 said:
Zone 2 on the 1523 is net/USB/ digital. Says so right on the Pioneer website. Zone 3 is analog.I could have sworn the 929 had(at least) digital and USB zone 2.I know the 737/838 etc do...but the new higher ups for Onkyo aren't out yet.If the 929 doesn't...Yamaha RX-A 10x0/30x0 do. (The x is because these have been out 4 years...3000/1030 etc)Denon 4520And the aforementioned 1523...along with the Elite versions...75/77/79 (Elite 75 is the 1523...and Elite can only be bought in a store)
Thanks.

Is analog a bad thing for a 2nd or 3rd zone?
 

schan1269

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No. But what are the sources?Analog means red/white RCA. So anything you want used needs that connection. Ipod/phones can use Bluetooth Music Receivers. Which are handy anyway, if the AVR doesn't already have Bluetooth.(and even if said AVR has BT, doesn't mean BT is usuable on Zone 2/3)
 

tcdawg

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schan1269 said:
No. But what are the sources?Analog means red/white RCA.So anything you want used needs that connection. Ipod/phones can use Bluetooth Music Receivers.Which are handy anyway, if the AVR doesn't already have Bluetooth.(and even if said AVR has BT, doesn't mean BT is usuable on Zone 2/3)
I think I see what you are saying...the input for other zones may be analog, is that correct?

but for the 929 or the 1523 with 9.2 speaker outputs...I can run all 9 speakers at the same time all on one main zone correct? My Kitchen and patio speakers have volume knobs associated with them to turn down if not needed.
 

Clemdogsan

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Can I piggyback on this topic? Just for clarification, could one cover 3 rooms with a 7.1 system using just the one zone? More specifically, 3 speakers in the TV room, two in the dining room and two outdoor on the patio using speaker selectors with volume control for the dining and patio area? I have no need to have different content in different rooms, but do want to be able to turn off the speakers in the dining and patio areas when I'm watching a movie in the TV room.Clem
 

schan1269

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Technically yes.But it is not good on any amp(standalone or amps inside a receiver) to be "active" and be disconnected. Unless designed to be...(meaning an AVR with preouts).However, if you purchase a multi zone AVR that has 2 extra zones...then you can permanently run zone 2 and 3.That is why they are designed to do that. To avoid the issue of "active and disconnected".
 

Clemdogsan

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Thanks for the reply. The reason I want to avoid the 2nd or 3rd zone is that my wife will want to stream Pandora to the dining room and patio, and I understand that most AVR additional zones are analog only.
 

schan1269

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Do more research. Numerous AVR do Zone 2 digital. Then...if you have to, use a speaker switch box off Zone 2 for both rooms.Zone 3 digital(helps when you mention sources/content) is reserved for the sumo class AVR ($2500+).
 

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