Need some help with receiver recommendations... (1 Viewer)

[drdpm]

I am looking at getting a new receiver in the next few weeks and am wondering if you guys have some opinions. My current setup is Polk Audio Monitor 60 fronts, CS1 center, monitor 30 surrounds, and PSW505 subwoofer. I am upgrading from an old Onkyo receiver from a HTIB that doesn't do HD audio, HDMI switching, or even have a line out for a powered subwoofer! I would say my music/movies/gaming usage is about 20/50/30. I am not that interested in the networking audio feature some of the receivers out there have, as I plan to buy an apple tv soon. All of my sources are HDMI, so legacy connections aren't that important. The receivers that I am looking at are; Onkyo TX-NR609, TX-NR708 (currently can get for $299 or $349 refurbished) Denon AVR-1611, 1911, 1712 (can get all of them for around $300ish) Pioneer Elite VSX-30 or 31 (all around 300ish I've seen) Marantz SR5004 or SR5005 (can get for $329 or $399 refurb) What are your guy's thoughts on these? I am looking for 7.1 so that I can bi-amp my front speakers, how much difference does this really make? How much difference is there between Audyssey 2-eq and Mult-eq? Will these have enough power on their own, or should I be looking at receivers with pre-amp outputs to someday add an amp? Are there any others I should be looking at? Thanks for your time and thoughts!

 

[gene c]

Polk speakers are easy to drive so power isn't an issue either. The refurbed 708 for $349 is the best value by far but it probably has many features you would never use. And there have been some issues with refurbed Onkyo's lately so...The Marantz 5005 is the current refurbed favorite with a new one (3 year warranty) only about $75 more. Avoid the 5004. It had serious problems. The Elite 30 and 31 are basically a Pioneer vsx 920 and 1020. You can do better for that price. The 1611 is a great entry level receiver if it has all you want and need (but it's no 5005/708). MultiEq is much better then 2eq. Bi-amping with the surround channels doesn't really do anything because you're still running them from the same power supply, just different channels. You need seperate power supplies, like two stereo amplifiers, to have any real benefit. And no offense, but you would also need a higher level of speakers/equipment to actually hear any of that benefit. Don't spend a lot on cables/wires either. Get them from Partsexpress.com or Monoprice.com. I'd say the 708, 5005 or 1712. But buy from an authorized dealer.