Newbie, Quick Question on Entry-level receiver. (1 Viewer)

[OscarAl]

I've been looking at the pioneer 1015 and the onkyo 603. I'm coming out of a onkyo htib 570, yeah i know. I want to keep my speakers and upgrade to one of these receivers. Who can convince me to get one or the other. I'm not really comfortable with the volume situation people dislike in the pioneer. Does the onkyo have this problem. I really cant tell with the -20, to -40 volume level. Not sure what that means, but I tried the onkyo 602 in a circuit city and it sounded louder and clearer than a hk 635 they had nearby. So anyway which one would anyone recommend?

 

[Jeff Pounds]

Oscar,

Since you are buying an entry-level receiver, they might not let you do this, but have you thought about asking to take both of the receivers home for an in-home demonstration?

While trying them out in Circuit City is better than nothing, a showroom floor is not the best enviornment to test out how the receivers will sound AT HOME, in your room, with YOUR speakers.

If Circuit City won't let you do this, you might try and seek out a home audio specialty store in your area. They will likely have some entry level receivers, and be much more likely to let you take them home for an audition...

Good luck!

 

[OscarAl]

Thanks for the suggestion, but as you mentioned its an entry level receiver. I'm not so sure I want to go through that, of going to some specialty store and auditioning receivers at home. I was kind of hoping people with experience on the receivers I mention would be able to help.

 

[Jeff Pounds]

OK, but keep in mind that there are so many hundreds of variables involved in reproducing sound (room size, room dimensions, interconnects, speaker wire, speakers, source material, floor type, celing type... well you get the point... ) that there is no subsitute for trying a reciever out in YOUR home.

Again... good luck!

 

[NickSI]

heres my two cents Oscar. There will probably be little difference in the two systems. if you don't want to put in the time then don't be too mad when you end up with one your not happy with. HT is not all about money its also about the time your willing to put into it. my guess is that either will sound better than what you had.

 

[OscarAl]

I was actually looking at the Onkyo 703 since it includes THX. Now I did hear the Onkyo 602 in CircuitCity and it sounded nice to me, prob nicer than the HK 635. Maybe because I'm already used to Onkyo? I just want to move up in equipment and a better quality receiver even if still the same brand. I have another question, people say how convenient having the component upconversion is. I've heard you dont need as many wires , etc. But from what I see if you connect your stuff to the receiver to then output to component, now lets say you have the HD Box component to receiver and then another set of component wire to tv. Kind of the same, or more, amount of wires. I guess the real benefit is not having to change the input on TV?

 

[John S]

The 703 is a winner.

 

[OscarAl]

Do you have it? And can anyone answer my question about how the component upconversion works?

 

[John S]

Component Upconvsersion is weak on most AVR's. I don't suggest it. I still hook every video output from any given AVR to the correspnding input on the display.

I still use the AVR to switch the components, but also must switch on the display as well.

 

[John S]

PS: I have not owned a 703, I have seen them. Dang nice powerful and robust AVR.

 

[OscarAl]

Thats what I think, since the 602 I played with sounded pretty powerful. Now with the 703, do you think it would outperform the pioneer 1015, especially with people claiming its underpowered,etc.

 

[John S]

yes, I did own a Pioneer 1014 for a while. Impressive pre/pro section, but reference type volume levels with my speakers, in my room, was not possible. The 1014 was so strained I thought it was going to blow a speaker this was at below reference volume levels. I backed off and did not try to push it further.

 

[OscarAl]

I see. Now the THX, would that work with 5.1 or does it need 7.1?

BTW thanks for you time and everyone too. Sorry for the newbie questions, but hey I got to start somewhere

 

[Jeff Pounds]

You should never have to apologize for asking newbie questions... that's what these forums are for... learning.

We were all newbies at some point!

 

[John S]

THX post processing does work with 5.1, I just don't think it can be called THX-EX without 6.1 or 7.1 in the mix.

 

[OscarAl]

But besides Star wars, what else is THX? I mean on the cheapo HTIB Onkyo system I had, the Star Wars movies sounded pretty good. I'm ready for blowned away

 

[John S]

THX has an interresting quality to it. You can apply it to any 5.1 content.

I tend to use it if the dialog sounds harsh on any given title, usually takes the edge right off. The better your system is the more differences in the way things are mixed are revealed.

 

[OscarAl]

Well the whole reason I wanted to upgrade was because of dialogue, which I'm starting to learn is the norm with alot of people. Your watching a dvd, dialogue is low, you raise the volume, 2 minutes later thunder shakes the room, you rush to lower the volume, 10 minutes later dialogue again, volume up. I decided to get the receiver first as due to my room size I dont want to buy small speakers and mount them, I'd rather wait till I move to get bigger floor speakers. I'm thinking a more powerful receiver with more features will help my situation. Now do you think THX will actually improve dialogue?

 

[Jeff Pounds]

Oscar,

Not sure exactly what you're asking here, so I'll just tell you basically about THX.

THX is not a sound format or hardware or anything... it is basically a certification that certain hardware, software or other HT components get by meeting the standards set by the organization, which is a division of Lucasfilm.

So that is why you see the THX logo on certain DVDs and on receivers, cables, speakers, etc. The idea is that if they meet these certain standards, they are "THX certified."

For more information on what these standards are about, check the THX web site here.

There are a wide variety of opinions on whether or not the THX certification really means anything, espeically on DVDs, because there are some "THX-certified" DVDs that have really lousy picture and sound quality.

The certification carries more weight on audio components.

As for your specific problem with dialoge, it could be caused by a number of things... first off is that many DVD soundtracks have a very wide dynamic range... meaning there is a very large difference in volume between the most quiet (usually dialoge only) moments and the loudest (usually action sequences with lots of LFE) moments.

It could also be an issue with your center channel speaker. Or you just may have your speakers out of balance.

If you have not done so, one of the best investments you can make in your home theater is a Radio Shack SPL meter and either Avia or Video Essentials to do a proper audio calibration. See the post in the Home Theater Primer/FAQ here for information about calibration.

The bottom line is that you should not need a THX-certified receiver to hear proper dialoge in your home theater.

Good luck!

 

[OscarAl]

I definitely have to get an spl meter, but for my next system . How about the Yamaha 5890? Would any of you think it would be better than the Onkyo 603?