Advise needed: A/V Receivers

[Andeh13]

Iv been searching the AV forums (what hexus is to computers, AVforums is to audio & visual equip) high and low for a few weeks now, but im finding them really unhelpful.

I am after my first proper A/V setup, with a receiver & floorstandering speakers. Speaker wise im more or less happy, iv found the Q Acoustic 1050i (links below) which i like the look of and im currently trying to find some second hand to suit my budget, as the £270 new is a bit steep for me atm.

As for a receiver i like the look of the Denon 1908 (link below), but again at £300 its a bit expensive for my budget atm, so im again looking at getting one second hand.

http://www.qacoustics.co.uk/floorsta...r/moreinfo.htm
http://www.denon.co.uk/site/frames_m...etail&Pid=337&


The receiver will initally be connected to my PC via optical, then in a few years to a TV/projector, DVD/blu ray player and skybox etc. I will also add more speakers & a sub to create a full 5.1 setup when more money becomes avaliable! I listen to a lot of dance/bassy music, watch a lot of films and play a few games. Bass & being loud are requirements!

Does anyone have much in the way of knowledge in this sector, who knows whats good & what isnt in terms of receivers & speakers? Like i said, im very new to this and dont want to fork over £200-300 on something i later regret!

thanks guys

[Nick]

If there's one near you try popping into Richer Sounds... the guys in there will steer you in the right direction and are very easy to talk to, even for a complete n00b like myself.

The often have a fair few end of line bargains or some decent high end stuff going second-hand so they're worth a look.

[Funkstar]

Indeed. Richer Sounds is good, although not as many bargains as there used to be. A lot of other internet places have caught up. But there still isn't anywhere else you can walk in and speak to guys face to face and get a good deal.

Might cave in and get a new AV amp and speakers in Glasgow nex week. Depends how flush i'm feeling

[stevie lee]

only advice i can give is not to be fooled into all the details on the internet.. get yourself down to a hi-fi audio shop and have a look/listen there.. its not the wattage of stuff that matters its what the quality coming out sounds like - frequency rages and whatnot.. bit like PSU's really.. and set yourself a budget before going.. dont end up like me!!

the 100watt RMS wharfedales sounded terrible compared to the 75watt RMS B&W's...

__________
overalll I'm happy with my NAD T761 and B&W 600 series.. £4k total.. so may be a little bit above your budget...

my receiver pre-dates hdmi though.. so i'm due an upgrade.. going to get one of these.. http://nadelectronics.com/products/a...Sound-Receiver.. its around £2000 if your interested..

[Andeh13]

Iv thought about them, but i dont know if they would take one look at me and think ''he isnt going to spend £600 (what the equip is new) on this and fob me off''. Ill have a look for any stores near me though. Any other recommendations on where i could possibly go for second hand bargins etc? Neither of them are anywhere on ebay, this side of america!

As for £2000, if only my student loan stretched that far!

[stevie lee]

As for £2000, if only my student loan stretched that far!

I paid for it all with a 12 week summer job while i was a student.. so you could do the same..

the seperate pre and power amps are £2k each.. so this combined version looks cheap!
__________
anyways.. some hifi places in coventry...

http://www.hifix.co.uk/frankharvey/ 163, Spon Street

http://www.superfi.co.uk/ 2 CORPORATION STREET,

[directhex]

http://www.richersounds.com/showprod...KY-TXSR506-BLK ?

[SiM]

I would think about how long you want the system to last for too...
Dolby TrueHD and DTS Master Audio are the new best quality audio formats which come on some Bluray/HD-DVDs... If you plan to use Blu-ray or HD-DVD I would get one that supports these formats... might cost you a bit more, but will last you a few more years...

If you are on a very tight budget I would suggest getting a good receiver and only 2 speakers... then add speakers in the future..

[bigblue]

I'd be wary of trusting Richers completely, they're not all good, pretty far from it! It comes down to the staff in the store, and in particular the one you get to speak to, as to whether they're any good or not.

I used to buy a fair bit from them, but no longer, as the stores near me seem either to be fairly disinterested, or interested only in selling brands they make a bigger cut on. You have to be very careful that you buy what you want, not what they want you to buy.

I sent my folks in there for a Yamaha mini system and speakers, didn't think much could go wrong, but the staff were so unhelpful and just plain rude that they walked out to pay £50 more for it elsewhere.

The receiver will initally be connected to my PC via optical, then in a few years to a TV/projector, DVD/blu ray player and skybox etc. I will also add more speakers & a sub to create a full 5.1 setup when more money becomes avaliable! I listen to a lot of dance/bassy music, watch a lot of films and play a few games. Bass & being loud are requirements!

If you're adding a sub you don't really need floorstanders, as when you add a sub it'll take over bass duties. If you're just starting off with stereo, I'd go for 2 stand mounts and a sub. It'll give you all the bass you want. Floorstanders kinda go to waste in an AV set-up unless you plan to listen to music without using the sub.

Also, I'd be really, really wary of trying to buy gear using "loud" as one of the criteria You could buy some PA speakers and amplification, it'll be loud, but the treble will sound as if someone has left a chip pan on in the background! Any reasonable AV amp and speakers will be loud enough to go to neighbour-baiting levels

That Onkyo 506 is a decent amp, but if you do go for it you can get it a bit cheaper than Richers. If you do go there you can use the price match I s'pose. Usually sells for around £225.

[finlay666]

I got a Pioneer VSX-1017, sounds top notch, and I can connect pretty much everything I have to it. iPod (via a 3rd party docking station....not paying £100 for the official one lol)

For your price range I would reccomend either 2nd hand or
http://www.richersounds.com/showprod...KY-TXSR505-BLK
or
http://www.richersounds.com/showprod...id=YAMA-RXV363

Although the biggest thing is how it sounds, and a lot is personal preference IMO

[Andeh13]

I would think about how long you want the system to last for too...
Dolby TrueHD and DTS Master Audio are the new best quality audio formats which come on some Bluray/HD-DVDs... If you plan to use Blu-ray or HD-DVD I would get one that supports these formats... might cost you a bit more, but will last you a few more years...

yep, thats why im going second hand. Id rather have a 6month old unit that is a few steps up from a current band new unit!


-Iv already got a summer job paying for a holiday in ibiza & rent/deposit on a new house for september, one of the reason im trying to keep the budget as low as possible.

-Noted advice on floorstanders, thank you!

-Iv considered the Onkyo, but i really cant stand the look of it!

-What are the main inputs/outputs i should consider? The only equipment i can see myself having over the years is a PC, TV/projector, blu ray player & skybox.


Many thanks guys!

[SiM]

Go for the Onkyo 605. The 606 is out now so the 605 is going cheap second hand. Seen them go for around £250 on AV forums iirc

[Andeh13]

Spent a long time looking at the Onkyo before i considered the Denon, i just cant get used to the looks of the Onkyo, think they look ridiculous!

Im a man who wants a good face & a good body!

[directhex]

SIm a man who wants a good face & a good body!

and **** for brains?

[Flibb]

Richer Sounds parent company own several makers of AV kit, so they will always try and get you to buy those. Good on price + range, bit suspect on advice.

[javalord]

Im a man who wants a good face & a good body!

Your a marketing teams wet dream... keep it up!