# Time to upgrade the receiver, need recommendations please



## fej (Feb 8, 2006)

Hey guys, looking for a little advice as I am looking to step into the HDMI era finally. I have always been a Yamaha guy, as the 3 that I have had always performed great, and lasted forever. I currently have a RX-V2600 which has served me well, but was purchased just before the HDMI world really got started.

My plan is to build the 2 way revelator tower from Zaph, and run my new receiver. Eventually if I decide to sell off my car audio collection I may end up with separate amps, but for right now I need it to be an all in one, and at minimum 100 watts per channel. I already have an adire modeled Tempest 15" sub tuned to 18hz on a 1000w Dayton amp, and some JBL 6.5" 2 way surrounds. If I can talk the SO into it, I will probably run (4) 15's in an IB under the house eventually.

I need to have at least 3 HDMI inputs, and would prefer to have 2 outs, just in case. Upscaling and full bypass would be nice as to not loose any quality from my current Oppo DVD or planned Oppo Bluray units. Seems to be from my research that a lot of the middle of the road receivers will step on the video signal and downgrade it slightly, and I would prefer to avoid that.

Thanks in advance


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## poochieone (Aug 25, 2005)

Here's a few recommendations from my own trek :
http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/diy-home-pro-audio/71142-receiver-w-hdmi-recommendation.html

some additional info i've come accross that may prove useful:

most receivers that have 2 HDMI outs are not able to provide signal out simultaneously, be it audio or video. the second hdmi out is just for the convenience.

do a search on the meaning of repeater versus switcher in case you are interested in an older unit which does not have 1.3a capability.

the most common (and affordable) video processing chip is the Faroujda (sp?) which suffers from the effects you mentioned. some mid level receivers use the Anchor Bay chips which are amazin for the money and have strong performance. the new Denons 3310 and up use it for example. 

alot of receivers will not upconvert signals inputed via HDMI regardless of the definition, only analog sources get the treatment. you have to decide if that matters to your application.

be weary of bogus power ratings, and if possible read reviews that put the amplifier section to the test.... some manufacturers are very creative with their power ratings so that the 5 and 7 channel power ratings are nowhere near advertised. I found the lower level pioneers to be serious offenders.

most slightly older high-end and current mid level receivers have networking capability so that you can search for internet audio content directly from the receiver. do you want ?

Some receivers can apply extensive signal processing (ie audyssey) to audio signals, even to blue ray disc audio. other receivers are not able to apply the processing to blu ray audio even though the receiver has the processing ability (sometimes its limited to movie sounds only)

AVS forums is an amazing source of information...once you have an idea of what you would like, research it there.

I think that should get you going.


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## ibanzil (Jun 29, 2008)

I'm extremely interested in getting another denon. I have the avr-3805 and it's got great power, soso eq, but no hdmi. I have to run all hdmi straight to the tv which I would anyways but I'm out of inputs. I just run all the optical cables to the denon which amazingly has 5 on back plus another on the front.

I have played with yamaha's top models and they are nice but denon seems to have my vote because of some extras. I really like the dynamic eq, it keeps things sounding the same tonality wise as the volume goes up and down. The higher models have audyssey's better eq, and do multiple posistions. Problem with alot of the recievers lies
in the fact that they are designed for 5.1, 7.1, and so on. Not being aimed at pleasing 2.1 means the auto eq setups will aim at correcting all the channels to work together so music listening could be less than astonishing. 

I plan to do some heavy research before I buy again do IDE reccomend hitting up some av forums. I check them out and some have some highly knowledgeble people to give you some insight.


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## jobrizzle7481 (Jul 1, 2009)

One of the hottest receivers out right now is the new onkyo integra with audessey room correction. What would be considered a mid priced receiver before has really stepped it up with audessey which is worth the price alone. You really have an opportunity to shape the sound of your system. Another great company with a lot of support and future upgrades is Anthem and I believe some of them have the audyssey as well but are a little more pricey then the aformentioned integra. Denon was mentioned which their last set of receivers were highly rated but not quite sure about the new batch. Either one (Integra or Anthem) will have more connections then you will ever need.


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