# Need help choosing receiver, processor, and amp(s)



## Sarthos (Oct 29, 2010)

So, I've been into car audio for a while, but not into home audio as much. Now that I'm getting my first house, the basement is gonna be made into a home theater. I have tons of home theater speakers and a TV, but need to finish the setup.

The main thing I guess I don't wanna mess up on is the multichannel formatting, I don't wanna end up with a setup that does anything stupid like downgrades a 5.1 channel surround from my TV to stereo then tries to upconvert it down the line. That's something I've seen usually when someone has like a good equalizer but it's only stereo. 

Anyway, my constraints

Blu-Ray
Minimal number of devices to tune (I don't want to have a stack of separate equalizers, time alignment processors, switchers, etc and need half a dozen remotes to control my system)
5.1 or preferably 7.1 processing
Decent DSP
Something I won't desperately want to replace anytime soon. 

Price, eh, I'd like to get it up and running for less than a grand with the receiver and amp(s), a DSP can come later so long as the system is up and running. Any ideas?


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## Viggen (May 2, 2011)

Denon, Yamaha, onkyo and a few others make quality stuff. They all have products with built in amlifters. Most come with sound eq/processing built in and as the price goes up they give you more hdmi input/output as well as pre amp out for when/if you go with external amplifiers. 

I would almost say flip a coin on which brand to go with. I still have a 23 year old Denon receiver which is still as good as new, it's been relegated to the garage for several years. I replaced it with a Integra piece which is onkyo's top end brand. I wanted a surround receiver that didn't have built in amplifiers and this was the best I found that fit my budget. I have their dhc9.8 and dhc80.3. 

Get the best receiver you can, preferably visit your local audio shop and use them to see what you like not just the look of, but how it works.


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## Sarthos (Oct 29, 2010)

I'm not even positive on a trustworthy audio shop. Best Buy would be the only chain store I can think of.

Like I said, I want something I won't have to replace, so I don't wanna get something with a weak built-in amplifier and need to replace it when I want more power or a better DSP. So I guess I should look for a setup with pre-amp outputs so I can add a good DSP over time?

Nakamichi still good? I've seen some of their stuff kinda cheap at Sears, like $200 for a soundbar and some cheap headphones, not sure if their equipment has gone way downhill. I know Sony and Samsung do really good TVs, but their stuff is probably a bit below Denon for home theater?


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## Lycancatt (Apr 11, 2010)

nakamichi only made 2 channel gear and has sold out pretty badly, I'd stear clear.

the suggestion to go to an audio shop is not to purchase there, but to gain hands on experience with onkyo, Yamaha, or denon, to see which has the interface you like most.

personally I'd go for the most expensive denon receiver you can with the most power per channel and call it good. I love the sound/features of the onkyo stuff but they've had reliability issues. Plus, the denon stuff is networkable and you can do all kinds of things via wifi/Ethernet.


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## Sarthos (Oct 29, 2010)

That's too bad, they used to make pretty good car audio equipment. The question then is do most denon units have sufficient DSPs, and are the Denons solely A/V receivers or would it be all-in-one blu-ray, DVD, AM/FM, etc? 30 band EQs are popular for cars which have horrible, perhaps that's not necessary for home theater setups. Problem is most EQs and DSPs I know require something like RCA inputs, which is where I'm hesitant on getting a receiver with a built-in amp, if it will restrict me later.


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