Receivers confuse me!

Archer

Archer

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So I'm looking to move away from my Logitech X530 speakers and onto something a bit more home theatre friendly (ie can be controlled via remote). Right now I only have the TV + HTPC. Future additions (worst case) will be DSTV and two consoles (I'm fine with one but the wife insists she'll need two :confused: lol). Bluray/DVD will be handled by the HTPC if I ever go that route. So thats 4 inputs max.

So what I need is suggestions on what kind of receiver to go for, as well as speakers. Total budget (incl speakers) will be R20k. The sum of my knowledge on this matter boils down to knowing Yamaha and Onkyo are good (and expensive) and to stay away from Bose speakers. Any sites I can have a look at, or should on amp be bought in a brick and mortar store in SA?

As a last note, if it wasnt for this dam 2nd console I could easily wire everything up to a Logitech Z5500. Yay or nay?
 
Get a copy of whathifi magazine & you're up & away. They have a UK website which is useful too or for something american avforums.com.
 
Thanks, that will help a lot with choosing a decent amp/receiver. But what of pricing in SA?
 
You're going to get a million different brands and answers ;)

I've had Yamaha, Onkyo and Marantz - and I think I actually prefer the Onkyo.

I don't think any of them are as expensive as people think : while they may all go up many tens of thousands, they all have budget/mid level amps starting at R5,000.00-R8,000.00 (roughly)
 
Archer said:
Thanks, that will help a lot with choosing a decent amp/receiver. But what of pricing in SA?
Click to expand...
I'm talking about the SA whathifi, so prices are mostly given in ZAR. And the magazine has a nice guide at the end where amps, speakers, ipod docks, etc ar given an up to 5 star rating.
 
R13... said:
Get a copy of whathifi magazine & you're up & away. They have a UK website which is useful too or for something american avforums.com.
Click to expand...

That's great advice. I went through a similar exercise two years ago. By reading up on those magazines, visiting forums, then going to the store too see what suits your budget, then back to reviews helps a lot. Before you know it you'll be an expert!

It pisses off the aficionados, but have a look at Sony's ES (Elevated Standards) range. I bought one that, at the time, was simply unbeatable in terms of functionality vs. the same price class in the other more well known brands.
 
Ok, another question has popped up (well, a few more :D)
Resistance of the speakers, does it really matter? I'll probably just go for 8 ohm (making sure its matches the output from the receiver).
Are sub woofers usually powered or do they usually get power from the receiver?
Does THD audibly influence quality when listening to anything with "normal" (read everyday) volume? Right now I'm aming at 10% max THD, but its often specced at different frequencies. How does one sort the good from the bad?
Who is going to "lend" me the money for this so that I dont have to wait to save up for it? :D
 
Most amplifiers are 6-8 ohm ... most speakers are 6-8 ohm ... so you won't have an issue with them. I run - and have for many years - 4 ohm speakers on my amplifier. What it does do is pull more current and the amplifier runs hotter. Cheaper amps can't supply the additional current and it'll shut off when played loud.

You get both - powered is better and the one you want. I think at your level, you need powered.

THD is the level of distortion at the quoted level. So an amplifier may be - for example - 100w RMS @ 10% THD, 70w RMS @ 1% THD or even 50w RMS @ 0.1% THD. So this amp will get to 100w RMS - but be unlistenable.

You'll find cheaper will quote at a higher distortion and more expensive at a lower distortion. This make it difficult to compare amps without seeing distorition at that level!

Another trick is frequencies ie over the full spectrum or at one frequency. Again, you'll want to get one that quotes 20hz-20khz as opposed to a single frequency.

One final trick is ohms. More power is put into lower impedance speakers so - although current demands goes up - power increases significantly. So ONE amplifier could have the following reading and they're ALL correct :

100w RMS @ 10% THD at 1khz into 8ohm
180w RMS @ 10% THD at 1khz into 4ohm
50w RMS @ 0.1 THD at 1khz into 8ohm
4ow RMS @ 0.1 THD at 20-20 into 8ohm
 
Ok, speakers make sense to me now, hooray :) Amps almost there. Next thng I need to know is this - if I have an amp (most likely wired via HDMI or optical from HTPC) do I need a proper sound card as well? Surely the ideal setup is to try pass the raw sound to the amp/reciever and let the amp work its magic?
 
Have a look at www.digi-comm.co.za for some pretty decent prices on Onkyo + Polk Audio combo's - they're in Jhb, and I've never used them - but at least it gives you a decent comparitive price to bargain with in Cape Town.
 
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