Need advice on choosing an avr and speakers

I can't really help you with the Onkyo or Denon. I just bought a Yamaha myself. I've got a lot of older equipment and Denons didn't have the right kind of connections. I've been reading that this year's Onkyos have been having some problems so as much as I like my 32 year old Onkyo I use for my music the reviews bugged me. I ended up getting last year's Yamaha RX-571 but it's listing at about $299 (though I saw an ad that some Fry's had them for $199 last week, not around where I live though). They're becoming harder to find. I picked last year's over the new model because the newer model doesn't up-convert. Have to go one model higher for that this year.

Also last year's models didn't have all that networking Apple crap that I will never need as I don't buy Apple and don't intend to. Heck I'm still using a VHS player to record shows when I'm not home. Won't be able to hook it up to this new one, but I suppose it can go in with my old CRT.

Other reason to buy it was this year's model was $499 and it wasn't in my budget as it was this one was $70 over my budget but it's a nice amp.

Speaker wise I'm still using my Boston Acoustic CR6s for the front and just bought an Atlantic Technology 2200 for the center which was $99 at Amazon. I picked it because it was cheap (used to be more expensive) and it's specs closely matched the specs of the CR1 that would have matched the 6s. They sound really good together too. Nothing wrong with using your BAs if they still work and you like them.

Can't help with the sub, fortunately my BA sub the CR400 is chugging along just fine.

Maybe someone can chime in with more help than me, I'm still new to these new fangled systems. I've been limping along with a dying 20 year old Sony amp till last week when it gave finally up the ghost.

1. To get a used Denon, consider a 5.1 refurb from Accessories4Less which comes with a 1 year warranty.

http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/DENAVR1612/DENON-AVR-1612-5.1-Channel-A/V-Home-Theater-Receiver/1.html

2. Ideally you'll want the FL/C/FR speakers to be from the same mfr and as the Energy 5.0 or 5.1 comes in a whole set, you may want to consider using the HD9s for music only listening if you want to keep them. Although doing so would require upgrading to a 7.1 AVR so the 5.1 setup would be for movies and the 2.0 setup (HD9s) for music listening only with all speakers connected to the AVR for easy switching between the Energy and HD9s.

http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/DENAVR1712/DENON-AVR-1712-7.1-A/V-Surround-Receiver/1.html

3. Consider this Monoprice sub ...

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=109&cp_id=10906&cs_id=1090602&p_id=8248&seq=1&format=2

While I can't vouch personally, I know of someone who bought a refurbished AVR from accessories 4 less and he is very pleased with their service and the AVR. I looked there myself but didn't find what I wanted.

I didn't realize monoprice sold their own sub, not a bad, especially for that price!

Looking around the web most places list the 1911 as discontinued and those who do have it list it at almost $600, I'd say the 1912 is a better bet. I had similar problems with the v571, most places didn't have any more. In fact it's gone up in price at Amazon in the week since I bought it.

Frys.com has the 1912 for $249 IF you can pick it up at a store and if it's in stock. Implies to me those are starting to become few and far in between. I just did a google search on the model number and that's what came up.

Denon AVRs are discontinued when the next year's line of AVRs are released. The 1911 can be purchased as a refurb at authorized refurb reseller Dakmart.

http://www.dakmart.com/p12080/DENON-AVR-1911-AVR1911-HDMA-1.4A-MULTI-ZONE-RECEIVER-W-/product_info.html

Or the 791 is the sister model to the 1911, it just doesn't have Zone 2 pre-outs ....

http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/DENAVR791/DENON-AVR-791-7.1-Channel-A/V-Home-Theater-Receiver/1.html

I'm of a simple mind. Give Amazon a call and ask if they'll price match Fry's stated price. All they can do is say no.

New models are released late spring/early summer so the 1912 is on clearance now as the 1913 was released this past April. Both the 1912 and 1913 are 7.1 models and therefore can support 5.1+Zone 2, although neither has Zone 2 pre-outs. The Energy Take speakers are small satellite speakers so if not buying the 5.1 setup, you'll want to make sure to buy the better sub at the same time as the speakers.

A "pre-out" is used to pass the source signal to another amplifier to power speakers .... eg. if you wanted to use the AVR to power a full 7.1 setup, you would need Zone 2 pre-outs to connect to a 2CH amp to power the Zone 2 speakers. The Denon "CI" models have this feature. If you never plan to expand beyond a 5.1 setup, then you don't need Zone 2 pre-outs and either the 1912 or 1913 will do just fine as they each still has 2 on board additional channels to power the Zone 2 speakers if you ever want to add them.

Correct.

The 1712 is a good buy and it comes with Audyssey MultEQ XT which is superior to Audyssey MultEQ that comes with the 1912. To answer your questions from your last post,

1. Yes'
2. Yes
3. Yes

I think it would be best to start with 2.0 and upgrade over time. $300 is not much to work with but there are some options for sure. I've listed some options below for a starting 2.0/2.1 in this price range.

1. Pioneer FS52 floor speakers
2. Pioneer BS41 book shelf speakers (on sale, $85 at Newegg) + BIC F12 subwoofer ($200 Amazon)
3. Pioneer BS22 book shelf speakers ($129)
4. Definitive Technology SM55 Book shelf speakers ($300, Newegg)
5. Cambridge S30 book shelf speakers ($219)
6. Ascend Acoustics CBM-170SE book shelf speakers (B-stock $306)

1. The Energy Take set is great for the price. However, if you find you want something better you'll have to start over. That's why I suggested starting with 2.0 or 2.1. You could then add a center channel, surrounds, etc as finances allow.
2. As long as you stick to an impedance of 6-8 ohms you will be fine. The 1712 would probably handle 4 ohm speakers but only at low to moderate volumes.

FYI. The Definitive Technology SM55 are priced at $299 EACH at Newegg. That would be $598 total. The DefTech SM450 have the identical driver array as the SM55 but have a " boxy " look rather than a streamline look. The SM450 are $319 for a PAIR and are now discontinued but still available at a lot of eTailers. I have a pair of SM55 and these are very nice bookshelf speakers but maybe a little on the expensive side.

i just set up my HT small living room with denon 1612, dayton 1200 sub and energy takes 5.0 for 500. very satisfied with the result.