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Video and SQ, can I have both?

post #1 of 13
11/30/12 at 1:10pm
Thread Starter 
I currently have an Onkyo 806, the HDMI output went out so I have decided to upgrade. With the 806 my video was great, but the audio I could never get to sound very good. The music in the movie is far better than the music through the receiver. I have Polk Audio speakers, 2 towers, a center, and 2 bookshelf. I'm not an Audiophile or anything like that but want something that sounds good. So here we go I'm looking for some recommendations on receivers. I have been reading up on a few but can't really decipher a difference, other than inputs and outputs and such. I've looked at the Onkyo 818, Marantz 6007/7007, and the Denon 3813. I would appreciate any and all recommendations. My budget is about $1500. Again I appreciate any help.
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post #2 of 13
11/30/12 at 1:27pm
All of those receivers should produce high quality sound and video. You should look at their other features to make the best choice among them -- number of speaker channels, rooms (aka Zones) and input connections are some of the major differentiators.

How you set up your speakers and room also can make a big difference in how well Audyssey works. Please read through the FAQ as well as Audyssey 101 for the details. See http://www.avsforum.com/t/795421/official-audyssey-thread-faq-in-post-1
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post #3 of 13
11/30/12 at 1:58pm
Thread Starter 
Thank you Seldon Ball. I will read that thread tonight....getting ready to leave for work.

Thanks again, Ken
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post #4 of 13
12/4/12 at 4:58pm
Thread Starter 
I've added the Pioneer Elite SC series to my list to consider, along with the Onkyo 818, Marantz 6007/7007, and the Denon 3813. It uses the MCACC to set up your speakers, how is this compared to Audyssey? Reading the posts makes me feel like the Audyssey XT32 is the only way to go.

My speaker set up is Polk Audio RTi 10's in front, Polk surround, Jensen sub (wattage escapes me) , and RTi 6's as surround speakers. In addition I'd like to in the near future add some true dipole/bipole surrounds to eventually go to a 7.1 system.

Thanks again for any help, Ken.
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post #5 of 13
12/4/12 at 5:06pm
I ended up going with a 2 channel system (really a 2.1) within my home theater system. I found it more cost effective than splurging for the high-end avr's, at least for 2 channel listening. receivers/avr's depreciate crazy fast. I bought a used Krell preamp with a theater bypass mode and a decent DAC for streaming my cd collection ripped to hardrive and hi-res music downloads. with classical music i still prefer multi-channel SACD's played through the marantz avr. i don't know if i fully recommend going this way, but it's an option.
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post #6 of 13
12/5/12 at 11:08am
Ken,

Unfortunately, Pioneer's room equalization software (MCACC) doesn't eq the subwoofer. Audyssey 2EQ also does not, but the higher versions all do. Of course the highest version of Audyssey (XT32) will do the best, but the lower grades are quite good. I've seen postings reporting that the previous-generation top-of-the-line Denon receiver (AVR 4311CI. which has XT32) can be found for about $1200 by calling authorized resellers, but that's still quite a bit more than the 3313 (which has XT).
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post #7 of 13
12/5/12 at 12:21pm
Thread Starter 
I know the Onkyo 818 has the XT32 but I'm a little leary now of the Onkyo, having issues with 2 of them. Is it worth it to spend more to get the XT32? This is one of my concerns, while I don't want to spend a fortune I want something pretty good.
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post #8 of 13
12/5/12 at 12:28pm
Ken,

Only your ears can make that decision.
If there are any audio/video stores in your area, you might be able to get loaner or rental units to compare.

FWIW, I have an older Marantz pre/pro which has only MultEQ, not even XT. It sounds fine to me, but I've never experienced XT32.
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post #9 of 13
12/5/12 at 12:37pm
Perhaps I don't have a discerning enough ear, but I've used multiple flavors of Audyssey (2EQ, MultiEQ, XT32), and I didn't notice a huge improvement with the varying levels. I recently used YPAO for the first time, and it also seemed to do a decent job.

As far as Onkyo, they are riddled with problems. A quick search of these forums will reveal that there are few (if any) recent Onkyo models that aren't plagued with serious issues. And this is coming from a (former) diehard Onkyo supporter. They do still offer the most bang for the buck, but who cares when you have to replace it in 2 years or less.
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post #10 of 13
12/5/12 at 1:25pm
My understanding is that most of the improvements in the higher grades of Audyssey do a lot to improve the sound coming from the subwoofer, so comparing it to YPAO might not be appropriate.

Unfortunately, like MCACC, Yamaha's YPAO does not EQ the subwoofer at all, or any frequency below about 34Hz. Given what a big deal Audyssey (the company) makes about the need to EQ the subwoofer, I'm surprised that neither Pioneer nor Yamaha has done anything to compete in that range.

It's also surprising that the two new high-end Cambridge receivers have only Audyssey 2EQ. Lots of people are scratching their heads over that decision. This is their first foray into room EQ, though, which might help to explain it.
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post #11 of 13
12/5/12 at 1:26pm
Oh my! You sound more bitter than me and I am one of those burnt by the Onkyo HDMI problem. For certain don't get Onkyo as you obviously already hate them. This was the only problem I had with Onkyo and am very fond of it despite the problem. The world won't come to an end if you don't appreciate Audyssey XT32.
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post #12 of 13
12/5/12 at 3:37pm
Thread Starter 
Just got back from listening to the Denon 3313CI, Pioneer Elite 65, and the Marantz 7007. The Pioneer sounded very good with music/video, as did the Denon, and the Marantz sounded very, very good with music, didn't listen to this one with video. I could've been happy with either of them as they all sounded very good to me, so I was going back and forth on price, the Denon at 1200, the Pioneer at 1600, and the Marantz at 1800. I listened to these of course in a sound room. I mentioned that I like the Marantz but didn't think it was $600 better than the Denon and while the Pioneer sounded very good I really liked the Marantz. The guy then said I have the Marantz 6007 hooked up to a display out in the store, I was expecting it to sound different being out in open space but it sounded great with music and video so that is what I ended up with the Marantz 6007, probably helped that it was pushing some B&W's but I think if it sounds half as good as it did in the store I will be thrilled! The good part is they had it for $999 so I have some budget left. I was thinking of some new dipole/bipole surrounds to replace my RTi 6's and use them somewhere else in the system.

Anyway thanks for all your help!

Thanks Ken
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post #13 of 13
12/6/12 at 9:56am
Ken,

You're very welcome. I'm sure you'll find your new toy very enjoyable!
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