a $400 or less receiver for HTD LEVEL 3 Towers?

I completely love the Level 3 towers and also the Level 4 towers for that matter but Level 4 was out of my range even though my wife actually wanted them! She was impressed with their clarity and detail as to mentioned how she could hear very subtle details of objects falling down even with the big explotions in the demoed scene (Pearl Harbor Chapter 22). If even she could notice it imagine all the things I noticed that she wasnt aware of. The level 3 towers and Level 4 towers werent as different (at least to me) soundstage wise but astetically Level 4 looks much better. Both offer better imaging and of course bass than their bookshelves counterparts. Keep in mind that their setup isnt the best since it has many speakers next to each other and a big screen between them hurting the soundstage and even in such non ideal enviroment the imaging was superb (HTD's demo room was the place where I audition them) The only thing I am trying to decide now is if I should get the Level 4 center or another Level 3 towers to use as center since placement wont be a problem either way but the tower should have 2 advantages, first it will be cheaper and SHOULD have better timbre match. Any suggestions on that? Is the horizontal nature of center speakers for a reason or just due to the usual need to be on top a tv?

Also any suggestion for receiver is need

Regards

The HK seems really nice but isnt it a little bit underpowered at 50w per channel for 5 x Level 3 towers that can handle 160W each? Wouldnt bass be hurt by the "small' power although I may use a powered sub depending on how "noisy" it gets since I live in an apartment. I like the HK but the power thing is the only thing that worries me.

Regards



PS I found this comment in another post

QUOTE " Just keep in mind, that 1..RMS or Continous amp watt is equal to 4 speaker watts ROUGLY"


Is that right that means the the HK can easily work with speakers that are even 200W capable thus my LEvel 3 towers at 160W will match nicely with it and my assumption of the HK being underpowered is totaly false...please comment.

Regards again

Luis,


One must be very careful when discussing amplifier watts. They are not created (by the marketing departments) equally. Furthermore, you have to look at the efficiency of your speakers. My L3's are have an efficiency of 90db - pretty much the middle of the road. The HK has no trouble pushing them as loud as my neighbors and I can stand. HK is noted for listing 'real' watts as opposed to fantasy, happened only once in a lab, watts.


Another thing to consider is that most common listening levels only tax the amplifier to the tune of 1-2 watts. Which brings me to another important point: a reasonable amount of CLEAN power is better than a whole lot of bad power. I would argue that far more speakers are damaged by amplifier clipping than by overpowering.


Finally, to establish some credentials, my HK/Level 3 system is my 'travel' system. It comes with me to my corporate apartments. My home system is an AVM-20/Rotel Amps (1400 watts total)/B&W setup. The reason that I point this out is that my travel system, humble though it may be by comparison, sounds really nice. I never sit in the apartment and grumble that the sound doesn't live up to the other system.


The best advice is to go to a good retailer that will allow you to return a receiver if it doesn't 'work' for you. CC sells HK and Onkyo. I had an Onkyo 494 prior to the HK and I have no complaints about it either! You might want to try the Onkyo 501 as well.


David

Luis,


The TX-601 arrived and I had a chance to do some minor testing. Bear in mind that anythings an improvement over my old Pioneer pro logic receiver. That said, I'm amazed at the detail and clarity of 601's projected sound with CD music and DVD sound tracks.


(Open Range DVD). Receiver was in the wrong mode during setup. Entered the correct mode, (5.1 for my setup) in the middle of a gun fight. Bass was crisp and tight yet still high enough to localize. I've been around lots of gun fire and an here to tell you the shots sounded so real I jumped out of my seat when the 1st one went off. Now convinced that the 10" woofers provide all the base I'll need. Surround sound was crisp and detailed once properly dialed in using the on screen speaker setup. IMHO, this is a must have feature as it lets you customize the sound to match your speaker set up. My tiny rears are wall mounted 14 feet from my main seats and need all the boost they can get. I could actually hear the rears drop off at the designated distances as I played with the distance controls. Center channel sound sux; need a new speaker.


(CD Robert Cray Sweet Potato Pie) Young Bob never sounded better! Until last night I always thought of Cray as an exceptional guitar player with a decent voice. I was blown away by the raw emotion and feelings projected by his voice. Clearly heard, (for the first time) the drummer lightly tapping his' drum sticks together at the right rear of the sound stage.


(CD New World Symphony 4th movement) Decent soundstage, was able to clearly locate all of the instruments. However, (perhaps owing to the limitations of my speakers) depth was rather shallow, as if the entire orchestra was only 3-4 layers deep. If others who describe the Onkyo sound as "bright" mean 'in your face', then I have to agree. The horns which dominate the movement re verb to the point of sounding omni-directional.


(CD Sting Fragile) Mandolin, (or at least I think it is) is very clear precise and omni-directional. At the same time I swear you could reach out and touch Sting about 6" above center stage. His' voice is so clear that, what I once thought was a cool way pronouncing words that end with S, now seems more like a minor speech problem.


As for volume and distortion, lets just say at the high end my ears were hurting before distortion became an issue.


Sorry, can't give you more info on controls and features at this early stage of the game. Anyway, this is all IMH and untrained opinion, so take it w/ a grain of salt. I'm sure you'll be happy regardless of which unit you select. Happy hunting!