£400-£600 on a Stereo amp friendly AV receiver

[fr0g]

I am tempted to spend some money on replaicing a Yamaha E-800 - which feeds centre , sub and rear, and connects to a stereo amp. New AV receivers often have pre-outs for front pair, so what is the way forward.... The current faves ONKYO do not have this ability, so whats the best bet? Denon/ Marantz?<p>

cheers.

 

[Gerrardasnails]

It really depends on what is important to you. How many hdmi ports do you need? Are you worried about the HD audio formats? For instance my receiver has been product of the year and it offers great sound but cannot decode HD audio and only has two hdmi in and one out. It has the all important pre outs for your front speakers - I use it that way. You can pick them up for £250-£300 at many places. Next up would be a receiver that can decode HD audio. The cheapest one really is the Onkyo 605/606 but as you know these don't have preouts for front left and right speakers (a major flaw in my eyes and worth losing a star for??). The cheapest Denon that gives you HD audio is the AVR2808 (you could probably get it for around £600-£650. It is excellent but if you needed more hdmi ports it only offers you two in and one out. Pioneer's VSXLX50 (£580 I've seen it for, you might get it cheaper) also has the same amount of hdmi ports and HD audio capabilities and the preouts you need. If you are not worried about the HD audio formats, all the Denons from 1908 onwards have preouts and start at a smidge over £300. Hope this helps.

 

[professorhat]

Or the Onkyo 705 at £600 - 3 HDMI in, 1 out and has the pre-outs.

 

[Andrew Everard]

Or the big brother of the one Mr Snails has - the Sony STR-DA3300ES - at about the same money as the 705.

 

[fr0g]

Ok. I dont require HD audio, and as I use a PS3 for playback, I think I get this anyway now (although I am still buying DVDs with the current cost of BR media). I only need 2 HDMI ports. I am seriously looking at the Marantz SR6001 as a local shop has a great deal on it. Sounds like it fits the bill. Anyone with any hands on experience with this model?

 

[professorhat]

Hi mate. I'd say it's at least worth getting one which accepts multichannel PCM through HDMI - just in case you decide to play a Blu-Ray through your PS3...