A real beginner wih questions about setting a rig up!

[admin_exported]

Hello all,

First let me say I'm a complete novice when it comes to Hi Fi. Most of my life I used a standard midi system and more recently I've had a pre amped turntable connected to my computer and I've listened to vinyl and CD's like that. I'm hardly an audiophile!

But I'm looking to buy an entry level receiver / amplifier and some speakers. My main requirements are to connect my turntable up, and to hook it up to my TV via HDMI.

Now even though I'm going to be using HDMI I'm not interested in building a surround set up right now. I'm just looking to add 2 speakers and possibly a sub to my setup.

I was looking at this kit and wondered what the general opinion was, reviews look positive:

http://www.amazon.com/Sony-SS-B3000-Bookshelf-Speakers-Woofer/dp/B000OG6I6A

http://www.amazon.com/Sony-STR-DH510-5-1-channel-High-Definition-Receiver/dp/B0038W0IZO

Now my questions are as follows, and please keep in mind that I'm completely new to even pairing speakers up with a receiver!

1) Are the speakers above compatible with the receiver connections-wise?

2) Could I plug in my pre-amped turntable even if there was no phono input?

3) Would there be any issues I may not have thought of just running 2 front speakers?

Hopefully someone can post a reply without laughing too much!

Oh here's a fourth question:

3) If this kit looks like it won't suit my needs, any good alternatives?

Thank you!

 

[professorhat]

Are you buying the receiver because you'll be looking to build a surround setup in the future? If not, you should definitely consider getting a stereo amp as this will give you much better performance for your money.

 

[josh05]

after reading through your post, i think you would be a lot better off getting a stereo amplifier, and a DAC (digital to analogue converter) my reasons for this are that you mention you listen to vinyl, vinyl is a fully analogue source and a home theatre reciever is really going too be wasting that beautiful sound vinyl has, the main difference that makes a stereo amp better sounding than most recievers is that recievers arent designed for just music, they are designed for movies aswell and are feature packed with things like video in's, DTS/Dolby decoders for movies etc. to get the best sound and especially since you listen to vinyl a stereo amp is the way to go IMO but the only thing is you wouldnt be able to connect your tv to it through HDMI, it would have to be done with straight out analogue or if you got a DAC you would connect it through coaxial or optical.

have a think whether connecting the TV through HDMI is absolutely a must, or you want a much better bang for buck sound quality and still be able to connect up the TV just not through HDMI.

 

[Anonymous]

Well the HDMI thing was more like insurance in case I want to add surround later....thus far I haven't gone for it yet so maybe I never will! I'm definitely more of a music listener than a film watcher.

So as far as Stereo ampss go.....any reccomendations?

Thanks for the input?

 

[josh05]

well depends on what music you listen too and how much your budget is, second hand you will get more bang for buck, i'm pretty drunk at the mo9ment so i'll talk to you about it tomorrow if someone elses doesnt help you out, be patient, it took me 3 to 6 months too work out what hifi woul work best for what i wanted, but it was worth it as im stoked with what i have now. one thing i've found you can spoend a lot of money on hifi and not be happy, its worth doing the research! thats all i'll say for now i'm not really in a good state to help you out atm.

 

[Pindi]

josh05:well depends on what music you listen too and how much your budget is, second hand you will get more bang for buck, i'm pretty drunk at the mo9ment so i'll talk to you about it tomorrow if someone elses doesnt help you out, be patient, it took me 3 to 6 months too work out what hifi woul work best for what i wanted, but it was worth it as im stoked with what i have now. one thing i've found you can spoend a lot of money on hifi and not be happy, its worth doing the research! thats all i'll say for now i'm not really in a good state to help you out atm.

Drunk on a Monday afternoon, what's the occasion?

 

[hammill]

Pindi:

josh05:well depends on what music you listen too and how much your budget is, second hand you will get more bang for buck, i'm pretty drunk at the mo9ment so i'll talk to you about it tomorrow if someone elses doesnt help you out, be patient, it took me 3 to 6 months too work out what hifi woul work best for what i wanted, but it was worth it as im stoked with what i have now. one thing i've found you can spoend a lot of money on hifi and not be happy, its worth doing the research! thats all i'll say for now i'm not really in a good state to help you out atm.

Drunk on a Monday afternoon, what's the occasion?
Presumably because josh05 is either a member of the England Cricket Team or GB athletics team.

 

[josh05]

lol well its monday night in australia n yeah caught up with a mate i havent seen in quite a long time and one thing led to another! work isnt going to be good in the morning

... actually its 12:31 am tuesday morning now.

 

[Anonymous]

Ah good stuff! I hope you had a fun night!

The reason I was interested in an HDMI connection is that most of my video is watched via a Western Digital media player...there's nothing stopping me hooking it up directly to the TV via HDMI for the video side of things, and just a regular connection to the amp for stereo audio.

I mostly listen to punk, though I also like some older country, some more acoustic stuff blues etc. But most of the time it's pretty noisy.

But keep in mind that I'm not an audiophile as stated above, and I'm not really looking to spend a huge amount on an amp. My turntable is a cheapo Aiwa (that got decent reviews for what it is) though I'm always looking out for a second hand bargain upgrade....ie a 'proper' turntable!

Thanks!

 

[Anonymous]

Hmmm just for a few moments of research I punched in stereo receiver into google and found this: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Insignia%26%23153%3B+-+200W+2.0+Channel+Stereo+Receiver/9693507.p?skuId=9693507&id=1218151628383

I believe there's also a Sherwood branded model that is pretty much the same unit.

Worth sixty quid?

 

[professorhat]

Very hard to say without hearing it. I'm guessing you're in the US from your links - is there nowhere close to you where you can audition some kit and get some advice before you buy?

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah I'm British but I've been in the US for around a year. I don't know of any shops around here apart from large chain stores. I've been meaning to dig a bit deeper cause there MUST be something.