Hey everyone!
I'm new to these forums (been reading for a couple of weeks now) and would be most grateful of some advice on my first foray into the land of decent home-cinema gear...
My current setup is a Sony KDL-40W4000, Xbox 360 and Sony BDP-S350 Blu-ray player, with the DAV-IS10 all-in-one system for surround. I'd say my usage is roughly 40% gaming, 40% films and 20% music, though music is important. My budget is slightly flexible at around £1200 for amp and speakers, but I'm willing to upgrade piece by piece if necessary.
Basically, I was happy with the sound from the DAV-IS10 when watching Blu-rays until I watched Casino Royale at a mate's house, with some fairly low/mid-priced surrounds and front floorstanders going through an old Yamaha receiver. I was so amazed at the difference in presence and clarity compared to my micro-system, I didn't realise he was only playing the Dolby Digital 5.1 track via optical and not the HD soundtrack. In addition I don't like listening to music on the DAV-IS10 because the sub has to handle most of the midrange and as a result it's far too 'muddy' sounding and directional. Perhaps I was expecting a bit too much from such a small all-in-one system?
Anyway to cut to the chase: I'm now looking at building a separates system with bigger speakers, capable of playing the new HD formats, which will also perform well with music. I mainly listen to rock/jazz (Steely Dan being a prime example).
Based on all its great reviews I'm keen on the Yamaha DSP-AX763 for the money. WHF also mention it's pretty musical too and for £299 it seems a bargain! And as for speakers I'd thought the Q-Acoustics 1010i 5.1 would be great. The complicating issue is that I'd sure love the B&W 685 theatre package!
I'm thinking since the 685s won the best stereo pair in the
2008 awards AND the whole 685 package also got product of the year, it's clearly excellent for both movies and music.
I realise this is slightly out of my price range, but I'm considering buying everything except the subwoofer to begin with then adding it at a later date as funds permit. I can't have the bass too thumping because I'm in a terraced house for the time being, so not buying a sub would save me £300 to buy the Yamaha amp.
The reason I'm swaying towards the B&Ws vs. the Q-Acoustics are that I'd like to buy something that will last me for years to come. People have told me if you buy a decent pair of speakers you won't need to change them, even if other parts of the system such as the receiver may need updating as standards change. In other words, if it means spending a bit more now and then not having to upgrade in future because I've outgrown an entry-level system then so be it!
My questions are really:
1. Is the Yamaha '763 capable of getting decent performance from the B&W 685s? Or would I be better going for a cheaper set of speakers with that amp?
2. If I do go for the B&Ws is adding the subwoofer at a later date sensible, or will the package be severely crippled without it?
Sorry for such a long post, but I just wanted to make sure I'd given enough info to be helpful!
If anyone's got any thoughts on something I've not mentioned I'm all ears...
Cheers
I'm new to these forums (been reading for a couple of weeks now) and would be most grateful of some advice on my first foray into the land of decent home-cinema gear...
My current setup is a Sony KDL-40W4000, Xbox 360 and Sony BDP-S350 Blu-ray player, with the DAV-IS10 all-in-one system for surround. I'd say my usage is roughly 40% gaming, 40% films and 20% music, though music is important. My budget is slightly flexible at around £1200 for amp and speakers, but I'm willing to upgrade piece by piece if necessary.
Basically, I was happy with the sound from the DAV-IS10 when watching Blu-rays until I watched Casino Royale at a mate's house, with some fairly low/mid-priced surrounds and front floorstanders going through an old Yamaha receiver. I was so amazed at the difference in presence and clarity compared to my micro-system, I didn't realise he was only playing the Dolby Digital 5.1 track via optical and not the HD soundtrack. In addition I don't like listening to music on the DAV-IS10 because the sub has to handle most of the midrange and as a result it's far too 'muddy' sounding and directional. Perhaps I was expecting a bit too much from such a small all-in-one system?
Anyway to cut to the chase: I'm now looking at building a separates system with bigger speakers, capable of playing the new HD formats, which will also perform well with music. I mainly listen to rock/jazz (Steely Dan being a prime example).
Based on all its great reviews I'm keen on the Yamaha DSP-AX763 for the money. WHF also mention it's pretty musical too and for £299 it seems a bargain! And as for speakers I'd thought the Q-Acoustics 1010i 5.1 would be great. The complicating issue is that I'd sure love the B&W 685 theatre package!
2008 awards AND the whole 685 package also got product of the year, it's clearly excellent for both movies and music.
I realise this is slightly out of my price range, but I'm considering buying everything except the subwoofer to begin with then adding it at a later date as funds permit. I can't have the bass too thumping because I'm in a terraced house for the time being, so not buying a sub would save me £300 to buy the Yamaha amp.
The reason I'm swaying towards the B&Ws vs. the Q-Acoustics are that I'd like to buy something that will last me for years to come. People have told me if you buy a decent pair of speakers you won't need to change them, even if other parts of the system such as the receiver may need updating as standards change. In other words, if it means spending a bit more now and then not having to upgrade in future because I've outgrown an entry-level system then so be it!
My questions are really:
1. Is the Yamaha '763 capable of getting decent performance from the B&W 685s? Or would I be better going for a cheaper set of speakers with that amp?
2. If I do go for the B&Ws is adding the subwoofer at a later date sensible, or will the package be severely crippled without it?
Sorry for such a long post, but I just wanted to make sure I'd given enough info to be helpful!
If anyone's got any thoughts on something I've not mentioned I'm all ears...
Cheers
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