New to all this - need machine 4 surround sound/ipod/dvd/tuner (possibly digital or internet radio)/speakers and future proof!

[admin_exported]

Hi there, I'm completely new to the world of buying decent hi fi kit. I last bought a Sony hi fi system in 1990 and it literally gave up the ghost only last week after a lifetime of immense use and a fair bit of knocking about.

I need something that will work as a tuner (possibly digital or internet ideally), with an ipod dock, that can do the home cinema surround sound and HD TV etc., that has several hdmi inputs and anything else that will future proof it (speakers with it would be a bonus but i appreciate it this may not be possible).

I've not got thousands to spend and am fully aware of the speed technology is moving so don't want to throw good money at a machine to find out in 5 years time if can't quite handle the latest audio/blu ray/quadruple HD/whatever they invent next! For example are there any systems that i could run a hard drive through a usb?

All suggestions greatly appreciated!

Many thanks,

Mike.

 

[Andy Madden]

Hi Mike,

what's your budget/rest of your system?

 

[Anonymous]

Hi Andy, well i'm looking to spend around £650 on the amp as i see that as the most important component. It would be good if that had a tuner on though as i don't really want a separate tuner. The speakers, cables and wires i'm open to anything pricewise.

If you could help with some suggestions that would be great as I seem to be going in circles. I was just about to buy the Sony DAV-IS10 when en engineer at work said to me that it may be good for now but not necessarily for the future as it didn't have many HDMI inputs (only has one i think).

Many thanks,

Mike.

 

[Andy Madden]

Well, at that money i'd start by looking at the Sony STR-DA2400ES. Shop around and you'll find it for less than £500. It has a built in tuner (we haven't come across many that feature DAB), four HDMI inputs and sony does its own optional iPod dock that plugs into the back of the unit. If you want internet radio and the ability to hook up to a home network you'll have to pay extra, upwards of £1000.

 

[professorhat]

Just checking, do you need an all-in-one unit or just an AV receiver? As your post title says DVD and speakers in it...

 

[Anonymous]

Well I've already got a DVD player so a built in DVD isn't needed, and i'm guessing blu ray is the next thing, and then whatever comes after that in a few years time. I'm liking the sound of the Sony STR-DA2400ES (found if for £380 at play.com), but am fully aware that i'll still need to buy the spearkers, cables and ipod dock before i can use it (an issue with my other half at the mo!). So if there's an all-in-one unit that you could recommend then i'd be very interested to hear. I'm just paranoid that i'll buy it and then in 5 years time a new technology will come out and my all-in-one unit will be limited.

Cheers,

Mike.

 

[professorhat]

Yup, to be honest, if you already have the DVD player, there's not really any advantage in getting an all-in-one unit - you'd be much better off getting the Sony amp Andy's mentioned and then a separate speaker package to connect it up to. You've said you're open to any budget for the speakers... that's a dangerous statement in these here waters! However, with that Sony amp, I probably would look at something like the KEF 3005SE or, even better, the B&W MT-30 package if you want a style package. If you can go traditional speakers, I can whole heartedly recommend the B&W 685 Home Theatre package - combined with the Sony, I think that would sound fabulous!
As for being out of date in 5 years time, that will always be a possibility I'm afraid, but the Sony amp does everything required to make it the most future proof it can be at the current time.

 

[Anonymous]

Dangerous waters indeed! I'm afraid those speakers are out of my wallet league. Are there any other (cheaper, shame) speakers (for music and movies) you guys could recommend? And also, what happens when i want to listen to my ipod - does it play from all of the speakers? Can you change easily between surround sound for movies and normal sound for music?

Many thanks,

Mike.

 

[professorhat]

Okay, what sort of budget are we looking at for the speakers. Also, do they need to be style speakers or can you fit traditional speakers in? On changing between surround and stereo, this is very easy. On most amps in fact, you can actually set the mode per input i.e. when you select the DVD input, it will default to one of the surround modes, whereas switching to the iPod input will automatically switch it to one of the stereo modes. I can't say for sure if the Sony has this ability, but I'd very surprised if it doesn't.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your help. I was hoping for something considerably cheaper than the suggested speakers (shame) - I was looking more in the £200 bracket to be honest or lower (even more shame). One day i'll be richer and can justify really expensive decent speakers but i'm sure there must be a set out there that can do the music and surround sound to a reasonable standard, is there?!

Thanks,

Mike.

 

[professorhat]

Hmm, well the Jamo A102HCS5 package is well thought of by a few on the forum. Not sure what it's like for music though. (EDIT - although reading the review of this and the Sony amp, both are described as a touch bright meaning I'm not sure these are going to work well together now).
If you can stretch, this Mordaunt Short Avant Premiere package looks pretty good for the money.
Is your long term plan to get a decent amp and some cheap speakers for now which can be upgraded later? If not, I'd consider trimming your budget on the amp to spend more on the speakers personally...

 

[Anonymous]

Hmmm, now i'm going into can't make a decision mode. Maybe i am punching above my weight on this one a bit and maybe a decent amp and speakers will be too much for me at the mo. Someone emailed me suggesting i get the onkyo hts5105 http://www.soundandvision.co.uk/accessories/reciever-packages/onkyo-ht-s5105-black saying i get decent amp and speakers (radio and ipod connection as well) as part of the package. Does anyone know much about this lot? Would it handle HD TV/FreeSat+/Blu Ray/DVD as well? Some say it has 'pass through' issues on HD Audio. Not really sure what that means, but would it cause me a headache?

Cheers

Mike.

 

[professorhat]

Okay, looking into this package, those HD audio "pass through" issues are related to the fact it doesn't actually accept HD audio (or in fact any audio) through its HDMI socket, only video. Considering you want something future proof, this is not the package to go for.
I'm thinking we've started off all wrong on this post to get what you want. I'm convinced you have a decent enough budget to get what you want, so I'm going to suggest let's go this way - what's your budget for everything i.e. receiver, speakers and iPod dock? It'll be much easier once we know exactly what you want to buy and how much you have to spend to give you a good opinion on the best way forward.
We'll get you the best solution, I'm determined on that!

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for your optimistic determination! Agreed, let's forget the Onkyo package. I guess my budget for everything is £550. I'm kind of banking on things being a bit cheaper in the January sales as well. So, is there really something decent out there for that price?

Many thanks,

Mike.

 

[Anonymous]

can anyone help with this? Many thanks!

 

[professorhat]

Sorry, must have lost track of this post. Okay, so we've gone from £650 for just the amp to £550 for everything - not making my life easy are you?!

So, I'm thinking we should probably look at the Sony STR-DG820. It decodes all the new HD formats onboard so it's nice and future proof for you and includes an FM tuner. Any iPod dock can fit into it, but from Andy's post above, it sounds like Sony do one as well. Best of all, it's available for £220 (from play.com) leaving us a reasonable amount of money.
Speakers, there's the Mordaunt Short package I pointed to earlier, or the Tannoy SFX 5.1 package (cheaper here but in silver). The best offer for a style package I've found on a quick search though is the KEF 1005.2 package. This looks like great value for money to me. This leaves you a good £80 - £90 for the other bits and bobs like the iPod dock and cabling.
If you can stretch the budget and can accommodate bigger speakers, there's the Wharfedale Diamond 9 HCP package. It's within budget just, but would need a good pair of stands as well to make the most of them...

 

[Anonymous]

Okay okay, I hear you and...I've decided to push the boat out and go for that more expensive Sony mentioned earlier in the thread (Sony STR-DA2400ES)! All the speakers you mentioned should work okay with it?

Many thanks,

Mike.

 

[professorhat]

Yup, shouldn't be an issue. I should point out I haven't heard most of them so make sure you try them out / get some opinions before you buy! I know the KEFs are good though, especially for that money.