Re Which AV receiver?

[admin_exported]

Hi,

I have £1500 to spend on a av receiver. Can you advise as to which one to go for Yamaha Z7, Pioneer LX 82, or a Sony STR 5400.

Regards

Kaw al

 

[lobby]

Let us know what speakers you will be using and the rest of your setup.From the 3 mentioned the Yamaha for me, normally a £2000 amp and now for around £1400-1500, probably makes it the best amp ever made for under £2000.Add the Monitor Audio RX6 range and you will have a quality hc setup which will last you for years.

 

[Zarn_Smith]

A lot of people on this forum like the Yamaha.

Personally, I am going to wait a bit for reviews of the new 3d capable receivers.

 

[TheHomeCinemaCentre]

The Sony is a 5500 now and should not be overlooked as it is an excellent amp. As has been metioned it depends on the rest of your set up as to which amp will perform the best as they are all very good despite what others may say.

As for the Yamaha being a £2k amp - it has been sold at £1500 for ages now which suggests that this is the real price. It certainly competes directly in terms of performance and facilities with the other amps mentioned.

 

[Anonymous]

I have the Z7 and very happy

 

[Frank Harvey]

Kawal

What speaker package are you using? And what sort of sound do you like? Up front and more in your face, or more laid back and warmer? A few details like this will help with recommending the right receiver for you.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi,

Currently i have a Yamaha RXV 2400 reciever which i want to upgrade as it`s not compatible with HD sound and has no HDMI inputs etc. I have a sony blu ray BDP 760, acustic energy evo speakers,sky HD and phillips PFL 9664 TV. The blu ray is connected to the amp using a coaxial lead,the blu ray connected directly to the TV via Chord Company supershield HDMI as is the Sky box.

I would like to play CD`s through the amp so it needs to be capable of good stero music.

In terms of sound i prefer a clear and detailed sound which can be warm and also be in your face depending on the movie i,e,action scenes from saving private ryan

I am also considering upgrading my speakers to the B&W 685 to achieve good sound

Regards

Kawal

Re

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Kawal:
Hi,

Currently i have a Yamaha RXV 2400 reciever which i want to upgrade as it`s not compatible with HD sound and has no HDMI inputs etc. I have a sony blu ray BDP 760, acustic energy evo speakers,sky HD and phillips PFL 9664 TV. The blu ray is connected to the amp using a coaxial lead,the blu ray connected directly to the TV via Chord Company supershield HDMI as is the Sky box.

I would like to play CD`s through the amp so it needs to be capable of good stero music.

In terms of sound i prefer a clear and detailed sound which can be warm and also be in your face depending on the movie i,e,action scenes from saving private ryan

I am also considering upgrading my speakers to the B&W 685 to achieve good sound

Regards

Kawal

Re

Hi Kawal

Firstly you can still enjoy HD audio with your existing components by letting the 760 do the internal decoding of the HD soundtracks and than passing on the sound via its multi channel anaologue outputs and on to the RXV2400's multi channel inputs.

If you still wish to change the RXV2400 than at the moment i can recommend the DSP-Z7 as i believe it will give you a detailed, smooth and clear presentation which you can enjoy listening to for hours without fatigue. The DSP-Z7 is also capable with music. You could also try using the on board DACS of the amp for cd playback. DSP-Z7's are at the moment generally available for £1.4 - £1.5k which would be within your budget.

Btw, as an alternative to the B&W speakers Monitor Audio's speakers are also worth consideration. Both makes work well with Yamaha.

Thanks

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[Anonymous]

Kawal:
In terms of sound i prefer a clear and detailed sound which can be warm and also be in your face depending on the movie i,e,action scenes from saving private ryan

Unfortunately you can,t have everything going for one amp. There is no such thing as perfect in the HI-FI world.

Nevertheless -All of these AVR. u have mentioned are great performer , and jut like the other member's said most of it will realy depend on the rest of your setup/system and sound preferences .

Normaly i would recommand the Pioneer LX82 for having the most cinematic sound character -punchy, detailed and a little up-front just like u hear it in the cinema -but again since u have been geting used for the yamaha sound and music is very important to you ,than i would guess the Yamaha z7 is your best choice here -and that for being a little laid back/warm which's make it more suitable for music.

Goodluck!

 

[strapped for cash]

MUSICRAFT:Kawal:
Hi,

Currently i have a Yamaha RXV 2400 reciever which i want to upgrade as it`s not compatible with HD sound and has no HDMI inputs etc. I have a sony blu ray BDP 760, acustic energy evo speakers,sky HD and phillips PFL 9664 TV. The blu ray is connected to the amp using a coaxial lead,the blu ray connected directly to the TV via Chord Company supershield HDMI as is the Sky box.

I would like to play CD`s through the amp so it needs to be capable of good stero music.

In terms of sound i prefer a clear and detailed sound which can be warm and also be in your face depending on the movie i,e,action scenes from saving private ryan

I am also considering upgrading my speakers to the B&W 685 to achieve good sound

Regards

Kawal

Re

Hi Kawal

Firstly you can still enjoy HD audio with your existing components by letting the 760 do the internal decoding of the HD soundtracks and than passing on the sound via its multi channel anaologue outputs and on to the RXV2400's multi channel inputs.

If you still wish to change the RXV2400 than at the moment i can recommend the DSP-Z7 as i believe it will give you a detailed, smooth and clear presentation which you can enjoy listening to for hours without fatigue. The DSP-Z7 is also capable with music. You could also try using the on board DACS of the amp for cd playback. DSP-Z7's are at the moment generally available for £1.4 - £1.5k which would be within your budget.

Btw, as an alternative to the B&W speakers Monitor Audio's speakers are also worth consideration. Both makes work well with Yamaha.

Thanks

Rick @ Musicraft

Indeed. Don't write off your old amp just because it doesn't have HDMI inputs. Connect your Sony Blu Ray to your Yamaha receiver using multchannel analogue outputs/inputs and see if you're happy with the results. Arguably allowing the receiver to decode film soundtracks instead of your S760 Blu Ray player will produce marginally better results (and you won't see the DDHD or DTS HDMA logos), but you'll still be getting lossless sound.

If you're still desperate to upgrade then consider the options discussed above; but you can save yourself a packet and still get HD audio using the components you already own.

Think what else you could get with 1.5k? A new flatscreen TV for another room, perhaps; or a very respectable dedicated stereo system...