Surround Receiver for a grand, give and take

[TKratz]

The time has finally come to upgrade the Surround Receiver

There are so many options, that it is difficult to choose. Let me start by throwing the candidates on the table:

- Pioneer LX71 1520£

- Denon 2809 840£ (or maybe 3808 1230£)

- Yamaha RX-V1900 876£

- Onkyo 876 1050£

Main purpose of the receiver is of course surround sound, but as there is only room for one receiver/amp and I fancy music as well, it has to do fairly good with music also.

From the review I have read it seems like Pioneer and Denon are the more musical receivers. I would have loved to stretch it to the Pioneer LX81, but the cheapest buy in Denmark is strangely above 2000£. I have therefore eagerly been awaiting the review of LX71, which is now here. Seems like a good receiver, although missing the final edge. I appreciate the recommendation to pay 200£ more for the LX81, and would gladly have done so, but as it appears, the pricing is very different in Denmark. I assume the evaluation could have been very different with these prices in mind?

Anyway, I guess the Yamaha would be the obvious choice (very competitive price also, and no, the price haven't gone up!). But how about the musical performance compared to the others?

Let me have your thoughts and recommendations.

 

[Anonymous]

mate go to superfi for pioneer amp cheap and they ship to holland

 

[TKratz]

Thank you for the advise mate. Very tempting price! Just 1320£ for the Pioneer LX81. Unfortunately it doesn't seem like Superfi are willing to ship material to Denmark (like most UK stores unfortunately).

I discovered an embarrasing mistake in my previous post by the way. Price of the Pioneer LX71 is not 666£ but 1500£ (I mixed it up with the LX71 Blu-Ray...). It would have been quite a steal.

That is above my budget, but if it is by far better than the Yamaha (the price difference is quite significant) I will still be willing to consider it. So have big is the difference between Pioneer LX71 and Yamaha RX-V1900?

 

[Anonymous]

If you can stretch your budget to £1500 then the Yamaha RX-V3900 comes into consideration also. It can be purchased for around £1300.

Availability is an issue at the moment for most Yamaha receivers, so best to speak the supplier has stock when you order. Don't just accept what their website tells you.

 

[TKratz]

Thanks for the advise.

Again, the Danish pricing seems to be very different from the UK. Cheapest price for RX-V3900 is above 1600£, or almost twice the price of the RX-V1900. I know it is a step up compared to the RX-V1900, but is worth the double price?

 

[jase fox]

TKratz:

Pioneer LX71 1520£

;
Thumbs up !

 

[Anonymous]

come over on the boat and buy here

 

[TKratz]

Well, I am afraid the savings will be eaten up by the flight ticket. So think I will pass, although UK is a lovely country

 

[Anonymous]

Boat £35 return

 

[Big Aura]

take your other half over for a nice weekend away. Sterling is so broken, it's practically free at the minute!

 

[TKratz]

I don't think Sterling is flying any longer...

But you are right. Could pick up a ticket for about 100£ a piece. Could be nice to take the missus for a weekend. I am more concerned about how to transport such a monster back on the plain. It is almost 20 kg!

Besides we are soon going on a long holiday to Thailand,which kind of occupies the entire travelling budget and remaining holidays.

And speaking of budget, I have just been through some tuff financial negotiations on the home front... 1000£ is the absolute limit, leaving out the LX71. I am then left with Yamaha RX-V1900, Denon 2809 or Onkyo 876. Unless the Pioneer LX51 can compete?

 

[TKratz]

So which one of these fine receiver's should I go for:

- Denon 2809

- Yamaha RX-V1900

- Onkyo 876

- Pioneer LX51

I of course hope to be able to audition all of them, but in Denmark it is difficult to find shops nearby that just market one of the receivers, not to speak of finding a shop that markets all of them!

I would therefore love to get your opinion also.

 

[Stack]

Hi,

I had a very similar problem picking which amp to get. I eventually went for the Onkyo 876, primarily because of the connectablity it offered. Then I got it home and was blown away by the surround sound. It is also very musical depsite what reviews say. It took it about 3 weeks to open up fully and sound its best but I dont regret the decision. The 876 is a fantastic piece of kit and can be had for much less than the £1000 price tag if you look around. It is hard to choose which amp to purchase, as the market is very closely matched now.

Matt

 

[Anonymous]

I'm surprised you have not got the Marantz SR6003 on your list considering what your wanting from an amp, it's the best sub 1,000 receivers on the market. My opinion of course. Your right about auditioning you should not be buying an amp for that kind of money before hearing it. Onkyo have reliability problems, the net is littered with stories. Have a look.

 

[TKratz]

Hi Matt and I.D.C

Thanks for your input, which I will definately keep in mind! It seems like there aren't such good deals available for Onkyo in Denmark. Must be more of a Denon and Yamaha market.

I honestly haven't considered the Marantz, but it is now added to the list