What 5.1+ Receiver

[FalconSonic]

Hi All,

I'm new to the site and looking to purchase a proper home cinema after making a terrible mistake on purchasing the Bose acoustimass 6 which is all highs, no mids, muddy bass, no sense of cohesion with the satellites and sub, the list goes on, that was a while ago ....now that I have made this school boy error, falling for the hype, I would like some kind advice on picking out a system thats compatible with excellent weighty defined sound for both movies and music alike.

I was looking into the Pioneer SC-LX56 or LX86 to pair with the KEF KHT3005SE or the B&W MT-50 (possible PV1-D sub upgrade) but it's my understanding the Pioneers Amps are bright in the treble department so I would have to make another choice if I was to choose the MT-50s.

Searched the internet high and low for reviews etc; and I really like the feedback on the KEF as in weighty define bass with good satellite integration and dedicated centre CH which in my mind would give great focal on dialogue but there was not a great deal of reviews on the MT-50s.

I know the best way would be to go and have a Demo myself but i'm working abroad and was hoping to purchase before I arrive back in the UK so it would be there ready for set up as I don't have a great deal of time before I return to work.

It doesn't have to be the specified above if there are any other systems out there that I'm missing out then I would be interested to hear about them.

Thanks.

 

[BIGBERNARDBRESSLAW]

Welcome to the forum.

First question to ask is what is your total budget?

I have a Yamaha RX-A2020, and it's a sensational receiver, even with my lower end speakers. It can be bought for around a grand.

Others may be able to advise you better on speakers once we know your budget.

 

[Leeps]

I can certainly vouch for Pioneer receivers but I've personally felt that the KEF eggs didn't live up to their star ratings. I found them slow dull and unengaging, but the HK receiver that I heard driving them could have been partly to blame.

My receiver, which is very similar tonally to the LX56, to my ears, matches beautifully with the Monitor Audio Radius speakers, although this is with the R270HD compact floorstanders for the front left & right channels. Although I chose them primarily for their boost to the midrange over the R90HD satellites, they do look rather handsome in piano black finish.

The combo is punchy, fast (startlingly so with steering effects with movies) with a gorgeous midrange that sounds great with female voices and really gives spark and life to funk music (if that floats your boat at all).

The Radius range has just been revised; I've not heard the new drivers yet, but this does mean there are still some excellent deals around on the outgoing models.

A couple of things to note though;
The Pioneer receiver's latest incarnation, the LX57 supports Spotify Connect (possibly with a firmware update though - check this with your dealer). This operates in a similar way to internet radio, so it streams it straight through the network cable to the receiver, so you simply control it from your ithing rather than streaming from it using Airplay, which ought to be more stable (not involving your network issues) and could sound slightly better too than Airplay. I think this sounds like a great idea, so if I was choosing now I'd be inclined to go for the '57. However the '56 will be considerably cheaper. You pays your money...

Many on this forum speak very highly of Yamaha receivers too, so it would be worth considering their equivalent offerings.

 

[FalconSonic]

Thanks for the welcome and reply.

My budget is about £2,500 in this range....I don't really want to max this budget hence I was looking at the KEFs and LX56 which has dropped considerable in price but given the system that matches my preference then I would consider my maximum. I do understand this budget will not get me the best but I would be content with something that gives great sound every time I turn it on, as a-pose to wow that sounds great first time around then over a period of time I start to hear what's missing....this is when regret kicks in.

With that said, I currently live in a apartment/flat so I'm looking for something compact and neighbour friendly, so something that still has good impact at low volumes is a must.

Thanks.

 

[BIGBERNARDBRESSLAW]

These are worth considering, and I think they would partner well with the Yamaha RX-A2020 to make a superb souding system.

http://www.whathifi.com/review/q-acoustics-q7000i

 

[Simon Pinkney]

I used to own the Pioneer LX55 with Keff Eggs. I couldnt fault it. I still own the amp but have Apex speakers now. Apex are much better but then again they are much more expensive. Before that I used to have a Denon amp. Again this was good and it also had a nighttime setting which lowered the bass without effecting the overall sound at lower volume levels. If you need to be neighbour friendly then that might be worth considering. Again, I had that witht he Kef eggs and it was great.

 

[mikey2008]

+1 for the Yamaha and QAs. I haven't heard the 7000i but the 7000 is a very nice combination with Yamaha amps. The A2020 might be overkill - the 675 will be fine if you want to save.