Which AV Receiver?

[admin_exported]

I’m looking for some advice on an AV Receiver.

I have recently bought a Panasonic TV, TX-P42V10 and DMP-BD80 Blu-ray player. I want to add a surround sound system but using my existing stereo speakers. My current stereo set-up is quite old and comprises of an Arcam Alpha 6+ amp, Marantz CD63 and TDL RTL2 speakers. I was looking at replacing the Arcam with something along the lines of a Cambridge Audio 640R or the Denon AVR1910 but have been told the 640R has been discontinued. The Denon is obviously a pretty good all-rounder but I have been told the stereo sound will not match my Arcam and nothing in this price bracket will.

Just to complicate matters my CD player is on its way out so that needs replacing too. Someone suggested buying a more expensive receiver such as the Pioneer VSX1019 or Denon AVR2310, then connect my BD80 with a co-ax cable so the Blu-ray player is just used as a transport and use the DAC’s in the receiver for playing my CD’s. Apparently the stereo sound reproduction from the amp will be better and the CD’s should sound as good as or better than my CD63.

With work and family these days I don’t get time to sit down for long and listen to CD’s in their entirety very often so just want something that sounds pretty good without costing the earth.

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[d4v3pum4]

You could keep your Arcam setup if you went for a receiver with front pre-outs. The Arcam would continue to drive the fronts and the AV Receiver would drive the centre and rears (plus output to subwoofer via sub pre-out). The likes of Yamaha's 765 and upwards have the front pre-outs. I think that the cheapest receiver that has them (check though) is the Sony 2400ES at £400.

Using the bluray player as a transport is a good idea but you might find it isn't as good as your CD player. If you have a wireless network in your home and a PC, have you considered a streaming solution such as Squeezebox, Sonos or Apple Express? I found that once I set my Squeezebox up, I listened to a lot more music and now have access to my entire library at the touch of a button. My Arcam CD player is now pretty much redundant!