Max2 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 I am going to be buying a new receiver in the next couple of months and have been looking at bench tests done on Onkyo, Pioneer and Denon. Im still juggling the thought of separates using a receiver as a pre amp. The S/N ratio's seem to be dominated by Denon (4310, 3311) coming in a 112db. Pioneer (SC-37A) is showing just over 105 db while the Onkyo is showing 106db. All of the readings are coming from Home Theater. com which would help rule out any differences in testing equipment. My question is, can someone actually hear the difference in these S/N ratio numbers? Also, would these numbers make a bigger difference when using the Receiver just as a pre out to a main amp? I dont buy new equipment often...my current receiver is 12-13 yrs old. I just want to try and make the best effort on this purchase. Any input is appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ69 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 A simple answer is no, specs don't tell you anything about how equipment sounds, it's a very rough guideline at best. If you really want to move your system to the next level you'll need a serious upgrade in amplification. If you are only considering receivers, I recommend that you make a big step and look at only the very best from one of the specialty manufacturers. Happy hunting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted January 4, 2011 Author Share Posted January 4, 2011 Thanks for your response Russ. After looking at a couple of other bench tests from the same site I noticed the new Marantz SR 7005 S/N ratio was just 98 db, Cambridge Azur 650R 106db, Arcam AVR 500, 94db. I realize every brand will have a different sound to it, but dont the S/N numbers have some bearing on noise dynamics and clarity ? It would seem like someone could actually hear a difference between a unit that scored 112db as compared to unit that showed 94db. Maybe someone can shed some light on the whole importance of the S/N ratio. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ69 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 I realize every brand will have a different sound to it, but dont the S/N numbers have some bearing on noise dynamics and clarity ? Only on paper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted January 4, 2011 Author Share Posted January 4, 2011 Thanks for the lesson Russ. Maybe I should have titled my post as what is the best sounding Receiver that you have heard? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willland Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Maybe I should have titled my post as what is the best sounding Receiver that you have heard? The NAD T773 is the best sounding receiver I have ever heard. I picked up this 6 year old used beast(52.8lbs) about six months ago at a pawn shop with the sole intent of reselling it. After thoroughly cleaning, I had to give it a test run, first in 2-channel and then 5.1. I was so impressed with the way it made the Forte's sing I had to hear it with my RF-63's. The amps in this thing are very un receiver-like. Bass is very authoritative and the mids/highs are detailed. Closest sounding to seperates I have ever heard in a HT receiver I couldn't unhook my Onkyo receiver(which I am very pleased with) fast enough and slid the NAD right into HT duty. Now I am using the NAD as a pre/pro with the B&K amps supplying the juice. Only drawback with this receiver is that it is non-HDMI but I use the 7.1 analog outs on my BD player to take advantage of the new HD audio codecs. Needless to say I did not sell it. I may one day move up to a NAD HDMI receiver if the $$$ is right. If you want a very "musical" HT receiver, I would really consider one of the newer NAD avr's(if budget permits). http://nadelectronics.com/products/av-receivers Here is a picture of my NAD T773's guts. To the left are the dual "stacked" toroidal transformers. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
russ69 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Thanks for the lesson Russ. Maybe I should have titled my post as what is the best sounding Receiver that you have heard? I can't help you. I don't shop in that segment. Sorry, I can't help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenM Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 To preface, this is to the best of my knowledge: SNR is a useful measurement, and any figure better than 80dB can be considered "good". That said, SNR is only one aspect of performance that any halfway decent amplifier should have down pat. IMO, what separates the men from the boys in amplification is finding an amplifier that is effective in driving loads beyond an 8 ohm resistor. Unfortunately, saying an amplifier is rated 100 watts into a purely resistive 8 ohm load 20Hz-20kHz with under 0.1% distortion tells you precious little about how it will handle a speaker that presents a highly reactive low impedance load. Unfortunately, there are few bench tests that will tell you about this kind of performance (I think the Power Cube test over at The Audio Critic was useful, although they're basically dead). Further confounding the problem is that precious few speaker manufacturers bother to advertise anything about the load their speakers present beyond saying they are 8 ohm nominal. Thus, one can conclude the best way to choose an amplifier is to listen to them as they are hooked up to your speakers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.