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RF-63s paired with Denon AVR-3312CI. Unhappy with the results


dreadedphoto

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I somehow managed to score an amazing deal on a brand new pair of RF-63s and received them earlier in the week. I connected them to my Pioneer 1021k and WOW. I was blown away. Music, movies, games, everything sounded better. A noticeable improvement over my RF-62 IIs.

But then I heard that nagging voice in the back of my head. The Pioneer 1021k only puts out 90 watts per channel. I could only imagine how much better more power would make these speakers sound. In my current living arrangement, my entertainment center is the limiting factor of my setup. There is a single cutout for a component and it's not very large. I've only got about 7 inches of vertical space if I want to leave a little room for airflow. That being said, I had a really difficult time finding a receiver that would fit in the console, while also giving me the features and power I was looking for.

The Denon 3312CI looked to fit the bill, so I bought one and it just got in yesterday. I went through the Audyssey setup using about 5 different positions and sat down for a listen. The first thing I noticed is that Audyssey turned down channel levels on my speakers. Way down. To the point where I had to turn the volume up fairly high to hear anything. When turned up, it sounded fine. I put in Casino Royale and the opening car chase scene sounded pretty good. I hadn't watched this recently on my Pioneer, so I can't directly compare the experiences, but I was more or less happy with it. Not blown away, but not disappointed either.

Music however, was a whole different story. I was not happy with it at all. I didn't notice at first, I was playing some old jazz tracks and tinkering around in the settings. I found the simulated jazz setting to be pretty cool. But as I messed around more and more, I found myself disappointed with the music performance. It could be the settings, but I spent a good amount of time going through the options and I couldn't find that sweet spot. The bass performance is HORRIBLE.

Anyone using a 3312 with RF-63s? Have you found that happy place? Or can you recommend a better receiver for the RF-63s that would be around 7" high or less?

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My first guess (which is worth exactly what you paid for it [;)]) is that something went wrong with the Audyssey setup. When I ran through the Audyssey setup with my Denon 1911 it dropped the levels a bit, definitely not a lot. The fact that you report the bass as being HORRIBLE makes me think the same thing. Both those receivers have ample power for your speakers, so I really doubt that's the problem.

What you could try:

(1) Turn Audyssey off. It should still sound pretty good overall. If not, I would suspect a defective 3312.

(2) Look at the Audyssey settings. Something crazy (wild deviations in the boost/cut at adjacent frequencies, all bass cut alot, and the like) could be an indication that something went wrong during setup.

(3) Depending on the results of (1), re-run the Audyssey setup. I'm sure you already know, but it really does need to be very quiet when you do this. Turn off the A/C or heat, pool pump, dishwasher, etc. If the dog barks in the middle of setup, start over. Yada yada.

Good luck,

Lou

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Or can you recommend a better receiver for the RF-63s that would be around 7" high or less?

http://app.audiogon.com/listings/458044

My NAD T773(2005 model) sounds fantastic with my RF-63's. I do have a couple of outboard amps with it but alone it has plenty of power to drive the 63's to the max.

Bill

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I'd love to buy your NAD if price and size was no object. I'd like to keep this around $1000 and around 7" in height.

I am not selling my NAD. The link is for the current model T775HD and it is under 7 inches high but over your $1000.00 threshold.

Bill

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play with the settings more

I have an older Denon (2805) and it has sounded great with both my KLF20s and RF62ii

but there are times like with Dolby pro logic II music or cinema that sounds like crap. So the only thing I use is regular stereo or Dolby Digital/DTS. All of the other sound effect settings sound bad IMO

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Congrats on the purchase of the Pioneer SC 35! The manual is a bit large and it takes a little time to go through it. But, the end result is well worth it. I find the SC recievers very well suited for music and HT. When I brought my SC 35 it was for 90% Ht and 10% music. Now I am 50/50. The MCACC is the key. forget about EQ under 63 Hz., the RF 63's bass output will be great and sound great.

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  • 1 month later...

I love it! My first receiver was a Pioneer 1021-K and it was fantastic, but I wanted more power. The Denon had the power, but something was just missing. The sound didn't seem as full and the iphone/ipad app was awful in comparison to the Pioneer. I love my SC-55. My only minor complaint is that the HDMI handshaking requires that devices be turned on in a certain order and if they aren't, I have to power on/off the receiver to get a picture from that input.

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