ClintonH Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 Just looking into "maybe" upgrading my AVR. Currently running a Denon AVR 2308ic and I'm hwppy with it, just old and lacks some of the newer features. The SC-85 stood out as a pretty nice feature set/power for the price, far better than the Denon equal. Is Atmos worth the upgrade? That's one of the key features I was looking at on this. Also how does it's room calibration work in comparisson to Audyssey? And most importantly how does it sound with Klipsch speakers? Currently running RF-35 7.1 setup but will be upgrading to 3 RC-7's across the front within the next 2 months. Thanks for any input Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZEUS121996 Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 The people that have them love them. https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?/topic/161106-pioneer-sc-85-elite-64000/ Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClintonH Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 (edited) The people that have them love them. https://community.klipsch.com/index.php?/topic/161106-pioneer-sc-85-elite-64000/ Mark That link is for the US Best buy, seem to be out. I was more looking for personal experience rather than were to get one. Only place I can buy one is here since shipping a duty would actually make it more expensive than shipping it in. I'm in Canada Thanks for the reply though. Edited December 31, 2015 by ClintonH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 There are a couple of guys with that model that should chime in. Personally, I prefer MCACC over Auddysee. The SC 85 has sub EQ which my SC 35 does not which is a real plus. The Elite amps are clean with plenty of punch. No better way to say, they just get the whole system to mesh together and sound great. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClintonH Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 There are a couple of guys with that model that should chime in. Personally, I prefer MCACC over Auddysee. The SC 85 has sub EQ which my SC 35 does not which is a real plus. The Elite amps are clean with plenty of punch. No better way to say, they just get the whole system to mesh together and sound great. Nice. Thanks that's good to hear. I have the NU6000DSP and NU3000DSP (like you I see) for my 3 JLW7 subs so that really isn't a deal breaker, does the SC 35 have ATMOS? Or is that even worth the upgrade to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 (edited) The SC 35 is from 2010-2011, so no Atmos. Is it worth it, it all depends on you, the room layout and other gear. Just this week, I started to get an SC 85 but, I will wait a little longer on Atmos. I really need to demo an Atmos system to get a better feel for the upgrade. Ignorance is bliss for right now. I would have to do ceiling speakers since I don't have a reflective ceiling. Edited December 31, 2015 by derrickdj1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
busht4169 Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 I have a step down from that...SC-91. I use Atmos. Love the hell out of this receiver. Sabre DAC keeps all my vinyl and Flac clean as hell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Schu Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 (edited) The 85 is great... even though I have zero need for atmos personally. The internal ess 9018 dac is about 80%+ the equal of my very expensive stand alone dac. Edited December 31, 2015 by Schu 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quiet_Hollow Posted December 31, 2015 Share Posted December 31, 2015 (edited) I'll also throw in regarding Atmos (to include the recent "Dolby Surround") that I would agree with Mike (Dr. Who) in that even if you don't run a full Atmos speaker array (or ever intend to), that having a unit that can actually process the new format is certainly a plus. The five-channel down mixes I've heard over my system where very good. Sound-wise, it's all up to you. Out of the box, probably not so much. A little tweaking though, and Da-yum! Edited December 31, 2015 by Quiet_Hollow 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClintonH Posted December 31, 2015 Author Share Posted December 31, 2015 The SC 35 is from 2010-2011, so no Atmos. Is it worth it, it all depends on you, the room layout and other gear. Just this week, I started to get an SC 85 but, I will wait a little longer on Atmos. I really need to demo an Atmos system to get a better feel for the upgrade. Ignorance is bliss for right now. I would have to do ceiling speakers since I don't have a reflective ceiling. I have a step down from that...SC-91. I use Atmos. Love the hell out of this receiver. Sabre DAC keeps all my vinyl and Flac clean as hell. The 85 is great... even though I have zero need for atmos personally. The internal ess 9018 dac is about 80%+ the equal of my very expensive stand alone dac. I'll also throw in regarding Atmos (to include the recent "Dolby Surround") that I would agree with Mike (Dr. Who) in that even if you don't run a full Atmos speaker array (or ever intend to), that having a unit that can actually process the new format is certainly a plus. The five-channel down mixes I've heard over my system where very good. Sound-wise, it's all up to you. Out of the box, probably not so much. A little tweaking though, and Da-yum! Thanks for all the feed back guys, sounds like it's the way to go then. It's fairly cheap as well so win win. I may or may not jump on the Atmos setup, just like to future proof since it takes me awhile to upgrade. Last one was 8 years ago, but I still think it's a great AVR just have that itch. lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClintonH Posted January 2, 2016 Author Share Posted January 2, 2016 Sorry to bump this back up again but had 2 more questions before I pull the pin on this, I found one at a reasonable price but I have to double ship since US shipping only. :/ For those that have one of these units, I fully intend to go Atmos if I buy so want to be sure. Does it do Dolby surround upmix ? It's not listed in any of the specs, I see it on the SC-91 but not listed for SC-85 The amp is listed as 9.2 and 5.2.4 for Atmos, I can clearly see in there wiring diagram on page 28 of the manual that it has 11 speakers 6 of which are Atmos. Am I not looking at this correct or? Just trying to figure out how many ceiling speakers I'm going to need. Thanks again for the help guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClintonH Posted January 3, 2016 Author Share Posted January 3, 2016 Anyone with a SC-85? Just don't want to miss this deal. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quiet_Hollow Posted January 3, 2016 Share Posted January 3, 2016 Atmos is in its infancy. Don't fuss over it. Buy the amp as there's so much more to it than just that....it's a bargain now. Hack out the speaker details after the fact. You don't want to be stuck with an integrated setup. FWIW - Atmos, at its core, has no theoretical limit to the number of channels. It's the perfect sales pitch for those in the speaker business. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClintonH Posted January 3, 2016 Author Share Posted January 3, 2016 Atmos is in its infancy. Don't fuss over it. Buy the amp as there's so much more to it than just that....it's a bargain now. Hack out the speaker details after the fact. You don't want to be stuck with an integrated setup. FWIW - Atmos, at its core, has no theoretical limit to the number of channels. It's the perfect sales pitch for those in the speaker business. Got the first part. Second 2 parts not sure exactly what you mean? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quiet_Hollow Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 Second 2 parts not sure exactly what you mean? I was referring to this: Just trying to figure out how many ceiling speakers I'm going to need. Which would be 1-4 units depending on SPL and coverage requirements in regards to the SC-85, but that both Dolby and DTS will eventually be encouraging us to paste the entire ceiling and walls with speakers...when in reality the greatest effort involved is getting the 5.1 setup well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClintonH Posted January 4, 2016 Author Share Posted January 4, 2016 Second 2 parts not sure exactly what you mean?I was referring to this: Just trying to figure out how many ceiling speakers I'm going to need.Which would be 1-4 units depending on SPL and coverage requirements in regards to the SC-85, but that both Dolby and DTS will eventually be encouraging us to paste the entire ceiling and walls with speakers...when in reality the greatest effort involved is getting the 5.1 setup well. I get they would like to have a ton of speakers looking at some of the theater designs. lol But what I would like to know is how many will the SC-85 actually utilize? 4 or 6 Atmos as well as the 5.2? I already have a great sounding 7.1 setup just wanted to upgrade to the next step up which seems to be Atmos by what I have been reading. Is it all hype then or is it a upgrade? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quiet_Hollow Posted January 4, 2016 Share Posted January 4, 2016 But what I would like to know is how many will the SC-85 actually utilize? 4 or 6 Atmos as well as the 5.2? Someone else using the feature is going to have to chime in as I don't run ceiling speakers, or even 7 channels because.... Is it all hype then or is it a upgrade? ...I've been to Atmos-equipped cinemas where they have spent more money on the ceiling array install than I'd ever put into a house, only to leave wondering what all the buzz was about. What's more important is the codec, and at this point in time Dolby and DTS are really splitting hairs. Lately, I'd be much more concerned about who's being assigned foley and sound design. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClintonH Posted January 9, 2016 Author Share Posted January 9, 2016 So just wanted to update this with the outcome. I didn't get the pioneer since it only had a 1 year warranty which would have been only valid in the US, no help to me. I went with a Denon X4100W instead, has a few things the Pioneer didn't that I like plus it's a Denon and I really like my current one. The Audyssey XT32 Platinum looks promissing since it will do 2 subs and I can upgrade to the pro if I really think I need it. Auro 3D upgrade also looks very cool plus all the steaming options etc that I found the SC-85 doesn't have might be nice. Should have it in a few weeks along with a few Atmos speakers to bounce sound off the ceiling. 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.