dbngaa Posted May 4, 2001 Share Posted May 4, 2001 okay, so i'm getting the vibe from my wife that it's be alright if we upgraded the receiver and i want something with like 7.1 surround or so. i have narrowed it down, as far as THAT goes, to denon 5800 onkyo 989 marantz sr-14ex (but i don't think it is 7.1). any opinions appreciated. also, i was working with the Avia guide to home theater dvd today and learned a few things, but am a bit worried/confused about a few of the "test" results. on the sweep signals from 170mhz down to 20hz i noticed several peaks and valleys as far as volume. i COULD NOT get a consistant volume all the way down. my kg5.5's started off great, then dropped off a good bit, then picked back up... maybe i just don't understand how this is supposed to work. any opinions or suggestions or whatever appreciated. which brings me to the last thing. my center speaker is a kt-lcr. weighs a ton and sounds very well matched to the kg5.5's. i've had it about a month and it was advised in the manual to place it upright for proper dispersement. well, on top of my entertainment center, that just wasn't a possibility - it's too high and my wife said it looked tacky. so, i placed it sideways. it sounds pretty good. then i start messing with this avia and i decide to try it standing upright. and it sounds better. except a bit too high - obviously, as far as my ears go, out of line with my fronts. so, anyone have a suggestion as to how i might utilize the proper orientation of this speaker? i thought of putting it on the floor angled up, but it blocks my components. just need a big screen tv. which reminds me... subwoofer on the floor. rattles some. no feet or anything, just flat-out on the floor. suggestions for getting ti off the flooor and minimising the rattle? and speaking of big screen tv's - looing at a digital widescreen toshiba or something. does a 16:9 ratio tv have a better resolution than a 4:3 ratio tv whose viewable letterboxed image is the same overall size as the 16:9? or something. i need to post more often instead of letting these questions build up in my mind. thanks david Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigStew Posted May 4, 2001 Share Posted May 4, 2001 David, I just went thru the same deal as you trying to make a receiver choice. I narrowed it down to the Denon 5800 and the B&K307. I purchased the B&K, but you absolutely cannot go wrong with either choice. I highly suggest demoing them if possible in your room and choosing the one that sounds the best to you. If you are into all the diffent surround "modes" then the Denon is probably the one. The B&K sounded better listening to music to me and that is one issue that put me over the edge. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jotnar Posted May 4, 2001 Share Posted May 4, 2001 The toshiba 16x9 tv that you are talking about. Is that an RPTV or a 34 in. direct view? I'm not a fan of Rear Projection so I bought the Panasonic 34 in. 16x9 HDTV and I really love it Letterboxed images like DVDs or even Laserdisc will look much better on a 16x9 TV. I guess it just depends on whether you watch mostly DVDs or TV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avman Posted May 4, 2001 Share Posted May 4, 2001 i sell both the sony 16:9 xbr's and the hs 'high scan'4:3 rptv's. the hs series is really exciting in that they are functionally the same as the preceding model xbr's (they were hd ready 4:3rptv), but they cost less. the current xbr's are all 16:9 tv's. they do a pretty good job of filling the screen when a 4:3 picture is being input, but in my opinion, unless you are PRIMARILY watching 'letterbox' dvd's, or hd broadcasts, an appropriately sized 4:3 rptv is your best bet! the sonys adjust the way they scan the picture when black banding at the top and bottom is present so as to only scan the picture part, not the black bands, thus maintaining 100% of the picture quality/clarity, vs. wasting that capacity on scanning black lines. also you still wind up w/ a nice size picture, and a greater percentage of what you watch 'naturally' fills the screen. don't get me wrong, i am a fan of 'letterbox' programming, but i think 4:3 is the way to go as far as rptv aspect ratio goes. the 4:3's cost less also; around here the hs53 is about $2599 and the hs61 is about $2999. avman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbngaa Posted May 4, 2001 Author Share Posted May 4, 2001 thanks for the info so far. i guess i should have mentioned that we watch about 50/50 movies and tv (dish network). the reason i ask about the tv is that my wife and i were out last weekend at a local a/v store and were comparing the various tv's. of course, the digital hdtv 16:9 sets were all amazingly clear, but they had an hd signal coming through. my wife didn't like the picture on any of the rptv's comparitively. her eyesight is not that great so she appreciates the improvement in size and quality making it eaasier on her. but she's the one who noted the actual viewing image size on both sets was the same - just not as clear. granted, one can't judge much of anything based on this stores lighting and set-up etc. just got me thinking. i am already leaning towards the denon, but have heard horrible things about their remote - that it freezes up. but i haven't actually had a chance to see for myself yet, so... also, possibly important - since i'm not an electrician and don't know how this translates - the denon is rated at like 170 watts per channel or something huge, while my speakers are 100 watts. is there a chance of damage if pairing the 2? i'm not stuck with 100 watt receivers forever am i? anyway, keep the answers coming. thanks david Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RossVTaylor Posted May 4, 2001 Share Posted May 4, 2001 David, I'm an incredibly pleased owner of a 5800, so let me address the remote issue. The Aktis remote that ships with the Denon is a cool, programmable touchscreen remote with RF capability (so it works from other rooms). That said, I'm not even using the Aktis with my system. I like the Philips Pronto soooooo much better. The first Aktis software version did have "freeze" issues, but that's been resolved. I find absolutely no faults with the Denon AVR-5800, or even its remote. The remote is better than most OEM remotes. But, if you've used a Pronto you get spoiled. As far as amp versus speaker wattage goes: Don't worry. There is no problem using an amp rated higher than your speakers. In fact, it's less hazardous than using a lower rated amp that you might push into clipping/distortion - THAT'S what will kill your speaker! Yes, you can fry a speaker with clean power too... but, you're better off having an amp with the ability to provide clean, dynamic power than try to push a lesser amp beyonds its limits. Ross Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dougdrake Posted May 4, 2001 Share Posted May 4, 2001 quote: Originally posted by dbngaa: okay, also, i was working with the Avia guide to home theater dvd today and learned a few things, but am a bit worried/confused about a few of the "test" results. on the sweep signals from 170mhz down to 20hz i noticed several peaks and valleys as far as volume. i COULD NOT get a consistant volume all the way down. my kg5.5's started off great, then dropped off a good bit, then picked back up... maybe i just don't understand how this is supposed to work. any opinions or suggestions or whatever appreciated. You are hearing the wonderful interaction of bass waves with your room. Every room responds differently to bass, and it causes peaks and valleys in the volume depending on how those waves crash off the walls into each other (cancellation). You can often improve the situation by playing with the placement of your sub or main speakers. I'm not an expert in fixing the problem, though, but there are other here who might be. quote: which brings me to the last thing. my center speaker is a kt-lcr. weighs a ton and sounds very well matched to the kg5.5's. i've had it about a month and it was advised in the manual to place it upright for proper dispersement. well, on top of my entertainment center, that just wasn't a possibility - it's too high and my wife said it looked tacky. so, i placed it sideways. it sounds pretty good. then i start messing with this avia and i decide to try it standing upright. and it sounds better. except a bit too high - obviously, as far as my ears go, out of line with my fronts. so, anyone have a suggestion as to how i might utilize the proper orientation of this speaker? Not familiar with the structure of this speaker, but does it have a tweeter on the top with a woofer on the bottom? If so, can you just rotate the speaker 180 degrees so that the tweeter is on the bottom? That will place it more in line with your KG5.5 tweeters and your ears. Doug Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RossVTaylor Posted May 4, 2001 Share Posted May 4, 2001 David, I'm an incredibly pleased owner of a 5800, so let me address the remote issue. The Aktis remote that ships with the Denon is a cool, programmable touchscreen remote with RF capability (so it works from other rooms). That said, I'm not even using the Aktis with my system. I like the Philips Pronto soooooo much better. The first Aktis software version did have "freeze" issues, but that's been resolved. I find absolutely no faults with the Denon AVR-5800, or even its remote. The remote is better than most OEM remotes. But, if you've used a Pronto you get spoiled. As far as amp versus speaker wattage goes: Don't worry. There is no problem using an amp rated higher than your speakers. In fact, it's less hazardous than using a lower rated amp that you might push into clipping/distortion - THAT'S what will kill your speaker! Yes, you can fry a speaker with clean power too... but, you're better off having an amp with the ability to provide clean, dynamic power than try to push a lesser amp beyonds its limits. Ross Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dbngaa Posted May 4, 2001 Author Share Posted May 4, 2001 good, so the 5800 it is. for some reason my wife liked the idea of a denon from the start even though she has no information beyond what i have told her about any of these receivers. intuition i guess. dougdrake, as long as it's normal then i shall not be worried. i'll mess around with my placement a bit more then. something i tried tonight that was disappointing...i hooked the mains up through my sub with the line level inputs, yadda yadda, and nothing. the bass was minimal at best. i am beginng to believe that the sub out on my receiver is ****ing with me. normally the bass is fine, a bit boomy sometimes, but overall, just like i want it. i thought i would try the set-up i have been reading about, but i didn't like the results. and yes i changed my settings from sub-yes and fronts-small to sub-no and fronts-large. so, i am back where i started. not complaining though. anyway, off to look at tv's tomorrow. we'll see... thanks again all david Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boa12 Posted May 5, 2001 Share Posted May 5, 2001 david, how could u hook the mains thru the sub line level? the only way to do that would be to also run line outs from the sub to powered towers or back into the receiver loop thru it's power amp ins(which many receivers don't have). not to open a can of worms caus bass mgmt is a real challenge. just wondered. ------------------ Klipsch KLF 30 (front), KLF C-7, Cornwall I (rear) Velodyne HGS-18 sub woofer Monsterbass 400 sub interconnects & Monster MCX Biwire/Bananas Marantz SR-8000 receiver Sony DVP-C650D cd/dvd player Sony Trinitron 27" stereo tv Toshiba hi-fi stereo vcr Technics dual cassette deck Scientific Atlanta Explorer 2000 digital cable box 2nd room: Klipsch RF-3 (front), RC-3, cheap little Technics (rear) Monster MCX Biwires/Bananas Sony STR-DE935 a/v receiver Kenwood KR-9600 AM/FM stereo receiver (power amp for RF-3) Teac PD-D1200 5-disk cd player Technics direct drive turntable Sega Genesis game player Sub: None yet rock on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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