guardbums Posted February 13, 2005 Share Posted February 13, 2005 Hello all. First, thank you all for your educational advice throughout this awesome forum. I'm new to HT and must admit, having a hard time understanding much of the reading, being electronics challenged. I'm seeking user friendly, great sounding separates to drive my 5.1 system (RF 7's, RC 7, RS 35's and SVS 20-39 PC+). My budget is absolutely no more than $3,500. Room is 11 x 18 with a large opening to another part of the basement. The system will be used for 60% movies, 40% music. For ease of use, I'd like only 2 pieces, pre-pro and amp and to be able to switch from movies to music easily. I really don't think an upgrade to 7.1 is a consideration so 5 channel is fine. Also, does a ratshack meter come with good instructions on how to setup the system. If not, how does a newbie figure that out, not knowing where to begin. Thanks again for your help getting me to this point and future pointers. John Scott AFB, IL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minn_male42 Posted February 13, 2005 Share Posted February 13, 2005 ---------------- On 2/13/2005 8:41:31 PM guardbums wrote: Hello all. First, thank you all for your educational advice throughout this awesome forum. I'm new to HT and must admit, having a hard time understanding much of the reading, being electronics challenged. I'm seeking user friendly, great sounding separates to drive my 5.1 system (RF 7's, RC 7, RS 35's and SVS 20-39 PC+). My budget is absolutely no more than $3,500. Room is 11 x 18 with a large opening to another part of the basement. The system will be used for 60% movies, 40% music. For ease of use, I'd like only 2 pieces, pre-pro and amp and to be able to switch from movies to music easily. I really don't think an upgrade to 7.1 is a consideration so 5 channel is fine. Also, does a ratshack meter come with good instructions on how to setup the system. If not, how does a newbie figure that out, not knowing where to begin. Thanks again for your help getting me to this point and future pointers. John Scott AFB, IL ---------------- John, Welcome to the forum!!! after being into this hobby at the serious level for over 5 years and being into music for my entire life and having a music degree...... if i was in your situation i would look into a couple of options..... i will start backwards... with the amplifier first..... if i was buying a 5 channel amp today (within your budget) i would look into the used market for a used sunfire cinema grand (5 x 200 watts or a newer model of 5 x 225 watts @ 8 ohms).... these amps are available used for $950 to $1400 on audiogon and ebay.... for a pre/pro i would be looking at a sherwood P-965...... probably the best prepro in this price range (~$1500).... another option to consider is a pioneer elite receiver - the 54tx or 56txi...to use as a pre/pro.... they go for about $1000 to $1300 brand new... paired with a 5 channel amp like the sunfire it will rpoduce an awesome sound!!!... it also allows you to use the receiver's internal amplifiers to power the center and surrounds and buy a much higher quality amplfier for your mains for music purposes.... with the elite receiver you will get more options and features than you will with any pre/pro out there.... currently, i use a pioneer elite 55txi as my pre/pro... it also powers my center channel and surrounds... i use a Carver Professional ZR1000 digital amplifier to power my mains (KLF-30's).... i get an incredible sound for two channel music and the internal amps of the pioneer do a great job for home theater on the very efficient klipsch speakers..... i do plan to purchase additional Carver Professional ZR amps for the rest of the channels when funds allow.... the above is just a few of my current thoughts and experiences..... hopefully it has proved helpful... good luck in your search! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrMcGoo Posted February 13, 2005 Share Posted February 13, 2005 Modern receivers have started in the direction of automatic setup. They do have a significant learning curve, if you want the most out of the feature set. I agree with Russ' recommendations for gear. I have a Pioneer 59TXi receiver with Sunfire amps powering Klipsch Reference 7 speakers. IMHO, they sound good together. Before you spend this kind of money, try to find opportunities to listen to some of the options. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Audio Flynn Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 Sherwood Newcastle (SN) has a great price on separates and they fit well with my RB-5s. $ 3000 retail list for both pieces is a steal. Out the door who knows... Data exists in many places on the web. Sirius music decoded through the DACs from DISH is AMAZING on the SN pre! Amazing is not a word I use but a rare few times per year; except for the female form... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverSport Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 Outlaw Audio 950 Procesoor...a steal at $699, 7100 & X 100w all channels driven...$899 plus shipping... Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minn_male42 Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 ---------------- On 2/14/2005 8:41:12 AM silversport wrote: Outlaw Audio 950 Procesoor...a steal at $699, 7100 & X 100w all channels driven...$899 plus shipping... Bill ---------------- the outlaw 950 is more than a few years old in the technology department.... the sherwood pre/pro as well as the newer receivers out there have current technology as well as the auto room correction feature that sets up all your volumes, sets the correct delay amount, and equalizes every channel though a digital equalizer... i did audition the outlaw 950 in my system side by side with my pioneer elite 55txi... the 55txi simply sounded better, had a lower noise floor and had many more features (the pioneer unit did cost more though - $1300 vs $900) IMHO... i never buy an "entry-level" anything.... the outlaw pre/pro is definitely entry-level.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griffinator Posted February 14, 2005 Share Posted February 14, 2005 ---------------- On 2/14/2005 9:34:35 AM minn_male42 wrote: IMHO... i never buy an "entry-level" anything.... the outlaw pre/pro is definitely entry-level.. ---------------- Can't argue with that, bro. $700 for a pre-pro is getting a bit scary, IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guardbums Posted February 14, 2005 Author Share Posted February 14, 2005 Thanks for the tips. Please keep sending. All comments welcome. Take care. John Scott AFB, IL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RM1111 Posted February 16, 2005 Share Posted February 16, 2005 My cousin just picked up a Sunfire ultimate reciever for around that price. Check out sunfire and other brands on www.audiogon.com. Might be able to find some deals. Don't know if warranties are transferable on sunfire, but check before you buy used. Saturday Audio has a NAD S250 amp and T163 pre-amp for a good deal($2200.00) retails for $4000, but I haven't had any experience with NAD. Maybe some other people can recommend it, but try to listen to them first. Saturday audio have 2 stores, Evanston & Chicago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrMcGoo Posted February 17, 2005 Share Posted February 17, 2005 Sunfire's warranty is transferable on amps, but look on the Sunfire site for information on the receivers. There are some bargains on Sunfire, if you shop carefully. Bill PS: Sunfire preamps and receivers carry a 2 year tranferable warranty. Out of warranty repairs cost $235 flat fee and are warranted for one year. B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griffinator Posted February 17, 2005 Share Posted February 17, 2005 ---------------- On 2/13/2005 8:41:31 PM guardbums wrote: Hello all. First, thank you all for your educational advice throughout this awesome forum. I'm new to HT and must admit, having a hard time understanding much of the reading, being electronics challenged. I'm seeking user friendly, great sounding separates to drive my 5.1 system (RF 7's, RC 7, RS 35's and SVS 20-39 PC+). My budget is absolutely no more than $3,500. Room is 11 x 18 with a large opening to another part of the basement. The system will be used for 60% movies, 40% music. For ease of use, I'd like only 2 pieces, pre-pro and amp and to be able to switch from movies to music easily. I really don't think an upgrade to 7.1 is a consideration so 5 channel is fine. Also, does a ratshack meter come with good instructions on how to setup the system. If not, how does a newbie figure that out, not knowing where to begin. Thanks again for your help getting me to this point and future pointers. John Scott AFB, IL ---------------- You've got a ton of options for $3500 on a 5 channel package. Most of your preamps are going to end up being 7-channel capable, even if you don't plan to buy a 7-channel amp. Sunfire, Sherbourn, Adcom, NAD, and a host of other companies offer 5-channel amp/preamp combos under $3500. Get thee to a few high-end shops, bring your RF7's if you can, and start auditioning! (and since ease of use is important, start playing too!) To answer your other question, no. Ratshack SPL meters don't offer any documentation on how to set up a system. They're not a "home-theater-specific" tool - it's just a measuring device. Make the extra investment in an Avia HT setup disc. This is one of the DIYer's most important tools, particularly for the inexperienced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted February 17, 2005 Share Posted February 17, 2005 The NAD T163 is a great choice it has all the latest formats including PLIIX, two dedicated subwoofer outputs and is a piece of cake to set up. I can vouch for the NAD T163 - I have one! It even has different 2-channel listening modes if you are so inclined. The NAD S250 is a $2500 amp that they marked down to $999. That would be a great combo and with the money you save at $2200 you could buy a Denon DVD-3910 to go with that setup. If you want 7 channels I would mate a NAD T163 to my favorite choice for an amp the Sherbourn 7/2100A - Yeah baby now were talking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteelerFan Posted February 17, 2005 Share Posted February 17, 2005 Did you mention a 5.1 channel user friendly prepro? Take a look at the McCormack MAP-1. It doesn't get any simpler to use. It has 2-6 channel inputs along with 3-2ch inputs. All you do is set the volume level for each individual channel. Your DVD player takes care of all of the decoding duties. The manual is only 4 pages long, there are no menus to wade through. And a finer sounding preamp would be very hard to find. It retails for about $2500 before you make your best deal. I got mine for $1850. Pair it with the decent 5 channel amp of your choice and I think you would happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Posted February 17, 2005 Share Posted February 17, 2005 As you can see there are lots of choices,if I was going to spend $3.5k I'd bring home a slew of amps/pre/pros and try em' out.Not to mention you say 40% music,thats where you're gonna hear the real difference,they all do music different and only you know what sounds good to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guardbums Posted February 17, 2005 Author Share Posted February 17, 2005 Wow! Lot's of great ideas and advice. Thanks. The research may take a while, but I'll be sure to post the end result. Thanks again and if anyone has any additional thoughts, keep em coming. John Scott AFB, IL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
white_shadow Posted February 18, 2005 Share Posted February 18, 2005 There is a B&K 125.7 amp on Audiogon right now ($1000). I don't know of their sound personally, but I heard they are acceptable. That would be a great way to get your foot in the door. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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