Amp advice! Yamaha/Denon?

Chris1712

Chris1712

Chris1712

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Joined
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Bristol
OK guys, ive just shifted my Pioneer HTP-GS1 and have a budget of about £250 for an entry level AV Receiver to be paired up with some old Eltax Millenium towers i have until i can afford a nice 5.1 set.

I've been researching for a week ago, started on the CA Azur 540r, then the Onkyo 605 then the Denon 1908 and now i fancy the Yamaha DSP-AX861!

Features i want are.........

Good Music quality (i know im not gonna get as good as i would from a stereo amp, but i want to retain surround sound for films/games)
HDMI Switching
Analog to HDMI upconversion/scaling (One neat cable to my projector, everything else hidden, spiffing!)
Ability to receive LPCM audio from HDMI (Means i can have lovely HD-Audio pumped from my PS3)

Thats about it.

Denon originally seemed best for me, love the Denon sound and available for £240 brand new. I know its last years model but this seems like the way to do things to save some dollar!
I've just stumbled across the Yamaha DSP-AX861 which seems fantastic, bit beefier power wise and i hear Yamaha are great for music, also provides better analogue upscaling options.

So, any owners or knowledgeable people with opinions on either of these?

Cheers guys!
 
but i want to retain surround sound for films/games
Click to expand...

You know you can have a AV amp + stereo integrated amp setup?

pcsetup.jpg

Denon support is lousy. I think for hd audio over HDMI you need to get a Onkyo. But these aren't great in 2 channel (but neither are most. oh that pic is with x-fi, so ignore the soundcard. L/R from the av amp to the hifi amp
 
I certainly do know that, via the pre outs and maybe its something for the future but its not in my budget at the moment (I know that offends you badbob!).

My action plan is as follows.

PS3 -> AVR via HDMI (LPCM Audio)
360-> AVR via Component/Optical
PC -> AVR via HDMI (not sure whether to keep optical out from my X-Fi or use the ATis HDMI audio?, probably stick with x-fi)
SNES -> AVR S-video/rca (Old skool i know, but crikey super mario 3 is good)
AVR -> Projector via HDMI

Use my old Eltax towers until i can afford a good 5.1 set or to build up from the eltax.
 
Chris1712 said:
I've just stumbled across the Yamaha DSP-AX861 which seems fantastic, bit beefier power wise and i hear Yamaha are great for music, also provides better analogue upscaling options.

So, any owners or knowledgeable people with opinions on either of these?

Cheers guys!
Click to expand...

yamaha av amps aren't traditionally at the top for music, they handle movies very nicely.

unless you spring for the rx-v3800 :p (£800)

denon/marantz would be a better option if music is a priority.
 
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I can vouch for the denon 1908 being half decent with music. However I've had problems with clipping on HD soundtracks at high-ish volumes with mine. Though at least it has pre outs to connect to an external power amplifier, something which I plan on doing in the next couple of weeks.

But for 250 quid new it's pretty good if you're on a budget, just be careful about going above -10dB on HD audio sountracks.
 
Well i've found a place in Bristol with an 861 on ex-dem so i'll hopefully go there tomorrow (why are Bristol shops closed on Mondays!) and have a demo! Its up at £499.95 so theres no chance of me buying it from them, but hopefully i can wangle a demo out of em and maybe negotiate a price drop! Considering i can get one brand new in box for £240 online theyre gonna have to do some dropping!

I know they also have the 1907/1909 from Denon, so will check those out to.
 
i'm looking to demo the Denon 1909 somewhere soon, i like the Denon sound generally and the 1909 has all the bells and whistles like all video sources can be scaled to 1080p, Dolby HD decoding blah blah :)

not sure which floorstanders to match with this amp yet though.
 
I wouldn't recommend buying cheap floorstanders, if your budget is under £200/£300 for speakers then buy standmounts.
 
i was thinking of a demo with the MS 916i but could probably stretch to some B&W's 684 or similar also .....you don't think the 916i are good enough match for the 1909?

maybe the B&W 685 would suit my setup better, being in a flat i might get evicted getting the most out of the 684 floorstanders you think???
 
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