AV receiver for 2.0? Or another solution?

Scam · 8 Mar 2017 at 14:30

Hey guys. So I've owned my old Marantz hifi amp for a good while now, I'm using it with my Panasonic GT60 with optical out and a pair of old Gale floorstanders that have been there with the Marantz since the beginning (probably 10-15 years!). As far as my usage goes it's fine. I live in a little London flat with the sofa's back to the kitchen area, I'm never going to upgrade to surrounds.

That said, for the first time in my life I'm getting a bonus at work (woohoo!) and rather than squirrel it away I'd rather spend it on upgrading the amp. My issue is that AV receivers are notoriously bad for stereo/music, right? Most of my reasoning behind upgrading to be honest is making it easier to switch inputs. I'm quite sold on getting a Harmony remote too, to shut the other half up

I've currently filled up all 4 hdmi inputs on the TV, and have a three-way splitter on one which is very tedious. I also have to get up to change the amp from TV optical audio, to listen to music (line-in via Chromecast). In all seriousness, the Marantz keeps flaking out, audio popping, losing one channel as well.

Any suggestions? Marantz again has been suggested as the best AV receivers for musicality so I've been looking at those, but does such a thing exist as a stereo AV receiver? :confused:

As far as tech goes I've obviously no need for Atmos, DTS:X etc. Also not bothered about 4k right now. I can see me keeping my GT60 for a good many years. 3D obviously not.

Any thoughts? Perhaps an alternative is a receiver with enough inputs then an additional stereo receiver (preamp? :confused:

)

Thanks for any thoughts!

Scam · 8 Mar 2017 at 16:55

Sorry, I think I missed out the main question in my original post

Going from my old Marantz stereo amp to an AVR would I notice any difference in sound quality on music? Bearing in mind I am using a Chromecast..

I think a combo wouldn't work for the reasons stated above. Plus I don't think I actually have space for two boxes in my TV unit

Scam · 9 Mar 2017 at 13:35

Yeah. I think the AVR solution fits the bill really. As much as I love my music, the main reason to upgrade (besides the faults with my current amp) is to make everything easier. Getting an AVR+pre-amp/DAC/whatever combo isn't going to do that. On top of that -- all of my music is streamed from GPM via Chromecast (320kbs I believe) or TuneinRadio so I can't imagine I would really notice any huge flaws with the AV's music playback, it's more of a case of whether or not I can find a sound signature that I like. Hmn. Might have to get myself down to my local RS to try some out.

As far as downmix goes, surely if a Bluray offers a 2.0 mix I just choose that and always ensure (obviously) my AVR is set to 2.0 :confused:

So, what's the best AVR out there for 2.0 performance and musicality? Budget £400 I reckon.

Scam · 9 Mar 2017 at 17:25

Interesting you recommend the NR1506 when the NR1607 is only £419. Perfectly acceptable at my budget and has 7 hdmi inputs. The NR1506 only has 5 which would mean I'd need a splitter from the get-go. Reviews look good for both of them though. I wonder if there are any other comparable for music performance.

Scam · 9 Mar 2017 at 17:56

hornetstinger said:
NR1506 is going for far less than £419 though.

Sure. But at the end of the day the number two reason for upgrading is to make my life easier. I have 6 devices to plug in currently, once I buy this I'd probably want to add a Chromecast which makes 7! Having to use a splitter still would do my nut

Scam · 10 Mar 2017 at 12:44

Looks interesting. With ARC could I use 3 HDMIs on my TV? I know nothing about ARC apart from always seeing posts about it not working

I think I'd rather avoid it.

I guess I'm in the minority of having a lot of devices to plug in but no need for surround sound..

Scam · 10 Mar 2017 at 14:07

Thinking out loud now... My Panasonic GT60 puts out PCM via optical. If I leave my setup essentially as it is, but upgrade my amp to another stereo amp.. If I buy a Harmony remote to program everything (TV hdmi inputs, hdmi splitter, audio-in on the amp) for every device then surely everything will be as easy as it could be with an AV amp? Just a little more messy round the back :confused:

Scam · 10 Mar 2017 at 16:42

Well, I'm spending a work bonus so I'm happy to plump for the Harmony to make my life easier. Definitely if I need a splitter. Currently using a cheap DAC from Amazon. Sounds fine to me*, TV and sources are set to PCM where I can.

I have;
- TiVo
- Bluray
- FireTV
- Xbox 360
- Work streaming box (for watching films)
- Apple TV (for work, and NowTV)

And I want to add a Chromecast because I always get offers from Google Play (presumably because I pay for GPM and Drive)

Scam · 31 Mar 2017 at 10:45

jpaul said:
can't you use arc via the tv too, and have some of the video feeds plugged into gt60's hdmi

I don't really know much about arc apart from all the threads with people saying they can't get it to work. I don't really understand the point of it if you have enough inputs to your amp? :confused:

hornetstinger said:
Would make sense if you have a USB TV stick which is stuck to the back of the TV, a short HDMI cable or plugged straight into a HDMI port, so that audio is sent to AVR on the single AVR-TV cable.

I don't understand what you're talking about here. Again, if I have enough inputs to the amp why would I feed audio through my TV? Everything will just go Device > AVR > TV :confused:

I think I'm pretty settled on getting an AV receiver. At the end of the day for my music usage (Google Play Music, not terribly high volumes as I'm in a flat and the girlfriend complains) I really doubt I'm going to notice the difference between a decent AVR and a hifi amp.

So, long story short besides Marantz what brands are known for their 'musical' AVRs?

Scam · 4 Apr 2017 at 13:06

Admittedly I haven't had the time to follow up properly, but I'd be happy to find a decent hdmi switcher with remote yeah. Last time I looked it was a case of either buy a 3-5 switch cheapo thing for £12, or spend £500 on it :confused:

Scam · 4 Apr 2017 at 17:19

It's still like £200 for a 3 port switch. What gives? Can't find either of those either..

If i go for a hifi amp amd hdmi switch I'd want a universal remote. So spending £200 on a switch and £150 on the remote seems a bit pointless when i could put that money towards an AV receiver?