Cheap £200 soundbar or AV receiver?

StrydaJaguar · 4 Jul 2022 at 14:20

Hi, I'm an absolute beginner with regards to audio. I have a set of Kenwood 30w each bookshelf speakers, and am wondering if I could set up a better sound system with an AV receiver for watching movies on TV than I could from buying a 2.1 soundbar/sub.
I'm baffled by it all and have no idea what sort of AV unit I would require. Some have hdmi, some don't. I pretty much watch netflix/prime through my TV and have an xbox s connected to the TV via hdmi.
Is anyone able to offer any advice? Wanting to spend ~£200, happy to buy second hand, happy to go a bit higher if it will get a better system than a soundbar.
Thanks

StrydaJaguar · 4 Jul 2022 at 18:22

Thanks Guys. Sorry some of that has already gone way over my head :cry:

. Would the receiver be the TV? :cry:

It's a new TV with ARC hdmi, I know that much! I don't use a dvd player or anything like that it will literally just be the TV streaming, xbox digital only and possibly my desktop PC. The Onkyo model you suggested does seem pretty beginner friendly. What do I look for when upgrading to say 5 speakers, in terms of performance? Can i mix my current speakers with new, or do they ideally need to be the same brand? Apologies this is all very basic stuff, I'm trying to read up at the same time.

StrydaJaguar · 8 Jul 2022 at 12:30

Thanks for all the advice so far, massive help. So, I think I'm going to look for a av receiver that is 4k capable, and atmos ready, so I can slowly build the setup. Something like the Onkyo TX NR676e suggested above. With regards to speakers, I'm thinking of just going 5.1 for the time being, I've found a 5.1 Onkyo SKS-HT528b speakers for £60, anyone know if this is an ok startup set? Or should I avoid? Thanks again.

StrydaJaguar · 9 Jul 2022 at 01:12

Ah I see, something else to read up on . I completely agree with your analogy, problem is my other half won't agree that better sound is worth that extra money, so I'll buy in stages to attempt to deceive . On that note, how do you rate mordaunt short speakers for an entry level setup, paired with a Atmos/4k receiver?

StrydaJaguar · 9 Jul 2022 at 15:49

So, I've ended up buying a Denon AVRX2400H, with Onkyo SKSHT588 5.1.2 speakers for £250, which I think is a good price. Guess it's too late to change my mind now anyway :cry:

. Thoughts on this? Hopefully it is straight forward to setup, we shall see. I wonder if anyone can help, can I run the 5.1.2 setup on my tv, but also somehow have my 2 kenwood speakers setup to my desktop to be used independently? I've heard about zones and this receiver has 'heos' (whatever that means) :cry:

.