# Your preferred receiver/amp brand



## Easy Rhino (May 21, 2011)

i am a bit of a marantz snob which is running the home theater. but i have also owned a harmon kardon and currently have an old kenwood stereo receiver just for my pc audio which still sounds great!

what do you use??


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## INSTG8R (May 21, 2011)

Yamaha man here. Great bang for the buck amps.


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## Swamp Monster (May 21, 2011)

Kenwood KRF V4070D 5.1 Receiver. I'm using it for PC audio mostly.


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## Athlonite (May 21, 2011)

An Pioneer VSX-D457 5.1 old yes works yes would I ever get rid of in favor of something better HELL YES unfortunately newer units cost a butt load here I just wish this thing had an Optical or RCA SPDIF ah but it doesn't but it does ok as analogue


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## theJesus (May 21, 2011)

Pioneer VSX-920-K here.  Works great for my usage, just doesn't work with my monitor 

Granted, I don't have very high-end speakers (well, my KRKs are fairly nice, but they use built-in amps).


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## Velvet Wafer (May 21, 2011)

Yamaha RX-V357....quite a few years old, but still pretty good


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## cadaveca (May 21, 2011)

Using a more recent Yamaha, model doesn't come to mind.

Really, I don't care about brand. I look for separate amplifier sections for each channel(allowing you to adjust each speaker individually), rated power, and volume noticed before distortion. Needs to be able to properly handle 6/4 ohm loads, too.


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## Robert-The-Rambler (May 22, 2011)

*Onkyo*

To my ears their amps are really good at handling any kind of load and offer very robust bass output. I have the 804 and 606 models.


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## KieX (May 22, 2011)

I'm a fan of the British manufacturer Cambridge Audio. Got an entry level amp from them and I'm starting to think I might get myself their new DACMagic since reviews seem to give it a big thumbs up.


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## MRCL (May 22, 2011)

I use an Onkyo for my home cinema, but I'm a sucker for classic Technics stuff. 
I'm too young to shovel my retirement fund into the throats of Marantz, NAD or MacIntosh...


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## AsRock (May 22, 2011)

ONKYO, Kenwood, Yamaha, DENON, TEAC, SONY and Rotel.

I have had  several Technics amps and all of them sound different so really the only real way to get the best one for your self is to test them all.  I just went for the safest this time as we do not have a place were you can test were as if i was in the UK i be in SuperFi testing a shit load out 1st.


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## jsfitz54 (May 22, 2011)

Yamaha RX-V890 and Parasound HCA-3500 Amp.


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## ktr (May 22, 2011)

Onkyo 60x series. 

Best bang for the buck.


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## majestic12 (May 22, 2011)

I have a Sony ES receiver and CD player (which I will be reunited with next week!  -moving back to the States...).  If I had lots of interest in getting a better system and money to burn, I'd probably opt for some Classe amps though.  Maybe some vintage McIntosh stuff could work as well -I just love that tubey sound.


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## imperialreign (May 26, 2011)

Supporter of Pioneer, here.  Excellent, professional level quality comparable to much higher-end equipment, at a fraction of the cost - besides, they live up to their name (_pioneer_) in the audio market.


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## hertz9753 (May 27, 2011)

I have a Denon AVR 791 and an Onkyo TX-SR603X.


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## trickson (May 27, 2011)

Blaupunkt .


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## johnspack (May 27, 2011)

I'd love a modern amp.  But being poor,  I resort to my crappy but workable JVC RX-5000V for use basically as a headphone amp for my pc.  I also have an even older Nikko TRM-800 that I spent a year restoring to new condition.  I don't use it currently.


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## jasper1605 (May 27, 2011)

Yamaha.  Their Aventage series are stellar amps.

I've got the RX-A800 powering my speakers and it does a mighty good job.


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## Glazierman (May 27, 2011)

H&K AVR-310 with a pair of Klipsch LA Scalla's


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## Cybrnook (May 27, 2011)

Pioneer VSX 1020 here ;-)  4 x B&W 6 1/2 Monitoring Cabinets with 10" B&W woofer.


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## mlee49 (May 27, 2011)

1 more for Onkoyo, excellent quality.

I have a nice 7.1 Sony pushing 110W per 7 channels, very nice but doesn't upscale nor does it allow for analog in to digital out.  Meaning I cant plug in my Wii and then run a HDMI out.


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## Wile E (May 27, 2011)

Another Onkyo here. HT-RC270 for the home theater, and an TX-SR606 on the computer.

I also quite like Marantz in these price ranges.


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## sniviler (May 27, 2011)

Denon AVR-4311CI +Klipsch Reference RF-7 II


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## hertz9753 (May 27, 2011)

http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showpost.php?p=1548952&postcount=23

Feeling lazy tonight.


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## freaksavior (May 31, 2011)

Amps
marantz 
Denon 
Pioneer

Speakers - Klipsch


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## theJesus (May 31, 2011)

freaksavior said:


> Amps
> marantz
> Denon
> Pioneer
> ...


I've never heard of Kiplsih, are they any good?


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## freaksavior (May 31, 2011)

theJesus said:


> I've never heard of Kiplsih, are they any good?



haha jerk  

http://www.klipsch.com/


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## imperialreign (Jun 1, 2011)

theJesus said:


> I've never heard of Kiplsih, are they any good?



The short answer?

Yes.


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## Grings (Jun 1, 2011)

I'm using an old Yamaha rxv795a, but am looking to get a new one within the next few months with all the fancy new HDMI stuff.
Probably going to get an Onkyo 609, but maybe a 608, Yamaha rxv767 or a Denon AVR2311 as i've seen some good deals on them.
I also owned a sony which was really good (str db 940qs) a few years ago, some bastard stole it


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## Robert-The-Rambler (Jun 1, 2011)

*The RXV-795a*



Grings said:


> I'm using an old Yamaha rxv795a, but am looking to get a new one within the next few months with all the fancy new HDMI stuff.
> Probably going to get an Onkyo 609, but maybe a 608, Yamaha rxv767 or a Denon AVR2311 as i've seen some good deals on them.
> I also owned a sony which was really good (str db 940qs) a few years ago, some bastard stole it



I had one I bought on clearance at a PC Richard here on Long Island. The sub output did not work but man that amp sounded so nice. My brother gave the thing to his landlord when he moved along with his RCA 38" direct view widescreen HDTV that I also gave him.(It weighed like 300lbs. It landed on my finger once when moving it almost made me pass out) I don't think my brother really understood how much the value was that he was giving away. Anyway Yamaha amps in the mid range were awesome then. I have a 665 model today and it definitely is not as powerful as the RXV795a ever was. 

You don't really need the HDMI nonsense. You can just connect the HDMI from your Blu Ray player or other stuff directly to your TV etc... Honestly you can separate the video from the audio chain and just use max bitrate DTS and get great audio quality with your 795a via optical or coax. A Yamaha RXV-795a is still very useful today.


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## Wile E (Jun 2, 2011)

Robert-The-Rambler said:


> I had one I bought on clearance at a PC Richard here on Long Island. The sub output did not work but man that amp sounded so nice. My brother gave the thing to his landlord when he moved along with his RCA 38" direct view widescreen HDTV that I also gave him.(It weighed like 300lbs. It landed on my finger once when moving it almost made me pass out) I don't think my brother really understood how much the value was that he was giving away. Anyway Yamaha amps in the mid range were awesome then. I have a 665 model today and it definitely is not as powerful as the RXV795a ever was.
> 
> You don't really need the HDMI nonsense. You can just connect the HDMI from your Blu Ray player or other stuff directly to your TV etc... Honestly you can separate the video from the audio chain and just use max bitrate DTS and get great audio quality with your 795a via optical or coax. A Yamaha RXV-795a is still very useful today.



SPDIF is inferior to HDMI. SPDIF cannot do multi-channel PCM audio. For anybody with a computer running thru their receiver, this is a real issue. 

And with good tracks, it's easy to hear the difference between DD/DTS encoding over spdif vs uncompressed over HDMI.

If your older amp really is so much better than a modern HDMI equipped receiver, then you should use a good sound card, and the analog multichannel inputs.


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## cadaveca (Jun 2, 2011)

Wile E said:


> SPDIF is inferior to HDMI. SPDIF cannot do multi-channel PCM audio.




Um, no. SPDIF CAN do multi-channel PCM, however, it cannot do LOSSLESS multichannel PCM.


Any soundcard that offers true audio encoding can do multi-channel over SPDIF. Of course, then it's not really PCM, so I guess, I'm kinda just blowing hot air here.


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## MN12BIRD (Jun 3, 2011)

Depends on the application and budget of course.  I like Yamaha for modern Home Theater Surround Sound receivers in the lower end of the price range.  I mean best bang for the buck?  Obviously I'm not saying it's better than Onkyo, Marantz, Denon etc etc etc.  But I like them best in the $250 range where most people would look!

For Stereo and Yes, I still use stereo myself and honestly I don't really feel the need or want to go surround sound.  I like old Marantz!

I guess what I'm saying is I have a Marantz now, but if I decided I needed surround sound I'd buy a Yamaha!  Unless I won the lottery and became rich overnight.  Than I'd probably go crazy with Bulter Audio, Rotel or something uber high end!


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## BumbleBee (Jun 3, 2011)

Anthem, Krell, Emotiva, Rotel, Cambridge, Marantz.


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## Hellraiser1981 (Jun 10, 2011)

If u can afford, a couple of Peavey rackmount units will rock your socks off.  CS800 is oldie but goodie.  Bulletproof, bridgeable, great sound.
http://www.peavey.com/media/pdf/manuals/80300991.pdf


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## Shizelbs (Jul 10, 2011)

Out of gear ive personally owned, Rotel.


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## Dent1 (Jul 10, 2011)

cadaveca said:


> Um, no. SPDIF CAN do multi-channel PCM, however, it cannot do LOSSLESS multichannel PCM.
> 
> 
> Any soundcard that offers true audio encoding can do multi-channel over SPDIF. Of course, then it's not really PCM, so I guess, I'm kinda just blowing hot air here.



Wile E is correct. He is talking about PCM in that is more than two channels, left & right. In which case SPDIF is ill equipped.


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## SK-1 (Jul 10, 2011)

Yamaha RX-V3300   8.1


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## amd64skater (Jul 10, 2011)

ONKYO HT-S7400 - 5.1 
got it for only $250 on newegg christmas 24hour sale and love this thing. best setup i have ever own for home theater boxed setups...


http://www.shoponkyo.com/detail.cfm?productid=HT-S7400&modelid=65&group_id=1&detail=1&ext_war=0


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## m4gicfour (Jul 10, 2011)

Onkyo here. Yamaha has some pretty nice looking stuff but I haven't actually heard any modern equipment from them. My dad has some old Hitachi (Radioshack, lol) stereo equipment that still sounds pretty good.


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## Frick (Jul 10, 2011)

Have no idea, but the best one I have is an old Marantz SR1000. Pretty good sound. The amp is dead though, I have to find a new one.


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## Sir B. Fannybottom (Jul 10, 2011)

For my sub I use my old Bass amp, it's awesome! For the music I use a pair of trittons


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## SaiZo (Jul 10, 2011)

McIntosh MCD1100, MC601, XRT1K. Some unknown brand I guess, got as a present from my ex.


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## jpierce55 (Jul 10, 2011)

I have Klipsch on the PC and hit 120+db with the dual 8"subs. Ah, they don't make a PC setup like that anymore.

Shame of shames, I currently have an RCA on the home theater system. It doesn't sound bad for movies, but sure is a flop for music. I like Kenwood receiver as far as dollars to performance goes.


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## ensabrenoir (Jul 11, 2011)

*memories.....*

Yamaha.... I had a great one.  Couple years old. Heavy, high current, and so sweet... Dont remember the model #, but it had a funky space age silver remote.  Then my 2 year old dumps an entire cup of milk in it I gota stop...the memories ... too painful


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## Wile E (Jul 11, 2011)

SaiZo said:


> McIntosh MCD1100, MC601, XRT1K. *Some unknown brand I guess*, got as a present from my ex.



I sure as heck hope that was sarcasm. lol.


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## Frederik S (Jul 11, 2011)

I like the old Marantz amps because of their good looks. When it comes to new amps my favourite brand is the one that gives me most bang for the buck!


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