Advice needed w.r.t ONKYO HTS3100+Pioneer DV410

[dawg55555]

Hi all,

First of all, let me thank each and everyone here in this forum who has been spending so much time to help each other out in buying and enjoying great home theater equipment.

I need some advice on the following:

I am considering the following equipment to build my HT with a budget of Rs. 25k.
1) Onkyo HTS-3100
2) Pioneer DV-410 ( or DV-600 DVD player.)

Questions:
1) Is there anybody in this forum who has this combo and pls let me know the performance.

2) To experience DD 5.1 and DTS, is using a digital Coaxial out the best option for the HTS 3100? How much will a decent digital coaxial cable cost?

3) For Video output, I intend the use the HDMI cable and hook it up directly to my 32 inch LCD TV ( yet to be purchased) from the pioneer dvd player as it has 1080p upscaling capabilities.

For Audio, if I use the Pioneer DV410, it has no DTS decoder but 2 channel downmix DTS output.the HTS 3100 has a DTS decoder but does this mean that I will not get true DTS 5.1 sound even if I use the digital coaxial cable because of the downmix 2 ch output? If the answer is no, then i will go for the DV-600.

4) While listening to mp3s on a usb stick, do i have to connect the analog output to the AVR? or can I still use the digital coaxial output for mp3s also?

Would appreciate if anyone could kindly clarify my doubts.

 

[spirovious]

Pioneer 410 is not good with picture performance.Go for 610.
check whathifi web for review.

Onkyo is always good for Movies not very good for music.
I will rate Onkyo sound quality- for Movies 100%
for Music 70%


Award winner Profigold coaxial for Rs.1000
You can connect DVD player HDMI to TV & coax to AVR for5.1.
You can play MP3 through coax of DVD player.Even Vob,Divx with 5.1 can be played through USB & enjoy surround on AVR.

 

[moserw]

Pioneer 410 is not good with picture performance.Go for 610.
check whathifi web for review.

Onkyo is always good for Movies not very good for music.
I will rate Onkyo sound quality- for Movies 100%
for Music 70%


Award winner Profigold coaxial for Rs.1000
You can connect DVD player HDMI to TV & coax to AVR for5.1.
You can play MP3 through coax of DVD player.Even Vob,Divx with 5.1 can be played through USB & enjoy surround on AVR.

Totally agree with spirovious!

There is a Philips coaxial cable for Rs. 900 that I am using. Better still is Bandridge optical cable for Rs. 600. In terms of output not much to choose between coaxial and optical.

 

[spirovious]

Totally agree with spirovious!

There is a Philips coaxial cable for Rs. 900 that I am using. Better still is Bandridge optical cable for Rs. 600. In terms of output not much to choose between coaxial and optical.

As I think coax best for short distance,opt for long as low resistance to signel.

 

[dawg55555]

Thank you all for your valuable advice. really appreciate it. I am kinda disappointed to hear that HTS310 is not so good for music. I love movies as much as i listen to music. How bad is the music performance? coz ive heard the Pioneer DV-600/610 has good performance for music. If I dont choose this 3100+dv600/610 combo, i will probably end up buying a Pioneer HTIB like HTZ565DVD. or the Panasonic SC-TP565.will these HTIBs be better in playing music than 3100? or the 3100 is still way better than the commercial HTIBs?

 

[spirovious]

Thank you all for your valuable advice. really appreciate it. I am kinda disappointed to hear that HTS310 is not so good for music. I love movies as much as i listen to music. How bad is the music performance? coz ive heard the Pioneer DV-600/610 has good performance for music. If I dont choose this 3100+dv600/610 combo, i will probably end up buying a Pioneer HTIB like HTZ565DVD. or the Panasonic SC-TP565.will these HTIBs be better in playing music than 3100? or the 3100 is still way better than the commercial HTIBs?

Cant say abt Pioneer as didnt listen.Onkyo is for HT only & have more power.
If you buy CD player seperately then SQ of music canbe improved.
Generally HTibs are for movies only.
Denon on other hand is better for both.
Check for it.You can get Denon HTib for Rs.40000

 

[dawg55555]

thanks for that. however 40k is beyond my budget ! 25k is what i can spend. while watching movies....how is the subwoofer of the 3100? is the movie experience worth it for rs.19500?

 

[spirovious]

thanks for that. however 40k is beyond my budget ! 25k is what i can spend. while watching movies....how is the subwoofer of the 3100? is the movie experience worth it for rs.19500?

You can get discount on Demo piece & even installments with warrenty.
Onkyo Sub delivers supurb Bass than Denon due to large woofer.
Denon has active with 6in cone.

 

[dawg55555]

whats the model no. of the Denon HTIB? and do you know where I can get it? im in blore.

 

[spirovious]

whats the model no. of the Denon HTIB? and do you know where I can get it? im in blore.

Model can be 1356?with 1306 avr.
But it doesnt have HDMI.But SQ is superb.
Pls check profx web which is Denon dealor in Banglore.I think on MG rd.

 

[moserw]

thanks for that. however 40k is beyond my budget ! 25k is what i can spend. while watching movies....how is the subwoofer of the 3100? is the movie experience worth it for rs.19500?

With Onkyo you will not be disappointed when watching movies. I have seen an entry level HT3100 deliver great sound FX even for 5.1 Divx rips. DTS is obviously better. Onkyo's are however not great for music...

 

[spirovious]

With Onkyo you will not be disappointed when watching movies. I have seen an entry level HT3100 deliver great sound FX even for 5.1 Divx rips. DTS is obviously better. Onkyo's are however not great for music...

I found whenever you try to upgage Onkyo spk,HTib doesnt offer much.
ie.You get complite different sound.The original sat spk gives 100% with
system,but centre ch remains dull in Dialogue section.

 

[moserw]

I found whenever you try to upgage Onkyo spk,HTib doesnt offer much.
ie.You get complite different sound.The original sat spk gives 100% with
system,but centre ch remains dull in Dialogue section.

Divx movies as it is have low volume, but with proper room calibration and increasing the volume I have found Onkyo to perform quite well. Especially for Divx and DVDs since both have low volume in the initial stages I have found this to be true.

 

[dawg55555]

I am now thinking twice whether to buy Onkyo 3100. I really cannot comprmise on music. i listen to music everyday.i really need good depth,fidelity and some thumping bass. What about Yamaha and Denon HTIBs? are they better for music&movies? if yes, pls suggst some models.

 

[reju]

thanks for that. however 40k is beyond my budget ! 25k is what i can spend. while watching movies....how is the subwoofer of the 3100? is the movie experience worth it for rs.19500?

Why don't you try Onkyo 5105 HTIB for 27k @ X-cite in Bangalore. I feel it's a very good offer!!

 

[spirovious]

You can check Onkyo HT-S5100 which has bookshelfs as front & AVR looks
powerful.You can save money on upgrading spks.

Only take your regular CDs & listen for music.

check- http://www.onkyoindia.com/products/HT_Packages/home_style/ht-s5100/index-1.htm

 

[moserw]

I am now thinking twice whether to buy Onkyo 3100. I really cannot comprmise on music. i listen to music everyday.i really need good depth,fidelity and some thumping bass. What about Yamaha and Denon HTIBs? are they better for music&movies? if yes, pls suggst some models.

Yamaha is in the same boat as an Onkyo, good with movies, not so much with music. Denon, I cannot really say unless its a specific model you are referring to. What is the bulk of your music collection? I mean are they audio CDs, or mp3, etc.

 

[dawg55555]

Thanks so much for your help moserw.

My music collection is 100% mp3. I have truckloads of them. I listen to rock,metal, 80s pop. I listen to music almost everyday and i watch like 4 movies during weekends - DVDrips with 5.1 D sound.

What do you suggest? 3100 can bit the bill? pls note my budget is 25k - Was planning to buy 3100+pioneer dv600 totalling to around 25k. 5100 and 5105 are almost 10k more...is it worth the difference? i have read reviews saying that the plus points are things like more power, active sub,ipod dock(5100),etc

Although I listen to music everyday, I am not a hardcore audiophile...I may not be able to tell the diference between 2 speaker systems that sound similar.Good crisp sound,clarity,good bass - these are all i need... Im not the audiophile who will check every little attention to detail in the sound output.

 

[moserw]

Thanks so much for your help moserw.

My music collection is 100% mp3. I have truckloads of them. I listen to rock,metal, 80s pop. I listen to music almost everyday and i watch like 4 movies during weekends - DVDrips with 5.1 D sound.

First off I want to know on what do you play your music? PC or CD player? Do you have a PC and is storing the mp3s on it an option? If so you can just pull a cable from the PC to the AVR and play music. Also if on a PC then just getting a Creative speaker set of around 3.5K will be good leaving the rest for the HT system.

What do you suggest? 3100 can bit the bill? pls note my budget is 25k - Was planning to buy 3100+pioneer dv600 totalling to around 25k. 5100 and 5105 are almost 10k more...is it worth the difference? i have read reviews saying that the plus points are things like more power, active sub,ipod dock(5100),etc

3100 is excellent for movies even though its a budget/entry level HT system. Also, the 3100/3105 are coming with offers of a free DVD player either a Philips or a Sony so check that out. 5100/5105 are useful only for the HDMI input/output, but it really does not make sense if you watch movies only during the weekends.

Although I listen to music everyday, I am not a hardcore audiophile...I may not be able to tell the diference between 2 speaker systems that sound similar.Good crisp sound,clarity,good bass - these are all i need... Im not the audiophile who will check every little attention to detail in the sound output.

This again depends on where/what do you listen to your music on and also where is the bulk of your music collection stored? Based on your situation we can proceed from there.

BTW you began this thread primarily with a query about a HT system. For that the Onkyo is very good VFM especially if you pick it up on a deal where a DVD player or a Universal remote is thrown in. These were the deals available in Hyderabad a while back. Do check them out in Bengaluru too. To reiterate, for a HT system within the budget you have in mind, Onkyo 3100/3105 at around 19K are very good VFM.

 

[dawg55555]

I have all the mp3s either stored on the desktop,on Cds and DVDs. And I listen to music most of the time on my phone, my I-pod,my laptop with headphones.But once my wife and I move in to a new house, I intend to listen to music in the living room, like on a HT ( I will be having frequent parties, thats another reason).
Moserw, you are spot on when you say that the 3100 is absolute VFM. I have auditioned this model at a few stores with DTS DVDs and it sounds awesome. I made a mistake by not testing it with mp3s. I will do that at the next store. If am i satisfied with the sound, 3100 it is. Remember I am a music-addict but not a serious audiophile !

Else, I will stick to your advice of using a Creative set of speakers, which I already own, to my desktop or laptop.

Moserw and others, I thank you very much for your help and advice. This Forum rocks !!