Is AV Receiver good for Music ?
- Thread starter Spinekar
- Start date
My interest is to listen Music - classical, western etc [though doing it now with Panasonic hifi ]
Since I'll be in the process of purchasing the components for the same, if I can add few for HT [ later stage ] it could be considered.
But my priority goes 75 : 25 [75 music. 25 movies]
Thanks
Love4sound
Well-Known Member
Yes, I'll be happy
I too was thinking the same 2.1 to have for regular music listening and at times movies
While looking for IA's, came across a setup - Home Theatre Bypass, that is possible with few IA's [using front speakers both for music and HT]
That increased my curiosity to know more on it which led to the recent audition and post this thread
Love4sound
Well-Known Member
Home theatre bypass is when you have an AV Receiver with pre-outs and you want to connect an integrated amp to power the front Left and right channels. Receivers providing Pre-outs will for the most part do two channel duties sufficiently well for two channel stereo too.
The HT Bypass is a feature of some Integrated Amps. It bypasses its preamp and works as a power amp while using the preamp of the receiver.
If you are going this route, I would suggest that you invest in the best receiver that you can afford which supports pre-outs, use it for a while to see if you find anything lacking and if you do, only then invest in an integrated with HT Bypass.
To be frank, I am a bit confused about your requirements. For 80% music and 20% Home Theatre, you should be looking at Integrated amps with subwoofer out rather than integrated amps with HT Bypass.
cmsajith
Well-Known Member
Its a myth that expensive avrs amp section is good enough to drive any kind of speakers. The power crunch is not limited to entry level avrs. Most paper specs are valid only in paper. Anything above 60-70watts needs a good external power amp even though Pre out from avrs also have it's own issues, but for general purposes it's good enough.
Also an 80% music requirement highly needs a proper stereo setup than wasting money on an avr, any entry level avr will be fine for 20% movies requirement. This is what I would have done
Also an 80% music requirement highly needs a proper stereo setup than wasting money on an avr, any entry level avr will be fine for 20% movies requirement. This is what I would have done
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srinisundar
Well-Known Member
All at last budget is the concern.. What is your initial budget to venture into this..Anywhere you have mentioned in the thread,, Missed it..
Since you are in Chennai, you can visit my place to hear 2.0 or 2.1 with tube amps / 2.1 or 2.2 with AVR -Marantz for music plus movies 7.2.2 with speaker unchanged...You may get an idea what you prefer.
Since you are in Chennai, you can visit my place to hear 2.0 or 2.1 with tube amps / 2.1 or 2.2 with AVR -Marantz for music plus movies 7.2.2 with speaker unchanged...You may get an idea what you prefer.
srinisundar
Well-Known Member
Thanks a lot for inviting srinisundar !! Sure will visit
As for as budget, maybe around 1.3 for 2.1 [ Bookshelf + Sub + IA ]
Only concern about hifimart, as I'm even new to this Forum - after sales, about service requirements in future
Hope products are authentic/original
The design philosophy of an AV Receiver is to create a Cinematic experience, and that's where all the tech goes into, like room correction, bass management, better sound processor, and I am afraid manufacture hardly pay much attention to its Stereo capability. That said, I don't see why one can't use an AV Receiver for day-to-day audio listening; those high-end Marantz are pretty good at two-channel Music when coupled with the right speaker.
But if one is purely into Music, then dedicated two channels is the way to go.. at any day, and a dedicated Stereo system will beat an AVR by a fair margin; it's not even a competition. They offer excellent Stereo imaging, clarity between highs and lows, and can pump enough juice to the drivers to shine.
AVR > Toyata > All Rounder
2 Channel PA > S - Class > Bext in what it does...
But if one is purely into Music, then dedicated two channels is the way to go.. at any day, and a dedicated Stereo system will beat an AVR by a fair margin; it's not even a competition. They offer excellent Stereo imaging, clarity between highs and lows, and can pump enough juice to the drivers to shine.
AVR > Toyata > All Rounder
2 Channel PA > S - Class > Bext in what it does...
Well, that's nice. Your post on HT Bypass confused me.
I have purchased most of my equipment including speakers and receivers from HiFiMart. You will be hard pressed to find retailers beating their prices. Absolutely a pleasure to deal with. The forum you are in is a sister venture of HiFiMart.
cmsajith
Well-Known Member
A good stereo playback needs a good dac too if your source is digital (another issue while using an avr for music). Use a decent quality player with good dac or an external dac.
The resultant decision is not merely going to be a matter of what is perceived as better here, will be a resultant of budget and your preference. You have made your preference clear but budget is also important depending on the speaker.
Assuming you are willing to invest in future towards a stereo setup I would recommend following steps
i) A 5.1 setup with AVR is worth getting at any point of time if you are going to watch even one movie a week or more , this is simply more engaging and all contents support 5.1 or beyond. The AVR will do fine for stereo listening too
To start with get an AVR with pre-outs ( depending on your budget you will need to go for the respective options, Marantz NR1509/1609 is the lowest level where you will have pre-outs for fronts / At next budget you have Marantz SR5015, Yahama offerings / At slightly higher budget Denon X3700H/Marantz SR6015 etc) . This will set you up for setting up a parallel/alternate stereo chain in an effective manner. Setup a 3.0/3.1 system to start with and get some budget surrounds/get some satellite speakers if possible.
By doing the above you are setting up a system which will do well for your 20% use case, will do just fine for the 80% music/stereo use case.
ii) You have 2 options here once you have setup your AVR HT setup,
- Going seperates for stereo which basically means having seperate components for as many function as possible (Source/+DAC, Preamp , Poweramp) or getting an All in One (DAC+Streamer+ Preamp + Poweramp in single box) or
- Integrated Amp ( can include everything other than streaming, or might just be an amplifier needing a seperate DAC). I will not dwelve into which sounds better and which does not , you will find many threads to read and as per your budget/aesthetic preference go for one accordingly.
Try borrowing some integrated amplifiers from fellow members in Chennai or get an used one in budget so that you can try and pass it on in future for another member who is trying to experience the same, use it with your speakers and see if it makes a difference. Since you would have used AVR for a good period , you will be able to make an informed choice on whether the stereo amplifier benefits your system. If it does jump in this rabbit hole , else continue using the AVR as your main unit for music listening too
Coming to personal preferences I find myself leaning towards separates the most as it gives the flexibility to experiment and play around and also performance offered IMO felt superior to other alternatives I tried in a similar budget. However you will find equally opposite opinions too, so making sure you try out these yourself before delving deeper is the only way to be sure in this hobby.
Assuming you are willing to invest in future towards a stereo setup I would recommend following steps
i) A 5.1 setup with AVR is worth getting at any point of time if you are going to watch even one movie a week or more , this is simply more engaging and all contents support 5.1 or beyond. The AVR will do fine for stereo listening too
To start with get an AVR with pre-outs ( depending on your budget you will need to go for the respective options, Marantz NR1509/1609 is the lowest level where you will have pre-outs for fronts / At next budget you have Marantz SR5015, Yahama offerings / At slightly higher budget Denon X3700H/Marantz SR6015 etc) . This will set you up for setting up a parallel/alternate stereo chain in an effective manner. Setup a 3.0/3.1 system to start with and get some budget surrounds/get some satellite speakers if possible.
By doing the above you are setting up a system which will do well for your 20% use case, will do just fine for the 80% music/stereo use case.
ii) You have 2 options here once you have setup your AVR HT setup,
- Going seperates for stereo which basically means having seperate components for as many function as possible (Source/+DAC, Preamp , Poweramp) or getting an All in One (DAC+Streamer+ Preamp + Poweramp in single box) or
- Integrated Amp ( can include everything other than streaming, or might just be an amplifier needing a seperate DAC). I will not dwelve into which sounds better and which does not , you will find many threads to read and as per your budget/aesthetic preference go for one accordingly.
Try borrowing some integrated amplifiers from fellow members in Chennai or get an used one in budget so that you can try and pass it on in future for another member who is trying to experience the same, use it with your speakers and see if it makes a difference. Since you would have used AVR for a good period , you will be able to make an informed choice on whether the stereo amplifier benefits your system. If it does jump in this rabbit hole , else continue using the AVR as your main unit for music listening too
Coming to personal preferences I find myself leaning towards separates the most as it gives the flexibility to experiment and play around and also performance offered IMO felt superior to other alternatives I tried in a similar budget. However you will find equally opposite opinions too, so making sure you try out these yourself before delving deeper is the only way to be sure in this hobby.
Pricing is a loose way of defining this. But I would go by what each companies offerings are.
Eg. An entry level amp from say Luxman may be many times more than say the top-of-line from say Denon
HT bypass is a nice feature to have, if you are willing to explore this. It will cost more as a complete solution.
As many FMs have suggested try out a few AVR-speaker combinations also some IA-speaker combinations.
Then pick what sounds good to you and within your budget that would meet your usage and expectations.
Be open to used gear too. There are some nice deals that pop on the forum or outside that may click.
I have bought a lot of my gear that were used/demo/clearance items.
Cheers,
Raghu
The resultant decision is not merely going to be a matter of what is perceived as better here, will be a resultant of budget and your preference. You have made your preference clear but budget is also important depending on the speaker.
Assuming you are willing to invest in future towards a stereo setup I would recommend following steps
i) A 5.1 setup with AVR is worth getting at any point of time if you are going to watch even one movie a week or more , this is simply more engaging and all contents support 5.1 or beyond. The AVR will do fine for stereo listening too
To start with get an AVR with pre-outs ( depending on your budget you will need to go for the respective options, Marantz NR1509/1609 is the lowest level where you will have pre-outs for fronts / At next budget you have Marantz SR5015, Yahama offerings / At slightly higher budget Denon X3700H/Marantz SR6015 etc) . This will set you up for setting up a parallel/alternate stereo chain in an effective manner. Setup a 3.0/3.1 system to start with and get some budget surrounds/get some satellite speakers if possible.
By doing the above you are setting up a system which will do well for your 20% use case, will do just fine for the 80% music/stereo use case.
ii) You have 2 options here once you have setup your AVR HT setup,
- Going seperates for stereo which basically means having seperate components for as many function as possible (Source/+DAC, Preamp , Poweramp) or getting an All in One (DAC+Streamer+ Preamp + Poweramp in single box) or
- Integrated Amp ( can include everything other than streaming, or might just be an amplifier needing a seperate DAC). I will not dwelve into which sounds better and which does not , you will find many threads to read and as per your budget/aesthetic preference go for one accordingly.
Try borrowing some integrated amplifiers from fellow members in Chennai or get an used one in budget so that you can try and pass it on in future for another member who is trying to experience the same, use it with your speakers and see if it makes a difference. Since you would have used AVR for a good period , you will be able to make an informed choice on whether the stereo amplifier benefits your system. If it does jump in this rabbit hole , else continue using the AVR as your main unit for music listening too
Coming to personal preferences I find myself leaning towards separates the most as it gives the flexibility to experiment and play around and also performance offered IMO felt superior to other alternatives I tried in a similar budget. However you will find equally opposite opinions too, so making sure you try out these yourself before delving deeper is the only way to be sure in this hobby.
Thanks for your valuable input Dear
You have reflected my thoughts to a greater extent but steps opposite.
Actually, I was thinking to go for HT setup in the future [ since I prefer 25 % movie, 75% Music listening ] and initially go for Stereo setup
Op 2 : I don't want to go for separates, [maybe now] where I'll start digging deep to know about each and every component and once I get satisfied, only then I'll settle for it. That is a time consuming though interesting. If any point of time, it kindles my interest, then sure will go for it
Op 1 : I prefer to go for IA's, as of now with 2.1 speaker setup
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