best reciever for $300-$500
 

Im probably going to buy a Harman Kardon AVR 240 monday unless someone fills me in on a better reciever for near the same price.

Whatever the reciever is, its going to be used with an a Sansung 61" DLP 1080p , dishnet hd, and an oppo 971. I assume a reciever with HDMI imputs is recommended for best quality.

Im trying to set up for my new house and is trying to decide what to get with all the hd and everything is frustrating . It would be easier to just throw a dart at a list.

Set up will be mainly used for hdtv, upconverted sd dvd, xbox 360 and music (metal/rock).

I'm a H/K fan so don't beleive you can go wrong there. Tho you might also look at Onkyo and Dennon.

How much is the Oppo? If it is around $200 you sure you want to spend that much with HD now below $400? You might want to spend less then a $100 on a good DVDp then upgrade in a year or so for HD. Just a thought, but I'm not sure how much the Oppo runs.

Onkyo TX-SR703 hdmi
or
Onkyo TX-SR604 no hdmi but thx cert

Either way you'll be in the ball park of a decent reciever you should be fine. Agree Dennon or onk or even HK should be ok. I could never live with the 50 watts per channel though, but you never said what kind of speakers you have so it might not matter for you.

I won't bother to explain fully. But a 50 watt/channel HK is quite possibly more powerful than a 100wpc Onkyo. I have a 110wpc Onkyo, it is comparable to a ~65wpc HK. The 2 companies measure the wattage in different ways. If you were to look at a couple other companies' rating methodology just for fun, these are all about equivalent power in actual usage, if such products existed:

Onkyo/Denon: 110wpc
HK: 65wpc
Outlaw: 45wpc
Sony: 200wpc (maybe 300)
Jolida: 20wpc

Ciao.

Yes I know all that the HK is 50 in surround mode 65 in stereo mode btw. But if I remember right HK got bought out lil while ago and Im not sure they're all they used to be either. Just my take on it having not paid to much attention lately. Like I said it really comes down to the speakers he'll be using more than the reciever to get and its specs if you ask me.

[QUOTE=hdtv00]I could never live with the 50 watts per channel though,

Yes you could live with H/K's 50 watts per channel.

My H/K in my living room runs 40 watts per channel and easily fills a HUGE space (something along the line of 40 X 20 or so w/10' ceilings). I was so impressed I got a H/K for my dedicated theater room which while much smaller (16 X 12 w/8' ceilings), I listen to at much louder levels.

IMHO, I wouldn't even look at the watts of a H/K. Just get the features you want and can afford. and you will likely be fine.

No I couldn't I have paradigm studio 100's, which drop to a 3ohm load during active full range content, they'd make that HK cry for mercy.

Im not saying anythings really wrong with the HK per se. From what I see it doesn't even have the options I'd want. That HK doesn't even have hdmi inputs does it, theres lots of features it doesn't seem to have. But in the $300-400 price range I bet its a nice model. They(recievers) have dropped in price over the years to where a $500 model gets you what $1000 or more used to, so that extra $100 adds lots of options you ask me.

The Studio 100s will make almost any receiver cry. IMO, they demand an outboard amp.

What, are you a teenager? Who else would continue to claim they know better than the facts. :rolleyes:

Any HK ever made could drive Paradigms without breaking a sweat. It's simple math. I'll let you do the calculations on your own since you know so much. Here is the final answer:
v1) The Studio 100s will be loud enough to please anybody I know with 16 watts of power. And I know some people who like to play it way too loud for the health of their ears.
v2) To power the NFL games I am watching right now at a normal volume level, the 100s would require .7 watts of power.

lol your sig has a typo in it, its is not vs for you....

And the fact is , age has nothing to do with it , and you have no idea wtf you're talking about.

I never thought I'd say this but bob dole knows what hes talking about ...lol.

I guess I'm confused (which is not unusual),

The OP specifically asked about a receiver in the $300-$400 range.

The OP specifically asked about getting a specific H/K model.

The OP mentioned nothing about having studio 100's or any other specific speaker.

Yet you brought up $500 receivers (which is more then the OP is looking to spend) and you didn't even bother giving the brand/model of the receiver that you feel is better, has more features then the H/K AND drives your studio 100's at that $500 price tag.

Lastly, Spiky is never wrong.

No shit, I offered good options that might or might not break the bank. I dont offer options on crap class of product. I did however point out $100 or less more will offer several nice options the HK and probably every other POS in that range offers. He can either take it or leave it, whats it to me.

I brough up my speakers only because anyone who thinks the studio 100's are just fine with a 50watt or like someone pointed out, almost any reciever is kidding themselves, simple as that.

No kidding he didn't mention his speakers, which I pointed out.

And at least I offered some advice better than doing nothing but troll a thread pointing out stupid pointless shit and clearly wrong shit at that, least I tried to help....

Everyone knows HK uses different methods....you know what , nm buy whatever you see fit.

More reasons not to get it
component does not up convert s video or composit. The on screen menu does not work on component.....puts out a lot of heat...a LOT of HEAT !!!

.7 watts.....Point. Seven. Watts. Do you not understand that? That's what it takes (my estimate) to drive your very nice speakers to normal listening levels like most people watch TV at. Most people never strain their amp to 5 wpc, let alone a true 100 wpc. One day I made my kids cry by mistake by turning a THX trailer up too loud. (hey, they begged for more volume, can't blame me entirely) I didn't even break 30 wpc usage, if my calculations are correct. Except maybe on the sub.

If the 100s drop to 3 ohm under standard load, then they are mislabeled as 8 ohm speakers and should be rated as 4 ohm. And then the receiver amp would be more easily strained and would actually be putting out somewhere around 1.2 watts (I'm guessing) to drive them to normal listening levels. This would definitely shorten the life of the amp and then I'd have to agree with you, it would be a bad choice. Happy?

You are trying to tell someone shopping for a $300 receiver that it is a bad choice because it won't run fairly high-end speakers that each cost more than his whole setup. And you call me a troll? FWIW, if I had those speakers, I would never attempt to power them with a $300 receiver. Maybe not even my current receiver. Probably something like the Outlaw 200 wpc power amp. And you are completely missing the point that the Onkyos you recommended are lower power than the HK. Sure, you say "Everyone knows HK uses different methods", but you don't seem to understand the point. (BTW, I'm not dissing Onkyo, I have an Onkyo)

But this is all a completely different topic from the OP. I was not trolling, I was originally pointing out the difference in marketing on various receiver manufacturers because almost nobody realizes this fact. You cannot compare HK numbers directly to any other receiver other than Rotel, Sunfire, NAD, and a couple others. You have to adjust those numbers for comparison. Which is what I did. Sorry if you disagree with my numbers, get a calculator out and come up with your own, then.

I didn't pick those for their power as I pointed out he never mentioned speakers how can you pick one on power without knowing that....I picked them out for their features....Again Ill point out EVERYONE knows HK uses jew math, who cares.

You've got that backwards. The 604 has HDMI but no THX certification, the 703 has the THX certification but no HDMI.

That's completely inappropriate. What little credibility you had, you've just completely destroyed. This coming from a guy who loves off color jokes. But this is not the place for that.

I just got a new Marantz SR4001.
80 WPC - pushing DCM 16S bookshelfs
HDMI switching :)
The remote lights up a bright Amber color.

It is 549 retail, but worth it.

Very poor choice of words. Completely inappropriate.

I don't disagree that some speakers are "harder to drive" then others. No one is disagreeing with you. One of my all time favorite speakers, the Maggies are very difficult to drive.

But this is not the point of this thread. The OP asked about a $300-$400 H/K receiver. Most here brought up that it is a good deal and the H/K is a fine product. It seems you are the one with a problem with H/K but you bring up no viable alternative. Just "you can do better" which is a fine opinion, but doesn't help. You can certainly have that opinion, but at least provide some brands/models that perform as well as the H/K for the $300-$400 (or even your $500 you mention).

I happen to love H/K. Why? The sound quality is excellent. I love the quality of the sound. Mine pumps out a whopping 40 watts per channel, yet totally blows away the POS Sony rated at 100 watts. Yes, the Sony had more features, but if it sounds like shit, do you really care?

Looks like a very nice product. Does it do the newest HDMI (1.3 I think it is)?

In my living room set up I keep my H/K in an enclosed cabinet (I did drill holes in the back - I use and RF remote). Just for ease for my family I leave it on all the time. Yet, I have never noticed more then a slight warming. I have also never had a heat issue with my H/K in my theater room even tho I drive it pretty hard most of the time.

Your other points are well made. If you need on screen display thru component or s-video upconversion, get something else. But for me, the sound quality won me over.

Unfortunately not. It is at v1.1

I am curious however is there is anyway to update such a device. It is something to contact marantz about.

No doubt!!

I don't even know what that's supposed to mean in this thread. ??? The HK is the only low-end receiver using anything close to correct math, all the others are more wrong. So even the racial slurs are backwards around here.

1.1 should give you the capability to receive PCM audio over HDMI, and most of the players will decode the new audio codecs and output them as PCM. So that will give you decent compatibility with the new audio formats even without 1.3.

It is doubtful that your unit can be upgraded to 1.3, this has been a problematic point for both the mfgrs and consumers while we've been waiting for 1.3 to be finalized. But check with Marantz, maybe they've found a way to get around that.

Before you get all caught up in my mention of $500 recievers , try reading the god damn thread title at least....lol.

Who cares we probably scared the poor fella away as it is..

I spilled over the upper echelon of the price barrier by 49 dollars. but here is the thing. DONT PAY RETAIL!!!!!!!!!

I got my reciever for under 400 including tax.

He needs a minumum of 75 WPC, and is intentionally shorting himself if he does not go with one that has a 7.1 speaker output.