Help me price a receiver
 

I have a PS3, X-Box 360, Wii, and an HD-DVD player with an HDTV. Everything that can be hooked up via HDMI is. I want a receiver that can give me the best possible sound for my systems and Blu-Ray/HD-DVD discs. Can you give suggestions/prices?

Thanks!

I think you are going to need to define a budget amount. In the world of electronics you get what you pay for, "best possible sound" may be more than you are prepared to spend.

One word... Vanns. Go there and check out the Onkyo Tx-sr805 Thx Ultra2 certified -
Dolby TrueHD - DTS HD - 3 hdmi in, 1 out. 7.1 surround at 130 Watts.. $749.98 at Vanns... Get this one, great for Blu-ray specs. I have had mine for a Couple of months and matched it up with Polk speakers..
http://www.vanns.com Free Shipping, no tax..

Also specify what features you're looking for. One primary question - do you want to be able to run all of the video through the receiver (aka - video switching)? In other words, do you want to run HDMI from each device into your receiver, and then one HDMI cable from your receiver to your TV? That feature, and the number of inputs, will have an impact on pricing if you want it.

What kind of speakers do you have and what is your budget?

This is a project I'm looking at over the next 1-2 years....so budget undefined. Don't currently own speakers...well, I do, but it's a HTIB. I'm not looking to go broke over it...I'd say altogether, $1500 would be my limit (for speakers and the receiver, unless I"m underpricing speakers - really, I don't have a lot of pricing knowledge on this stuff),

shelland - If that's the only way I'm going to get the best audio, then yes. Otherwise, it's not necessary, as my TV has four HDMI inputs, and I have an HDMI switchbox as well.

If this is your timeframe I would begin by looking at speakers first. Find speakers that you like to listen to and that will fit your budget and room. Once you have decided on speakers then decide on a receiver to power them. 1-2 years is an eternity in electronics and many features will change in this span of time.

New batches of receivers capable of handling HDMI 1.3 and decoding advance codecs like Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD-MA are coming out within the next few monthes. Pioneer VSX-1018TXH-K, Onkyo 506 and Harman Kardon AVR 254 should all have street price of less than $500. (The Onkyo 506 can be preordered now at $299 from here). The Yamaha 663 can be had for $399 shipped if you want something now (but it only has 2 HDMI inputs).

Well, the difference between a $500 receiver and a $1000 receiver is (should be!) the quality of the amp.

If your entire budget is $1500 for the speakers and receiver, get a nice $500 receiver and a nice $1000 speaker set. It's impossible to overbudget for speakers, although it is easy to pay too much.