Receiver for B&W 684 theatre

[Muscleduck]

Hi BR.com

I'm currently building my home theatre. I have gotten to the forst step of buying a proper TV and was thinking about buying a proper surround system.
I found the Bowers & Wilkins 684 theatre. It's a 5.1 system with front, rear, center and sub in 1 package. I found it on hifix.co.uk for 1640 GBP. However, I can't seem to find a good receiver. The main problem is that it appears that most receivers are way to powerful for this set.
The receiver I set my eyes on atm is the Onkyo TX-SR577. It's got 100W @ 8 Ohms. Does anyone have expirience with this receiver or other Onkyo receivers (pref in combination with B&W)?
My brother has B&W 6 series speakers with a Rotel amp to listen to his music. I realy like the combination Rotel/B&W. It has real crisp clean sound.
The problem there is that Rotel is alot more expensive than Onkyo. it Rotel worth the extra buck? I'm thinking of the Rotel RSX-1550. Actualy, the Rotel is a bit too expensive, but if you guys think this receiver realy is worth it's money, maybe I can persuade myself into buying it
Also, what features do I have to watch out for? Things that are a must, or things that I should avoid? I read something about HDMI passthrough being bad but can't remember why.. it had something to do with the audio, DTS-HD MA I believe.
If anyone has remarks on the speakers, or has useful info about these receivers or other receivers, please, let me know
Btw, 4 HDMI inputs should be enough I think. Digital TV, PS3, HDPC for now. 1 output should suffice too.

Thanks

PS: how good/bad is Yamaha. I tend to think of Yamaha as a manufacturer that makes a lot of everything, and thus can never be as good as a manufacturer that makes only receivers and other HiFi oriented products (God I hope this makes sense )

EDIT: sorry, 1 more question: with all this expensive equipment, I want good protection from lightning strikes/power surges/... I saw something called a power conditioner on the internet (in someone's sig here actualy). Is it recommended to have one? If so? What's a good one? I live in Europe btw, so it has to be 220-230V.

[SammyG]

There is no receiver on the market right now, that is going to be too powerful for that setup. Having extra wattage is good, it's called headroom. That Onkyo with all channels driven will not put out that kind of wattage. Feel free to buy any receiver you like, make sure it does all the latest and greatest for decoding BD soundtracks, other than that you're golden. Marantz and Pioneer have some very good offerings. Sony's ES line has great decoding, but lack power for the price. Rotel will also be a great choice, but it's going to cost you. If you're looking at an Onkyo, wait until you see the pricing on the Rotel stuff. Just don't be fooled by claimed wattages being too powerful, most of those ratings are with 2ch driven. My opinion would be the Marantz or Pio for a start, but I'm sure you'll get a lot of good suggestions. Good luck.

[lojack1976]

I think that a Marantz receiver would fit the bill nicely. It would be at the top of my list since Rotel is just way out of my price range. Also look at Harman Kardon and Pioneer Elite receivers.

[Hammie]

Whatever you decide on, make sure it has pre-outs so you can add an external amplifier in the future.

Yamaha, Onkyo, Pioneer and Denon all make decent receivers with pre-outs. I think in the order I listed them will be the order of price for models that have pre-outs.

[kailashu]

Denon and B&W makes an explosive combination IMO.

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by Muscleduck

My brother has B&W 6 series speakers with a Rotel amp to listen to his music. I realy like the combination Rotel/B&W. It has real crisp clean sound.
The problem there is that Rotel is alot more expensive than Onkyo. it Rotel worth the extra buck? I'm thinking of the Rotel RSX-1550. Actualy, the Rotel is a bit too expensive, but if you guys think this receiver realy is worth it's money, maybe I can persuade myself into buying it
EDIT: sorry, 1 more question: with all this expensive equipment, I want good protection from lightning strikes/power surges/... I saw something called a power conditioner on the internet (in someone's sig here actualy). Is it recommended to have one? If so? What's a good one? I live in Europe btw, so it has to be 220-230V.

You want a good surge suppressor ..... if a power conditioner is ALSO a surge protector (mine is, it's made by PURE AV I believe ) then go for it..... it's worth it.

And for the Rotel.... My local shop connects most of their lower lines of B&W to Rotels (everything else is on Classe and other high end amps with processors...) because the combination is FANTASTIC. If you can swing it, do it.

Originally Posted by lojack1976

I think that a Marantz receiver would fit the bill nicely. It would be at the top of my list since Rotel is just way out of my price range.

I had an old Rotel, and didn't have the cash for new ones.... so I ended up getting two Marantz AVRs..... I have a 5001 connected to five of the M-1s, and I use a 7001 to power my 705's/HTM7 and three 686's

These do a great job, but I would like a separate amp someday, for more power.... (more power doesn't mean louder...... it increases the clarity etc)

Originally Posted by kailashu

Denon and B&W makes an explosive combination IMO.

Can't argue with that either..... Denon makes great stuff..... They are a sister company of Marantz.

Originally Posted by Hammie

Whatever you decide on, make sure it has pre-outs so you can add an external amplifier in the future.

That also is fantastic advice........