Time to upgrade my surround system - Blu-ray Forum

bigmf · 04-11-2007, 05:15 PM

Ok, I posted last month about the Durabrand system I bought. Well the remodelling is done and it is time for me to start properly looking for a new (proper) surround system.

My Set up is Westinghouse 42w2, PS3, Motorola Cable box-DVR, and of course the Durabrand thing.

I have a budget of $500 - $1000 Canadian. I had originally wanted an onkyo 790. I would forgo the HDMI sound for optical with this set-up but the quality looked good and I've heard good things on the internets. The propblem is that Onkyo is hard to find in Canada and the prices are absolutely rediculous compared to US prices. No US sites I have seen will ship HTIBs to Canada.

Therefore I'm looking for some alternatives.

I've looked at the Sony HTDDW900 - it has HDMI passthrough but no sound processing over HDMI. HDMI on this seems pointless as I have plenty of video inputs available on the Westy and sound would be through optical anyway. I've also heard that the Sony speakers are not the greatest. Good price though - $435

Sooooooo... What is out there that can compete with the Onkyo, or where can I get the Onkyo in my price range? Also, in this price range in Canada is there the possibility of getting LPCM sound?

I've done a lot of research and have just ended up confused.

Thanks for any help you can give.

Gremal · 04-11-2007, 06:07 PM

I'm also upgrading my surround system by going from a 5.1 optical system to a 7.1 HDMI system.

This will involve using my Nautilus 805s as intermediate surrounds and buying a pair of SCM1s as my rear surrounds. I am currently using an Audio Refinement Multi-3 to power my HTM1 center, and surround speakers. I will need to sell the Multi-3 and buy the similar Multi-5 model to power the additional two speakers.

This upgrade is meaningless until I can find a good preamp that solves the HDMI 1.X compatibility problems. Hopefully Sony will introduce a good ES preamp this summer that does that.

Sorry, but I don't think you can adequately address audio in an HT system for only $1000. A pair of SCM1s alone list for $2200, and this is only 2/8ths of my speaker system. Don't get me started on amplification, cabling, power conditioning, etc.

Wish I could be of more help, but I'm finding it very challenging to get a system together that fully capitalizes on all the advantages of blu-ray's audio formats. Just remember: Rome wasn't built in a day, and rather than blow all $1000 on an entire system that lets you do HDMI cheaply, you might spend it on a pair of speakers or a small part of a better system and wait for the HDMI compatibility issues to be resolved.

ra1024 · 04-11-2007, 06:09 PM

I'm somewhat in the same situation as I have a PS3 for a player. I think the Yamaha V661($499 US) is probably the best buy at the moment for PS3 owners. You may want to checkout this thread as there's a lot of good info on PS3 owners looking for lossless.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=770354

bigmf · 04-11-2007, 10:10 PM

I am having a really difficult time since bestbuy.ca and futureshop.ca are so bad. Can anyone help me out with an online retailer that will deliver goods to Canada?

sccpu3d · 04-12-2007, 05:33 AM

I have a suggestion on a 5.1 system that will break 1k, but will DEFINATELY be worth it.

Yamaha RX-V659 (Got mine for around $350 US)
Athena -- Audition ASF2.2 Home Theater Package ($899.85 US)

You can find the Yamaha over ebay. Very simple because buy it now prices are around $350 US.

http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo...ber=ATK1F2%2E2
Has the Athena package shipped. For the price, I don't think there's anything better than that.

Since the package does include floorstanding speakers, you can hold off on a subwoofer until you get the money, but pretty much any woofer from Hsu Research is nothing less than spectacular, but it could cost you around another $300 US

SomethingForKate · 04-16-2007, 02:09 PM

I'm a big fan of Sony A/V receivers and recently bought a Sony STR-DA 5200ES receiver which includes 3 HDMI inputs and audio decoding over HDMI.

This retails at around 800 GBP which is *goes and does the conversion* .... whoa! That's about 1800 Canadian. I know that's out of your price range but the 1200ES and 3200ES which are lower down in the same range might be worth considering. Both include 2x HDMI inputs and audio-decoding over HDMI. Both also support 7.1 channel decoding. They lack the video upscaling chip of the 5200ES and the PS3-style menu system, but seem much better value.

SFK

04-11-2007, 05:15 PM	#1
bigmf Active Member Member since:Dec 2006 Location:Over here	Time to upgrade my surround system Ok, I posted last month about the Durabrand system I bought. Well the remodelling is done and it is time for me to start properly looking for a new (proper) surround system. My Set up is Westinghouse 42w2, PS3, Motorola Cable box-DVR, and of course the Durabrand thing. I have a budget of $500 - $1000 Canadian. I had originally wanted an onkyo 790. I would forgo the HDMI sound for optical with this set-up but the quality looked good and I've heard good things on the internets. The propblem is that Onkyo is hard to find in Canada and the prices are absolutely rediculous compared to US prices. No US sites I have seen will ship HTIBs to Canada. Therefore I'm looking for some alternatives. I've looked at the Sony HTDDW900 - it has HDMI passthrough but no sound processing over HDMI. HDMI on this seems pointless as I have plenty of video inputs available on the Westy and sound would be through optical anyway. I've also heard that the Sony speakers are not the greatest. Good price though - $435 Sooooooo... What is out there that can compete with the Onkyo, or where can I get the Onkyo in my price range? Also, in this price range in Canada is there the possibility of getting LPCM sound? I've done a lot of research and have just ended up confused. Thanks for any help you can give.

04-12-2007, 05:33 AM	#5
sccpu3d Junior Member Member since:Apr 2007	I have a suggestion on a 5.1 system that will break 1k, but will DEFINATELY be worth it. Yamaha RX-V659 (Got mine for around $350 US) Athena -- Audition ASF2.2 Home Theater Package ($899.85 US) You can find the Yamaha over ebay. Very simple because buy it now prices are around $350 US. http://www.audioadvisor.com/prodinfo...ber=ATK1F2%2E2 Has the Athena package shipped. For the price, I don't think there's anything better than that. Since the package does include floorstanding speakers, you can hold off on a subwoofer until you get the money, but pretty much any woofer from Hsu Research is nothing less than spectacular, but it could cost you around another $300 US Last edited by sccpu3d; 04-12-2007 at 05:36 AM.

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04-11-2007, 06:07 PM	#2
Gremal Blu-ray Samurai Top ranked HT gallery Member since:Feb 2007 Location:Daddyland Home Theater Gallery:49 Blu-ray collection:184	I'm also upgrading my surround system by going from a 5.1 optical system to a 7.1 HDMI system. This will involve using my Nautilus 805s as intermediate surrounds and buying a pair of SCM1s as my rear surrounds. I am currently using an Audio Refinement Multi-3 to power my HTM1 center, and surround speakers. I will need to sell the Multi-3 and buy the similar Multi-5 model to power the additional two speakers. This upgrade is meaningless until I can find a good preamp that solves the HDMI 1.X compatibility problems. Hopefully Sony will introduce a good ES preamp this summer that does that. Sorry, but I don't think you can adequately address audio in an HT system for only $1000. A pair of SCM1s alone list for $2200, and this is only 2/8ths of my speaker system. Don't get me started on amplification, cabling, power conditioning, etc. Wish I could be of more help, but I'm finding it very challenging to get a system together that fully capitalizes on all the advantages of blu-ray's audio formats. Just remember: Rome wasn't built in a day, and rather than blow all $1000 on an entire system that lets you do HDMI cheaply, you might spend it on a pair of speakers or a small part of a better system and wait for the HDMI compatibility issues to be resolved.

04-11-2007, 06:09 PM	#3
ra1024 Senior Member Member since:Jan 2007 Blu-ray reviews:4 Trading Score:1	I'm somewhat in the same situation as I have a PS3 for a player. I think the Yamaha V661($499 US) is probably the best buy at the moment for PS3 owners. You may want to checkout this thread as there's a lot of good info on PS3 owners looking for lossless. http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=770354

04-11-2007, 10:10 PM	#4
bigmf Active Member Member since:Dec 2006 Location:Over here	I am having a really difficult time since bestbuy.ca and futureshop.ca are so bad. Can anyone help me out with an online retailer that will deliver goods to Canada?

04-16-2007, 02:09 PM	#6
SomethingForKate Active Member Member since:Apr 2007 Location:London town, UK	I'm a big fan of Sony A/V receivers and recently bought a Sony STR-DA 5200ES receiver which includes 3 HDMI inputs and audio decoding over HDMI. This retails at around 800 GBP which is goes and does the conversion .... whoa! That's about 1800 Canadian. I know that's out of your price range but the 1200ES and 3200ES which are lower down in the same range might be worth considering. Both include 2x HDMI inputs and audio-decoding over HDMI. Both also support 7.1 channel decoding. They lack the video upscaling chip of the 5200ES and the PS3-style menu system, but seem much better value. SFK

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