BA Fry's: Panasonic SA-HE70K Receiver, $137; 350 watt AMD-apprvd ATX, $50

[Praxis]

Both prices are good through Xmas Eve.

The Panasonic SA-HE70K is $200 at Circuit City and $137 is substantially below the lowest etailer, after tax and shipping are reckoned. The model is not for audiophiles, but is pretty feature-rich at this price point.

# 100 watts per left/center/right/surround channels
* Home Theater Mode --
o Front: 100W/Ch x 2 (1 kHz, 6 ohms, 0.9% THD)
o Center: 100W (1 kHz, 6 ohms, 0.9% THD)
o Surround (Left Surround, Right Surround): 100W/Ch x 2 (1 kHz, 6 ohms, 0.9% THD)
* Stereo Mode -- 100W/Ch x 2 (40Hz-20kHz, 6 ohms, 0.9% THD)
Total Harmonic Distortion
* Rated Power at 40Hz-20kHz -- 0.9% (6 ohms)
* Half Power at 1kHz -- 0.07% (6 ohms)
# 3 digital inputs (2 optical, 1 coaxial)
# Dolby Pro Logic® II, DTS & Digital encoders
# 3 speaker configurations for each channel
# Enhanced class H+ amplifier circuitry
# Subwoofer output for extended bass reproduction
# 3 audio and video inputs

It doesn't have Component Video In/Out, but then again, I don't have component video inputs in my TV. THD is higher than some, I guess more expensive rigs produce sounds down to 20 Hz, it has no A+B Speaker Switching or phono input, but this thing was a heck of an improvement over my old Sony 35 watt 2 channel rig.

I got the Sony sub-woofer that was on the forum and found a few funky bookshelf speakers for a center channel and rear speakers and invited the cronies over to watch the Lord of the Rings DVD last Friday. It was most gratifying. The unit has 4 S-video terminals, three in and one out, and a couple of Toslink Spdif inputs which I don't have much use for yet (well, I suppose I could use one to route sound from my computer, but I'd have to kill my wife first, since the receiver is in our living room). I bought the receiver a couple of weeks ago for $150, so I'll wave the receipt in Fry's faces and get $13 back. SKU: 3277651.

As to the case, it apparently has a 350w AMD Athlon XP approved power supply, four 5.25" & two 3.5" external bays, an internal 3.5" bay, two front USB ports and four 80mm fans installed in the front of the case. SKU: 3265721. I wonder how this compares to the 350 watt Antec case that Worst Lie is hawking for $70.

 

[airduct]

is this panasonic a technics?

 

[AlwaysWong]

do you know who makes the case?

 

[Praxis]

Panasonic. Technics used to be Panasonic's elite line, but you don't see much of them anymore. I googled Technics, for instance and followed this link and got a HTTP/1.1 404 Object Not Found:
http://www.panasonic.com/consumer_electronics/technics_audio/default.asp
The British link was broken, as well. I think they may be winding down that line. In any case, my original stereo was Technics, about 16 years ago. All the components eventually died except the lame graphic equalizer & the speakers. I'm not sure they were all that high end. Oh, and I still use the rack.

I don't know who makes the Fry's case. One of the reasons I posted this deal was that I was hoping someone else would chime in with more info on the case.

 

[doggzilla]

The case is by Fudin and the PSU is by Raidmax.

 

[Praxis]

Sounds pretty good, no? Those are reasonably well respected brand names, unless I miss my mark.

Edit: The it looks like the power supply or some reasonable facsimile thereof is available on Pricewatch for about $17 or so delivered, so the ATX case may not be a particularly good deal.

 

[pannam1]

I have the same receiver which I bought 6 months ago when it first came out. Very satisified with it...

It's the best value receiver out there... Panasonic always gives you a lot of bang for the buck plus dependable quality...
I'm no audiophile so it(just watch DVD movies mostly...) so it is perfect for me...