If you were to pick up a slightly used receiver, how important is DTS?

[beer]

I think I may have the opportunity to pick up a Denon AVR-1700 for an excellent price, slightly used. One thing the receiver does not come with though is DTS decoding. Would that be worth the roughly $200 difference in price between that and a new 1601? What is DTS exactly used for - isn't it just more of a legacy surround scheme that isn't really used much anymore?

 

[John]

DTS stands for digital theater system, and it is currently used in a majority of movie theaters around the world. DTS delivers six channels (5.1) of master-quality, 20-bit audio. Some like it better than AC-3, but I don't consider it worth the 200.00 price difference in your case.

 

[Jmman]

Actually, I prefer DTS to DD, but hey, that's just me. DD is the official audio standard of dvd, so it is not that big of a deal. 6 or 7 channel surround is starting to hit the scene also, so you probably will have to upgrade at some point in the future anyway......

 

[beer]

Well keep in mine that for the first few months (till summer) I will be running in stereo...don't have money to drop for 6 speakers now.

 

[thebestMAX]

You can always buy a DVD player later with dts decoding built into it for $200 or less so Id say on a pure money analysis, if you like the receiver, go for it.

 

[Linux23]

if it has a 6 channel input, like my older Sony receiver, then buy it because you could upgrade to DTS later with an outboard Decoder! Hell, if you want to buy my Sony receiver, and DTS decoder combo, just drop me a line! All you would need is the cables! The ones i'm using on my newer Sony receiver has $100 pair monster cables, but the cables are up to you!

Let me know, if you are interested!