which A/V receiver?

[jonnyjack]

my cousin recently sent me an email asking which receiver he should get...i haven't really been following up on home theater lately so hopefully you guys can help me out...

Denon 2801 or Yamaha VRX-596?

he is also looking at the Energy Take 5 speakers with the 10inch sub...what do you guys think about them? TIA

 

[kami]

Ask the freaks ( I mean that in a good way) over at HTF in the hardware section. They really know their stuff.

 

[Sugadaddy]

The Denon is better IMO, but if he gets the Take 5's, I'd really recommend the Yamaha. Why? Because the Take 5 speakers don't go below 90hz (everything below must be handled by the sub). The problem is that the Denon, and most companies, have a crossover frequency of 80hz. So with the Denon, you'd actually have a hole in your sound between 80 and 90hz. This isn't so bad for movies, but music will suffer alot. The Yamaha crosses over at 90hz, so it would be better with these speakers.

My advice: Get different speakers like Paradigm Atoms, NHT's (superzeros I think?), Definitive Technology Promonitor 80... They'll cost a little more, but are well worth it. If he can't afford the price difference, drop down the receiver to a Denon 1801 or Onkyo 575x...

 

[jonnyjack]

Sugadaddy: he plans to get a sub also, will that handle anything under 90hz then? after reading up on threads at the link kami gave me i'm thinking more of a choice between the yamaha and a sony recevier now...not sure what model yet...

kami: thanks for the link, been lurking there for the last 30 mins now...

 

[Sugadaddy]

<< he plans to get a sub also, will that handle anything under 90hz then? >>



No. The crossover frequency is where the sound is transferred from the sub to the speakers. For example, if a sound is 70 Hz, it goes to the sub, and if another is 100hz, it goes to the respective speaker. If you get a receiver with a 80hz crossover, everything over that will not go to the sub. Since the speakers can't handle frequencies between 80 and 90hz, you won't hear those sounds. If he gets the take 5's, he should probably get a Sony receiver (most models have an adjustable crossover frequency) or a Yamaha. The Sony would probably be better since many people say the Yamahas have bright sound, something you wouldn't want with small speakers. The Sony EB series is very good for the price. (EB840)

 

[jonnyjack]

OK, i understand what you mean about the crossover, like there would be a hole between 80 and 90hz...

you said yamaha's have bright sound...what does that mean?

EDIT: the highlight option looks ugly so i switched it to bold

 

[kami]

bright as in higher fidelity or treble sounding... the Sony's apparently have a &quot;warmer&quot; sound which i prefer. You can always boost the treble a bit anyway.

 

[Muadib]

Here's a vote for the Yamaha. It can be a bit on the bright side, but nothing the treble control can't take care of. Pair it with NHT superzeros or superones and you can't go wrong as they are on the warm side . If cash is a problem, hold off on the sub.

 

[Viperoni]

First misconception, you will NOT have a *HOLE* per se in your sound.
You will have a slight drop in response a slight in response centered at 85hz, I'd be surprised if it would be bigger than 3db.
You probably wouldn't even be able to tell that it's there either.

In my car's system, I have my sub crossedover at 50hz, while my rear 6x9's high pass at 100hz.
Of course I have an 18db bass boost centered at about 72hz, but there still is a &quot;gap&quot;.
Big gap? maybe.
I dont notice it