HT Receiver recommendation needed

[PhenomeNhan]

Short story - a friend's Marantz 5003 died and he needs a new receiver. While I like the Marantz, it doesn't seem to do well with his belkin pure AV conditioner/surge protector (the Marantz authorized shop claimed the receiver died of a surge and we are having Belkin investigate this claim).

Aside from that, what are the recommendations for HT receivers of similar sound quality and ease of operation (Denon is out because of the latter :D) I know I stated that I didn't like Onkyo (mainly for 2-channel) in the past, but HT will be the primary goal here. I like Yamaha, but have not had experience with Pioneers (although I've heard and read good things about them). HK seems to always be behind the ball when it comes to supporting new features, but I've had good experience with their quality and sound in the past (like 10 years ago).

So, please recommend something for me :)

Oh, price range: 400-650

[corndog71]

I've heard good things about Integra too.

[Jason]

Well, I would've recommended Marantz as a first choice....


We have an Onkyo 805 that's a beast. Ton's of power (for an avr), and good sound. Get's pretty warm, but hasn't seemed to affect operation. It's not the most polished product imo....A little slow switching video as you change sources. Also takes a bit longer to sync up the audio signal (seems to happen with HD channels when they go to commercial and the audio is different...could be a problem with the Cox cable box, though), but once locked in it's fine. The only thing I'd consider replacing it with would be a newer Marantz.

Search under google.com/products showed several.

[PhenomeNhan]

Well, I would've recommended Marantz as a first choice....


We have an Onkyo 805 that's a beast. Ton's of power (for an avr), and good sound. Get's pretty warm, but hasn't seemed to affect operation. It's not the most polished product imo....A little slow switching video as you change sources. Also takes a bit longer to sync up the audio signal (seems to happen with HD channels when they go to commercial and the audio is different...could be a problem with the Cox cable box, though), but once locked in it's fine. The only thing I'd consider replacing it with would be a newer Marantz.

Search under google.com/products showed several.

Thanks, Corndog, but aren't the Integras a bit pricey? I'm trying to keep the cost a little low for these guys, as their $800 Marantz bit the dust (the cost of a new one is about $550-580, which I like, but am hesitant to get it as the history is a bit shaky). They have an older Marantz 5.1 in the living room hooked up to another PureAV and it always trips the unit, requiring resets every so often. No other device (TVs, FPs, DVRs, DVDs) seem to be causing this issue.

Jason,

Thanks for the double recommendation :D I brought a little 2-channel JVC surround amp that's been in our family since the late 80s and it seems to be doing fine in place of the Marantz. That is no power resets/failures, but the sound quality is obviously lacking.

[woofersus]

I probably would have recommended Marantz as well, lol. My Yamaha does a good job - plenty of power, easy to use, good features for the price. However, I'm not completely thrilled with the sound quality for 2-channel. I've toyed with the idea of upgrading to a marantz receiver, but I think I may just keep the Yamaha as a processor and add a nice multichannel amp since it has analog outs.

HK is very nice, but I tend to find it overpriced for the amount of power and features you get up near or at 4 digit prices pretty quick if you need much power along with a decent feature set, and for that price I'd rather have my RX-V663 and a UPA-7.

Integra looks nice too, but I don't know a ton about their models. A little spendy for my blood.

[PhenomeNhan]

Thanks, Tim. I checked with AVS and the Marantz 5003/6003 thread and the OP has gone through about 4 replacement 6003 units already. I didn't read everything (just a couple of pages worth).

I thought about upgrading to the XPA-5 from emotiva and selling them my LPA -1 at a very cheap price to make up for their troubles, and getting a lower-priced, but capable receiver. Maybe a yamaha or pioneer?

[k_t]

I'm in the same boat and thinking about trying a pioneer elite VSX-21

[Jason]

Jason,

Thanks for the double recommendation :D

Sorry about that....had a hiccup while tethering I guess....

[woofersus]

I've heard really good thing about the pioneer elite stuff. I don't know much about pricing and feature set though - or if the non elite line is any good.

[PhenomeNhan]

I've heard really good thing about the pioneer elite stuff. I don't know much about pricing and feature set though - or if the non elite line is any good.

Yea, I'm not up to snuff on all the pioneer products and their features.

I'm thinking either Yamaha or Pioneer at this point.

[corndog71]

I found this link regarding Integra's lower cost receivers.

http://www.hemagazine.com/Integra_DTR-30.1_DTR_20.1

[cburbs]

Nhan,

Does this need the latest bells/whistles?

I always like the Pioneer Elites myself though it has been a while since i actually checked one out.
The last time I chatted with my audio friend he chose the yammie over the Elite from his audio store.

[PhenomeNhan]

Nhan,

Does this need the latest bells/whistles?

I always like the Pioneer Elites myself though it has been a while since i actually checked one out.
The last time I chatted with my audio friend he chose the yammie over the Elite from his audio store.

Hey chad. I'm just looking for HDMI video switching capability and the ability to decode the Blu-ray audio signals (Dolby IIz not needed). I'm sure most receivers can do at least that these days. What Pioneer Elite model would you recommend in the $400-600 range?

[PhenomeNhan]

I found this link regarding Integra's lower cost receivers.

http://www.hemagazine.com/Integra_DTR-30.1_DTR_20.1

Those are nice. The 20.1 lacks a bit of features, but I don't think they'll be missed. I did a quick search and am not able to locate an online place where these are sold.

[cburbs]

Actually the Pioneer VSX-1019AH-K looks like a solid receiver.

The elites are listed here - http://www.soundpros.net/pioneer_elite_home.cfm