Bought a new receiver, Home Theater people inside.

[347convert]

Sooo I have a buddy at Best Buy and he had me listen to 4 different units playing the same song, on the same speakers. Denon, Pioneer Elite, Marantz, and Yamaha. I went it to best buy with the intentions of buying the denon, or the elite hands down.


http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Denon+-...iver/2166053.p?id=1218312458461&skuId=2166053

The one under this model http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Pioneer...iver/1029057.p?id=1218210974359&skuId=1029057

the one under this model http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Marantz...iver/1401894.p?id=1218312493438&skuId=1401894

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Yamaha+...iver/9976229.p?id=1218204529496&skuId=9976229

Without knowing what receiver was playing I listened to each one like I was at an eye test... (what sounds better 1 or 2? then 2 or 3). When it was all said and done I actually picked the yamaha to be the one that sounded better 4 out of 5 times. I was really impressed that one of the more expensive units did not out perform the cheaper one we where listening to. The pure direct feature is badass also, It plays the music the way it was recorded... (it bypasses the bass and treble settings and sets them to what the recording was at) These are the speakers that are going with it.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Bowers+...enge/1290494.p?id=1218247966973&skuId=1290494


Has anyone ever had the same type of experience where they go in with one thing in your mind and walked out with something that you never even concidered?

 

[YLWFVR]

Yamaha is known for having quality receivers. Good Choice.

 

[BigWheelinBubba]

Did i read that right? $1100/speaker ($2200)?

 

[YLWFVR]

Did i read that right? $1100/speaker ($2200)?

B&W is not cheap.

 

[Golden]

B&W is not cheap.

Nope, but they sure sound nice!

 

[347convert]

Did i read that right? $1100/speaker ($2200)?

They had some there for $2500 each!

 

[347convert]

Yamaha is known for having quality receivers. Good Choice.

The elite and the denon sounded louder, with more power, but the yamaha sounded really crisp.

 

[RyeLou]

The elite and the denon sounded louder, with more power, but the yamaha sounded really crisp.

For what it's worth, you can actually "tune" a receiver or adjust the settings to make it sound different. I just got my Pioneer back from some warranty work and had to go through it again.

 

[Tin]

The pure direct feature is badass also, It plays the music the way it was recorded... (it bypasses the bass and treble settings and sets them to what the recording was at)

Any sound system with tone controls will do that. Either hit the button to bypass them, or set them to flat. One thing youll find having a high quality system, is it makes bad recordings sound worse and good ones sound better. I dont play some music on my main system due to the poor engineering of the music. One thing you could also do is ditch your mp3s and switch to FLAC, or straight up CD. Youll definitely notice things you didnt even think were there, due to having a very high resolution system. Also consider borrowing a RTA (real time analyzer), as this will find any spikes and dips in the frequency response. Once you know the offending frequencies, you can EQ to taste.

 

[Birdie2000]

One thing youll find having a high quality system, is it makes bad recordings sound worse and good ones sound better.

Ain't that the fucking truth! Everytime I finally get around to putting in a decent system into a car I bought I always get all disappointed that basically anything recorded after the mid-90's sounds like complete ass. :lol:

 

[Hugger Z]

The elite and the denon sounded louder, with more power, but the yamaha sounded really crisp.

Yes they do. I have a Yamaha receiver now. My old one was an Onkyo. My main speakers are Yamaha too. Crisp, clear sound. Best addition I did was my Definitive Technology Supercube subwoofer. That thing really filled in what was missing. This thing is 1200W and my old Acoustic Research sub was only 120W. So WAY better sound. :lol: I am constantly amazed how much more I pick up when I watch movies I haven't seen in a while. Enjoy your set-up!