Noob, need help please
Another option to used equipment is look for large discounts on last year model receivers. No pre-outs on this, just an indication on what savings can be had. https://www.crutchfield.com/p_033AVX2500/Denon-AVR-X2500H.html?omnews=14698183 |
Thanks mesch and rocknss! Wouldn’t this approach be more expensive though? Or are you saying that with a 1k-ish budget I can get AVR and an integrated? It’s been mentioned that for 1k I can get a high end AVR. What kind of integrated does 1k get? Also, would this approach be worth it if I only add a center and not rears? How does this setup differ from a pre/pro and amp? |
You can get a higher end AV receiver for less than $1,000 US on sale, or refurbished. My Yamaha was $900+/- retail, but found a refurbished one with warranty for about $425 US. I then found and bought a used respected dedicated 2 channel amp for about $385 (a great deal) which I use to run my fronts when listening to stereo (and also power the fronts when running in 5.1, which takes the load off the rears, center, and sub receiver amp). My AV receiver is actually capable of 7.2, but I don’t need that. Be careful of paying more for a receiver with bells and whistles you don’t need, and will only compromise its overall performance (which it already is). Thus, I spent about $800 for both an AV receiver and a well respected 2 channel amp that sounds much better than the receiver in 2 channel. In other words, you can spend less than $1,000 and get better 2 channel sound than any receiver is capable of alone for that budget, and still a have home theater setup where the overall sound is not as critical compared to listening to music in stereo. You simply must get an AV receiver with separate pre-outs available, and the lower end receivers do not have that capability. I run Vandersteen 2CE Sigs as my fronts, Vandersteen 1C’s as my rears, a nice ELAC center and a sub. The Vandersteen’s are not nearly as efficient as your Klipsch. My dedicated 2 channel 140 wpc amp drives the 2CE’s easily, and the receiver drives the others easily in HT mode. I don’t think your Klipsch need much power to drive vs my set-up. But power isn’t the most critical factor, sound quality is for me when listening to music, so I like the option of driving my fronts with a separate amp that satisfy the quality I want, and can upgrade that amp again if I desire. The sound quality of HT via the AV receiver isn’t as important to me, but it does sound pretty good. |
Since you only will be using the AV receiver for the center and surrounds you can purchase one at lower cost. Use most of the $1000 for the 2-channel integrated. Look for a used 5.1 receiver. You will need the remote with the receiver. I use a AV receiver to augment TV/movie watching in my living room. Only use the L, R, and center outputs. Don,t feel the need for surrounds at all. You might find that the 2-channel integrated used in 2-channel mode for video suffices. |
