Pioneer Elite vsx-14 enough for hdi-3800? Alternatives?

@szejna, i'm no tech wizard but i do know that frequency response measurement is an imperfect science and that other factors like dispersion, and dynamic range could make two similarly-spec'd speakers sound very different. i was curious enough to read some online reviews (e.g. audiosciencereview) of your jbls, some of which suggest that for low bass they would benefit from a sub--again, you might get better results with a different amp, so i wouldn't hesitate to experiment.

I even have them close to a wall so I expected to be working against it being overpowering.

Is there something else I am possibly doing wrong or are my expectations for these speakers just off?

Several things to ponder...

1. Cabinet size  2. Sensitivity 3. Bass extension/impact....pick 2 (can’t have all 3)

Further, you are most probably sitting right on top of a couple of modal nulls (especially widthwise). So, even if it produced some bass, you didn't hear it. Get a subwoofer... if correctly placed/integrated, it will fix the nulls and provide the bass extension/impact that the speaker sacrificed for sensitivity and a non-refrigerator sized higher WAF cabinet.

P.S.  Older multichannel receivers never have the poweramp sections for good bass. There is also a chance that a failing dcomponent can kill the bass.

The following is a legit thing that can happen in aging amps/receivers. It will appear to work fine otherwise.

Bass issue

Thanks for the responses!
 

1. Cabinet size  2. Sensitivity 3. Bass extension/impact....pick 2 (can’t have all 3)

@deep_333 This is interesting. I assumed as cabinet size goes up bass extension goes lower and more impactful. Curious if that means sensitivity has to be lower to get more bass? Or are you saying smaller cabinet size is what you can't have.

@loomisjohnson, I experimented . I bought a NAD 389, and its clear the vsx-14  was not working with these speakers. Definitely interested to know if the bass (Capacitor or other failing component) issue you mentioned @deep_333 was part of this because the difference is night and day!

I'm now at a place where I definitely don't "need" a sub although I know it would be that much better.

I'm really interested to see what the dirac does for me, but software issues have been a struggle on the NAD so far, so I have not gotten there yet. When I install dirac live on my computer it crashes at startup

The bluos has been a pretty bad experience too, have tried the upgrade on the NAD about 10 times and always fails. Hopefully support can help.

Outside the world of software, really happy with the sound!

@deep_333 This is interesting. I assumed as cabinet size goes up bass extension goes lower and more impactful. Curious if that means sensitivity has to be lower to get more bass? Or are you saying smaller cabinet size is what you can't have.

If you want both sensitivity and bass, cabinet will become refrigerator sized (or drop the sensitivity)...It is just the physics...unless you are doing some non-typical design like transmission line, powered, etc.