[MACDROID84]

I am going to be upgrading my sorround sound system in the next couple months now and was curious about a few issues. Since I don't trust a 16yr old at Best Buy, has anyone used a Dennon receiver? I am looking at a few, namely the Dennon AVR1912, as well as a Samsung(not sure which), and a Yamaha. I like the Dennon b/c it has 6 HDMI ports as well as airplay for my ipad. I have a Samsung TV and Bluray player. I'd like to have the air play, but having an Apple TV, i'm not stuck on it. I'd also need a new sub either way since my current system(Sony VCR/DVD sorround sound) has a proprietary sub hookup. Any thoughts? I want to spend at or below $800 for the receiver and a decent sub and don't particularly care where I get it all from.

[waldojim]

MACDROID84, on 18 January 2012 - 06:24 AM, said:

I am going to be upgrading my sorround sound system in the next couple months now and was curious about a few issues. Since I don't trust a 16yr old at Best Buy, has anyone used a Dennon receiver? I am looking at a few, namely the Dennon AVR1912, as well as a Samsung(not sure which), and a Yamaha. I like the Dennon b/c it has 6 HDMI ports as well as airplay for my ipad. I have a Samsung TV and Bluray player. I'd like to have the air play, but having an Apple TV, i'm not stuck on it. I'd also need a new sub either way since my current system(Sony VCR/DVD sorround sound) has a proprietary sub hookup. Any thoughts? I want to spend at or below $800 for the receiver and a decent sub and don't particularly care where I get it all from.

My brother picked up a 1911 not too long ago, and it isn't terrible by any means. But not the greatest sounding either. The amps just don't seem to have a powerful enough power supply in there to drive speakers. Certainly not 5x 8ohm speakers. My personal Denon is outright crap, and I would never torture anyone with it. If you get a Denon, pick up a model that claims at least 80 watts per channel @8 ohms, else it will just sound weak. I would not mess with a Samsung, they don't know a thing about quality audio products. Nothing against them as a company, just their receivers. Yamaha makes a lot of quality, high power receivers. Just make sure when you buy one, that you are getting a quality unit. They sell to every end of the spectrum, from consumer junk, to enthusiast audio.

One last thing to look into - Marantz. Most of their receivers have power supplies that can easily handle their rated loads. Depending on the size of speakers in use, and their power handling, the 65WPC versions will likely do very well for you. Their 45WPC seemed quite weak to me.

[MACDROID84]

Thanks for the advice, I'll check into Marantz. I've usually used sony or yamaha for my reciever needs, so i'm comfortable with their products. I'm looking to create a "hub" to plug everything into which is why I like the dennon with the air play. I wouldn't need another device to stream videos to my tv. My only beef with the wattage claims is whether they are just claiming max wattage or using RMS to determine the wpc.

[MLStrand56]

MACDROID84, on 18 January 2012 - 06:24 AM, said:

$800 for the receiver and a decent sub

Please be aware that True Subwoofer & a "Bass Box" are NOT the same thing. Many "Home-Theater-In-A-Box" spkr. systems have a separate Bass Box, But they do not have the 20-120Hz freq. response to qualify as a True subwoofer.

MLStrand56

[MACDROID84]

Yes, i'm aware of the response range in most of those. My price range allows me to spend around $300 for a sub, so I would think that I could find a true subwoofer in that range that isn't crap. I'm not looking to rattle the house (I live in a condo), just something with good response and sound quality.

[MLStrand56]

MACDROID84, on 23 January 2012 - 06:23 AM, said:

Yes, i'm aware of the response range in most of those. My price range allows me to spend around $300 for a sub, so I would think that I could find a true subwoofer in that range that isn't crap. I'm not looking to rattle the house (I live in a condo), just something with good response and sound quality.

Have you tried Parts Express? http://www.parts-express.com/

When I built my subwoofer, I bought my dual 15" Sub's & all the hardware from them. I had it all shipped to Germany & built my Sub there.

Here's a Super subwoofer that's 'almost' in your price range: http://www.parts-exp...tnumber=300-770 Everything is included, Box, Grill, Speaker, Amp. All you do is supply the hookup from the stereo.

I built a stereo sub. The Low-Pass filter coil is massive, custom wound, on what looks like a very large transformer form. I use dual (L & R) dbx 120X Sub-harmonic synthesizers, to a passive volume control, to a dedicated Yamaha MX-100U amp. It will reproduce everything from a Howitzer down to simply filling in the bottom end. I like the passive vol. control because it's easier to adj. the sub level, than doing so on the sub enclosure itself.

Good Luck Sub shopping!!

MLStrand56

Edited for additonal info.

This post has been edited by MLStrand56: 23 January 2012 - 07:36 AM

[waldojim]

MACDROID84, on 23 January 2012 - 06:23 AM, said:

Yes, i'm aware of the response range in most of those. My price range allows me to spend around $300 for a sub, so I would think that I could find a true subwoofer in that range that isn't crap. I'm not looking to rattle the house (I live in a condo), just something with good response and sound quality.

Depending on what you are looking for, you may want to consider this as well.
http://www.edesignau...products_id=406

ED has been around a while, and is a small shop in Canada if I remember right. They do make some fairly impressive gear, if you are into the kinds of things they sell. Still, their 10" sub is about $350, has an 18-100hz range, and should be more than plenty for a small to medium sized room. I wouldn't go with anything astronomical unless you have a very large room.

[MACDROID84]

MLStrand56, on 23 January 2012 - 07:25 AM, said:

MACDROID84, on 23 January 2012 - 06:23 AM, said:

Yes, i'm aware of the response range in most of those. My price range allows me to spend around $300 for a sub, so I would think that I could find a true subwoofer in that range that isn't crap. I'm not looking to rattle the house (I live in a condo), just something with good response and sound quality.

Have you tried Parts Express? http://www.parts-express.com/

When I built my subwoofer, I bought my dual 15" Sub's & all the hardware from them. I had it all shipped to Germany & built my Sub there.

Here's a Super subwoofer that's 'almost' in your price range: http://www.parts-exp...tnumber=300-770 Everything is included, Box, Grill, Speaker, Amp. All you do is supply the hookup from the stereo.

I built a stereo sub. The Low-Pass filter coil is massive, custom wound, on what looks like a very large transformer form. I use dual (L & R) dbx 120X Sub-harmonic synthesizers, to a passive volume control, to a dedicated Yamaha MX-100U amp. It will reproduce everything from a Howitzer down to simply filling in the bottom end. I like the passive vol. control because it's easier to adj. the sub level, than doing so on the sub enclosure itself.

Good Luck Sub shopping!!

MLStrand56

Edited for additonal info.

Thanks for the link! I love to tinker/fix electronics so building my own sub sounds like the way to go for me! I know about doing that stuff for guitar amps and pedals since my friend is a musician and big into that thing. I'm more of a fixer of ipads and such. I'll check it out. as for the Canadian's website i'll check that out as well. Thanks for all the advice. How is the customer service if I build my own?