Thread: Something I've always wanted to do...

Originally Posted by HeavyG

Do you really need a 7.1 surround receiver? You might be able to get more power or higher quality if you don't get 7.1. If you are going to use the surround, then sure.

Personally, I like Yamaha receivers. You get a lot of power and great quality for a decent price. Sure, there is better, but you will likely spend more.

Agreed. When it's for music especially I prefer to have the sound be clean more than loud. You can most likely get better sound quality from a 2.1 system than a 7.1 system in this case.

Also I've had different receivers and Yamaha and Dennon are my favorites when it comes to bang for your buck. Both are affordable and produce great sound.

A 2.1 receiver would be fine, the problem is that 2.1 receivers are getting harder to find. Also, the receiver that I get has to have very specific measurements (width) so it fits on the shelf of my desk. The Sony is just under 17'

There's this one:
Onkyo TX-8050 AM/FM/Internet radio receiver at Crutchfield.com

It's more expensive than the Sony receiver and it's wider.....and doesn't have a subwoofer output.


Man.......Onkyo receivers are boss too.

That does look pretty cool. Stereo should fit for what you are trying to do, and this one has a lot of nifty features.

I had an Onkyo 5.1 receiver about 10 years ago. It was a good receiver, but it just ran really hot. I eventually got rid of it and went with Yamaha and never looked back.

I love my yamaha, just need to stop buying other shit and finally get a new one with HDMI.

I'd like to get a Yamaha receiver too, but alas all of them are too wide.

Subwoofer:
Energy - 8" 240-Watt Subwoofer - ESW-C8

Speakers:
Energy - 4-1/2" 2-Way Bookshelf Speaker (Pair) - CB-5

Receiver:
Sony - 700W 7.1-Ch. 3D Pass-Through A/V Home Theater Receiver - STRDH520

I have energy speakers (not these but older ones) and I'm very happy with them. Not the greatest but they should pretty damn good. My sub is a 100w 10" sub and I disturb the neighbors w/o turning the volume higher than -4 level. That's minus 4. At zero it shakes my windows.

Originally Posted by Guyver

I'd like to get a Yamaha receiver too, but alas all of them are too wide.

Yamaha makes a nice line of (what they call) mini systems. If all you want is 2.1 sound (and you don't need to fill a big room with party-level volume) then that might be a good option.

I got one a few years ago. I use it to do what you're proposing. It's about 8 inches wide.

I got Yamaha's speakers with it, but it's a standard bare-wire connector and you could use any speakers you want.

It's got analogue stereo inputs and a sub-out option (pre-amp, so it'd need to be a powered sub). I run the audio out of the back of my computer through a Y-adapter (stereo mini to RCA) and into the Yamaha.

It may seem odd, but within two days I discovered that what I like most about this entire setup is the volume knob.

The powered Harman/Kardon PC speakers I replaced also had a volume knob; a crappy little plastic one. It worked fine, I guess, but having a nice big metal knob with real weight that turns smoothly and finely on its bearing is great. Also, when I would use headphones, I'd have to plug them into my computer where volume adjustment is moving a slider with a mouse. Lame. Now I can plug them into the Yamaha and just use the volume knob.

You've been posting links from BestBuy and Crutchfield. Neither of them seem to carry this particular line from Yamaha. Crutchfield has a page of "Shelf Systems" that look similar to the Yamaha I got.

There are a few things about the setup that I sometimes wish were different, and there are limitations (no 5.1 sound input) but it was dead-simple to set up and it improved everything right away.

Cheers,


AetheLove

Arrrg.... more choices.
Cambridge Audio S30 (Noir) Bookshelf speakers at Crutchfield Signature

Cambridge Audio S90 Compact powered subwoofer at Crutchfield Signature