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[Midnight Rider]

Due to our move, I'm looking at finally getting around to replacing my old stereo equipment (Yamaha "Natural Sound" Amp, Tuner, etc) with a Home Theatre amp.  Judi's house has four Bose "surround sound" speakers in each corner of her greatroom, plus a bass speaker and a tweeter.  I am bringing a larger set of Bose 301's to the mix which have served as my primary speakers for quite a few years.  While I am not what I'd call an "Audiophile", I am particular about sound quality, and want to do this one time, with thoughts aimed at upgrading speakers and TV in the not too distant future.  I am not unfamiliar with sound quality, as I did sound for a band many moons ago.  However, in order to fully appreciate high end stuff, you really need a room dedicated to it, and I'll never go there.

3D seems to be the big deal now, so I know I'll get one capable of that.  The choices are overwhelming, even after reading for the past few days about what is "best".  So I have basically settled on a couple of possibilities with regards to brands and/or features I want.  I am thinking I will need a 7/1 amp to run the 6 speakers I already have, plus the bass box.  3D processing comes standard on most of the better models.

I am looking at two amps:  Denon AVR-3312CI and Pioneer Elite VSX 53.  Both are about equal in output, TDH, etc.  The Denon is a 7.2 and the Pioneer is 7.1, but has Dolby THX capabilities and the Denon does not.  Prices are within a hundred bucks of each other.

I don't need/want to overkill this with a $2000 amp, but I don't want to underspend on a $300 amp either, so I'm looking at something in the $500-$800 range, which seems to give the most bang for the buck, from what I've been reading.  Cheaper would be better, all other things being equal.

Other suggestions/recommendations?  I know there are some gear heads on here with regards to this kind of equipment, so advice would be appreciated, as well as best prices, where to purchase, etc.

[ultrafxr]

Good luck Terry.  Wish I could help but I cannot hear worth a chit anyway.

[VaEagle]

I have found customer service to be outstanding from this company, Crutchfield.
They test and evaluate different equipment and can give help on just one componet or a whole system.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-hCVN0dbUNj1/

[mrmagloo]

I just did a mid-range home theater a year and a half a ago, and went with Pioneer Elite SC-27 Receiver to go with my Pro-151.  It's a frigging brute, and I like it alot.  I would highly recommend to ace the idea of going with Bose as you can do a whole lot better for the money.  I ended up going with DT BP7001's, a CLR3000, and side and rear surrounds for 7.1. I swapped out the Trinity sub for a Epik which is unbelievable, and one of the best bang for the buck bargains out there.

One thing to keep in mind is future expandability. I am in the process of mounting speakers on my deck, and realized that while I do have Zone 2 & 3 capability, those are not amplified. As such, I would have to cannibalize my rear surrounds to amplify the Zone 2 outdoor speakers or get a separable amp for that channel.  I have decided to go with the newer SC-68 that is 9.2 capable, so that I can maintain the 7.1, and use the spare amps to run the deck and perhaps another Zone 3 for the garage or something.

Imho Denon and Pioneer are really good mid-range options, but do shop around as you can save a ton of dough. I got around 40% off the speakers and around 30% off the receiver. With that kind of savings, you can upgrade a few steps up to provide extra flexibility down the road.

Good luck.

[RedDevil]

Terry,
I agree with the previous post.  Drop the Bose speakers.  I got rid of my Bose speakers when I upgraded the surround sound in my man cave about 6 years ago.  I went with a Sony ES-900 7.1 receiver and Klipsch front, center, rear, and 15" subwoofer, speakers.  You won't go wrong with either the Denon or Pioneer receivers as both are good and will give you years of service.  The weakest link to every audio system typically is the speakers.  You can have all the high-end components you can afford but if you skimp on the speakers, you system will suffer.  IMO, Klipsch makes some of the best mid-priced speakers going.  But that's just me.  As far as getting an LED big screen TV for your surround system, without a doubt, bar none, get a Samsung.  Best picture quality, period.  I've got both a 55" 2D upstairs in the den and a 55" 3D down in the man cave, both Samsungs...I will never buy another brand of TV again.  These of course, are just my opinion...just like owning and customizing a bike, it's whatever makes you happy.

[110tHunDer]

 
Not just you.  I have in-wall and in-ceiling Klipsch speakers, along with a Klipsch subwoofer in my system, all powered by an older Denon receiver.  It's badass.

[RedDevil]

Not just you.  I have in-wall and in-ceiling Klipsch speakers, along with a Klipsch subwoofer in my system, all powered by an older Denon receiver.  It's badass.

 

[LovemyCVOgirl]

I have found customer service to be outstanding from this company, Crutchfield.
They test and evaluate different equipment and can give help on just one componet or a whole system.

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-hCVN0dbUNj1/

X2. Great stuff at a great price and the customer service is outstanding. 

[1sharprdkg]

Wow! I guess I am still in a "cave", I still have Sony and Pioneer equipment that I bought in the 70's. I have no clue what all the 7.1 and stuff means. Good Luck with your upgrades.

[The Mysterious Q!]

I have an Onkyo 7.1 receiver/amp with Polk Audio and Boston Acoustic in wall/ceiling setup with a 52" LCD

[FLSTFI Dave]

I have a 2 year old Yamaha Natural sound surround, 7.1, with 3 zones.  I really like it,  I run Definitive Tech Bipolar towers in the front, and then their center channel and surrounds.  I also have zone 2 for the kitchen and zone 3 for the deck.

[Deep Blue Dives]

You can't go wrong with the either the Denon or Pioneer - as was mentioned, if you plan on zoning more than one set of speakers, the 7.2 is a nice option.  That wasn't available when I purchased my Denon.  With either of these receivers, take your time to plan out your system.  There are many options available in the sub menu's that are not always turned on by default.  I actually have several playback modes based upon the speaker sampling I did in the room.

On the Denon, I run my outside speakers on the channel B, so I don't use up the other amps needed for the true surround sound 7.1.  It has a mode that allows you to run both A&B channels at the same time.   If you want to add speakers to a bedroom also, Monster makes a nice speaker selector, which will keep the appropriate impedance to the amplifier, and let you run multi room speakers off the B channel, again without taking over the zone 2/3 amps used for the full surround sound.  It does affect the volume level as you turn on multiple rooms, but keeps the appropriate load on the RX, the most important thing.

When you can, dump the Bose.  Unless you have the old reflection speakers from the 70's, they are mass produced, mass marketed.  Klipsch, Boston Acoustics, and Polk make some real good speakers in their higher lines without breaking the bank.  I am a bit old school, and have large speakers throughout my den.  Standing floor up front (Polk LSiM series), with a large center channel (Polk LSiM Series), and 4 more dual fire speakers for my surround (Polk LSi series).  I have waterproof BA's outside, and they take a beating with rain, and sun in TX.  

 Don't skimp on the cabling - run the monster speaker wire (they sell it on a roll, twisted with a circular sheathing to make it easy for attic/wall drops), monster HDMI cables between all devices.  Enable the wi-fi, or run ethernet connections to the TV/Blue Ray so the software updates are easy.  You can also access all their other services if you don't mind working through the cumbersome menu's.

I agree again with the TV selection of Samsung - they have left everyone else in the dust.  3D is on it's way out, a huge flop, but you can get some great deals on the sets.  Samsung has a new OLED coming out this fall, that will be affordable in a couple of years if you can wait.  If not, their current LED's are great.  They also have an incredible warranty.  When I had problems with my first samsung LCD, it was deemed unrepairable.  For the cost of shipping, they upgraded me from a 52" to a 55"LED as part of their white glove customer satisfaction.  It's worth the extended warranty for the reason alone.

The Samsung blue ray player is a great deal also.  The great thing about all these components, is that if you have them run together with HDMI cables, they are essentially bus connected, and you can control different features of all devices from one remote.  I have my system set up that if I turn off any of the TV, Blueray, or Receiver, all the other devices shut down or turn on at the same time.

If I had a bank roll, I would be talking about some other equipment, but everything mentioned by the forum members are solid suggestions.  Enough to stretch the bank account a bit, but not put you into the poor house and keep you from upgrading your ride more.

[MooseAmos]

Concur with many comments posted here: Crutchfield is an awesome company to deal with; highly recommend Klipsch speakers + a Yamaha receiver & absolutely get a Samsung LED.  Wouldn't worry much about 3D--there's not much content around...

[Unbalanced]

Terry,

I had just purchased a Yamaha RXA 3010 about 5 weeks ago, it was great 9.2 with all the bells and whistles.   I had the unit professionally installed and took advantage of the multi zones by putting speakers and tv out by the pool.   The Yamaha quit working after just a week and was returned.   They didnt have another one to replace it, so i decided to go with Denon 4311.   The only reason I didn't originally consider the Denon to start was I got a deal on the original Yamaha for 1599 NIB.   I just received the Denon and I cant tell the difference in the sound quality.   There are differences in them though for sound quality correction, and for some its a big deal which is ypao vs audyssey.   They both do a meriad of things as well as multiple zoning.   I wasn't unhappy with the Yamaha, it just wasnt available to be replaced.  

I guess TV's are another one of those personal choices,  I preferred the Plasma 64 by Samsung over the LED.  To me the picture was much warmer in the colors.   Out at the pool however, I went with the LED so I didnt have quite the glare and reflections off the screen.   

Good luck,

[Midnight Rider]

Excellent advice on all counts.  I did some additional research and decided on the just released Yamaha RXV 773 WABL 7.2.  I got a really good deal on it and I think it will do all I ever want to do.  It has future proofing, with 4K capability (WTF that means), but mainly I think it will serve my purposes.  I have been using Yamaha stuff purchased back in the early 80's, and never had a problem with it.  Originally, I had Infinity speakers, but I blew out the woofer on one of them so got the Bose 301's several years ago.  They are OK.  If I were buying everything new, I would not go with Bose, but since Judi already has them installed, I'll live with them until we upgrade the TV to a larger size.  Currently, I've just got a Sony Bravia, and it's only a 32" or so, because it's all that would fit into my cabinet.  The picture quality is excellent, but you need to be closer to it to appreciate it.  I am figuring a way to mod my cabinet to accept a larger screen, as I like the cabinet and side bookshelves that go with it.  A slide stand will probably be what I do, with it living outside the parameters of the cabinet...but, I will be limted to size, so am probably going to do a 50" at the most.  Judi's house is not HUGE where the TV and such will go, and if we move again in the future, we will likely be in an even smaller home, so 50" is really all I ever see myself needing.  Speakers are a different matter, and I will definitely upgrade them when I do the TV.

All cables to hook up the HDMI, etc, will be Monster, other than the speaker wires, which are already there.  They are not wimpy, but not what I would put in if I were doing it now.

If I had an unlimited bankroll, I'd have state of the art chit, but I don't, so it's a mute point.  So somewhere in the upper middle range is what I'll shoot for ultimately.  Hopefully, the amp will do the job I'm after.