Best AV Receiver on richersounds for under £300?

[lipsofashes]

My first post on this forum helped me choose the DVD player I want. Now it's time for the receiver...

I'm going to richersounds on Friday, though I could buy online or second-hand if necessary. Top price of £300 but I'd really prefer it to be under £250. Until recently they had a Denon AVR1706 on for £200. I still might try for one of those. Required specs?:

*I've decided on the Samsung DVDHD950 so the audio needs to be connectable to that. (I haven't chosen speakers yet)
*I want Pro Logic II as I'll be forcing a lot of stereo into 5.1. I guess I don't need IIx if I only have 5.1. I think I'll also need DTS.
*As well as the Samsung, I have a Mac Pro that I want hooked up. That's also DVI but the video from that and the DVD player don't need to go through the receiver do they? I could buy a manual switcher if necessary.
*Other than that, I don't really know anything. I just want it to sound good.

Any suggestions? Here's Richer Sounds' range. Thanks a lot!

[yaris123]

Hi,
I know its over budget but i recently bought the pioneer vsx1016 from richersounds for £384, well worth and a real steal at that price. I price matched it with digital direct.co.uk

[Dodgy_Geezer]

How about the CA Azur 540R for £200 for the first model or £260 for the V2 model? Has got lots of good reviews for both HT and stereo performance and doesn't come bundled with all the unecessary HT fluff.

Regards,

DG

[alphabet]

Originally Posted by Dodgy_Geezer

How about the CA Azur 540R for £200 for the first model or £260 for the V2 model? Has got lots of good reviews for both HT and stereo performance and doesn't come bundled with all the unecessary HT fluff.

Regards,

DG

Amen

[limegreenzx]

Richer Sounds are really good on price matching so whatever you decide on make sure you do a bit of research to get the lowest price. As you are looking for something for £300 they'll beat the price by £10.

If you're using stereo sources a lot it IS worth looking out for Prologic IIx. Prologic IIx also adds different listening modes for music,games or movies.
http://www.dolby.com/consumer/techno...logic_IIx.html

[Dankeech]

From what I've picked up on the forums, the Cambridge Audio Azurs are supposed to be excellent for the price. Many happy owners on here.

Personally, I haven't used one myself, just going by many opnions I've seen etc.

Best of luck and btw, you won't be able to buy Cambridge Audio from anywhere but Richer Sounds, so if you decide on it, don't worry about trying to find pricematch details as you'd come up against a brick wall

Best of luck.

Dan.

[ykhan16]

Originally Posted by limegreenzx

If you're using stereo sources a lot it IS worth looking out for Prologic IIx. Prologic IIx also adds different listening modes for music,games or movies.
http://www.dolby.com/consumer/techno...logic_IIx.html

I second that. Different DSP modes for stereo are nice but I always listen to music on Prologic IIx.

[alphabet]

Originally Posted by ykhan16

I second that. Different DSP modes for stereo are nice but I always listen to music on Prologic IIx.

Heathen Listen to the source the way it was intended

Just joking, its different strokes for different folks. I prefer to listen to music in stereo mode and on a good recording(and proper setup) the soundfield is so wide that it almost become surround sound

[M6TT F]

Originally Posted by alphabet

Heathen Listen to the source the way it was intended

Just joking, its different strokes for different folks. I prefer to listen to music in stereo mode and on a good recording(and proper setup) the soundfield is so wide that it almost become surround sound

agreed - I tried CD's using PLII and it just sounds weird! - 2 speakers for me

[limegreenzx]

Originally Posted by alphabet

Heathen Listen to the source the way it was intended

Just joking, its different strokes for different folks. I prefer to listen to music in stereo mode and on a good recording(and proper setup) the soundfield is so wide that it almost become surround sound

Your assuming stereo source means that the source was meant to be listened to in straight stereo. A lot of games and television shows have various Dolby Surround encoding. Having Dolby Prologic IIx as an option allows you to customise the steering better.

So listening with Dolby Prologic is the way it was intended to be listened to.

Got to agree with you that for music straight stereo is still the best.

[Speakerbox]

Agreed on some points I originally used the 540r as a music amp but totally changed the sound of my system when I returned to a dedicated stereo amp. The 540r is a great surround receiver for films and probably gaming as well (although I don't personally) - just don't expect 'proper' hifi stereo performance. And don't bother with Dolby PLII for music, the processing in the amp renders it useless. Stick to stereo.