harrym13
Novice Member
Hello all,
I'm new to these forums and I'm after some advice. For a short version, i'm looking for either a 2CH Amp or an AV Receiver to pair with Tannoy Revolution XT8F speakers. For a longer version, read below...
A little introduction: I recently picked up a pair of Tannoy Revolution XT8F speakers from my local Richer Sounds; the ex-demo price was too tempting! This moved my much loved Sony SS-K70ED floorstanders from the living room into the bedroom (if you haven't heard of them, look them up! Rare in the UK and have served me well considering I got them for an absolute steal a few years ago).
I have been running old Sony STR-DB930 receivers in both rooms, which have always performed flawlessly for my needs (considering I picked them both up for less than £40 each!). Buckets of power and I wasn't too fussed with them being dated in terms of connectors/Dolby options etc. I have run both driven from PCs/Laptops using digital optical SPDIF.
However, I think the new Tannoys may have been just a little bit too much load for the 15+ year old electronics in one of the Sony receivers, and with a faint pop/whiff of burning electronics, it died. (Or it was just chance and was on the way out anyway, also very possible!)
So - I am looking for a nice replacement to drive the Tannoys. These speakers are fantastic so I feel they deserve some proper amplification! My requirements are as follows:
Budget = £300-600, probably 2nd hand unless there is an absolute steal on for something new.
I primarily listen to 2CH stereo, though I do have some rears set up in the living room to use as (currently 4 channel) HT. I primarily play music files (WAVs, FLAC)/music streaming from a PC through a SPDIF into the old Sony Receiver. I would ideally like to keep using this connection option, which I feel does close out using some integrated stereo amps that only have RCA inputs (unless I also pickup a DAC within the budget)
I have read that Arcam and Marantz kit would pair nicely with these speakers, and also stuff from Rega (Elex-R gets pretty rave reviews!).
In particular I've been looking as classifieds for Arcam AVRs, but am slightly wary after reading that a lot of them seem to have reliability issues. The newer ones tend to be a bit out of my price range too. Does anyone have any good suggestions for options to look out for on here and on eBay etc?
I'm also wondering if I should go down the route of an integrated 2CH amp and/or DAC for now, with the potential to couple it with an AV receiver at a later date to get the HT functionality, or just drop a bit more cash on a good AV receiver now. I definitely listen to more music than films/TV but I'd love good capability for both.
Any advice or suggestions would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance.
I'm new to these forums and I'm after some advice. For a short version, i'm looking for either a 2CH Amp or an AV Receiver to pair with Tannoy Revolution XT8F speakers. For a longer version, read below...
A little introduction: I recently picked up a pair of Tannoy Revolution XT8F speakers from my local Richer Sounds; the ex-demo price was too tempting! This moved my much loved Sony SS-K70ED floorstanders from the living room into the bedroom (if you haven't heard of them, look them up! Rare in the UK and have served me well considering I got them for an absolute steal a few years ago).
I have been running old Sony STR-DB930 receivers in both rooms, which have always performed flawlessly for my needs (considering I picked them both up for less than £40 each!). Buckets of power and I wasn't too fussed with them being dated in terms of connectors/Dolby options etc. I have run both driven from PCs/Laptops using digital optical SPDIF.
However, I think the new Tannoys may have been just a little bit too much load for the 15+ year old electronics in one of the Sony receivers, and with a faint pop/whiff of burning electronics, it died. (Or it was just chance and was on the way out anyway, also very possible!)
So - I am looking for a nice replacement to drive the Tannoys. These speakers are fantastic so I feel they deserve some proper amplification! My requirements are as follows:
Budget = £300-600, probably 2nd hand unless there is an absolute steal on for something new.
I primarily listen to 2CH stereo, though I do have some rears set up in the living room to use as (currently 4 channel) HT. I primarily play music files (WAVs, FLAC)/music streaming from a PC through a SPDIF into the old Sony Receiver. I would ideally like to keep using this connection option, which I feel does close out using some integrated stereo amps that only have RCA inputs (unless I also pickup a DAC within the budget)
I have read that Arcam and Marantz kit would pair nicely with these speakers, and also stuff from Rega (Elex-R gets pretty rave reviews!).
In particular I've been looking as classifieds for Arcam AVRs, but am slightly wary after reading that a lot of them seem to have reliability issues. The newer ones tend to be a bit out of my price range too. Does anyone have any good suggestions for options to look out for on here and on eBay etc?
I'm also wondering if I should go down the route of an integrated 2CH amp and/or DAC for now, with the potential to couple it with an AV receiver at a later date to get the HT functionality, or just drop a bit more cash on a good AV receiver now. I definitely listen to more music than films/TV but I'd love good capability for both.
Any advice or suggestions would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance.