Ideas for first receiver

[JimBob1971]

Hi,

I was considering buying the Pioneer LX01 system as it is going cheap right now. However, I also decided to look at seperates.

Can anyone suggest a shortlist of amps up to approx ~£600. Right now I'm considering:-

Pioneer VSX-1018AH-K
Pioneer LX-51
Yamaha 863

My main concern is audio quality (dts, true HD, MA). Ideally it would have excellent video quality too (upscaling and passthrough). I don't have a set of 5.1 speakers, though might go for the likes of the Kef 3005se series.

Thanks!

 

[BigAardvaark]

The 1018 doesn't upscale, only upconverts. The LX51 does though.

 

[JimBob1971]

Anyone have any suggestions, including pros and cons? Obviously I'd love to be able to afford an LX81 or yamaha 3900, but it isn't going to happen.

Ideally I'd like an amp that could suit something like the 3005se speaker package, but could be used with better speakers in the future. Haven't seen any comparisons between the Lx51 and 863. Anyone able to oblige?

 

[JimBob1971]

No-one?

I've done a bunch of reading and found a slew of good amps below £500 - Sony 2400es, Yamaha863 etc.

However, the Onkyo 906 (?) is available for about £800. Over my budget, but I could stretch. Suggestions? (Other than go and listen, which I'll do! )

 

[Longy00000]

Jimbob i cannot comment on the latest amps (mine is nearly 2 years old).
The KEF speakers you mention are very very good for their size. I have heard bigger and more expensive speakers not perform as well as the Kef eggs can. A good investment.

Remember to check the amps you look at can also pass through 1080/24 .
A number can decode the DTS HDMA now etc but some still lose the 24fps functionality when its then output to the monitor via HDMI ( I assume you are looking at bluray). This means you can inadvertently introduce some motion judder.

Good luck.