Tell me what amp to buy!!!!!!

[thingsandstuff]

I was originally looking at buying an all in one system, but I came across a set of Mordaunt Short premiere speakers at an absolute bargain price (less than £100 brand new!!!!!! ) so decided to buy them and go for seperates.
My only problem is now I'm not sure what to buy. I have a budget of £500, and my original thoughts were to go with the Pioneer VSX1015 amp with the 585 DVD player as I can pick these 2 up for £480 for both. But I have now managed to find a Pioneer VSX AX5i for £450, but I think it is the older model before it was upgraded. My question is, is the older AX5i worth the extra (about £90) over the new 1015?
Also are there any other receivers/amps around the £350-£400 mark that are worth me checking out. My biggest problem is they have to be missus friendly and look 'nice' as well, which is one of my reasons for the pioneer as it is not cluttered with buttons on the front!!!

 

[Cable Monkey]

The AX5i is a lovely amp. However you can't afford it! Go with the 1015 and that will enable you to get a DVD player of some ability at least. Home cinema is a finacial black hole. And we don't get the option of rehab!

 

[avv092]

AX5i is definitely a better amp than 1015 and £450 is a good price. However, might be a bit of an overkill for your speakers - I would go for a more balanced DVD/AMP combo within your budget.

In addition to the Pioneer 575 or 585/1015, have a look at Denon 1920/1906.

Can you tell us who is selling AX5i for £450?

 

[thingsandstuff]

AX5i is definitely a better amp than 1015 and £450 is a good price. However, might be a bit of an overkill for your speakers - I would go for a more balanced DVD/AMP combo within your budget.

In addition to the Pioneer 575 or 585/1015, have a look at Denon 1920/1906.

Can you tell us who is selling AX5i for £450?

It is a second hand amp, but in stunning condition and looked after like a baby!!
I think I'll not bother with the AX5i then as it is probably going to be overkill, however I haven ow found the Yamaha DSP-AX757 and DV-SL100 combination for just over £500, what do you reckon? Pioneer or Yamaha??

 

[alphabet]

Have you looked at the Cambridge Audio 540R yet? It is £250 and your missus will love it for its looks and I am sure that you would love it for its sound!

 

[pragmatic]

The azure while looking nice and having a nice sound does miss alot of the more modern features and has limited connectivity. The yamaha set sounds like it could be nice, i like the new styling they did for the newer series and the titanium finish in both would look great.

The one piece of advise though, is to try and demo if you can before buying as the amp/speaker combo are petty important. I'm not sure if the pioneer and the MS would be thebest match as the MS has metalic drivers which some say gives a harsh 'bright' sound, the pioneer is also known to be on the bright side too.
The yamaha and denons are know to be more neutral and so would 'naturaly' be a better fit and the marantz's and arcams are more warm and musical which could take some of the brightness out of the speakers, but better models of these ranges are out of your price range.

For this reason it may be better to get somewhere that could demo your speakers with amps of your choosing, you may pay a little extra but you will have the piece of mind that you have made the best choice. If you can't tell the difference sound wise then you could just go for the best deal, or looks or any criteria you feel is best.

 

[alphabet]

I totally agree with doing a demo using your speakers and different amps as it does not mean if one persons likes the sound that you will too.

As far as combining the CA with MS goes, they compliment each other rather nicely. The metalic drivers on the MS may sound a bit bright when new, but settles to a neutral sound fairly quickly(I have a set of MS speakers for 4 months now).

My experience with lower Yamahas(RX-V450 and RX-V650) has shown that they have all the bells and whistles and are good for movies, but fall flat in music mode. On the bright side, lacking mid-bass.

 

[Jack the lad]

Have a look in the classifieds on this forum. Some real bargains to had had

Over kill on the amp now maybe and let you speakers grow into it (ie replace them )

 

[thingsandstuff]

Well, Thanks for all the repies. I'm going to demo the Pioneers and Yamahas on Friday. While I'm there I'll see if he has the CA as well. He doesn't stock Mordaunt-Short, so he told me to bring my front pair so I can demo them in stereo mode. Hopefully all will be clearer then!!
I'll let you know what I decide on!