Home Theater Receiver Help

[Canadian Si]

Hey guys ! Searched but didn't find alot ! Kinda a newbie to the home theater ! Lookin for some advice on which reveiver to get ! Harman Kardan avr-2600 or the Onkyo TX-SR707 ! Only downside to Onkyo is I've read they run HOT !

[old&slow]

^Onkyo doubles as a heater...works great in my cool basement!

[ZMan2k2]

I would recommend you find somewhere that you can listen to each. They are both going to have a different sound to them. HK rates the power more realistically as well. If you read the specs on an Onkyo, they are usually rated at 2-channels. HK's are usually rated at 5 channel, so you know more of what you're getting.

[Mibz]

Originally posted by ZMan2k2
I would recommend you find somewhere that you can listen to each. They are both going to have a different sound to them. HK rates the power more realistically as well. If you read the specs on an Onkyo, they are usually rated at 2-channels. HK's are usually rated at 5 channel, so you know more of what you're getting. Unless you can find somewhere that's going to demo the same source and same speakers in a similar room as well, there's absolutely no point in doing this.

When buying a receiver just make sure it has enough connections for whatever you're using (and a few extra just in case), enough power for whatever speakers you're going to want (which most usually do), and will fit in the space you want to put it. Because you're still going to have a ton of options at this point, don't be afraid to pick one that looks good. Find the ones within recommended brands that have all that, and then narrow it all down by price. If the $300 HK does what you want, why bother with the $500 Onkyo? You're -not- going to hear a difference.

As mentioned, these things get hot. They really don't like being shoved into small spaces with no ventilation, so plan for that as well.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Whats your budget?

Onkyo's do run a bit hot sometimes, but it doesn't take away from the fact that they are some of the best bang for the buck receivers out right now. Every receiver should have a bit of breathing room around it, not just Onkyos.

[Canadian Si]

Budget is around $1000 ! Been reading more & it seems like Onkyo is the best bang for the buck !!

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by Canadian Si
Budget is around $1000 ! Been reading more & it seems like Onkyo is the best bang for the buck !!

What will you be running with it? What size is your tv/projector screen?

[Canadian Si]

I have a set of Paradigm Phantoms & a Paradigm PS-1200 ! I have a set of Paradigm Titans & Paradigm CC-150 but they aren't hooked up ! Eventually I will be getting the Paradigm Monitor 9's or 11's ! My tv is a 52" LCD.

[Mitsu3000gt]

Originally posted by Canadian Si
I have a set of Paradigm Phantoms & a Paradigm PS-1200 ! I have a set of Paradigm Titans & Paradigm CC-150 but they aren't hooked up ! Eventually I will be getting the Paradigm Monitor 9's or 11's ! My tv is a 52" LCD.

So I will assume you will eventually be using this for a 5.1 system based around some larger Paradigm speakers? (Monitor 7's or 9's). They are a fairly efficient speaker so you should be just fine for power with pretty much anything you choose in your price range. Also if you do end up looking for Monitor 11's, have a look at the Studio 20's as well, particularily if you listen to a lot of 2ch music.

The Onkyo 707 would be fine, the only other one I would recommend you take a look at is the Denon 890 (aka 2310). The Onkyo has pre-outs if you ever add a separate amp, they both have good Audyssey room correction, and the Denon has superior video processing (better scaling to 1080p, GUI overlay, etc. via the Anchor bay 2010 chip). I'm not sure what the most important things to you are, both are very feature rich. The Onkyo is probably built a little better (less plastic). Those Denon 890/2310's often sell for $500-$600 USD so if that model interests you, I'd suggest looking around for someone who will ship to Canada and you could probably save a few bucks. If price was the same and video scaling wasn't of the upmost importance, I would go with the Onkyo. The only way you might see a benefit from the better video processor in the Denon is if you watch a lot of DVD's, it will scale them to 1080p better than the Onkyo, but you would probably have to have them side by side to notice on 52".