25K Budget - Please help - Sony/Onkyo or Custom

Hi there,

I had gone the creative inspire way myself for my computer and frankly its good enough for gaming only and that too only if you aren't a gamer in a big way. Otherwise it makes absolutely no sense to invest in creative. Their megaworks set is really good but again only for gaming. I found their feature set and design moulded for computer users and not ht.

If you want to use your HT exclusively for movies and have very little time for music then invest in a better package than an htib like sony, onkyo or the likes. I use my ht for movies very rarely, maybe once in a week on the weekends so i decided to go the htib way and save some money which could be utlised for a dedicated stereo amp and speakers for music listening. I listen to music almost 95% of the time and hence this was the way for me to go.

Decide whether you are really into movies in a big way and then take the plunge. You'll get a lot of responses from the members here whichever way you decide to go.

Yeah.. thats are really good point. This creates a confusion whether HT are useful only for watching movies alone.

I listen to music/fm 80% and 20% is with my dvd titles that I have with me. But I have heard that Dolby ProLogic II is capable of making the music (stereo) sound much better in the HT. Is that true ? did anyone tried it ? Do we get all the 5 channels when we play some mp3 no. ?

How about Marantz AV receiver. Is it better than Onkyo ?

Yes to an extent. I have a very basic Yamaha receiver. I have read that it tries to direct some of the ambient sounds to the surround speakers and 80% of the voice to the centre channel when you watch movies on cable that come in stereo mode. Frankly, i don't care much. You also have a 5channel stereo mode which basically directs the sound to 5 channels instead of the usual 2. I guess it all depends upon how you like to hear your music. Personally i like the stereo mode since I may be more used to it. One of my friend swears by music through all 5 channels. So to each his own. Demo and decide for yourself.

If you are willing to increase your budget overtime, you could start with a receiver + a pair of speakers instead of the whole 5.1 setup. IMHO 30k should be the starting budget (~18k for the receiver + 12k for a pair of bookshelves). So your pocket will not be hit in one go and u can use the same bookshelf pair as rear surrounds later and replace them with floorstanders for the front.

Though u are mostly into music listening so u might wanna go for a stereo setup rather than HT. U could use the aux input of the stereo amp for watching movies as well (I have done it with my old combo system with satisfactory results).

About the Pro Logic II point, as far as I know, these DSP modes work well only when the input signal is encoded using the same. An avr can direct stereo input to 5.1 channels but it will not be as good. So you may end up using your HT setup in stereo mode most of the time.

Hey verynewone, Do you know the contacts for that IMHO stuff that you were talking about. How is that brand. Are you really satisfied with that. I would be happy if you could shoot the contacts.

I checked out the Sony new AZ series. Seems to be good with their S-Master Digital amp built in and the stuff comes to 30K

Check this out. I went to SonyWorld but this one was not on the demo.

http://www.sonyindia...odelNumber=DHC-AZ7DM

Did anyone audition it .. Looks terrific.

By the way is there any good Hi-fi showroom in Pune ?

I am not sure about the availability in Pune, but I think all brands should be readily available in Mumbai. For 18k u should easily get receivers of Yamaha (RX-V357/457), Sonodyne (AV 300R), Sony(STR DE497/597) in India, and even Onkyo and other brands if you can get it from abroad.

I have compiled a list of speakers available from well known brands (Indian and Foreign) within a price range of 13k, if you want I can pm that to you. You should be able to get most of these in Mumbai.

From your posts, it seems like u don't have a dvd player. So u will need that as well.

I have not heard the AZ series so I am not sure how they sound.

Hi ipodone,
If you have to spend on a HTIB then look at Sonodyne Cinique package....contains 5 2-way bookshelves (small ones but wooden cabinet) and a 100 watt front firing sub and their AVR-300 reciever. Its a awesome package for the price.
If you are planning to go the Stereo way (with seperate stereo amp) then its different else you got this wonderful package within your budget. Its around 35k.

true abhi,
the cinque is an awesome package-
its 32k in delhi, guess with some hagglinf can manage it for 30-
i think you should atleast give it a thought and more-
r
anirvan

AVR-300 comes within the package or the package contains 5 speakers & 1 sub woofer at 32k? I thought AVR-300 does not come with that package, but you can add-on.

no...th avr comes with the package

abhi boss,
did u see the review of the new sonodyne system in the av max this time???
the one we weare discussing about- avant
r
anirvan

abhi.pani schrieb:

no...th avr comes with the package ;)

Then it is really a steal...

No Anirvan,
I havent seen it yet. I was just looking at Sonodyne's website, they have it there. It looks more like an HT material than a Stereo, I may be wrong but it says that it has a Aluminum body with 2 5.5" woofers and midrange and tweeter. I have to see how it sounds.
Are you sure it was for Stereo also ??

Hey guys really thanks a ton ! You guys are awesome. I need to do a contemporary research now .. looks like there are hell lot of option. My total budget is around 35K that should include everything.

I have Samsung dvd player slimline.. but it doesnt have a 5.1 output. So Im thinking to trash it and go for a new one too.

BTW verynewone .. you could send me that list. I should be really helpful to me.

Is sonodyne an Indian brand ? I checked their site now.. looks good.. But how good is it when you compare with Onkyo HTS570 .. in terms of sound and quality.

Man, they beat the Onkyo Left and Right upside down...
Go check it out.
Yes its an Indian Brand.

Sure.. let me get the sonodyne auditioned Abhi.. How is the same in the Music mode (stereo) ?

They are good with the sub on. Anyway you have to keep the sub on as it is an HT sub-sat package.

Abhi,

Just curious to know. Which one do you have at home. Do you have two separate systems for stereo and HT.

I would like to know whats the best in the market now and the products used by the experts.

BTW, how about the lifetime quality of sonodyne stuffs.

Sometimes I feel like I should spend 50K to get the best in the market.

I went for couple of auditions, but these buggers set all these DSP's and customize is soo much that its really difficult to nail down. Also many dont have a proper HT room.

u don't need a 5.1 output in the DVD player if u use an a/v receiver. All you need is an optical/digital coaxial out (most of the players today have atleast one) to send audio signals in bitstream, see if that is present.

I will send you the list today.

Yeah verynewone, but mine is a very old model and doesnt have progressive scan in it. So thinking of disposing and getting new one.

I have got 60 dvds titles (all singles .. all original) from UK and man you should see the titles all mind blowing (Only Hollywood). I was playing Matrix original Dual layer in my P-4 comp with creative inspire speakers... It was out of the world feeling. Really want to check how it would sound in a professional HT system.

BTW, which one do you use ? And thanks so much in advance for that list.

I have just got the contact of the Hifi Store in Pune. Really dont know how reliable they are.. Will check for sure this week.

F-15/16 kalpataru Arcade, 9 MG Road, Pune 411001, India
Telephone: 56235959, 9822632320
E-mail : thehifistore@yahoo.com

while i was doing ym research for a good/budget dvd
player- found the philips 642k - has progressive scan , 5.1 output and a digital out-can play most formats, and even scratched disks-
and it cost me just rs4200, 6 months back
am sure this would be cheaper now- do check it out
r
anirvan

Hey Ipodpune,
I dont have a dedicated system yet. I just have a 10 years old Sonodyne system connected to my PC. Dont worry about Sonodyne's build quality. I still have a 25 year old Sonodyne amp in good working condition.

Hey guys.

Im deciding now finally. How about the Azur 540R 6.1 Receiver. I liked the reviews and stuffs. But is it better than the Sonodyne/HK/Marantz.

Also what would be the matching speakers for the same (5.1). I had made a point that I shouldnt constraint on the budget. Upto 50K is fine guys.

Any opinions ?

ipodpune, 60 DVD titles is a pretty big collection, u can start renting them out

BTW, since you are planning on buying a player with progressive scan, I assume your TV has component video in.

I have a Yamaha RX-V450 receiver, will be pairing it up with Lithos Noa 1 sub + sat combo. I have a Panasonic DVD player, which has progressive scan for NTSC Discs but my TV has only composite input

How much does the Azur 540R cost? Have you auditioned it?

Nope not yet man. I was kinda waiting for your speaker list. Im sure that it should be in the range of 20K.

Ok. What about the speaker combination for Azur 540R (6.1). Recommend me something.

I had seen the reviews for Mordaunt Short GENIE SYSTEM 5.1. Would it suit the Azur ? or is there something that I should looks a separate components..

Im all excited now...

Or even 30K .. Im all ready to invest on the best !

ipodpune schrieb:

Or even 30K .. Im all ready to invest on the best !

Best??? One can only try to buy the best at a given budget (that too according to his/her perception). I hope by 'best' you mean best at 30k budget according to your perception...

And do start listening things. Do not depend on reviews only.

ipodpune,
First of all I doubt if you get the Azur reciever here in India (I havent seen one atleast).
Secondly you cant say that its the best in the budget unless you hear all of them in that budget.
Thirdly spending 30k on reciever is not a very good option considering that your total budget is around 50k.

Ideally its advisable to build your system around your speakers (or choice of speakers). Or atleast you need to decide both of them side by side.
For all the above excercise the most important thing you need to do is go ahead and listen to systems in the showrooms. If possible all of them (that fits your budget).
I bet your views will change from time to time then you can decide better on your exact requirements.

Yeah Abhi ! Thats right. But googled and got this address in Pune and Bombay. Im going to check everything this weeknd. I have got two stores in Pune as of now that I know.

Its so dicey to choose the systems. I really wonder how the experts review the systems. Look at the plight of the ppl who design the drivers with all these into consideration. I need to be a pro to make a good choice.

1. Hi-fi Store
2. Electro Gallery



Electro Gallery
Shop no1/2, Khopkar Heights

Opp YMCA Club, Quarter Gate

Pune-11

Maharashtra


Telephone: 020-26131455, 26113840

And Abhi.. you seem to be a real pro. Kudos to you and helping me out. Really appreciate it !!!

Yeah..Abhi is really a helpful guy...but you know what a few months back Abhi was not a pro but he listened many stuffs...and now he can advise people. So go out and listen. All the best.

Hey I am just a novice like you....have been learning about audio for the last one year or so thats all.
There are big guns on this forum who have wealth of knowledge and experience.

Please dont use that word..."pro". It takes years of involvement and experience with best of the audios to finally be a "pro". I am not a pinch of it.

ipodpune,
As diskspinner and Abhi said, best is only within a budget and is still subjective. So you should start by defining an overall budget and then divide it into budgets for different pieces of the system (receiver, front speakers, centre channel, sub, surrounds etc). I think someone had recommended to keep the budget for speakers atleast 1.5 times that for the receiver/amp, u can start there.

And do start auditioning instead of going purely by reviews because a reviewer's taste may not match yours.

Im going to check everything this weeknd

Good luck with that... I have the receiver for over a month and I am still checking

BTW, I have sent u the list of speakers...

Abhi, can we call you a novice pro

You are teasing me...

do we see abhi blushing here????
good one ashutosh