Basic AVR and small speakers (without Sub) for under 25K.

I am not too much of an HT guy and left to my own, I would never have considered one. But we are remodelling our home and in 2008 any self respecting guy must have an HT in the bedroom. So here we go.

I initially thought of an HTiB solution and checked out the usual suspects. At the time performance was not a major criteria (apart from HDMI connectivity) and I had few expectations to start with. But even my lowered threshold was shattered by the stuff available in the market. It was terrible. All budget HTiB have very poor performance; be it video quality, acoustics or build. There is just no connect between the surround speakers and the sub. Mid bass is simply absent and whatever passes of as bass is a jumble of peaks and bumps designed to fatigue the ears. One exception was the JAMO DMR61 but at Rs.37k (for the main unit only) it is way beyond my budget.

So very reluctantly, I am having to up my budget and forgo some of the convenience that come with an HtiB solution. I am prepared to look at separate DVDp and AVR and invest in basis but decent Front/Surround speakers. I will add a monster SUB that I intend to build. It will be powered by the Oaudio BASH 500watts plate amp and employ a Lambda Acoustics 12” woofer. That is another story and we shall cover that in the diy section.

I am currently looking at the following:

AVR

I am looking for a basic 5.1 amp within a budget of Rs 15K. 70% HT use and rest for casual music sessions (mostly FM or Worldspace). These are the entry level amps I can see on internet.

- Yamaha HTR-5930
- Marantz SR 301
- Yamaha RX-V359
- Yamaha RX-V457
- Yamaha RX-V459
- Yamaha YHT-270
- Onkyo TX-SR304S

Speaker

For speakers my primary selection criteria (besides cost) is Size. I just don't have space for a Floor-stander and the speaker will need to be mounted up in the corner at a height of about 7ft and aimed at the listening position. I may consider Bookshelf for the Front speakers, but for surrounds it will need to be the smallest size possible.

- At the moment I can only find the Sonodyne Cinque Front/Rear and Centre. I am not very keen on the Genie series mainly due to the high price.

I request opinion on my choice of AVR and suitability of the Sonodyne Cinque speakers. I am personally torn between the Marantz SR301 and the Onkyo TX-SR304. The SR301 was mentioned by abhi.pani as a good AVR.
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Having said that I am not discounting the Yamaha. I was earlier looking at the HTR-5930 but per accounts the RX series seems preferred by people who know these stuffs.

Some more details:

I will probably get the Pioneer DV 400 @ Rs. 6,895.00 (Incl. VAT) or the Sony DVP-NS76H at Rs. 5,899 (Incl. VAT) with the HDMI cable thrown in. I have had good experience with Pioneer DVDp, but the Sony offer looks more attractive.

To summarise:

- Need Basic AVR for under Rs 15K. Minimum features should include individual channel trimming, selectable crossover, at least 2 analogue inputs and at least 70 WPC

- Matching Speakers (Surrounds/Main/Centre) for under Rs 10K. Should be small enough to be put up on walls and be able to reproduce down to at least 80Hz,

The Marantz SR301 + Sonodyne Cinque somewhat fit into this criteria. However, as you can see I am utterly confused at the moment so your valued suggestions are highly appreciated.

Thanks Aks