AV receivers that give top 2ch stereo

[wodger63]

So there is lots of information but I need some opinions.

Looking at AV receivers, short list is.

NAD  T 758 V3

Anthem MRX520

Cambridge Audio CXR120

With either a pair of Krix Harmonix or B&W 683 S2's

Opinions on the best combination with music being the priority.

Or alternately a combination I have not considered.

 

[Snoopy8]

43 minutes ago, wodger63 said:

Looking at AV receivers, short list is.

NAD  T 758 V3

Anthem MRX520

Cambridge Audio CXR120

With either a pair of Krix Harmonix or B&W 683 S2's

Have heard the MRX-1120 (big brother of 520 with toroidal power supply) with Krix Harmonix, 1120 with my active speakers and T758V3 with my active speakers.  AVRs cannot compete with very good dedicated 2 channel systems for music. However,  I could live with either for music if that was all I had.

 

Prefer T758V3 to the MRX-520 because it has more power, and Dirac Live is better for music than Anthem Room Correction.  Not sure whether you have considered multi channel music, but the extra power in the NAD puts it ahead of Anthem. And should you get more into movies in the future, the T758V3 has far more capability e.g. 7 amp channels, Atmos etc.

 

Regarding the speakers, try finding a retailer which has both and audition them. Speakers are often a personal choice and you may prefer one to the other.

[Bunno77]

So there is lots of information but I need some opinions.
Looking at AV receivers, short list is.
NAD  T 758 V3
Anthem MRX520
Cambridge Audio CXR120
With either a pair of Krix Harmonix or B&W 683 S2's
Opinions on the best combination with music being the priority.
Or alternately a combination I have not considered.
 

Rotel, Cambridge and Primare do well for 2 channel but like above a dedicated is better for the same price. Ht bypass is great

[powerav]

A 2 channel audio guy reviews an AVR.

 

[Hi-Fi Whipped]

I'm a purist kind of guy, my Cambridge CXR200 rocks for 2ch, no eq, no tone controls just raw power and plenty of it. Gave ht bypass the flick long ago, PITA IMHO and have never been happier with my stereo sound than right now.

[Snoopy8]

2 hours ago, halfordd0 said:

A 2 channel audio guy reviews an AVR.

 

Excellent find.  Goes through the Dirac Live setup in detail.  @wodger63 , look at about the 17 min mark of the video where Hans briefly covers the T758V3 for stereo use.  

[wodger63]

1 minute ago, Snoopy8 said:

Excellent find.  Goes through the Dirac Live setup in detail.  @wodger63 , look at about the 17 min mark of the video where Hans briefly covers the T758V3 for stereo use.  

Yeah mate, I watched it the whole way through, I thing the NAD will scratch my itch.

Just tonight I bought one of these https://klappav.com.au/collections/cambridge-audio/products/cxuhd-4k-uhd-universal-blu-ray-player

to hopefully improve my CD playback quality as opposed to mt Sony Blue Ray.

[Snoopy8]

2 minutes ago, wodger63 said:

Yeah mate, I watched it the whole way through, I thing the NAD will scratch my itch.

Since you bought something from Klapp already,  ask them what they will do for the T758V3.  You should be able get it under $2K!

4 minutes ago, wodger63 said:

Just tonight I bought one of these https://klappav.com.au/collections/cambridge-audio/products/cxuhd-4k-uhd-universal-blu-ray-player

to hopefully improve my CD playback quality as opposed to mt Sony Blue Ray.

With HDMI, it is more the DAC on the AVR which determines the playback quality. 

[Peta]

From personal experience Classe SSP sounds very good and up there with >$5k stereo preamps. There are always compromises but you get somewhat approximately what you pay for at that end of the market

 

[Raffinator]

So I did go the HT bypass route with a 2ch preamp. Using monoblocks for L / R. Family now trained [emoji846]


But I am after recommendations for a 3 or 5 ch power amp that will be good for the long haul eg next few AVR or AV pre, speaker changes etc. Any opinions?

[betty boop]

59 minutes ago, Raffinator said:

So I did go the HT bypass route with a 2ch preamp. Using monoblocks for L / R. Family now trained


But I am after recommendations for a 3 or 5 ch power amp that will be good for the long haul eg next few AVR or AV pre, speaker changes etc. Any opinions?

my elektra theatre have been good for long haul. they have seen off other gear come and go.... tend to pop up relatively affordably 2nd hand, but also great buying new   these can be had in either 3 or 5 ch. its your choice and able to be upgraded any time by the maker to take more channels  upto 7 if ever have the need 

[OCD]

1 hour ago, Raffinator said:

So I did go the HT bypass route with a 2ch preamp. 

Oh the suspence! What did you get?

 

+1 for the Elektra.....I have a 7 channel I bought off here.

[Raffinator]

Oh the suspense! What did you get?
 
+1 for the Elektra.....I have a 7 channel I bought off here.

Some here might know I went with a Musical Fidelity M8 pre that I bought from SNA. Mono’s are Vincent Sp-T700.

Thanks for Elektra advice.

[betty boop]

1 hour ago, Raffinator said:

Some here might know I went with a Musical Fidelity M8 pre that I bought from SNA. Mono’s are Vincent Sp-T700.

Thanks for Elektra advice.

oh awesome they are a beautiful pre.

 

elektra and musical fidelity play nice  

[Raffinator]

oh awesome they are a beautiful pre.
 
elektra and musical fidelity play nice [emoji4] 

Thanks - good to know.

It seems to me the AV Pre technology in AVRs keeps chasing the next big thing, like TV panels. The only exception being those that have planned board replacements that allow DAC and HDMI updates.

It would be good to get a component that is made to last like the amp stage.

[betty boop]

7 minutes ago, Raffinator said:

 

Thanks - good to know.

It seems to me the AV Pre technology in AVRs keeps chasing the next big thing, like TV panels. The only exception being those that have planned board replacements that allow DAC and HDMI updates.

It would be good to get a component that is made to last like the amp stage.

 

it is possible, to some extent.  my last av pre I had for 8 years but was kept upto date with upgrades from its maker. it was a flagship processor though and though cost a lot it saved me updating every couple of years that tends to happen wiht processors.

 

my current processor in the marantz i have, I got 3.5 years ago and it too has been kept upto date wiht both software and hardware 
(paid) updates. does absolutely everything I need. I cant see it needing replacement as does do all current formats are capable off. 

 

but who knows.... cant hold back progress ... be absolute no doubt the power amps will still eventually outlast what ever av processor end up getting  ... 

[jdh500]

15 hours ago, al said:

no doubt the power amps will still eventually outlast what ever av processor end up getting  ... 

I would have to agree with you there, the power amp will go through about 3 x AV processor upgrades, only upgraded my Elektra Theatron because I wanted balanced out otherwise would of kept it. I naturally purchased another Elektra Theatre HT2 !!!

 

JDH

 

Edited October 6, 2018 by jdh500

[powerav]

Who says avr’s are no good for stereo, this one is awesome

 

[Janjuggler]

On 09/03/2019 at 3:37 PM, powerav said:

Who says avr’s are no good for stereo, this one is awesome

 

Hi @powerav

 

A lot of the early AVRs from the mid 90s were very good at stereo, they had to be as all of the newer multi channel were expected to produce reasonable stereo as many people did not want to have 2 systems.

 

JJ

[powerav]

13 minutes ago, Janjuc said:

Hi @powerav

 

A lot of the early AVRs from the mid 90s were very good at stereo, they had to be as all of the newer multi channel were expected to produce reasonable stereo as many people did not want to have 2 systems.

 

JJ

Exactly and if you look at the specs the surround channels were only 10 or 15 watts compared to over 100 for fronts.

[genkifd]

i love my SP33 to Elektra setup. listen to more music on this system than movies now days.

Edited April 6, 2019 by genkifd