Sound Cards and Av Recievers

[Whisper]

Greetings

I must admit that I am still very new to the Audio world, having recently been called into it for purchasing awarness. Im planning on spending atleast a 1000$ setting up a new multimedia stereo system, with a high end AV reciever and a custom built speaker set. This is a project Ive wanted to finish for along time and Ive finnaly reached a safe financial margin to do so.

Ive been doin an extensive study into the processing and delivery areas of audio hardware componants (PCI Audio cards, Recievers, Speakers) Things like ; audio specifications and measuring, what to know when buying, what to avoid, data transfer methods, generally a basic understanding of things involved. So far, Ive collected a fair amount of very important information. Only I still am unsure about certain little points. I've learned alot from the posts on this forum and the information shared, I hope you can help me today.

I want to connect my PC up through an AV reciever, Digital S/Pdif or coaxial if possible. What I dont know is what is the correct method to set up the hardware. Should I allow the Audio Card (Been looking at the M-Audio Revolution 7.1) to process the DD and DTS or use uncompressed processing and let the AV reciever decode and distribute? Ive read that multiple resampling decreases audio quality and prolly would decrease SNR levels.

Thanks in advance for help on this problem.

[The_Urge]

Let your av reciever do the decoding. And use optical cables if you can.
What recievers are you looking at? Speakers?

[EricB]

yes the receiver will always have better decoding

[Whisper]

Right on...I didnt want to invest alot of money into a fancy sound card, ecspecially if its only function will be to send out uncompressed DTS signals through optical out. Although I wonder still if its possible for recievers to recreate the API's that a sound card features for gaming and positional sound. ( EAX, A3D, Directsound3D) If not, would this require I bypass a reciever and connect directly to the Audio Card??

The_Urge - I havnt really focused on what exact models there are, although any suggestions would be appriciated. I know with the AV reciever, I want optical I/O, THX, DDProII, 7.1 surround sound, S-Video, Good Wattage tolerance and strong Preamps. Do you have any suggestions that I might look into? My budget isnt a problem, I want quality.

The speakers I want to build seperately. Ive been doing alittle Driver browsing, Im still not entirely sure how they are set up. There are some things I dont understand - If each driver requires or has a certain watt level does that mean if you had 3 drivers, they would have to add up to be less then the recievers watt tolerance?? and do they work in series or paralel ??

[Whisper]

I just spent a good 3 hours reading reviews, specs, comparing pricing and general knowledge into buy a Quality Mid-Range Av Receiver. This is what I will be choosing from.

Yamaha RX-V15000 7.1 THX - 500$ - 800$

Yamaha HTR-5790 7.1 THX - 500$ - 700$

Pioneer Elite VSX-52TX - 500$ - 800$

NAD-T762 AVR - 700$ - 1000$

Im not quite sure though. All recievers offer a good variety of options and versatility. The NAD a bit more then the others because of the 2 Zone A/V capabilities. Lots of power and fully capable of delivering Quality sound. The V1500 offers more WPC but the Pioneer Elite has alot of I / O options. All have Video conversion technology, THX and Surround Sound Modes (DD, Pro Logic II, DTS - ES) Plus there all relitively Fair in Price...

Your thoughts??

[The_Urge]

I love Pioneer, and their elite stuff is incredible. I would ge this one.

NAD is also great so if you need the two zone you will have to go there.

Yamaha stuff I'm not to fond of, although they have good DSP tech.

All of your chioces are excellent and you can't lose.

What speakers are you looking at?

[Whisper]

I see..well, I was attracted to Yamaha's power capabilities at first having 120WPC , but Im reading that somtimes those spec's arnt accurate. I dont want my Amps sending distortion if I pump up the volume, which could ruin ANY speakers I choose to buy. Do you know if Pioneer has quality amps and low distortion throughout the dynamic sound range???

Im reading up on Speakers now, nothing final, mainly because Im not going to be buying them form the internet. I want to audition them first at an electronics store to determine the sound Quality.

Do you have any suggestions in the 100$ - 500$ Range? Im planning now on buying the main speakers and then eventually buying rear , center and sub.

[EricB]

Originally posted by Whisper
I see..well, I was attracted to Yamaha's power capabilities at first having 120WPC , but Im reading that somtimes those spec's arnt accurate. I dont want my Amps sending distortion if I pump up the volume, which could ruin ANY speakers I choose to buy. Do you know if Pioneer has quality amps and low distortion throughout the dynamic sound range???

Im reading up on Speakers now, nothing final, mainly because Im not going to be buying them form the internet. I want to audition them first at an electronics store to determine the sound Quality.

Do you have any suggestions in the 100$ - 500$ Range? Im planning now on buying the main speakers and then eventually buying rear , center and sub.

Wooowwww...

I'm too drunk to respond now. I'll get with you

pioneer better than yamaha. Wooowwww.......

[Whisper]

Ah geez...that last message is confusing. Are you saying that Pioneer is better? or implying the comparison is ludicrious?


Ive read about 10 different speaker cautious buying guides now, all of which were well detailed. So Im walking into this with a solid basis anywayz. I still want to build my own though, it just seems very intimidating. Mainly in the crossover areas. I know I could buy a preassembled crossover circut, but is it important I get this to match my Recievers Power output? In addition to this question, Im wondering about wether I should focus on a satalite styled system, which rely's on a seperate active subwoofer or create a full range of sound through 2 way driver designs? Would it be sensible to have bookshelf speakers for the 2 rear channels? (5.1) I know a major emphasis should be directed to the main and center speakers because they are the most frequently used. Also, any suggestions for quality drivers?

[EricB]

Originally posted by Whisper
or implying the comparison is ludicrious?

http://www.tech-forums.net/showthrea...981#post279981

here the short version

yamaha had spent milllion on research and development. they always come out with the new technology first. people then borrow their ideas.

they came out with the dsp1000 ($1000) and the dsp- a1000 receiver ($1500. I had this piece) in 1990-91. the two greatest pieces in the devopment of dsp. too much to explain here, I'll let it go here or I will be typing for the next 5 or 6 hours

yamaha make the best receivers that humans can afford. they also have the best protection circuitry. I had a $3200 onkyo receiver 5 years ago that blew up because I switch the rca jack around with it on. it had protection circuitry too. the kind that shut it off when the fire starts. I like yamaha better. it automatically shut down when anything wrong is detected. it won't come back on until the problem is fixed.

a yamaha receiver that is rated at 85 watts will always do 130 wpc in the real world. pay attention to the dynamic rating. that is really their true RMS rating. they seriously underrated their recievers. they also will handle low impedance loads without current limiting. all of the other receiver with the exception of harmon kardon use current limiting which limit and affects the sounds. so you have better flexabilty with speakers even car speaker which has 4ohms or lower impedance

there a reason yamaha 85 wpc receiver weighs 40-50lbs while pioneer's 500watt receiver weigh 10lbs