AV receiver help

[nolukjustskil]

so i dont know anything about the world of audio except really good things are extremely expensive lol. i just got Klipsch Reference Theater Pack 5.1 Channel Surround Sound System from newegg for $269. now i need to find a receiver to pair with it. ive done a little looking around the site searching Klipsch Reference Theater Pack, and from what i see, the sub is complete crap.
so would it be worth it to get a 5.2 receiver and add a sub in the future, get a 5.1 and upgrade the sub at a later date, or just be happy with what i get because its going to be better than what i currently have? if its the first option, what is a good, yet cheap 5.2 receiver?

in case someone doesnt know tech info on the speakers, they are 8omh, 50 watt (200 peak) satellite. 75 watt (300 peak) center. 50 watt (150 peak) 8" sub. https://d2um2qdswy1tb0.cloudfront.net/product-specsheets/Ref-Theater-Pack-5.1_Spec-Sheet.pdf (spec list)

i dont want to spend to much on a receiver, i just want an upgrade to what i currently have, which is crap. so like a $200ish that will be good for this speaker set is what im looking for. again, it doesnt have to be anything amazing, just give clean, correct power to the speakers.

thanks a bunch for the info. if someone doesnt have a recommendation, could you point me in the right direction on what i should look for when shopping for a new receiver? is total watts important, watt per channel? i just dont know anything about audio equipment and dont even know where to start. ive asked at a audiophile forum, and i feel like they are pushing me into equipment that is out of my budget. the way i explained to the person was in CPU info because i know computers. example, im upgrading from a I3 from 4 years ago, whats the best i can get for the cheapest. my suggestion would be a ryzen 3600, 5600 if you can afford the extra. but they are pushing me into a ryzen 5800x and i just dont need that kind of power. so yeah, i know 200$ish isnt alot for a receiver, but i feel like spending more on just the receiver than the speakers is a waste of money, it would be like getting a ryzen 3600 with a x570 mobo, there just isnt any point to spend that much extra for a little better quality. and yes i know there is a difference between a CPU and a AV receiver.

[Stagea]

A higher end receiver will get you audio with less distortion and will give you access to better audio processing. That being said, if you're sticking with this speaker set then any entry level receiver would likely be okay. You'd be running a high crossover point with those satellites anyway that there won't be any heavy lifting done by the amp section of the receiver. 

 

Check out entry level receivers like these to see if the feature set matches what you have in mind:

Amazon.com: YAMAHA RX-V385 5.1-Channel 4K Ultra HD AV Receiver with Bluetooth : Electronics

Amazon.com: Sony STRDH590 5.2 Channel Surround Sound Home Theater Receiver: 4K HDR AV Receiver with Bluetooth,Black : Electronics

 

 

There might be deals on Black Friday / Cyber Monday.

[nolukjustskil]

36 minutes ago, Stagea said:

A higher end receiver will get you audio with less distortion and will give you access to better audio processing. That being said, if you're sticking with this speaker set then any entry level receiver would likely be okay. You'd be running a high crossover point with those satellites anyway that there won't be any heavy lifting done by the amp section of the receiver. 

 

Check out entry level receivers like these to see if the feature set matches what you have in mind:

Amazon.com: YAMAHA RX-V385 5.1-Channel 4K Ultra HD AV Receiver with Bluetooth : Electronics

Amazon.com: Sony STRDH590 5.2 Channel Surround Sound Home Theater Receiver: 4K HDR AV Receiver with Bluetooth,Black : Electronics

 

 

There might be deals on Black Friday / Cyber Monday.

that is the same thing the other forum suggested. do you have any cheaper suggestions. there is some things that i just wont use, dont need 4k its hooked up to a projector and video is running straight to the projector, sound is going through a digital optical audio cable, wont need bluetooth or blu-ray/dvd player. again, i feel like im being upsold to the next tier (which i know is much better) but kinda out of my price range. any suggestions on a receiver around half that price?

this is what i am upgrading from, so you could basically get some monkeys with tambourines and make better sound than this thing lol https://www.lg.com/us/home-audio/lg-BH5140S-home-theater-system

[Colty]

Find a used AVR on Craigslist/Facebook for a couple hundred bucks. If you can get something older without all of the features, you can get something quality on the cheap. 

However, you could also just get a DAC to run these if you don't need a proper AVR setup. If you're not needing to switch inputs, a cheap optical to RCA might be a great option. You may need to pair this with RCA to speaker terminals, but it should still all be under $50 to get it all up and running. 

https://www.amazon.com/SOUTHSKY-Digital-Decoder-Converter-Optical/dp/B08KD9NVXY/
https://www.amazon.com/Lollipop-Speaker-Cable-Connector-Adapter/dp/B01LYV4AWL/

[BuzzingBee]

Honestly I don't think you'll be "upgrading" much if you're going for old, second hand AV receiver and your only goal is to output sound. Try with your current AV receiver first, does it give adequate volume for your need?

[Stagea]

20 hours ago, nolukjustskil said:

that is the same thing the other forum suggested. do you have any cheaper suggestions. there is some things that i just wont use, dont need 4k its hooked up to a projector and video is running straight to the projector, sound is going through a digital optical audio cable, wont need bluetooth or blu-ray/dvd player. again, i feel like im being upsold to the next tier (which i know is much better) but kinda out of my price range. any suggestions on a receiver around half that price?

this is what i am upgrading from, so you could basically get some monkeys with tambourines and make better sound than this thing lol https://www.lg.com/us/home-audio/lg-BH5140S-home-theater-system

Those are the cheapest entry-level models from the major brands if you're buying new. If you're looking for a less expensive product, then look for something used or refurbished that would fit the bill. There are a lot of pre-owned options in eBay that have what you need.

 

The cheaper new products from off-brands like Pyle do not have even the basic Dolby AC-3 and DTS decoders, let alone proper methods for time alignment.

[nolukjustskil]

1 hour ago, Stagea said:

Those are the cheapest entry-level models from the major brands if you're buying new. If you're looking for a less expensive product, then look for something used or refurbished that would fit the bill. There are a lot of pre-owned options in eBay that have what you need.

 

The cheaper new products from off-brands like Pyle do not have even the basic Dolby AC-3 and DTS decoders, let alone proper methods for time alignment.

yeah, your second paragraph i have no idea what you said lol. but its fine, someone linked a refurb YAMAHA RX-V385 for 239 that im going to get. my biggest "problem" was the idea of spending more for a receiver than for the speakers, and i know they are cheap... but they are listed for like 1200$ on their site, with a discount to 660$ (i know its all market hype BS) but yeah. im going to get the yamaha. thanks so much for your input, i really glad to get it.

[tikker]

2 hours ago, nolukjustskil said:

yeah, your second paragraph i have no idea what you said lol. but its fine, someone linked a refurb YAMAHA RX-V385 for 239 that im going to get. my biggest "problem" was the idea of spending more for a receiver than for the speakers, and i know they are cheap... but they are listed for like 1200$ on their site, with a discount to 660$ (i know its all market hype BS) but yeah. im going to get the yamaha. thanks so much for your input, i really glad to get it.

If you are going for $100-200 speakers (or somewhat above) it's pretty much unavoidable that you'll be paying more for the AVR than for the speakers. At some point you just hit baseline pricing. The good thing is that an AVR will last you a long time. If you don't care about all the fancy state of the art stuff such as the latest HDMI features (only HDCP might be a problem at some point) a decent unit should last you years to decades.

 

I have that Yamaha one for my 2.0 PC setup. It's a nice budget AVR that'll do great if you don't care about all the fancy stuff as you mentioned.

[Home Theater Dummy]

So really if all you care about is "Better sound than your TV" and you aren't going to be driving them really loud. You will be fine with a decent brand (I usually recommend (Denon, Marantz, or Yamaha)

I usually look up Accessories4less for good deals on new and manufacturer refurbished units.

YAMAHARX-V385 5.1-Ch x 70 Watts Bluetooth A/V Receiver is listed there for $239.99 with the following feature set

• 5.1-Channel powerful surround sound
• Bluetooth for wireless connectivity
• HDMI® with HDCP 2.3 (4 in/1 out)
• 4K Ultra HD support, HDR10, Dolby Vision, Hybrid Log-Gamma and BT.2020
• YPAO™ auto-calibration technology for ideal sound
  
  Although you should note that 70W per channel is ONLY rated for when you are listening to two-channel content/stereo content without upmixing.
  
  But I suggest saving up  and getting a unit that can power at least 7 channels, or even 9.
  
  A 9 channel receiver will let you have a 5.1.4 Dolby Atmos setup, and usually have better amplifiers in them overall . and most 9 channel receivers have pre-outs in them if you want to expand into external amps down the line for more power to the speakers. 
  
  *most 9 channel receivers can "process" 11 channels if you have even a stereo amp for your mains and that would let you have 7.1.4 (assuming you have enough space behind you for surround back channels)
  
  You could keep your 5.1 set up for now. then upgrade down the line to some proper bookshelf or tower speakers for your mains.
  
  Then use your current speakers as height channels for Dolby Atmos or DTS:X
  
  I ended up getting a Refurbed Marantz SR6014 9.2 channel receiver for less than $1K, because I knew I was going to power 7-9 speakers almost right  away. and it would allow me to upgrade down the line with an external amp if I wanted to add more/better speakers in the future. instead of replacing my whole unit outright...
  
  
  PRO TIP: if you get a receiver that has Audyssey XT32 Room correction. PLEASE download the $20 Audyssey app. I get better results just from their calibrations... not to mention more abilities to fine tune the filters and edit your house curve.

[Home Theater Dummy]

On 11/2/2021 at 1:54 AM, nolukjustskil said:

that is the same thing the other forum suggested. do you have any cheaper suggestions. there is some things that i just wont use, dont need 4k its hooked up to a projector and video is running straight to the projector, sound is going through a digital optical audio cable, wont need bluetooth or blu-ray/dvd player. again, i feel like im being upsold to the next tier (which i know is much better) but kinda out of my price range. any suggestions on a receiver around half that price?

this is what i am upgrading from, so you could basically get some monkeys with tambourines and make better sound than this thing lol https://www.lg.com/us/home-audio/lg-BH5140S-home-theater-system

Also PLEASE if you can run your audio via HDMI to your receiver, and then back to your projector for video. Some receivers have special outputs just for that purpose. (and even some UHD players) With an optical cable you are pretty much locked to DolbyDigital+... Forget DolbyTrueHD or DTS-MA for uncompressed audio formats. And forget ever expanding to 7 channels... in most cases

[dalekphalm]

On 11/3/2021 at 3:14 AM, nolukjustskil said:

yeah, your second paragraph i have no idea what you said lol. but its fine, someone linked a refurb YAMAHA RX-V385 for 239 that im going to get. my biggest "problem" was the idea of spending more for a receiver than for the speakers, and i know they are cheap... but they are listed for like 1200$ on their site, with a discount to 660$ (i know its all market hype BS) but yeah. im going to get the yamaha. thanks so much for your input, i really glad to get it.

I have the RX-V385 - I bought it new on Amazon for around $350 CAD.

 

I have zero regrets for the price I paid and it's quality.

 

I was using a Logitech Z-5300 Computer Speaker kit, but I was getting frustrated with the lack of digital inputs. I used a simple TOSLINK to 3.5mm adapter on it, but eventually I bought the RX-V385 and frankly the speakers (same Logitech ones as before) sound better with the new receiver.

 

I did opt to replace the sub from the Logitech system with a Klipsch R-12SW recently, which gave me a massive boost in bass.

 

So if you can get the RX-V385 for a really low price, go for it. It's definitely not the best AV receiver by any stretch, and it lacks a bunch of the high end features (no Atmos, no Preamp outputs, no multi-zone, etc), but it works well and the sound quality is definitely still going to be an upgrade.