Any home audio geeks out there?

[WyrreJ]

I like the idea of digital amplification, and the technology sound extremely promising. Know of any good A/V receivers with digital amplifcation that offer HDMI out?

The JVC's D-series (presumably the D is for 'digital') appear to have switchable HDMI, including upscaling from analog sources too. However, for the price difference, I would just buy a 3x1 or 5x1 "learning" switch and use that with the Panasonic - here's one company that sells a 5x1 for $200 -
Octava. There are others too, that's just the first that came up in google.

The only technology that I see in any other receivers that is worth a damn (e.g. is not just marginally useful tech to justify releasing a new model each year) is DRC (digital room correction). Denon has licensed Audssey's MultiEqxt for their current 3xxx models and up, and Pioneer has their own MCCAC stuff which, last I checked, was not quite as sophisticated as Audssey's software.

DRC is really good stuff - it works through use of a microphone to get "a map" of the way your speakers sound in your room at the places where you sit and then it uses fancy signal processing (the better versions of DRC do more than just equalization because they take into account sound-wave cancellation and reinforcement in the time-domain) to change what comes out of the speakers so that what eventually gets to your ears is closer to the original sound. It ain't perfect, but it can make $100 speakers sound like $1000 speakers.

Early DRC equipment by companies like TacT used to cost $10K, or you had to use a PC with specialized software that is not too user friendly. But that's changing with companies like Denon and Pioneer and if I were to pay a premium for anything beyond the Panasonics, it would have to have DRC.

Another alternative is partial DRC for bass-only, most of the worst room problems are in the lower frequencies because they have longer wavelengths making interference patterns more pronounced. The cream of the crop for bass-only DRC is the Velodyne SMS-1 - here is a review of the SMS-1 I myself have a jerry-rigged home-brew bass-correction system I put together long before there was anything like the SMS-1 on the market and it really does make a huge difference in the quality of the bass. The room graphs in the review are typical of the kinds of problems have with bass in their systems and it really does make an audible difference.

BOSE! I keep coming back to that brand for the small surrounds I seek - however, not too sure about their power handling? Are there any other small speakers like BOSE (quality/rep/price) that could handle more power if needed? I'm a little spooked by the smokey death of your Yamaha however, like you said it could have been a fluke. What did you end up replacing it with? (or what do you plan to replace it with?)

Bose has one of the most well-known, and well-thought of brands on the market. But that's only because they spend tons and tons of money on marketing. I'm sure you've seen more tv and print commercials for bose than for any other speakers by at least a couple of orders of magnitude - who else besides bose even advertises speaker systems on tv? No one. All that advertising costs beacoup bucks - and then there is the cost of those dedicated mall stores - that real-estate is ex-pen-sive. All those costs come out of your wallet when you buy Bose.

Because of all that wasted money, they are universally reviled by people who have gone past the "average consumer" stage of home-audio purchasing. Just read the discussions on any serious home-audio/home-theater website and you will see that Bose is everyone's favorite whipping boy. The whole "better audio through better marketing" approach really tends to piss people off when they realize how badly they've been had.

In less emotional terms - Bose is like Monster Cable - a decent quality product that is hugely over-priced. If you go with any of the less-advertised brands in the market, you will get significantly more bang for the buck. FWIW, if you want a shock, ask 9tinyfingaz how much mark-up there is on the Monster Cable products that CompUSA carries.

[Locomigo]

Ugh... lots of information and such to digest...

Take this FWIW, I see most of this stuff all day everyday, while moreso commercially than residential. The concepts, applications, and products are similar enough.

For the receiver, while Integra, Yamaha, and Denon (list in order) are good products, The Arcam is SO much better standing heads and shoulders over the Denon, a head above the Yamaha, and a bit over the Intergra, why look further? I really think you need to go audition it and give it a run. Also I will search and see where has both products (Arcam/Integra) so you can listen back to back. not knocking Yamaha, they make a quality product, but I have seen far less issues with either Arcam or Integra. And with the Arcam, hard to argue British quality when refereced to audio.

Speakers... Those are a decent selection of entry level speakers, but going with the Paradigm, I would think you are in a level higher than what you have been looking for.
Have you ever considered B&W? They are incredible, and I was very pleased with how they turned out, and we outfitted a high profile client's home in Aspen with them. HIGH bang for the buck here.

How about:
JosephAudio? They are decent and sound good, worth a listen.
NHT? Great sound for a lower price point.

Taking me to B&O, while not a bad product in quality, function, design it really isnt for me. Biggest reason is you can get SOOO much more for less, why bother with them.

Next up is Bose, the old monniker is VERY true "No highs, no lows, it's gotta be BOSE!"
These guys are living off a reputation buoilt in the 70s and 80s when they HAD a decent product. Not the case anymore, and much like Sony, living off a reputation from the past but have really cut corners in the mass production realm. Like B&O, WAY overpriced for what you get, not to mention the speakers are NOT effecient at ALL!
Takes way to much power to even come close to driving them anywhere near a level where they might sound good, on a day that the planets align, with the wind coming from the south east @ 10MPH, with a relative humidity of 69%, with a 20% chance of precipitation...
but I digress. These "big name vendors" that are in every mall, etc in the country have to, like the previous poster implied, pay their rent somehow and who do you think pays for it? thats right, you do.

Which brings me to Monster cable and the other interconnects that you pay 1000 times more than you need to. Ill tell ya, the raw cable, and connectors I use on a daily basis not only looks no different, it tests out no different than the monster, et all stuff. So, why pay $50 for a cable when it could be done for $5?

The in-wall stuff, while it is good for stealth looks, and you can do so in a way that it is imperceptable to the human eye. Very trick, but very expensive. There are products that exist for in wall that are aimable, and directional. For my money, I would just get some decent cup and ball mounts from either the ceiling hanging down and in, or the wall. Either way, with the ball mount, VERY easy to aim the speaker for optimal imaging.

With the plasma, it doesnt buzz right away, it develops after a few hours of use. Typically within a month of install I have been called back. Havent dealt with the Dell much, so I cant say, I suspect that they are rebadging a Samsung anyway. Which BTW, has been better than that LG/Zenith brand. Have had HUGE issues with them. What size did you end up with?

I really can go on and on, but I think I have spewed enough info for now. As with all things YMMV. I can only share what experiences and opinions gathered from those experiences.
Let me know if you need assistance or additional info.

[9tinyfingaz]

FWIW, if you want a shock, ask 9tinyfingaz how much mark-up there is on the Monster Cable products that CompUSA carries.

50-80% mark up on monster cable 20-30% mark up on BOSE. Good thing i can give discounts huh?