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New member Username: AznbimmerPost Number: 3 Registered: Apr-04 | Hi I was wondering which receiver will be best to drive my speakers.... (2) Infinity Alpha 50s floors (1) Infinity Alpha 37c center (2) Infinity Alpha 20s surrounds (1) Infinity Alpha 1200s Sub |
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Silver Member Username: JohnnyMissouri Post Number: 312 Registered: Dec-03 | Hanh, What is your budget? That is a big part of any recommendations we may give. While they do sound great, the Infinity speakers do tend to sound a bit bright. Therefore, they work best when paired with a warmer sounding receiver that can tame some of the brightness. I recommend Harman Kardon, Pioneer Elite, and Marantz for Infinity. Your budget and system requirements will dictate which model in each line you should be looking at. |
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New member Username: AznbimmerPost Number: 4 Registered: Apr-04 | I was looking into getting an HK AVR 7200. budget will roughly be up to $1200 |
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Silver Member Username: Elitefan1Post Number: 410 Registered: Dec-03 | You are on the right track. Look at the H/K7200 and 630, the Marantz 7400 and the Elite 53. All will drive your Infinity's very nicely. |
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New member Username: AznbimmerPost Number: 5 Registered: Apr-04 | Thanks for your input guys......... I appreciate it. Another question .. this one concerning speaker wires. Monster Cable has the Z series wires. Is it to my advantage to purchase these to drive my center and floors???? Or should I use regular speaker wires |
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Silver Member Username: JohnnyMissouri Post Number: 313 Registered: Dec-03 | Hanh, This topic has been debated time and time again on this forum and elsewhere and people seem to have very strong views one way or the other. I am in the "speaker wire brand doesn't matter" camp. I have seen no firm proof that spending top dollar on speaker wire has any noticable effect on sound quality. Some claim otherwise, but I just haven't heard it. I would recommend getting a good "off brand" 12 gauge speaker wire. I bought mine from www.partsexpress.com (provided you are in the US). Look at the "Sound King" brand. I bought 100 feet of 12 gauge speaker wire for under $30 delivered. The same amount of Monster 12 gauge wire would have cost me well over $150. For me, it just wasn't worth all of that. Those are my thoughts...I am sure others will disagree. |
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New member Username: AznbimmerPost Number: 7 Registered: Apr-04 | Johnny, I was in a "home theater" custom shop and they had a separate rooms with the same setup in both room except for the speaker wires that was connected to the speakers. One was the Monster Cable Z series speaker wires and the other was Monster Cable regular speaker wire. I came and they played "hotel california" from the Eagles. Anyways to make a long story short... the room with the Z series wire has some very subtle differences. The clarity compared to the other room a lot better. Also, the higher frequencies sounded a lot clearer and you can hear each hit of the cymbals on the drums. Other than that, the mids and bass sounded the same to me. This is my first system that I am building .. so I'm a little wet behind the ears. I just don't want to spend a grip load of money for parts/accessories that I won't need and would have no use for later. I guess to the average user... regular off brand wires might be the way to go. |
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Bronze Member Username: New2htPost Number: 13 Registered: May-04 | I would have to agree with Johnny. Your experience in the shop may be true, but be aware. They say the only difference is the wires, but you really have to look beyond that. For instance, different EQ settings could make a difference in clarity. Did they show you EQ settings? Do the speakers have the same amount of play time? I just returned my $120 Z series because I didn't hear a difference from the regular 12 gauge braided monster cable. If I knew about partsexpress, I would have purchased it from them. Oh well... |
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Silver Member Username: JohnnyMissouri Post Number: 314 Registered: Dec-03 | Hanh, Was this a "blind test"? By that, I mean, did you know ahead of time which room had the Z series wire and which had the regular Monster wire? If you knew ahead of time, you might be more inclined to hear slight differences in the sound quality because it is just expected by many people that more expensive wire equates to better sound quality. I am not trying to imply that you were somehow duped or anything...just that subconsiously, your mind might have been telling you that there were differences simply because you expected it to be that way. For your "test" to be valid, you should have been blind as to which room had which type of wire...and you should have also been give the information that New2HT mentions. |
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New member Username: AznbimmerPost Number: 8 Registered: Apr-04 | Johnny, You're right... They did tell me first which room had which wires. *Stupid Sales Tactic* Other than that, each of the setup was the same ... I checked them myself. I went to look at partexpress.com and I think I am going to purchase those other speaker wires. The wires are a little more $35 + S&H. I've ordered the HK AVR 7200. These are on sale for $850 w/ a 2 year warranty. I appreciate all the help .. Johnny & New2HT. On a whole different subject .. I've seen a lot of posts in this forum concerning Paradigm speakers. Are they considered "top of the line" models or something??? They are quite expensive ... do they have a whole different tonal value than other speakers??? |
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Silver Member Username: Elitefan1Post Number: 411 Registered: Dec-03 | Paradigm makes three different lines commonly found in stores, the Performance,Monitor and Studio series. In no way can any be called expensive when compared to the competition. The top of the Studio series, the 100 is only $2200 list. Paradigm more than any other speaker company I can think of offers excellent quality at bargain prices at all price points. |
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Bronze Member Username: KendridPost Number: 29 Registered: Apr-04 | Were the rooms *exactly* the same? Did you sit in exactly the same position. Was every speaker in exactly the same spot. I think you see where I am going... Any change in the room nullifies that 'test'. |
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Silver Member Username: JohnnyMissouri Post Number: 315 Registered: Dec-03 | Hanh, I think you are making the right choice in regards to speaker wire (and with receiver I might add--the HK is a wonderful receiver). I mean, if you have money coming out of your ears, go ahead and buy the expensive speaker wire...but for me at least, it just wasn't worth it. Paradigm speakers are very similar to most other speaker brands in that they have a very wide variety of price levels. Their Performance Series is definately not expensive. This line sounds great, but I wouldn't call it "top of the line" by any means. A pair of the Titan bookshelf speakers costs less than $200...a very reasonable amount. However, as you start moving up their product line, the prices can go way up as does the sound quality. Paradigm's high end line is the Signature series. A pair of the Signature S8's can cost upwards of $6000 a pair (I think...it is hard to find prices on Paradigm speakers as they do not sell over the internet, but that is what I came up with on one site). Check out those puppies on the website...a truly great speaker. So I guess my point is that Paradigm is known for offering great speakers at great prices...but they are no more "top of the line" than many other brands. That said, they do have a distinct "tonal sound" as you say. Paradigm speakers are very detailed and warm sounding. Therefore, they work best with a brighter sounding receiver. In my opinion, Paradigm would be a bad match with HK as the HK is warm sounding as well...so paired with Paradigm, the sound might sound muddy and muffled, if you can try to picture that in your mind. |
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New member Username: AznbimmerPost Number: 9 Registered: Apr-04 | Thanks for all the info guys. I am anxious to get my equipment in. Hopefully by the middle of next week the AVR 7200 will come in and I'll have it up and running. I'm sure I'll have plenty of questions during the setup process. My thanks again to all of you. |