I'm looking to purchase a mid-range receiver. I'd like to know which Brand is best. I'm mostly interested in watching surround sound movies/blueray/dvfd on it, not going to use it so much for music . I was going to purchase the marantz sr5004 but I have been reading that it's great for music but not so much for surround sound HT enjoyment. Can anyone recommend any receivers. Thank You.
You can easily gather a ton of conflicting opinions on this subject but you really can't believe any of them unless you listen to the actual sound for yourself. In other words, see if you can find the Marantz in a store and listen to see if you agree with the opinion you cite.
Other brands to look at (among many): Yamaha Onkyo Denon Pioneer Harmon Karden
Harman Kardon just put out a new line up, it seems to be geared back towards their higher end roots rather then the big box store crowd that they have tried to attract over the last few year. The AVR 2600 looks interesting. Might be something to check out.
I not only would listen, but I'd look and get a good demo. I would consider the ergonomics and 'usability' of any of these very elaborate HT receivers.
If you have to dig down 4 or 5 layers of menu to get to what you want, I'd tend to skip it.