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7.1 dts system?


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Old 22-05-2008, 09:14
andybno1
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wondering if anyone could recommend a cheapish decent 7.1 system that supports dts? I currently have the Acoustic Solutions DX 333 system which is one of the best sound systems I have heard/bought for dolby 5.1, but now that I have had a PS3 for a couple months I have developed a blu-ray collection and a fair few have the dts sound on them and upto 7.1 sound on a few titles so was wondeing if someone could recommend a decent cheapish 7.1 dts system
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Old 22-05-2008, 11:19
TommyW
 
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Have you a budget in mind?

Onkyo and Denon have models in their range that cater for the new HD audio formats.

The Onkyo TX-SR606 retails at around £399 where the Denon AVR2808 retails at around £730.

There are other manufacturers like Yamaha, Sony and Pioneer that also have models that are compatible with HD audio.

You could go for a secondhand/discontinued model, one that doesn't have the onboard decoding but will do multichannel PCM via HDMI, just make sure it's 7.1, i.e. Denon AVR 3806.
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Old 22-05-2008, 11:25
RobAnt
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Cambridge Azur 640R - exclusive to Richer Sounds, I believe, and very reasonably priced. Mated with a decent speaker set - such as Monitor Audio, Kef, Tannoy or any of the good British speaker manufacturers.

Richer Sounds have listening rooms, to help you try various combinations. You'll need about £650-800 for a decent budget setup.
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Old 22-05-2008, 11:43
TommyW
 
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Cambridge Azur 640R V3 (not V1 or V2 - no HDMI) - exclusive to Richer Sounds and very reasonably priced. Mated with a decent speaker set - such as Monitor Audio, Kef, Tannoy or any of the good British speaker manufacturers.

Richer Sounds have listening rooms, to help you try various combinations. You'll need about £500-600 for a decent budget setup.
I don't think the Cambridge Azur 640 V3 is capable of multichannel PCM Rob, otherwise it would have fitted the bill nicely - The HDMI is just for pass through as far as I can make out.

Would be fine for 6.1/7.1 from standard DVD with DD/DTS but not for the newer HD audio formats Dolby True HD/DTS HD MA from Bluray though.
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Old 22-05-2008, 11:50
RobAnt
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HDMI just for passthrough? Not sure whether you mean it doesn't act on the HDMI audio signals, or it just forwards the signals on to the TV without interception.

I'm fairly sure it processes the HDMI audio signals, otherwise there would be little point. But this might not be what you mean.

The meaning of "passthrough" can be mis-interpreted.

But I take your point about the newer HD audio formats.
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Old 22-05-2008, 12:04
TommyW
 
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HDMI just for passthrough? Not sure whether you mean it doesn't act on the HDMI audio signals, or it just forwards the signals on to the TV without interception.

I'm fairly sure it processes the HDMI audio signals, otherwise there would be little point. But this might not be what you mean.

The meaning of "passthrough" can be mis-interpreted.

But I take your point about the newer HD audio formats.
Sorry for the confusion, I forgot to add 'video' when I mentioned pass through.

In respect of the Cambridge 640 only video signals/stereo audio will be passed through HDMI, not multichannel audio, to source multichannel audio you will need to connect via optical or coaxial. The way the Cambridge works is very similar to how the Sky HD box works at present.
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Old 22-05-2008, 12:35
andybno1
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errr wow 600 - 800 that was WAY outside my budget lol the system I have now only cost 100 lol

think I may just wait till prices come down or I win the lottery
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Old 22-05-2008, 13:01
TommyW
 
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errr wow 600 - 800 that was WAY outside my budget lol the system I have now only cost 100 lol

think I may just wait till prices come down or I win the lottery
Get saving, the 7.1 soundtracks sound amazing.

You should be able to pick up the Onkyo TX-SR605 for around £300 as the 606 is now the current model, this was one of the first receivers out that had dedicated HD audio decoders onboard. In fact Richer Sounds have it for £299.

If this outside your budget then the second hand market will be a good place to search, you'll be able to source something for around £150 mark quite easily. Have a look on the classifieds, AV Forums would be a good place to start. Anything that will pass multichannel (7.1) PCM via HDMI will do as the PS3 will do the decoding.
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Old 22-05-2008, 16:00
andybno1
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does that Onkyo TX-SR605 come with speakers or is just the receiver on its own?

as you can tell I'm not very up on sound systems like these lol
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Old 22-05-2008, 16:43
TommyW
 
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does that Onkyo TX-SR605 come with speakers or is just the receiver on its own?

as you can tell I'm not very up on sound systems like these lol
Just the receiver on it's own I'm afraid, you will have to purchase the speakers separately.

Not encouraging you to take credit out but you could pick up a good system for as little as a fiver week. There's also 0% deals on cards, all depends on your circumstances and how desperate you are.
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Old 22-05-2008, 16:44
andybno1
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I'm already paying off debts as is I think I will just have to save lol
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Old 22-05-2008, 17:00
TommyW
 
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I'm already paying off debts as is I think I will just have to save lol
Sensible idea - Just keep an eye open for offers along the way as discontinued models can be picked up very cheap. Good luck.
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Old 22-05-2008, 18:14
RobAnt
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Originally Posted by TommyW
stereo audio will be passed through HDMI, not multichannel audio
I don't see that - HDMI carries digital audio - upon which case it is down to the Receiver to decode into whatever it can from the digital stream. HDMI doesn't carry analogue left/right (which isn't always strictly "stereo"), as far as I'm aware.

HDMI's audio capabilities vary, depending on which HDMI standard is employed. While these are developing all the time, at the time of writing, the situation is as follows:

V1.0 - two-channel PCM audio up to 48kHz/24-bit including standard Dolby 5.1 and DTS 5.1 bitstreams.
V1.1 - up to 8-channel PCM audio up to 192kHz/24-bit.
V1.2 - as V1.1, plus DSD audio (for SACD) at 1.824Gb/s.
V1.3 - (proposed) as above, plus Dolby Digital+ and DTS-HD enhanced audio.
from this [click] description.

I was adding on about £200-300 for a reasonable speaker set, by the way.

My brother, before he passed away last Father's day, had one of those DX333 things. Sounded like two rolled up cardboard loo rolls blown down like an aboriganal playing a didgery doo (or to be more precise - Rolf Harris). Keep it for now but definitely save.
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Old 22-05-2008, 18:33
TommyW
 
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I don't see that - HDMI carries digital audio - upon which case it is down to the Receiver to decode into whatever it can from the digital stream. HDMI doesn't carry analogue left/right (which isn't always strictly "stereo"), as far as I'm aware.



from this [click] description.
Yes HDMI is very capable of carrying multichannel audio but it all depends on the receiver. I'm guessing the Cambridge will pass video and stereo soundtrack only, you will need to connect via the digital inputs for the multichannel audio.

The specs state there is no multichannel audio over HDMI.

Page 11 of the user manual explains this.

http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/assets...sManualENG.pdf

EDIT: It's not unusual for receivers to only pass the video through the HDMI connection, especially the lower end of the market, basically they are just used as a video switchbox relying on the digital inputs for multichannel audio.
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Old 22-05-2008, 18:51
RobAnt
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Yes HDMI is very capable of carrying multichannel audio but it all depends on the receiver. I'm guessing the Cambridge will pass video and stereo soundtrack only, you will need to connect via the digital inputs for the multichannel audio.

The specs state there is no multichannel audio over HDMI.

Page 11 of the user manual explains this.

http://www.cambridgeaudio.com/assets...sManualENG.pdf
I see what you're getting at. But I think that might be for an older version of the Azure 640. I can't believe it doesn't, now, use HDMI as a digital source itself.

It's worth checking out anyway.

MMMM, it's a bit odd, that - but I don't think it affects things too much, you just need to use two cables, where one should do
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Old 22-05-2008, 18:59
TommyW
 
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I see what you're getting at. But I think that might be for an older version of the Azure 640. I can't believe it doesn't, now, use HDMI as a digital source itself.

It's worth checking out anyway.
No idea which version of the 640 the manual relates too, it was the only one on Cambridge's site available to view.

I would be surprised if it does to be honest, even if it doesn't it's still looks good value for money and should be put on ones shortlist if looking for a starter system.


MMMM, it's a bit odd, that - but I don't think it affects things too much, you just need to use two cables, where one should do
The problem is it wouldn't be suitable for someone who wishes to listen to the new HD audio formats which was the criteria of the OP, Dolby True HD and DTS HD MA are not available over optical only HDMI, seeing the 640 won't pass multichannel audio over HDMI they would need to look elsewhere.
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