Merlion Audio

All The Best Sound

Cinema Receiver

Recommended Receiver For Bose Acoustimass 6 home cinema speaker system?

I was looking at the Onkyos and Sonys (however not sure which one to pick), and because I'm 16 obviously I will need to save up for ages and my max. price for a receiver is £250.00. It will be my first time buying an expensive speaker system, so I will need all the help I can get... Also, how can you make the Acoustimass 6 HD? I noticed all modern receivers have HDMI ports, but the Acoustimass 6 does not. What is this all about? Will the sound still be great?

It doesn't matter ... Bose will sound crappy with any receiver. Honestly, Bose are aimed at gullible folk who don't know any better.

You can get a far superior set of speakers for less money from many other manufacturers. Some brands to consider (and there are many others) include Klipsch, Jamos, Definitive Technology, KEF, Energy, Polk, Boston, B&W, Fluance. In general Japanese speakers are less desirable than European, US or Canadian brands.

I suggest you do some research (see link for a starting point) and listen to some recommended speakers in your price range. You will have to decide if you are buying for music (stereo) or home theater (surround sound) though. One of the nice things about speakers is that they are one of the only components that can be enjoyed for 30 years or more ... so it's worth buying as good as you can afford since you may have them a long time.

As for a receiver, Onkyo, Yamaha, Denon, Pioneer, NAD and Sony's ES line (plus several others are good brands. Again, do some reasearch and try to decide what your priorities are since there are many differences in features that can make a particular model preferable -- FOR YOU -- to others. All make a range from introductory to "flagship" ... priced accordingly ... but you won't go far wrong with any of the name brands.

Look for true RMS power ratings (not "peak" or "music" power). But don't get hung up on minor differences in power (e.g. 50 vs 70 watts) since you need to double the power (rated the same way) before it will make any noticeable difference.

As to HDMI ... it's simply a type of cable connection that carries both HD video and multichannel audio. It's a good choice for home theater (particulalry Blu-ray which has some HD sound formats that benefit from HDMI), but it's as much convenience as quality and is not essential for good sound. Optical or digital coax ... which all A/V receivers will support ... gives excellent sound too ... as do analog connections.

Default Featured items Bestselling Average customer review: high to low Price: low to high Price: high to low Alphabetical: A to Z

Sony STR-DH510 5.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver [3D Compatible] Sale Price: Too low to display   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Onkyo TX-SR608 7.2-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black) List Price: $599.00 Sale Price: Too low to display   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Onkyo HT-RC260 7.2-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black) List Price: $549.00 Sale Price: $319.99 You save: $229.01 (42%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Onkyo TX-SR508 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black) List Price: $399.00 Sale Price: Too low to display   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Panasonic SC-BT330 5.1 Channel Cinema Surround Home Entertainment System List Price: $499.95 Sale Price: $318.40 You save: $181.55 (36%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Sony STR-DH710 7.1-channel A/V Receiver with 6 HD Inputs [3D Compatible] Sale Price: Too low to display   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Onkyo TX-SR308 5.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black) List Price: $299.00 Sale Price: Too low to display   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Onkyo TX-NR808 7.2-Channel Network Home Theater Receiver (Black) List Price: $1,099.00 Sale Price: Too low to display   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours

Onkyo TX-SR707 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver List Price: $899.00 Sale Price: $609.69 You save: $289.31 (32%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Yamaha HTR-6130BL 500 Watt 5.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver List Price: $229.95 Sale Price: $189.95 You save: $40.00 (17%)   Eligible for free shipping! Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days

Onkyo TX-SR608 Home Cinema Receiver Video Review by AVLAND UK