Need some advice for HT...must add/upgrade

[ChiefKeefe]

I'm looking for advice on what piece to add to the puzzle or upgrade to next make in my HT system:

Sony SXRD 60" TV
Sony STR DA3-ES Receiver (5.1 in HT and drives 2 outdoor speakers on the deck)
Denon 1920 DVD
DirecTV HD receiver w/ TiVo
Klipsch center and tower Right/Left speakers
Bose surround bookshelf speakers
Velodyne (10" or 12", I can't remember) sub

In short, should I:

1) Upgrade receiver (was looking at the Yamaha RXV-2600) for added 3rd zone and HDMI capability?
2) Stick with the ES receiver, but add a pre/pro (I had an impure thought just looking at a picture of the Halo C2)?
3) Upgrade receiver and buy a less expensive pre/pro?
4) Do something with my $3K budget that I haven't covered?

Any and all advice (for someone that knows displays very well, but that's about it) will be greatly appreciated. Oh yeah, the system is used for 20% DVDs, 50% HD movies/sports, 20% SD TV and maybe 10% CDs.

Thanks.
ChiefKeefe

[Azeke]

Welcome to HT Guide ChiefKeefe, :welcome: .

Just my quick thoughts:

1) Upgrade your surround speakers.

2) Receiver/Separates upgrade, which should include HDMI and upconversion to 1080p. Separates being the more expensive route. HDMI 1.3 is on the horizon, within a year probably, so you may want to factor that into your receiver/separates purchasing plan.

Questions:

1) What type of Klipsch center and tower Right/Left speakers do you own?

2) Do you have the AT-9 dish (MPEG-4 compression) from Directv?

Peace and blessings,

Azeke

[ChiefKeefe]

More info to help answer question...

My Klipsch speakers are Synergy. I didn't mention that I am also looking at upgrading the Bose bookshelf surrounds to Klipsch also.

I've been eyeing the Yamaha RXV-2600 because I could run the HDMI from the DirecTV unit and from my DVD player to it, then run the HDMI from the Yamaha to the TV. Right now, I have the STB and DVD player attached via separate HDMI cables to the TV with separate optical cables from STB and DVD player to receiver. This leads to a slight shift in the sound relative to the picture on some of the HD channels from the STB.

Are there even pre/pro options for HDMI? If so, then I'd go HDMI from STB and DVD to pre/pro, HDMI from pre/pro to amp and then HDMI to TV?

[aud19]

In short, should I:

1) Upgrade receiver (was looking at the Yamaha RXV-2600) for added 3rd zone and HDMI capability?
2) Stick with the ES receiver, but add a pre/pro (I had an impure thought just looking at a picture of the Halo C2)?
3) Upgrade receiver and buy a less expensive pre/pro?
4) Do something with my $3K budget that I haven't covered?

I think you mean amp where you keep saying pre/pro as having a receiver power a processed signal from a high-end pre seems backwards to me...:scratchhead: I probably wouldn't buy a new receiver or pre/pro quite yet anyway with the new HD formats and HDMI 1.3 coming along shortly unless you were starting from scratch. But an external amp would definitely be an imrpovement over your receivers internal amps as long as your current receiver has preouts to support it.

So I vote for an external amp and upgrade your surrounds to match your mains/centre (or all your speakers if you want to upgrade in that direction). Velodyne makes good subs so that should be fine :T You don't have the "best" DVD player but it's not bad either and there's not much point sinking a ton of money in to a DVD player. Then upgrade to a proper pre/pro in a year or two :T

[dyazdani]

I was thinking

1) Upgrade surround speakers (it wouldn't take an agonizing amount of $$ to get better)

2) Start with a separate amp now (use the ES receiver as a pre/pro) and upgrade to a separate pre/pro after the HDMI thing advances some

[ChiefKeefe]

More info...

aud19, yes, I fully admit that I am "lost" when it comes to this area. Until I actually go into a store and see it with my own 2 eyes, I won't understand it. I don't want to go into a store though without having a clue.

I really do appreciate the help.

So, assuming that I spend $500-600 upgrading the surrounds to Klipsch matching speakers (I think that's what I saw the bookshelves that I wanted listed at), what separate amp would you suggest?

On the subject of the DVD player, there's no way I'm doing anything with it until the HD DVD/BluRay format war is decided. I was a DVD "early adopter" and paid $600 for a Sony single disc player in 2000. I'll wait happily on the sidelines for one or the other to win and the resulting price drop.

[dyazdani]

I'm assuming you want a multi-channel amp (x5), some that come to mind while staying within budget and allowing for the surround upgrade

Rotel 1095
Anthem MCA 5
Audio Refinement Multi 5
Sunfire Cinema Grand

[aud19]

I like Rotel myself, probably don't "need" the 1095's power, the 1075's output particularly with relatively efficient Klipsch speakers, is likely enough and will free up money for other stuff.

Another thing I'll add is room treatment is always a good investment :T

[eddiem67]

ah man, sony receiver and bose speaker, I love that combo

[ChiefKeefe]

Update...

I went into several stores (Home Theater Store, Tweeter, Best Buy) and talked to some custom installation "experts". I also had a lengthy conversation with a guy at a local "mom and pop" store where I bought the SXRD (since he was willing to negotiate a good price).

After all of that, I upgraded the surrounds to Klipsch S-2s. I wanted the S-3s but no one had them in stock and I'm an immediate gratification type. I was convinced by the custom installation guy that going with Reference series surrounds just wasn't worth the money. Now I have a matching set of Klipsch Synergy speakers with the Velodyne sub (which I keep at 1/2 the volume anyway or the entire house rattles).

I'll upgrade to a matched set of Klipsch Reference when my little brother gets a job and buys my current speakers. Until then, he gets the Bose scraps.

Now for one last question on this thread. Any input on this Pure AV unit?

AP30800-10, "Clean Power" and Battery Backup

I think this is a complete waste of money, but I'm wondering what others think.
ChiefKeefe