Letters - December 2008
Integra versus Denon
December 24, 2008
Editor,
I am debating between getting a Denon receiver and an
Integra receiver. Have you ever compared the relative merits of each brand? Do you think
one brand is better than the other? Which would you buy?
QCD
I have lots of experience with Integra and some
experience with Denon and can tell you that you can’t go wrong with either. These
would also be my choices if I were shopping for a good A/V receiver. Both brands offer
up-to-the-minute technology and superior build quality. The Denon and Integra products are
also easy to use and sport attractive cosmetics. These two brands seem to stand head and
shoulders above the other makers of A/V receivers. As for which one, I don’t really
have a preference...Jeff Fritz
"...a lower-priced alternative that has
similar sound?"
December 18, 2008
To Doug Schneider,
Great
review of Classé's CA-5200. Looks like a great amp -- I wish I could afford it. I
can't.
What can you recommend as a lower-priced alternative that
has similar sound?
Nick Embrun
The CA-5200 is a great amp, but $9000 is stll a stretch
for a lot of people. There is the CA-5100 that delivers 100Wpc and is priced at $5500. One
hundred watts are plenty for most applications. Alternatively, there's the Outlaw
Audio Model 7900 amp that Howard Kneller reviewed in September. It reportedly delivers
300 watts into seven channels and only costs $3499! It seems like quite a deal....Doug
Schneider
Oppo for DVD?
December 16, 2008
To Wes Marshall,
I am considering an Oppo player for DVD playback. I have a
tremendous collection of DVDs, but my problem is the bars on both sides. I am looking for
a DVD player that can fit the 4:3 image into a 16:9 display. I am looking for film-like
motion. How is the Oppo, and is there a cheaper option? I also have a Sony PS3, and I
mainly use that for games and Blu-ray playback.
Robert L.
The Oppo will stretch or blow up the picture, but you
will see the picture either with everybody's bodyweight doubling or with the top of their
heads cut off. There is no way to get rid of those black bars without distorting the
picture or chopping some of it off.
Regarding film-like motion, nothing I've seen beats the
Oppo.
Cheaper? I haven't used one, but there is a new Toshiba
for about $125 that is supposed to be good. Good luck. . . . Wes Marshall
Can’t access surround modes
December 4, 2008
To Randall Smith,
I have my Sony PS3 connected to my Onkyo TX-SR875 receiver
via an HDMI connection. I've loaded my PS3 with lots of music CDs that were imported at
320kbps. However, when I play the music from the PS3's hard drive, I am unable to use any
of the Onkyo's surround-sound or THX music modes. It will only play two-channel music.
Checking the display, the Onkyo will say 5.1 or 7.1, but since I am using it as a pre-pro,
I see that only two channels on my amplifier are active (Emotive IPS-1). Also, I recently
ran Blu-ray versions of WALL-E and Hellboy II, but I was not able to get
my usual Ultra 2 Cinema on the Onkyo. It read "TX Cinema" and would not switch
to other modes. Is this a problem with the Onkyo's DSP modes or is it a source problem
from the PlayStation 3, which has been upgraded to the latest software version? I'm not
sure where to look for the source of the problem. I think it might be the PS3 since the
HDMI connection from my DirecTV DVR works perfectly. Any thoughts?
Douglas Kelly
Unfortunately, the Sony PS3 performs all digital
decoding internally. This means it will not output a digital bitstream for outboard
decoding. So, if you are using an HDMI cable to transfer the decoded audio signal to your
Onkyo, you have two options: Stereo or Multichannel. If you press the Surround button on
the Onkyo's remote, it will toggle between the two. Hope this helps! . . . Randall Smith |
