All, I am canvassing opinions here. I currently have an old Sony home cinema set-up that is finally giving up the ghost after many years of good service. As it's nearly Christmas, the wife and I thought we should invest in something that is going to take us through the next few years. The Sony currently takes inputs from both a PS2 and Sky+ box and feeds a 42" plasma screen. We also have a Wii, but this connects directly to the screen (so no big sound with that). Instead of buying a new home cinema set-up we were thinking of going down the PS3 route for CD/DVD/BR playback with a receiver to deal with the inputs from PS2/PS3/Wii. What do people think? Does this sound like a viable solution? Am I right in thinking that I can use the PS3 as a media player using my library on PC (in the same way as the Soundbridge player we have already)? Any help would be most appreciated.
A good AV receiver is the way to go here and will last many years (longer than the other components no doubt). I have one word here for you: Denon. Look here: http://www.usa.denon.com/
I prefer basic, pre/pro and separate power amps. Much higher in cost and super resolution (highest fidelity) Look up Outlaw Audio (yes, they are for real, located in the USA)
While Denon and Outlaw make some very good equipment, right now Onkyo is giving the most bang for the buck. Their cheapest receiver right now, that can handle the new HD audio soundtracks from blu ray movies (from PS3), is their TX-SR606. See it here: http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-TX-SR60...1?ie=UTF8&s=audio-video&qid=1227617768&sr=1-1 Just about everyone that has bought one, loves it. I, personally, have ordered the Onkyo TX-SR805, and it's supposed to be delivered today. To get the same features on other brands of equipment, will cost you more, unless you happen to find a very good sale going on. Good luck with whatever you decide on.
Thanks for your comments, they are helpful. I had looked at the Onkyo kit, and am currently weighing up the differences between the TX-SR606 and the Sony STRDA2400ES. They are comparable in price (cheaper than the Denon), just not sure about functionality. Decisions, decisions . . . . . .
