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Krell HTS 7.1 vs Denon AVR-X4300H

Trying to build a home theater system which can double as audiophile stereo, either 2 channel or 5 channel. 
Sound is more important for me than picture. 

ordered epson 5040ube
already got krell KAV500 amp
just placed an order for oppo 205 blue ray
have rel S5 sub
considering vienna acoustics 4 ohm speakers, mozart for front and haydn for rears, with center maestro

Need a home theater processor. Have a good offer on Krell HTS 7.1. (1000$) vs. Denon avr x4300h
What would be better for my setup. What are pros and cons of either preamp? I would use the devon as preamp for sound only as it doesn't have anything modern in terms of video. As I mentioned, music is very important to me. What would be a logical choice here? Any other suggestions for preamp and spearers are welcome, I'm new to this home theater stuff. Also, Dolby atoms is not important to me, my amp only has 5 channels, unless i can use denons amp in addition to my krell amp to add more speakers, not sure if this is possible. 

My current 2 channel audio system is Mcintosh ma6600 with mcd550 and vienna acoustics mozart, and I love the sound. 
ei001h

Showing 5 responses by ei001h

ei001h OP
275 posts
 
How would those two compare, if you've had experience with either? 
ei001h OP
275 posts
 
Appreciate your input.
To answer your question, I'm keeping my 2 channel Mcintosh system in my living room. Building home theater in basement. 

HTS 7.1 was an 8000 preamp, so I assumed the sound would be better than anything else that I would get for 1000$. 
The MX150s are a bit outdated as well I thought. 

I can certainly spend more, but not sure what I need. What I ultimately want is a processor with current audio decoders with good quality for home theater. Why wouldn't Denon be good for this ? How is marantz better? 

also considering krell krc 3 preamp, is there a good way to integrate this into home theater ? Would this pre amp be better for 2 channel than HTS7.1 and denon? Any thoughts on this preamp? 

What Im trying to accomplish is home theater which can be used for both 2 channel and 5.1 channel audio for SACDs. Is this even possible ? 
ei001h OP
275 posts
 
You said HTS 7.1 will limit me to the compressed formats, DTS etc. But what if I connect my OPPO with analog out to HTS 7.1 analog inputs. Will the HTS screw with uncompressed high def sound from the OPPO? How would this work? Do the benefits of HTS apply in this set up? 

Also, would it be possible to integrate krc3 into HTS home theater system? Would this make sense? Would KRC3 improve the preamp section for my 2 channel audio? 

Im thinking of directly connecting my OPPO video to my Epson projector via HDMI. Would I lose anything by doing that? What would be an advantage of using 4k processor in this situation? 

My vision is to have a home theater with Krell KAV500 amp, OPPO 205, Epson 5040ube, vienna acoustics speakers. I need to decide which pre-amp/processor to get. Krell krc3 is very visually appealing to me, and I would prefer to somehow integrate it into my home theater, whether I need it or not. It looks very nice with a matching amp. 

appreciate everyone's input 
ei001h OP
275 posts
 
Exactly the answer I was looking for. Thank you. 

Now, the question about old Mcintosh MX processors, 119 and 132 I think are around 1000$. How would those compare to HTS? Pros and Cons. 
ei001h OP
275 posts
 
Can this be done: 

connect OPPO to KRC3 and HTS7.1 and then to krell KAV500? 
If so, how exactly would it work? Im having difficulty visualizing this. Would I need an extra amp for 2 channels? Extra speakers? Does this even make sense? 

I would really like to integrate KRC3 into my system. By the way, I do not have the Denon. I have to pick either denon or HTS7.1 or like some suggested marantz processor. 

On a separate note, what about really old Mcintosh processors, mx-119, mx132? etc. Are those any good for my use as Home theater and preamp for stereo? If I use oppo analog output into an old mx, would that be better than krell HTS7.1? I think prices are pretty close for those two. 
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