Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners Do I pull the trigger? (receiver)

Naw Jason, what I do here and on a board where I do financial/legal advice is more than enough time spent on the internet.

I currently haven't taken the leap to HD yet but I would like to upgrade my TV and receiver (Denon AVR-3801) down the road if possible. I've read through this thread but I'm still confused slightly. My personal preference is sound rather than picture. That said I was wondering if I buy a PS3 for a blueray player, will I still be able to utilize all the new audio formats on blueray even though I have a older receiver? I would assume this would require the PS3 to do the decoding? Would I still be able to connect it to my SD television? Last question but I don't know if there's any other reason other than storage capability to go for a PS3 with more storage i.e. noise etc.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I know nothing about gaming consoles because I can't use them . I would be buying this for my friends to enjoy for gaming and myself for movies.

Cam

Yes, you can utilize the new audio formats with a PS3. The PS3's only option is to decode these new formats and send it as LPCM, as it can't bitstream them. As long as your receiver can accept multichannel LPCM over HDMI, you're fine. And yes, you can still use your SD TV until you get an HD display.

I wouldn't worry about storage unless someone is going to use it for gaming a lot. There are slight differences in features depending on the model with regards to SACD playback and backwards compatibility with PS2 games. If neither of these concern you, I think any model of PS3 should do.

Now someone else with more knowledge can fill in the gaps.

Thanks for your help!! How do I know if my receiver can accept LPCM over HDMI? My AVR-3801 doesn't have any HDMI hookups.

As CV said, the PS3 decodes all the new formats, but if you have an older receiver you probably won't be able to get the new sound formats. Your receiver would have to have an HDMI connection as well as stated before, be able to accept LPCM over HDMI.

So that means that my next upgrade should be a receiver? I figured that's what it was going to boil down to. ERR the 3808 is so expensive in Canada. Going to have to take a look on eBay for a refurbished one.

Try Dakmart, they ship to Canada and also have the 3808ci on sale on Canada E-bay Dakmart
I've purchased from them and never had a problem

Thanks for the advice HomeDad, I'm checking them out right now as we speak. Any suggestions on extended warranties? I virtually always get extended warranties with my electronics but I've never purchased a refurbished unit even though it is refurbished directly by Denon. The only problem with an extended warranty through Dakmart is that I would have to ship it back to them which would be a hassle. If I didn't get an extended warranty I could send it to the authorized dealer service center here in town. Seeing that I've never had a problem with my other receiver I think this would be the better route to go.

I never go with extended warranties and have been fortunate enough not to need them, years ago I dropped an old receiver and sent it to Denon to get it fixed and they charged me less than $50.00, I think it cost more to ship it.
Imo it would be cheaper to go without the extended warranty if you have a good service center near by. In my case I've never had any problems with well made electronics.

I have a PS3 doing the DTS-HD & TrueHD decoding and I'm surprised to read that he doesn't think there's much difference. I tell all my friends that I wonder if the bigger upgrade in Blu-Ray isn't the improved audio over the video. At least I did before I got my DLP calibrated and the visual difference gapped. A lot more impressive soundstage in most movies.

I get that his point is with "well recorded" compressed tracks you might not be able to tell the difference, but that doesn't really mean anything. After all, it almost always comes down to practical application right? If most of the traditional surround sound tracks sound like garbage because they were poorly encoded it's the same effect right?

On the other hand, even with my Dave & Tim Reynolds at Radio City blu-ray I can still blind test the different tracks. And I'm guessing some care was done with the different encodings given it's an audio disc.

And I have pretty humble gear. I would think it's more obvious on top notch stuff.