Here's my current set up: H/K Avr 230 Athena AS-F2 fronts Athena AS-C1 center Crappy Panasonic HTIB scavenged rears Toshiba SD 1600 DVD player (really old!)
My dvd player is really old and won't play burned cds or burned dvds. It has component out but no progressive scanning (but my tv isnt compatible anyways) and it won't play SACDs. I don't have an awesome tv but I'm waiting for prices to drop on those as I plan they will in a year or two. My fronts get decent bass considering they are rated for more power than my AVR 230 can provide. Overall I am pleased with the fronts but I'm not sure if I'm missing out on their real capabilities. My question is... which should I get next? -New DVD player (thinking about Denon 2200 but the problems with chassis rattling make me scared. Should I also consider any other universal dvd players that might be in my low budget midfi range and have good quality?) -Subwoofer (thinking Velodyne CHT10) -Amp (to power the F2s and give more bass) -Upgrade rear HTIB speakers to Athena b1's. Right now I am leaning towards either a new dvd player or a subwoofer. I know this is a loaded question and that 5 different people will probably give me 5 different answers. I also know that the answer is "what sounds best to me" but that is also something that is hard to determine without being able to demo all the equipment and compare at the same time. My listening habits are about 60% movie and 40% music but I think I would listen to music more than the current rate if I had an SACD and CDR compatible player. I live in a studio apartment so my listening room (per se) is rather small but my bedroom is also part of the free flowing airspace of the apartment since it is a loft type bedroom.
well neal i think my answer will make you very happy.
i agree with all your upgrade choices.
the only one i'm a little leary about is the denon 2200.
i have both the denon 2200 and the pioneer 563a "both universal players sacd/dvd-a/cd/dvd you know!"
while i feal the denon is a little better machine for both audio and video.
the pioneer is awsome for it's price $100.
and the pioneer plays every disk i put in it. while the denon has issues with burnt media.
i think the dvd player first then the rest in any order you see fit. but i like this order. 1st-Subwoofer (thinking Velodyne CHT10) 2nd-Amp (to power the F2s and give more bass) 3rd-Upgrade rear HTIB speakers to Athena b1's.