Nice setup you are planning...happy hunting..
Thanks chief!
Just got back after our session. Thanks to Marc for accommodating us and his helpful staff James.
We had a blast! Literally and figuratively.
I wasn't able to try out the Denon 1611 though, so it was a head to head battle between the HK 160 and the Onkyo 509.
I tried the HK 160 first with the following setup:
RTi A3,CSi A4, M10 rears and Mirage S8 Subs (PSW 110 was unavailable as well)
The sound was big and low frequencies were rumbling.
Tried a couple of songs and a couple of movies.
I was initially satisfied already. Part of me also wanted the HK160 to be "the one" coz, looks-wise, I just loved it. It had great aesthetics, organized and well labeled ports, etc.
However, since there was no pressure at that time to rush, the curious george inside me wanted to try out the 509 as well and just compare if there will be a significant difference.
We took a little time setting it up, coz it was one of the very first units. But as soon as we heard the first song play on it, I realized that that was the sound I was looking for. Clear, crisp and open.
Even my wife, who was busy playing Sudoku on her iPhone, looked back to me and said, "Hey, this sounds much better."
The movie dialogue was clearer, the sharp crashing sounds of glass breaking was clear, and the roar of mini-coopers racing was rumbling across the room!
Almost same price point, future-proofing, and better sound won over brand and good looks.
On an ending note, just like your stories, the RTi A3's were really super-value-for-money speakers and were small but terribly powerful and wonderful speakers! And an important lesson learned: it's not the looks, the specs and just the features that matter in choosing the right amp to drive these speakers. It's what kind of sound you really want to hear from your system.
Thanks again PDVD and avshop!
Marc, you got PM! Yahoo!