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The HK-134 will give you similar performance to the Onkyo 309, but is typically more expensive than the Onkyo. You can find prices of the HK series on ::: JBL ::: (Sam Kapasi can give you more details if you request him!)!:D

Regards,
Behemoth

Thanks, Behemoth.
Onkyo SR309 - 27K on Indiatimes shopping. (indicative)
HK AVR 134 - 20k from JBL India


What I could do is:
1. HK AVR-134

2. Use existing speakers
3. Use the DVD Player from the existing HTIB I have.

4. Upgrade the DVD player & speakers as I go along. The current requirement is more audio than video, anyway.

But queries:
1. Impedance:
* the AVR-134 specs say 6 ohms
* the speakers I have are rated 8 ohms.

From what I have read on other threads, this should be fine.

2. The AVR 134 has output for a powered sub. This would mean that the sub that is connected to the HTIB will not be usable with the AVR 134 - also because it is rated 2.7 ohms, but the AVR is 6 ohms.

I am not so much into bass, so not having the sub should not be a problem.

EDIT:
A quick search for the AVR-134 gave this feedback:

Question:
When would one use:
1. TruHD
2. DTS HD-ma
3. HD Audio
4. Audio over HDMI

Is there anything in Pioneer that is comparable? Or is Pio in a lower category (like Sony, Panasonic, Samsung, LG etc.)?

Yes, there are good models from Pioneer too, but unfortunately their distribution/ service network in India is quite sparse. In the 1 month of hunting recently, I came across Pioneer AVRs only at Palika Bazar, CP, which were grey imports. Though the 1021 model is rated very highly, I did not want to risk almost 40K, without the peace of mind of Bill and warranty. They also have models starting from almost 16k+ (IIRC VSX-521K). However, buy it only if you have a dependable sales/ service dealer near you, which was unfortunately not the case here.
Their focus on India seems to be more on Car Audio and less for Home entertainment (as of now!)

The midrange receivers which I auditioned (in the 40-60K range) were: Denon 1912 (most easily available), Onkyo 609, Yamaha 671, Marantz 6006. I ended up buying the Onkyo due to my usage mainly for Movies. If I were to buy for Music, I would have chosen either Yamaha or Denon.

@Condor
It will be really difficult to match any receiver to your existing HTB speakers and you will get nowhere close to the sound that you expect. Better would be to maybe sell them off/ reuse in some other application! A new HTIB (home theater in a box) will sound more potent anytime! The HK-134 model is actually very basic and you should go for something higher!
The price which you got from Indiatimes for the 309 is not correct and you should be able to get it around 16-18K.

Regards,
Behemoth

1) Dolby TrueHD would be used if you want the HD audio from bluray and the blu-ray disc has TrueHD audio encoded onto it - the only audio better than this would be DTS-HD(ma) and LPCM but movies encoded with AC3 will most likely have Dolby TrueHD as the HD audio

2) DTS-HD(ma) is the DTS version of HD audio and is also only to be found on blu-rays

3) HD audio is basically the lossless versions of the surround audio you find on DVD - but DVD typically does not have enough disc space to store the large audio files hence DVD uses a compressed version of these files - with Blu-ray being 24 gigs in single layer and 48 gigs in dual layer it is a perfect candidate to give you uncompressed audio files - hence the HD audio you will get with Dolby trueHD and DTS-HD is comparable to CD quality sound while on a dvd the surround sound can be compared to mp3 ie it sounds good but it is still compressed

4) Audio over HDMI is when the HDMI cable transmits the picture as well as the sound from the blu-ray player directly over the one HDMI cable with no other connections necessary. If your receiver is HD audio capable then this is the best method since the player is connected to the receiver via HDMI which takes the picture and sound to the receiver .... this then allows the receiver to play the HD audio and since the HD audio is supposed to be using lots of bandwidth HD audio formats can only work with HDMI (also combined with the fact that HDMI uses HDCP to prevent copying so HD audio content is only allowed to be transmitted via HDMI) you then connect the HDMI out on the receiver to the HDMI input ports on the TV to transmit the picture. You will not be able to experience any of the HD audio formats from blu-ray on any other form of connection like your coax digital or fibre optical digital connections.

hope that this explains some of the concepts

i would also avoid anything that doesnt feature the HD audio formats because it does not allow you to enjoy your blu-rays to their best capability - in fact even when encoding blu-rays to mkv format for usage in my media player i always want the HD audio formats included because they sound incredible but then again my system is fairly high end

Yes, but those who have older, non HD Audio receivers can use the analog 5.1/ 7.1 output from blu ray players that output PCM.

Indeed you can BUT it is entirely dependent upon your receiver then having a multi-channel input and also dependent upon your blu-ray player having the requisite analog multichannel RCA based outputs (many entry level blu-ray players wont feature the required outputs) but yes point well made as to how the people with older tech can still enjoy the newer formats

Sorry if this has been asked before but if you live in an apartment and wish to install a pair of Beolab 5 or similar speakers any way to sound proof the room to ensure people above and below do not get disturbed?

I have no idea on this topic so detailed help would be appreciated

Regards,

1. All doors should be framed and filled with fiberglass
2. Put a 2-2.5" false celing and fill the gap with fiberglass mat.
3. Put the speakers on a plinth and if possible lay a "floating floor".
4. Install double glazed windows (6-10-6 is a good option) preferably with UPVC frames instead of anodised/PVDF aluminum frames.

Each of these will help to a certain extent. In the end if you really crank it you will disturb neighbours in small Mumbai apartments.

Thanks a lot for the quick reply, the apartments are large and only one a floor so only worried about the vibrations esp. Due to the sub, am thinking of not installing a sub at all but am not sure how much of a loss will it be,

Main point is I don't want to ever ruin someones sleep, nor would I ever want anyone complaining about it,

Thanks again,

Good to know that you are so concerned.

You can install a Sub. At nights, you can disable it or reduce the bass with remote of the AVR (there is an option) to an acceptable limit.

Isn't it better than not having one at all? :)

Why dont you geta PS3 and the Yamaha 667/671. I have that combo and its fantastic.

as pointed out above you can disable the sub at night - but you can also get a receiver that features "night mode" capability ie this makes the surrounds less dynamic and enhances the vocals - but it makes explosions and loud bangs much less violent when enabled

as an example mine has three intensity settings and when its on high the sound is perfect for not disturbing my neighbors - but when i set it to off then the sound becomes dynamic again but obviously thats ideal for earlier times of the day when the sound wont disturb anyone else

Loss will vary as this is not an exact science (room nodes, age and construction of building is also a factor)

S350 - from 1988 to 1995 my subs consisted of a pair of JBL 2245 in the JBL B460 bass bin.

In 1995 I replaced these subs with 4 Audio Concepts DV12 woofers in two 6 cu. ft. sealed boxes. (I have always liked stereo subs)

My future subs (in about 3-6 months) will probably be from Rhythmik.
Servo subwoofers •Rythmik Audio Direct Servo subwoofers

Do not give up on the subwoofer. As long as you are not playing music at concert levels and very late at night you should not have a serious problem. Like I said isolate the subwoofer from the floor, fiberglass the doors and you will solve 50% of the issue. The rest like naughty001 said above can be solved with sensible use of the stereo's night mode.

I had the same issue - when I got my new Ayon CD-1s CD player, the bass was so deep and defined, the folks in the lower floor started complaining. I've been researching about this since a while and I believe the biggest improvement would be achieved by getting a 1 inch layer of cork on the floor with a thick carpet on top of it. This effectively damps out most of the low frequencies from reaching the lower floor.

Regards.