I don't think Yamaha made their own DSP processors and it is hard to imagine D,M,O and others would go with less powerful ones to save cost either. So with the ever increasingly more powerful processors, manufacturers are probably just too lazy or didn't feel there is a need to change their design when they know/think there is no gain in doing so, plus they know full well the vast majority of their potential customers don't know or care much about whether the REQ software down samples or not. They don't tell you anyway in their marketing information. Even Yamaha, you think they would highlight their YPAO could run on loss less files without down sampling to 48 kHz on their website, but they wouldn't bother, unless I missed something..
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Onkyo TX-RZ50 Review (Home Theater AVR)
- Thread starter amirm
- Start date
I don't think Yamaha made their own DSP processors and it is hard to imagine D,M,O and others would go with less powerful ones to save cost either. So with the ever increasingly more powerful processors, manufacturers are probably just too lazy or didn't feel there is a need to change their design when they know/think there is no gain in doing so, plus they know full well the vast majority of their potential customers don't know or care much about whether the REQ software down samples or not. They don't tell you anyway in their marketing information. Even Yamaha, you think they would highlight their YPAO could run on loss less files without down sampling to 48 kHz on their website, but they wouldn't bother, unless I missed something..
I have a previous generation TX-RZ830 with the same front button setup. I've learned to count the buttons from left to right and remember which button chooses which source. What bothers me physically is how the feet are so far apart compared to other brands. This makes a tight fit on my shelving when coupled with the receiver's oversized height. BTW this receiver weighs the same as the new TX-RZ50.
The ASR SINAD comparison chart can easily lead someone to believe one unit is better than another. But, as I use many of these different AVR's, DAC's and amps it's evident SINAD is simply one factor and can't be used reliably as a measuring stick for value/quality. Usability, remote functionality, listening tests and overall feature set will determine my favorite. Most times, my favorite device is not at the top of the ASR chart. You don't realize the many factors not considered in ASR reviews until trying several devices. That process can be expensive and time consuming so many never get to that realization.
The same applies to speaker scores posted on ASR. I initially thought the ASR speaker scores would point me to the best speaker. Unfortunately, after buying based on ASR speaker ratings I found that assumption was a big mistake. You really need to compare the speakers yourself before assigning value and some of the best speakers are not even in the ASR speaker index. Bottom line, ASR is a great service but I can't depend on SINAD or Speaker scores to lead me to the best product. It's not that easy. In house comparison testing is required to find the best audio gear for your use. There is no shortcut.
the Emotiva RMC-1 would be one of those examples. Pretty nice SINAD but I would not want to use that prepro because of its buggyness.
markus
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NAD, HTP-1.
Are you serious? I was asking for measurements not for fancy stories.
Possibly the reason they can’t do that is each software module is bought in or use libraries they have little or no control. Very few AVRs, if any, have full control of, let alone own their source code.
Agreed, that one chart clearly ranks by SINAD only. It's up to the reader to read the full test before making the choice. I would think 99% of the readers know that, evident by their final choices.
Do you have experience with Cirrus 497xx/498xx or the AD Griffin or equivalents in AVRs? If you aren’t familiar with their limitations I’m not sure you can say it’s easy. It’s obviously easy to switch coefficients but there is much more to it than that. If they could give you the same filter responses with all these channels at higher sample rates, then why would they be using 48 kHz? You might think they are lazy, but unless you are intimately familiar with the parts I don’t think it’s fair to say. It’s easy on paper but who knows what bugs or limitations the chips or vendor SDKs have.
Maybe Onkyo/Pioneer are incompetent or the product is rushed, but their competitors don’t do much better.
I agree with you on the marketing ambiguity or dishonesty.
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DonR
Major Contributor
Cirrus CS497XX has been around for over a decade now. We can do better.
It’s always easy until you’re the one doing it, yes. It’s a $1400 box with an absolute ton of features. There are more expensive 2 channel DACs reviewed here. This is like complaining about the quality of steak at a cheap all-you-can-eat buffet.
My point was that unless you’ve used that chip you really can’t speak to if it’s easy or not. I’ve been burned many times by poorly documented limitations and errata.
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Well it's not like DACs are easy to suppky right now. Then again: it might measure better but the audible difference will be zero.
DonR
Major Contributor
We should be on to the next-gen of devices by now. I get that the AVR industry operates on razor-thin margins and thus moves at a glacial pace but they managed to adopt the latest HDMI standards so should be able to move forward with audio as well. Maybe it's just too small a market for DSP developers to create updated products for.
Those HDMI chips are most often highly integrated. Development effort wise, it’s probably a lot less work than all that audio crap.
OP
- Thread Starter
- #137
I didn't try since that test keeps pushing the amp to near clipping which would cause power limiting.
They did and integrated dirac. Worth more than the discussion about SINAD.
Omg. Please stop gaslighting me. It's pretty straightforward to tell when the bass is rattling the upstairs with one AVR and it's not with the othe at the same measured spl. Are you suggesting somehow that my family and I a sharing a delusion together? I can measure SPL. You can also choose to ignore me.
