I am new also and I just set up the x3600h today. I mainly want to use it as a 2-channel system for music listening and 2-channel movie watching. I have a few questions. I need help determining whether I should keep this or not and if this is the right system for me.
1. So far, I set it to 11.1ch in the Speakers/Amp Assign screen. It also says Floor -Layout 5ch. The only other option for that is 5ch & SB. I have it set to "5ch." Under the Height section, I've set them all to None. Is this the right setting to fully get the cleanest sound as suggested in the review?
2. While the typical use case for this is connecting the devices to the receiver, then out to the TV, I originally was thinking that I would connect the TV's optical out to the receiver's optical input. I see a part of the review saying that coax and toslink is slightly less of a clean sound. If I'm okay with that, does the idea of taking the TV's optical out still make it close enough to the review's measurements? Or, does the TV change the quality from the multiple sources that I originally was planning to connect to it (PS4 and laptop mainly.)
3. Though I'm getting 8-ohm speakers (Revel m105), my current speakers are the Pioneer SP-BS22-LR which are 6-ohm. On the manual, it says:
- 105 W + 105 W (8 Ω/ohms, 20 Hz – 20 kHz with 0.08 % T.H.D.)
- 135 W + 135 W (6 Ω/ohms, 1 kHz with 0.7 % T.H.D.)
Am I losing quality for now (until I get the m105's) because it jumps to .7 % T.H.D. at 6 Ω/ohms instead of 0.08 % T.H.D. at 8 Ω/ohms?
I was also considering the Outlaw Audio RR2160. Their specifications says:
- 110 watts/channel (8Ω. 20Hz to 20kHz, <0.05% THD)
- 165 watts/channel (4Ω. 20Hz to 20kHz, <0.05% THD)
Would this be a higher quality receiver given the THD numbers compared to the x3600h?
4. Are there any measurements on Bluetooth, Airplay, MP3 decoding quality for these receivers? Should I stick to output from my SMSL Sanskrit 10th MK II to RCA inputs? Does it matter which one?
5. I was also considering the Outlaw Audio RR2160 because of the HD Radio and general FM radio specifications. (Sorry if the idea of FM radio is so old school and since some of the comments in this thread prefer stripping out FM/AM tuner entirely from AVR's!)
The x3600h's specs shows:
FM
(Note: μV at 75 Ω/ohms, 0 dBf = 1 x 10 –15 W)
Reception frequency range: 87.5 MHz – 107.9 MHz
Effective sensitivity: 1.2 μV (12.8 dBf)
50 dB sensitivity:
MONO ― 2.8 μV (20.2 dBf)
S/N ratio:
MONO ― 70 dB (IHF–A weighted, Direct mode)
STEREO ― 67 dB (IHF–A weighted, Direct mode)
Distortion:
MONO ― 0.7 % (1 kHz)
STEREO ― 1.0 % (1 kHz)
The Outlaw Audio RR2160 specs shows:
FM
Frequency Range: 87.5 – 108 MHz
Usable Sensitivity (IHF): 12.8dBf
S/N Ratio
Mono 75db
Stereo 70db
Stereo Distortion - 0.24%
Stereo Separation @ 19kHz - 37dB
Given these numbers, does the RR2160 make for a better tuner (ignoring the HD Radio features).
Thank you all for your help!