Upgrade from Pioneer SC-27 to...???

[ser_renely]

Upgrade musings...

I have had my Pioneer SC-27 (Class D iceamp) for a long while and am starting to think about upgrading it. I have been out of the AVR game a long while.

Currently I have a 3.0 system with B&W cm10 s2 speakers and matching center.

Sadly no surround currently but would love to add some small speakers, wireless if even possible. Horrible room layout :-\ Forgone a sub since I have towers, it helps mitigate, slightly.

I am probably split between music, movies/tv and gaming usage.

I am curious since my pioneer is a class D amp and it seems like almost all AVRs are A/B amps what sort of change that would bring to my sound, obviously each brand would have its own sound.

Budget is pretty open, I can go any direction looking at all the main brands... I love deals. I get super annoyed at how much video hmdi changes in such a short time period forcing an upgrade...obviously I have withstood that temptation, since I don't run video through the AVR. E.g my tv is 144hz all AVRs are only 120, it seems.

Since I have just a 3.0 system my gut sort of tells me there is little point in upgrading the AVR and possibly focus more on very small surround speakers- which I know nothing about, other than I use to be told to not bother.

Thanks all

 

[AnalogSteph]

Currently I have a 3.0 system with B&W cm10 s2 speakers and matching center.

Which center exactly, the CM Centre S2 (2-way MTM) or the Centre 2 S2 (bigger 3-way)?

Sadly no surround currently but would love to add some small speakers, wireless if even possible. Horrible room layout :-\

Wireless speakers would have power amps of their own, so you'd only be going through the pre-outs on the SC-27 then. With any digital system, additional delay introduced (I'd estimate 1-5 ms) may be an issue, although the AVR should be able to compensate. Take note of what frequency range it uses, ideally you don't want it shared with anything else (like 2.4 GHz).

The fact that even Linus "Tech Tips" Sabastian has gone back to wired speakers should tell you a thing or two about the pitfalls of wireless speakers in a surround system. (It's all a much different story if you're streaming to them over your regular network, without involving an AVR.) You could consider routing (white) speaker cable to the ceiling (cable channels FTW) and letting it come down wherever you need it.

Anyway, how small is small, how far away would those be and what kind of budget are we talking about? None of your components would have been cheap in their day, even if the B&Ws seem to have sorta wonky dispersion anyway (though I suppose they'd be quite alright with the 2 kHz dip EQ'd out).

I am curious since my pioneer is a class D amp and it seems like almost all AVRs are A/B amps what sort of change that would bring to my sound,

As little as possible, hopefully.

Since I have just a 3.0 system my gut sort of tells me there is little point in upgrading the AVR and possibly focus more on very small surround speakers- which I know nothing about, other than I use to be told to not bother.

I mean... would Genelec G Twos qualify as small enough?

 

[ser_renely]

Thanks for the reply.

I actually have the smaller center... Didn't realize their was a larger one, bah.

Yeah, so after searching around with Doctor Google, wireless is still pretty pointless, since power is also needed. So scrap that obviously. I will have to run some thin flat speaker wire under the rug, not sure why I didn't think of that before.

The issue will be where to place which ever speakers...my setup is pretty tight and almost every wall has an issue from putting up two surrounds. I just started to look at speaker options that would work and be compatible with my significant other; I will have to get some white speakers that look good and do some wire hiding... I can't really cut into the walls :| Surround speaker placement is ultimately where I just give up, nothing seems to work for more than one speaker unless they are up high. Setup, below. I can't put the TV at the fireplace, it just doesn't work for the house layout. Otherwise it would be an easy room fix.

Significant other would be ok with these

MartinLogan Motion® MP10 (Satin White)

Surround speaker

www.crutchfield.com

more than I want to spend, but this style could work for on the wall if smaller

DALI Opticon LCR MK2 (Satin White)

On-wall speaker for music or home theater

www.crutchfield.com

I could place these behind the couch on the large window sill, but right near ears.
https://www.svsound.com/products/ultra-elevation

on a stand may be the best option small like this?

One moment, please...

Just leaves me to unsure of what to do and if it doesn't look decent, it won't fly.

 

[amirm]

I have had my Pioneer SC-27 (Class D iceamp) for a long while and am starting to think about upgrading it.

Good idea because that series has a TI DSP that goes bad, causing random errors and eventually, fully muting the unit. There was a recall and replacement for that board years ago but that has expired. I went though Pioneer support and they sold me a newer unit at basically dealer cost. Alas, performance of that was poor: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...d-measurements-of-pioneer-vsx-lx504-avr.8862/

I highly recommend Denon AVRs which is what I replaced mine with. The 3800 or whatever the latest version is would be a good choice.

 

[ser_renely]

Good idea because that series has a TI DSP that goes bad, causing random errors and eventually, fully muting the unit. There was a recall and replacement for that board years ago but that has expired. I went though Pioneer support and they sold me a newer unit at basically dealer cost. Alas, performance of that was poor: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...d-measurements-of-pioneer-vsx-lx504-avr.8862/

I highly recommend Denon AVRs which is what I replaced mine with. The 3800 or whatever the latest version is would be a good choice.

Thanks. I think I have decided to run the SC 27 to EOL, at this point and focus on somehow putting up surrounds and then adding in a woofer.

 

[AnalogSteph]

Definitely get said TI DSP a heatsink (affixed with some thermal glue) in that case.

 

[ser_renely]

any guides on that, just to give a ballpark of where in the unit?

 

[AnalogSteph]

any guides on that, just to give a ballpark of where in the unit?

Look for the HDMI board.

 

[ser_renely]

ty!

 

[ser_renely]

So I went a bit hog wild... I upgraded to a 65 inch G4, picked up an SVS sb-2000 pro and got 2 ORB audio speakers for the back.

I will put the speakers in the window sill temporarily and then move to speaker stands or mount on wall or above window on the couch after we have them.

I figured I just needed to get them at home to figure out how to make it all work and be spouse approved. If the speakers don't cut it as surrounds, I can return them.