I own a 755 and purchased the 1050 for use untill the 950 ships, but after watching other postings and hearing the 1050 I have some questions.

When I received the 755 I did not have a preamp of any type, so I pluged my CD player directly in the my new 755 and hope I wouldn't blow my speekers. Although a little loud at times it did not hurt my speekers. On the other hand, it did put out some of the best most natural sound I'v herd on any system. I was in love.

Then I ordered and received the 1050. Im happy with the sorround sound. It's as good as I expected with what I have herd about this receiver. But I can't say the same for the stereo mode. I'm so displeased with the sound comming out in stereo mode I've quit listening to CDs. Now some of what I am hearing - or not hearing - I expected. What I hear that I am concerned about is the 1050 in stereo mode sounds very shrill. Cymbals are overbearing while guitar is dull.

I am concerned about the stereo mode because I've seen posting on this site describing not great stereo sound from the 950, and I very much like to hear CDs in stereo.

My question to anyone who has or has had both units is the following;
One - how does the 1050 and 950 compare in home theater mode
Two - how do they compare in stereo mode

Thank you

Gary

Gary

I used a 1050 for something like a year and a half, maybe a little longer. For half of that time it was paired up with a Model 750. I've had my 950 (with the 750 and an older Parasound for the surround back) since early April. The difference between the two (at least to my ears, with my equipment) for stereo use was startling. The 950 is very good at home theater, as has often been noted. Personally, I was probably most impressed with the sound of my CD's (in stereo mode -- I use PL2 for TV watching and Dolby Digital 2.0 DVD's, but I run my CD player in stereo mode). Shortly after I got my 950, I remarked at least once that I had a hard time making myself try the surround modes and other sources because I really just wanted to sit down and listen to some CD's in stereo mode. Your mileage may vary, of course -- a lot depends on personal preference and component interaction, and my opinions are only opinions.

As for the 1050, I have a question. Have you tried connecting your CD player to the 5.1 direct inputs on the 1050? Using an analog connection to the CD inputs will mena that you get an A/D conversion, processing (bass management and what-not), and a D/A conversion. Using the left and right channels of the 5.1 direct inputs will cut out all of that and just give you volume control. If your CD player has particularly good DAC's, I would expect a reaction similar to yours if you stuck some extra processing in the signal path. If you've already tried this, then you're one step ahead of me.

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

Gonk

Thank you for your reply. I hadn't tried the 5.1 inputs. I did not even understand that was an option untill you told me. Thanks for the info.

I put your information to use and it helped. The shrill sound is gone and I can listen to CDs again. At the same time I'm looking forward to a 950. I'm not sure, I think my ears are a little defective -sinus infection-, but the sound isn't as transparent as I think it should be. None the less its a lot better than it was.

Thanks

Gary

I'm very satisfied with my 950's stereo performance. As Gonk noted (I guess I say that a lot) if you're using an analog output from your CD player, you want to not convert it back to digital if you can. On the 1050 that means using the 5.1 input, of which you have only one. On the 950, however, any input can be configured to work that way, or to convert to digital. This is what I do most of the time.

Sometimes I prefer the more enveloping sound that DPL-II provides, in which case I switch to the CD player's digital outputs and use the DACs in my 950.

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Matthew J. Hill
matt@idsi.net

Hey there guys,
I have owned my 1050 for about a year and a half and have thouroughly put this reciever through it's paces. What I have experienced is a marginal lack of bass response out of my mains, even when switched to 4 ohm mode. I feel that the 1050 either doesn't have good bass output, or good bass control. I came to this conclusion when compairing to a Marantz reciever with the same wattage rating as the 1050, and getting much better bass response out of my speakers, though sound quality in gereral was much better on my 1050. It was just a bass problem. As far as actual clarity, I personaly prefer using my digital input over the 5.1 input because it seems to resolve more of the audio image through the digital connection and frequency response is much higher. The digital input also seems to be a bit more forward, with a more 3-dimensional soundstage than the analog input. I personaly think that the harshness that TLRLMC mentioned could be associated with the 1050's ability to reveal the true nature of the recording being played. The 5.1 input seems to make everything I play through it come out softened a little too much for my taste. The analog does sound somewhat warmer, but this also feels as if it then rolls off highs, at the same time it does slightly expand the horizontal width of the soundstage but at the expense of halving the resolution, IMHO. All in all I would have to say that the digital input is my favored choice for stereo playback, but unfortunately I have had to resort to using my powered 15" subwoofer for music playback, when I have 4 12" woofers in my towers!

I would however like very much to know what would happen if I was to purchase the 770 (my personal choice for amp upgrade) and utilize the increased wattage. Maybe you guys could help me with this. When your 1050 was coupled with an amplifier did you get an increase in full range response? Did it only increase your volume output, meaning did it just boost volume headroom with no noticable frequency range improvement? I would very much like to boost my main speakers bass output, but do I need to look to other sources to attain that end? Don't get me wrong, I plan on staying with Outlaw, but due to the current 950 situation as well as financial issues, I am locked into staying with my 1050 for a bit longer than I had desired and would very much like to make the most of it. Thanks for your time guys.

Jeremy,
This is as close to helpful as I can be on this topic:
I had a Harman Kardon AVR 55 AC3 receiver. Wasn't bad, although now, it's very outdated. It was rated at 55 watts per channel, and was a "high currrent" design. I have tremendously efficient speakers (Klipsch). My friends all thought the system cranked (and sounded good), but I felt it was lacking.
Enter the amplifier !!
Huge difference, especially in the bottom end.
Some of this is going to have to do with your speakers. Some are better at reproducing lower frequencies than others. Klipsch aren't really known for their bottom end, but a seperate amp made all the difference to me.
I know that this doesn't speak about the 1050, but the H/K was comparable (+/-), and I know the 1050 is better.
Bottom line ??...
Try an amp.

Thanks a ton for your reply! I was leaning in that direction but that is the type of information that I needed to address my dilema and help me make the decision in purchasing the 770 amplifier. Now it's just a matter of MONEY!! I guess I could start selling stuff again ! Oh well, back to the old grindstone. Thanks again, EFSIII!

-Jeremy

The 755 amplifier will save you some money and you can continue to use one of the 1050's built-in amplifier channels for the center rear.

It may also save your back.

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Matthew J. Hill
matt@idsi.net

Yeah, it is a little cheaper and lighter, even though movin' heavy equiptment is a daily thing for me But I am planning on going totally 7 channel in my next setup and would rather save up a little more money and get the 770, instead of getting the 755 and having to sell it and upgrade to the 770, or substitute it with another monoblock amplifier. Thanks for the advice though, it is greatly appreciated.