The guys will have no idea what I am using. my gear is in the back of the theater behind both row of seats. I will just ask them which one was the better experience. Only a couple of them can pick up on little things. I am thinking that the meridian is better than the 990 but the Gemstone maybe better than the ADA(big maybe)so that might make up the difference. I will see. I will replace my 861 with something, the list is Meridian 568.2, krell hts 7.1, outlaw 990, or the emotiva. I need xlr connections.

I just found out that the dealer cost of a krell is $5000. Sorry about the $3500 quote before. I misunderstood him the first time. I am thinking of going with an Emotiva DMC-1. Any thoughts?

The DMC-1 (a rebadged Sunfire) is a good piece of gear, and like the other prominent online companies (Outlaw, SVS, Axiom, OPPO, ...), AV123's customer service is pretty solid. You can see from my SSP Chart how it compares to the 990 from a feature standpoint (the 990 has an edge in that regard). Some folks prefer the DMC-1's sound (although I get the impression it's not by a wide margin), while there have also been a couple folks drop by this forum who passed on it because they didn't like the Sunfire sound.

I am officially down to 3. The outlaw 990, DMC-1, and the Krell showcase. I really don't know what to try. I can't make a move until I sell my Meridian. I thought I was done with this stuff. I appreciate all the advice. I know each owner will have their biased opinions. Are their any inexpensive processors that are truley modular? I love the concept of just sliding out a board and replace it with a new one. I know of Theta and Meridian. Any others?

Modular's always been pretty much restricted to the higher price bracket. Integra's RDC-7.1 is modular, but I don't know that $5,500 is the price range you're looking for.

I recently added the Anthem AVM30 to my HT to replace the Boston Acoustics AVP7 which replaced the 990 which replaced the Yammy 2500. I also added an Emotiva MPS-1 which replaced the BA A7200 which replaced the Outlaw 755 which replaced the Yammy's internal amps.

There was a large difference between the 2500 (when used as a pre/pro only) and the 990 in favor of the 990, a very slight difference I felt in favor of the AVP7 over the 990 (not surprising as they are both built on the same platform), and again a large difference between the AVM30 and the AVP7 favoring the AVM30. This shouldn't be all that surprising when the pricing of these units is examined except for the closeout pricing on the AVP7.

I am very happy with the AVM30 and am no longer even thinking about the audio, just enjoying it. My only upgrade in the area of the processor will be to have the AVM30 upgraded to an AVM50 when the upgrade is available...and when I can afford it... ouch! I think I could actually live with the audio quality of the AVM30 for a long time. The Anthem has excellent sound and more extensive setup options than todays most complex receivers; to ME, this was the best of both worlds.

The MPS-1 is very open and sounds amazing. Channel separation is astounding! It is also a piece of art and truly glorious to look at. I have not tried hooking the Outlaw 755 I still have to the AVM30 yet but may try to do so before selling it to see how it fares as I have compared the 755 and the MPS-1 hooked to the same processor in my setup.

The AVM30/MPS-1 is the best sounding combination of gear I (stressing this is my opinion here) have heard in my HT thus far and I doubt I will ever hear anything better in my room as this was pushing my budget as it was. I'm stopping with this as I no longer feel I'm missing anything now...and if I still am I don't want to know about it...ignorance is bliss!

Of course I still have to figure out what I am going to power zones 2, 3, and 4 with I wish more companies were still making two channel amps. The selection here has really died off in recent years. Maybe I should just use the 755 for two of these zones...I don't know but that seems like overkill to me.

I would be curious to hear your comparison of the Meridian gear to the 990 as I have of course heard excellent things about Meridian. Then again, that may just get me in trouble again.

If I was smart, I would avoid all these forums and enjoy what I have and not look back. I do enjoy comparing different gear though and replacing pieces from time to time. To me it's a part of the hobby of HT.

Peace!

Wow. I am glad I saw your post.. I am considering an AVM 50 or D2 to replace my Sherwood P-965 ( similar to 990) and I was wondering how they might compare.

WOW !!! That's a hell of a ride !
I have a friend who owns a AVM30/PVA-7 set-up
I must admit...it sounds incredible...
audio capabalities appear endless if you keep adding power amps...
but the video switching inabilities...seem like a major drawback for that kind of cash
Do you know the cost of the upgrade to AVM50 ?
Does the AVM50 have the same video switching abilities of the D2 ?
probably a 4 digit $ upgrade on top of the original cost...
Ouch!!! there's no free lunch...
and only one life to live...

Wingnut,

Not to be rude...but there is no comparison between the AVP7 (exact clone of the P965 as far as I know) and the AVM30. The Anthem is simply incredible. If I had to give a percentage of the AVM30's sound quality performance achieved by the AVP7, I would say the AVP7 gives about 65% of the AVM30's performance on movies and about 60% on audio. Details are abundant with the Anthem and and bass is integrated excellently.

Feature-wise there is also no comparison. The AVM30 has things like channel levels memorized by each surround mode, THX processing(highly adjustable as well), you can set the decoding mode for each type of surround format on every different source input, menu is accessable via OSD and the front panel of the unit, two separate speaker configs (one for movies, one for music), etc.

The downside is the cost of the unit compared to the 990, AVP7, P965, etc.


Laventura,

The video switching capabilities are another downside of the AVM30 right now. However, for MY setup the only DVI/HDMI source I have is the Oppo971 and it is connected directly to my SP4805 projector. Everything else is fed via component or S-video (Laserdisc is still hanging in there) and ran through the Anthem.

Anthem is still working on the upgrade for the AVM30 to an AVM50 and thinks they will have it completed in the next 6 months or so. I believe the only major differences between the AVM50 (or upgraded AVM30) and the D2 is that the D2 has upsampling for all channels, DTS 24/96, and dual DSP engines. The cost of the upgrade should be around $1700 (the original price difference between buying the AVM30 or AVM50). It's definately not cheap.

I am wondering how the Gennum scaler in the upgrade would do with the component and S-video from all my sources. From what I have heard and read about the Gennum scaler, probably pretty darn good.

I'm in no hurry though for the upgrade as I need to recover from the AVM30 purchase and don't have more than one source to connect via HDMI right now anyhow.

Doug
The major drawback of the video switching on the AVM30 is that you have to run all your video cables to your display...pretty minimal...
win some, lose some
NO no-audio stuff on the AVM30 ...
and if previous Anthem products are any testimony...
the upgrade should be nothing but stellar ...
but I must confess...that in my small living room...WITHOUT all the tweaks, the certifications, versatility, power and so on...
but let's not forget the kilobucks $$$

my 1070 paired with my powered sub deliver the goods...loud and clear when needed...
Music in stéréo is simple BLISS
The needle-squirting melons in Aeon flux (chapter 4) are everywhere...
I duck everytime...
and if aesthetics are anything...
16 Knobs&Buttons total on the front panel...
give me the ''wet eye'' and...
Life IS good...