I don't currently have a home stereo system, and there's not really anywhere around here I can browse in person. Do you Obs have any recommendations of online stores? I'm not really looking for a high-end setup, and would actually like to play internet streams and mp3s from my media server on it - is that even doable?

Yeah, I have friend that beams Spotify to his receiver/speakers. I haven't had a home stereo set up in 5 years. I miss it. I used to have Yamaha components and Infinity bookshelf speakers. Worked for me.

It's totally possible. Would your server be close to the receiver or would you need to do it via wireless?

If I was going to buy a new receiver and wasn't gonna break the bank on some tentoze-esque high dollah tube stuff, I'd get another Onkyo like THIS one or maybe the next model up.

I guess companies now make receivers with Air Play built in, but I have an Apple TV and use Airfoil so I can push anything on my computer to my stereo.

Get one of these attachments and you can play music from your phone/ computer wirelessly through bluetooth. I have one hooked up to some decent computer speakers and it works great.

My advice is to figure out what you want to spend and what capabilities you want (for example, do you want to spin vinyl? 2-channel or some surround sound stuff? do you want a receiver / preamp that can handle many different inputs or are you okay with only one or two?), and then try to get the most bang for your buck in that price range.

This is the right answer for now. We already know that you want to stream internet radio and play your mp3's. What else, and how much do you want to spend?

I say go for something like this:

reminds me of matthew sweet's 100% fun album cover

I remember that fake wood paneling. Shit used to be Rampant.

I like how his socks match the carpeting

Mutty just give these guys the basic guidelines - budget, inputs, etc - and let them go nuts. They're animals.

I need an entire setup - receiver, speakers, cd player, turntable etc. I've been without since I gave my son my old equipment for his basement lair. I also miss it, although I don't miss having to fight for family room time with the TV watchers... and can always hang in the basement when I need to play vinyl. I mostly use my PC to play music anymore.

It starts getting expensive when I start adding up the various components. While browsing, I found this:
http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-audio-r ... =mncol;lst

It seems like something like this might be a viable option for the time being... Anyone played with digital audio receivers like this thing?

That's a 21st century clock radio. It's your call on whether or not a clock radio will satisfy you. If you want to end up with an actual stereo system (and assume that when I say that, I mean 2 channel, not surround anything), you can get a lot of quality for pretty small money these days, and you don't have to do it all at once.

I think I've found my next home theater system: Yamaha YHT-597 (with Apple AirPlay).



Now if only I could find an affordable system like this, but with wireless speakers, I would be in heaven.

What did you eventually go with?