First Venture in HT

Despite you're considering dumping your Naim amp I'd recommend you get a 3 channel Yamaha DSP-E800 and use your existing Naim amp. For serious sound quality up front. Where it really matters! Unfortunately the E800 has been discontinued. So you will have to find a used one.

Kans are rather too small for AV use and don't have the dynamics to make you jump when you should. I don't even like my own Kans for rear surrounds! They die at 120Hz and you need at least 80Hz up front to allow the sub to take over seamlessly without false locatory information dragging your attention away from the plot.

My main speakers are only starting to fall off at 40 Hz and I still prefer them set to large even with a huge & powerful American (SVS) sub. I'm still looking for better "rears" that can reach at least 80Hz.

You ought to consider an SVS sub as they are (proudly) manufactured in the USA. So the prices are seriously competitive against dealer's prices for alternative, inferior products. Just browse for SVS.

But I'm sure other (equally valid) opinions will be along soon.

Nime

I had a Yamaha DSP-E800 for a couple of years on my Naim 72/140 and it's a good little processor. However, it is getting pretty long in the tooth nowadays and as you can find it difficult to get new, the prices do stil hold up.

I'd suggest that you look instead at one of the more modern receivers, say a Denon 2805. And check that it has line level outputs for the front l/r. People tend to forget that you can run processed line level from a receiver and still use the power amps in it to run center and rear.

This gives you the advantages of a newer decoder, without the drawbacks of the DSP-E800.

Roy.

Thanks for the info. I guess I never realized I could keep the Nait 2 in the front. How would this specifically be setup? I assume then that the Nait 2 would power the Kans all the time and the volume would have to be adjusted with the Nait. If this is the case, then perhaps getting the Nait 5i would make the most sense then because of the remote volume control.

Also Nime, which speakers do you have for the front? Your explanation of the 120Hz drop off of the Kans possible causing a problem with a subwoofer makes sense.

The natural bass roll-off of the Kans is so high that a sub rolling-in at the same frequency would have far too much locatory information. You'd need two subs. One located beside each Kan. Two widely seperated subs have a poor reputation. First the difficulty of setting up to match the main speakers.(calibration) Then the reinforcement and cancellation effects in smaller rooms are most unlikely to give a smooth bass response.

With a processor (like the E800) or multi-channel AV amp feeding your stereo amp (for the front main speakers) you would use the volume control on the the processor or AV amp. (All have remotes) The Naim amp volume control would be typically set to 12 o'clock and simply left like that for AV.

The subwoofer could be fed from the AV amp's "Sub-out" or "LFE" phono socket. Or it could be fed from the same speaker sockets (or terminals) that connect your front main speakers to your amp.

Regarding Roy's comment on the age of the E800 I have bypassed the E800's processor and use my more modern DVD player as the processor. The E800 then just drives the rear and centre speaker and supplies the line level (front speaker) signal to my NAC72 pre-amp.

I hadn't intended to get into all these details. I claim no real expertise in multi-channel AV.

I simply wanted to point out that I thought the Kans were a poor choice for AV use IMHO and experience. And to introduce the idea of using a Naim amp to drive the vital front main speakers.

I'm using Mission 753F (discontinued floorstanding speakers with a sub-40Hz bass roll off) My Naim 72/180 amps have proved to offer excellent sound quality on film. (and music of course)

You may find that driving your main speakers with an AV amp is almost unlistenable on music after being spoiled by your Naim amp. Oddly, many films have musical backgrounds. Which is why I suggested the E800 and keeping your Naim.

I have no doubt there are recommendations from happy AV amp owners just waiting in the wings.
The question is whether you can put together a complete AV system, you can live with, without spending a lot more money.

Nime

I am now finally going to move toward surround sound.

The Yamaha DSP-E800 is dirt cheap on ebay, but perhaps a more modern processor with line out for the front channels makes the most sense.

Is there a newer model than the E800 or another manufacturer that I could incorporate with the Nait 2? It doesn't sound like the Kans will be worth keeping for either the front or the rear.

Also, I would appreciate recommendations for second hand Kan replacements. Would it be possible to use the Nait 2 with the Mission 773e that has a 30db bass roll off? or perhaps Spendor S5e? Also, if the 120hz roll off the Kans would possible cause problems with a subwoofer, what is the minimum roll off I should be looking for?

Thanks again for you help!

Nime

What specifically do you not like about Kans for the rear? Do any small speaker do bass at the level you would like?

Richard

I think going with one of the new Denon AVRs makes the most sense for an inexpensive processor and amplification to drive the center and rears.

Denon are pretty good. Pioneer and Sony are also good. In fact anything with a Japanese name on it (does'nt mean it was made in Japan though) is pretty good VFM for normal domestic usuage.
When it comes to buying look for the ones that offer automatic setup using a microphone. They are not perfect but they do a pretty good job of getting all the channels balanced for you.

If you did decide to invest in a Nait5i (or X if you think you might like to add a power supply one day) you will have an A/V input which can be set to unity gain, so the volume control on the A/V kit controls all channel volumes, which is nice. On your Nait 2 you don't have that so you will have to make final volume adjustments for the front stereo pair on the Nait, but as Nime suggests if you pick a volume pot setting it is easy to get repeatably (like 9.00 or 12.00) then setup the other channels to fit with that volume setting, it will be easy enough to return to.

regards
GEOFF

Thanks for the info. I actually am considering upgrading to a Nait 5i so that gives me additional reason to do so.