THX receivers are they worth it?

[EM3]

Are THX receivers worth it or will a 5.1 setup do me just fine? Also, what companies make them and how expensive are they?

[Wirehed]

Here's the current discussion about THX.

http://www.dvdfile.com/interactive/f...threadid=25038


THX means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. There is certainly nothing bad about it, what quality it actually adds on the other hand is debatable.

[chlngr1970]

Well, the THX post processing does make it easier to listen at higher volumes. The THX certification process does seem to hold manufactures to a certain quality standard.

Would I hold out on a good 5/7.1 receiver just because it wasn't THX certified? No, but it could be a deciding factor with two units at about the same price point.

j

[palebluedot]

IMHO, you're paying extra bucks for a receiver that you can tell all your friends George Lucas would like. George Lucas also has enough money to finance his own multimillion dollar films. The manufacturer has to pay licensing fees to THX, much like movie theaters have to pay to get their theatres THX certified.

I work for a movie theatre and we have one THX certified auditorium. Theatres pay thousands of dollars to have a guy come out and take a few mesaurments and if you pass, you get the privilidge of having a little Plaque on your wall and a few nifty little THX trailers. Mechanically speaking, there isn't a single difference between that auditorium and the other auditoriums, except for the little sign and the little trailers before the movie. Same sound equipment, same auditorium design, same same same. Oh, I'm sorry, they add a little bass management crossover to your system that has a niftly little THX logo on it. Can you hear a difference? no. Is it better built equipment? No...because it's the exact same equipment, made by the exact same people.

The truth is, all of our theatres could qualify for THX certification. But we're not going to pay thousands and thousands more to have the nifty little logo and trailers. Same, I believe goes for audio equipment for the home. I'm sure most high-end audio equipment with or without the little logo, if tested, would meet THX's set of standards. But to me, it has no more bearing than ISO9000 or Underwriter Laboratories. It means, "we paid someone to tell us our stuff is ok...now we're passing the cost on to you...plus a little something extra since we know most of you will pay more for more fancy little logos on your stuff."

[jonathan_little]

Palebluedot, thanks for confirming what I always thought about THX. The problem is, they're going to stay in business because most people don't know any better. People will demand THX because they think it sounds or looks better. I think it falls in the category with the super-hyped and well advertised Bose products.

[Jellodyne]

To be fair THX is, at the very least, a guantee that the product isn't total shit. Bose, on the other hand...

[Chromy]

Receivers/Pre-Pros are different than amplifiers, speakers, dvd players, cables, etc... in the THX world. In this case, there is no additional processing, the THX logo just has a performance "stamp of approval" on it. If you do your homework on these units, you can get better value out of non-THX certified components. Nothing else in my system is THX certified, and that is the reason.

To say that the THX logo "has no more bearing than ISO9000 or Underwriter Laboratories" may be true on some components but is dismissive and incorrect when you are talking about a receiver. The question then becomes "Does the THX processing sound better to YOU?". If it does, then happy day! If not, then happy day!

There are plenty of good quality gear out there with both the THX logo and without. I would guess that there is more "crap" out there without the THX logo than with though But, as has been stated above, you pay for not doing you homework.

Chromy

[tomdkat]

Originally posted by jonathan_little
Palebluedot, thanks for confirming what I always thought about THX. The problem is, they're going to stay in business because most people don't know any better. People will demand THX because they think it sounds or looks better. I think it falls in the category with the super-hyped and well advertised Bose products.

Actually, the picture that palebluedot "painted" isn't as "bad" as it really sounds. The key here is this statement:

The truth is, all of our theatres could qualify for THX certification.

So, this basically means the theatres he's speaking of already have good to great audio equipment, so they don't have a need for THX certification since they already have "good gear".

Can this statement be made for ALL theaters? Probably not.... Could some theaters use the THX certification process or requirements, at the very least, to determine what kind of "better" audio gear they should acquire? Probably.

I don't see how having great A/V gear that is NOT THX certifiied has any bearing on THX certification at all.

That and everything Chromy wrote....

Peace.....