urgent, wanna buy tommorrow....or not

I had wanted the obvious choice, the yam 1400. I can`t afford it now. I have to stay in the $500 range. Choices I have researched are htr5660 or sony strde995. I may be able to go to $600. Lookin for music mostly want to get to HT. Ability to add an amp would be big cause I like to feel my sound. Options would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Save up for what you want. You may regert it later.

Markw gives excellent advice...
But of the two options you've given, the HTR5660 is far superior IMO...I'm not a fan of anything that posts specs of:
100W x 7 (8 ohms 20 Hz-20kHz, THD 1.09%)
That would just scare me.
The yamaha will deliver clean, dynamic power. I think most here would agree that 85 watt Yamaha receivers will top any 100 or 110 watt Sony receivers for sound quality and true power. I doubt the Sony's power supply could deliver that much juice for an extended period of time.
The 5660 is an excellent receiver.

Smarter to wait for the 1400, but if you can't(know I could'nt) the Yammy is far better.

maybe you can find a left over rxv1300.

Right now you can pick up the RX-X740 for $499 or the RX-V640 for $399. (Those prices are $100 of retail. Have to go to store as these are not listed on their webpage.) The people at Secrets of Home Theater reviewed the RX-V640 favoribly for its price. I'd check it out.

I just purchased this receiver 2 months ago to replace my Carver 885.1 and it has everything you will ever need in a receiver and it is only $349 at www.etronics.com

went to best buy first to look at the yam 5660, they also had the 5590 for 650. Went across the street to Ultimate and they had an RXV2300 floor model for 699. Told him I`d take it and he came back with a new one and knocked the price down to 630. I think I`m happy.

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Originally Posted by kexodusc

Markw gives excellent advice...
But of the two options you've given, the HTR5660 is far superior IMO...I'm not a fan of anything that posts specs of:
100W x 7 (8 ohms 20 Hz-20kHz, THD 1.09%)
That would just scare me.
The yamaha will deliver clean, dynamic power. I think most here would agree that 85 watt Yamaha receivers will top any 100 or 110 watt Sony receivers for sound quality and true power. I doubt the Sony's power supply could deliver that much juice for an extended period of time.
The 5660 is an excellent receiver.

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.......What Kexoducs says about yamaha compared to sony to do with power is true. I would hold out for the 1400.........Zapr.

FYI. I owned two sony ES receivers in the past two years. 1 of them had to be serviced (under warranty) 4 times AND sent to Sony for service. Also the other ES receiver I bought had a hiss issue. You may want to stay away from sony.

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Originally Posted by chimera128

FYI. I owned two sony ES receivers in the past two years. 1 of them had to be serviced (under warranty) 4 times AND sent to Sony for service. Also the other ES receiver I bought had a hiss issue. You may want to stay away from sony.

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To be perfectly fair, though I've never owned a Sony receiver, I know many people that have. They are decent products and perform reasonably well at what they are designed to do.
For the higher quality, better performing receivers (Yamaha, Denon, Marantz, etc) you usually pay a premium. To some this is worthwhile, to others it's not.
The only problem I have with Sony is that they often overcharge for their products, or mislead customers into believing that Sony receivers compete with Yamaha and Marantz (usually by artificially inflating the Watts/channel).
That said, the other brands all do the same thing, try pass off their "mid-level" receivers as higher end equipment. To achieve that, once again you'll usually have to pay a premium.
First decide your needs, wants, and then your budget. Then get the most that you can for it and be happy.