denon receiver

Denon AVR-685S 6.1 Channel Surround Sound Home Theater Receiver

2010-03-12T08:14:00.001-08:00

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Dolby Digial Surround EX decoding, including Dolby Pro Logic IIx Cinema, Music and Game modes * DTS Decoding, including DTS 96/24 5.1 for DVD-Video, DTS ES Discrete 6.1, ES Matrix 6.1, and Neo:6 Cinema & Music modes * Analog Devices Melody 100 32 bit DSP processor * Analog Devices 24 bit, 192kHz DACs * 6 channels equal power amplifier section * 75 watts per channel ( 8 ohms, 20 - 20kHz, <0.08% THD) * Variable low/high pass crossover * Assignable Ultra Wideband (100 MHz) component video switching * Video Conversion to Component * Discrete Multi-room, Multi-source Audio outputs * GloKey pre-programmed Remote Control * Silver Finish Only
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Technical Details

- 6.1-channel audio/video receiver with high-bandwidth AV inputs and switching
- 75 watts per channel x 6 (into 8 ohms, 20 to 20,000 Hz); 110 wpc x 6 (into 6 ohms at 1 kHz)
- Processes all major surround formats, including Dolby Digital EX, Dolby Pro Logic IIx, and DTS ES Discrete 6.1, DTS Neo:6, more
- Assignable component-video inputs with 100 MHz bandwidth; video conversion of composite- to S-video and/or to component-video
- Measures 17.1 x 5.8 x 16.4 inches (W x H x D)
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"A great bargain..." 2005-10-13
By Kyle Zwiep
[..]The receiver plays back a wonderful spectrum of sound, and the 32-bit processor is fabulous. The highs are perfectly clear--yet non-obtrusive--and with this receiver I was finally able to get rid of "tinny" or overly "bright" sound in my highs...it's a totally warm sound. If sound matters to you, you cannot go wrong with a Denon, this product is a fantastic value...Go for it!!

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Onkyo TX-SR806 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)

2010-03-11T05:25:00.001-08:00

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130 watts per channel into 8 ohms (20-20,000 Hz) at 0.08% THD * THX Ultra2 Plus certification * new THX listening modes for optimized surround sound at any listening level * Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS-HD High Resolution Audio, THX Surround EX®, Dolby Digital EX, DTS-ES, Pro Logic® IIx, and DTS Neo:6 decoding * XM Satellite Radio Ready (requires XM subscription and optional XM Mini-Tuner package) * SIRIUS satellite radio capable (requires SIRIUS subscription and optional SiriusConnect home tuner kit) * 1080p-compatible HDMI digital video switching (5 in, 1 out) * 1080p video upconversion with Faroudja DCDi Cinema Enhancement for all non-HD sources (upconverted video available through HDMI output only) * 7.1-channel analog audio preamp output *
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Technical Details

- 130 W/Ch Minimum into 8 Ohms, 20 Hz¿20 kHz, 0.08%, 2 Channels Driven, FTC
- THX Ultra2 Plus Certified
- HDMI Audio and Video Processing (1080p; 5 Inputs and 1 Output)
- Push-Pull Amplifier Design with 3-Stage Inverted Darlington Circuitry
- XM Satellite Radio and SIRIUS Satellite Radio Connectivity
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"Great bang for the buck - great receiver" 2010-03-09
By eric keith (sacramento, ca United States)
I hope this review can be of help to others. I guess I am a dinosaur, but my first concern with a receiver is the sound - after all, the main function of a receiver is the ability to reproduce the audio. Today, it seems as though a lot of emphasis is placed on video switching and video signal processing. In these areas, I cannot comment on the Onkyo's performance, as I do not use these features. I put all HDMI outputs directly into my tv, and use digital l(optical, or coax) to the receiver. I have been told that "true" HD can only be utilized through HDMI, as there is no compression in the audio. However, I cannot hear any "compression". I would suggest to anyone to try Master and Commander.... The cannon are right in your living room.

Now on to the audio of this receiver. It has tremendous power and frequency range, and decodes Dolby Digital without a hitch. I am pleased with the clarity and separation of all channels. I find the "all channel stereo" quite nice effect.

It has a lot of nice features, such as re-naming inputs, input level adjustments - makes all sources have same relative volume when switching between sources, assignable digital inputs,straight forward manual speaker setup, a digital equalizer that can be independently set for individual speakers, etc., etc.

I tried a Yamaha receiver ($1400 OTD), and returned it.

One thought is that the modern receivers are touted with all this power output (980 watts in the case of the Yamaha), but have lesser input power (about 620 watts for the Yamaha) cannot produce the stated power to ALL channels ALL the time. Therefore, the power ratings are not truly factual. The heart of a receiver is it's power supply - and that includes (usually) a massive transformer. Any receiver that has a rated "input" of say, 600 watts, can only provide a little under 600 watts continuous. The Yamaha weighed in at a mere 27 pounds, and my Onkyo is a hefty 39 pounds. Most of the additional weight is the transformer - power supply. Although it may sound funny, look to the weight of a receiver - which is in direct proportion to the weight of the power supply. This is where Onkyo shines - usually very conservatively rating their receivers.

The only downfall I have found on this receiver, was the "Audyssey" setup - it did not recognize my rear speakers properly, and I didn't care for the EQ that it decided was needed. But the manual setup is straight forward and quite flexible, and as sound is a very personal experience, and no microphone will ever match what you want your ears to hear.

"Onkyo TX-SR806 7.1 Home Theater Receiver" 2010-02-25
By JCM-
The Onkyo TX-SR806 is a pleasure to own. The state of the art features minimize cabling and simplifies usage for the different functions of a home theater. It has been a little over a year since we purchased the unit, but we wanted the time to give a more accurate assessment of the unit.

"onkyo is excellent value for your dollar" 2010-01-13
By large and in charge (planet, earth)
nice receiver. wish i could afford premium speakers to complement how good it sounds. using old speakers from the onkyo 5100 home theater in a box. not bad, but not great either. anyways, if you're looking for a good receiver, at least buy a 600 series. if your budget allows look at the higher series. more features and more watts per channel.

"Great clarity with controled super power" 2009-12-04
By L. Szu Tao (San Jose, CA United States)
Took me a while to figure out how to set my BD player to output Dolby T-HD and DTS HD. But I must say even before that, the sound was great and lots of power while controlled and well behaved.

The HD formats have superb clarity, you can heard almost the smallest detail unheard of before in DD and DTS.

It is slightly more powerful than my 110W Yamaha 6.1 amp before, upscaling is very good and the picture looks very good on my 120Hz tv. So far I have tried my BD, DVR, portable dvd, and laser disc player on it. All upscale without a problem.

I do not have the heat problem which some other people noticed.

The only draw back for me, is sometimes I want to just use the speaker on my TV for say BD player, and not turn on my amp, right now there is no way to do that, even with the pass through HDMI feature - turn on TV audio out. Still you will have to turn on the amp, and set the TV audio out on.....later switch it back off.....just a lot of work....

I like my silver unit.

"It does everything" 2009-11-26
By Ace of Sevens (Cedar Rapids, IA USA)
I got this to replace an old Kenwood HTiB from the pre-HDMI days and was blown away. The options provided are basically overkill. It has more inputs than I'm likely to need, despite being a retrogamer, auto level-matching and excellent sound quality. It can also rescale most anything with its on-board video processing. It can decode anything, has 7.1 sound and is quite the looker, if a bit hefty. You have a lot of options as to what input corresponds to what. Basically, the S-video is fixed, but you can assign the component, hdmi and optical and coaxial audio inputs to whatever you want, so you can, for instance, run a Wii and a PS3 on one input. It would be hard to fill this baby up.

Their are only a handful of cons:

-You can't do both two zones and 7.1 as there aren't enough speaker connections

-It's a bit of a pain to change the output resolution and you are limited in your options. For instance, if you set the upscaler to 4:3 mode, it will squish 1080i and 720p content to 4:3 as well, so you'll have to go in and change this frequently if you are using it, but it involves a lot of flipping through menus. Ideally, you shoudl be abel to set it to scale 480p content and not 720p, 1080i, 1080p, etc.

-I would have like a TV tuner in here. I don't know why these aren't standard features on receiver.

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Denon AVR-3808 Home Theater Bundle with MartinLogan Speakers

2010-03-11T05:23:00.001-08:00

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Get Remarkable Clarity and Depth from the Most Demanding Movies and Music

If you're ready to get serious about your home theater system, this bundle delivers. Updated Audyssey audio processing in the AVR-3808CI has refined the calibration process producing better sound and room balance, even with difficult acoustical conditions. Its digital video connections now have HDMI v1.3a which brings with it the new surround formats for HD decoding as well as 32-bit Deep Color and full 1080p decoding and upscaling. MartinLogan's advanced thin-film (ATF) midrange and high-frequency drivers, a precision Vojtko crossover, and proprietary dual long-excursion, low-mass woofers combine to supply astonishing performance in any stereo or multi-channel audio system, whether used as a center, left, right or surround speaker. The Abyss sub's high-resolution driver combines a 12-inch aluminum-cone diaphragm with a high-intensity magnet structure to achieve huge excursion and output capability without sacrificing detail. This is the home theater bundle for the serious cinema enthusiast, the critical music listener, and the home theater "power user".

This bundle consists of:

One Denon AVR-3808CI 7.1-channel AV receiver (Learn more)

Five MartinLogan Fresco i speakers (Learn more)

One MartinLogan Abyss subwoofer (Learn more)

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Denon AVR-790 7.1 CH A/V Home Theater Multi-Source /Multi-Zone Receiver

2010-03-10T06:53:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR-790 7.1 CH A/V Home Theater Multi-Source /Multi-Zone ReceiverFor top audio fidelity, the AVR-790 fea
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Denon AVR890 7.1 CH A/V Home Theater Multi-Source/Multi Zone Receiver

2010-03-10T06:52:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR890 7.1 CH A/V Home Theater Multi-Source/Multi Zone Receiver For thrilling surround sound, the AVR-890 featu
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Denon AVR990 Next Generation 7.1 A/V Mutli-Source/Zone Network Streaming Receiver

2010-03-09T06:36:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR990 Next Generation 7.1 A/V Mutli-Source/Zone Network Streaming Receiver All new DDSC-HD Dolby TrueHD and DD+ d
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Denon DVD-758 Universal Scaling DVD Audio/Video/CD Player

2010-03-09T06:02:00.001-08:00

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Universal Scaling DVD Audio/Video/CD Player
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Technical Details

- Universal scaling DVD Audio/Video/Super Audio CD player
- DCDi by Faroudja featuring FLI-2301 chipset Decoding Engine
- HDMI 1.1 output with selectable scaling (480p/720p/1080i/1080p)
- Plays DVD, DVD-R/RW, CD-R/RW, DIVX, JPG, WMA and MP3 content
- RS-232C for third party controllers
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"Denon DVD 758 unversal player" 2010-03-07
By Jim Penname (New Jersey USA)
Why buy this ?

After all Cd players are cheap. DVD players are cheap . And Blu Ray is coming down.

But.

This thing rocks.

The upscaling DVD playing is good. And if you have been shopping, you know that used DVD's are a good bargain.

With this I can take advantage of that.

It also plays a Cd quite nicely and plays things like SACD and DVD Audio as well as MP3 CD's and WMA CD's and even Divx.

Plus it has more outputs than any other I've seen.

Analog stereo, Coax, Optical, Composite, Component and 5.1 analog, all on the back.

I am using several of the different outputs for different material.

The sound quality of this player either in DVD or CD mode is excellent.

The DTS and Dolby digital are quite good.

The picture quality is fine. I have a big TV. (46")

So even down the road when I get bluRay, this will still be a go-to audio player.

Meanwhile, it replaces two or three other units and allows me to hear formats ( Like Pink Floyd DSOM SACD, and Beatles Love DVD-A)

with no fuss at all.

Find it for under 100bones and enjoy.

"Very nice DVD player" 2009-08-20
By a scientist
This is an extremely nice DVD player and it's really quite easy to obtain an upscaled picture on the TV. The remote is fine and the selection of outputs is fine, too. As you'd expect, it has an HDMI output. If you're interested in upscaling, this is pretty much your best option. Remember that an HD-TV will upscale an image, too. All you're buying with this DVD player is a really good upscaling chip.

There are better upscaling DVD players available, but they're not much better: Oppo makes a really good one (DV-981 or something like that). I own an earlier Oppo and it has performed superbly for over four years.

So why not 5 stars? Well, it's a little overpriced. Please don't pay more than an Oppo for this. I got it on sale at Amazon a few weeks ago for less than a third of the MSRP. Also, it cannot be "hacked" to watch foreign DVDs. The instruction book makes a fuss about this player being able to display to PAL or NTSC, which suggests it should be multi-region capable, but I haven't managed to play my UK DVDs yet.

Lastly, Blu-Ray players are coming down in price. For this kind of money, you can buy a great Panasonic or LG player that will upscale a regular DVD and play a Blu-Ray disk in native 1080p. This Denon (and the Oppo) won't play Blu-Ray disks, so they're definitely not future-proof.

"Denon DVD-758" 2009-08-12
By Mathias K. Akuoko (Texas)
The product looks great and works perfect. It came on time as well, neatly packaged and delivered as described

"Best cost-benefit market DVD player" 2009-06-19
By Ricardo Takao Oikawa (SPO, BRA)
Althought it's not the best CD playback DVD player, together with Marantz DV6001, no other machine matches its video capabilities in sub $300 market. Moreover, it still has good audio qualities to deserve my recommendation. Taking into account the very low prices (discount), it's the best cost-benefit DVD player of the market right now.

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Denon & Polk Audio Bundle Package

2010-03-06T09:25:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR2310CI 7.1-Channel Multi-Zone Home Theater Receiver with 1080p HDMI Connectivity & Polk Audio TSi300 Floorstanding Speaker & Polk Audio TSi100 Bookshelf Speakers & Polk Audio CS10 Center Channel Speaker Bundle
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Denon AVR-3806 7.1 Channel Home Theater A/V Surround Receiver-Black

2010-03-06T07:30:00.001-08:00

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The AVR-3806, an upgrade from the best-selling AVR-3805, continues to offer the finest in multi-channel audio performance and ensures ultra-rigorous standards of signal purity. Key new high-end features include HDMI switching, 7 channel amplifiers, HDCD decoding, built-in XM-satellite radio capability, and multi-zone functionality. The AVR-3806 also incorporates Audyssey MultEQxt Room EQ to calibrate your audio system and is packaged with a microphone to make your set-up even easier.
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Technical Details

- Equal Power Amplifiers - 7 Channel
- 120 Watts Per Channel
- Frequency Response - 20Hz to 20,000Hz
- XM Satellite Radio 'Connect and Play' Ready - with optional antenna
- Dolby Pro Logic IIx - with Cinema, Music, Game Modes
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"Superb Receiver" 2010-01-12
By The Madman
These Denons are unmatched. Built in Japan and cool running without the need for noisy fans. May not be for home theater novices who seem to be complaining but Denon tech support is actually great. I called twice got knowledgeable American people and was very happy to deal with them.

"EXTREMELY GREAT SOUND!! " 2008-06-24
By Jayman
The sound from this AVR is by far the best i've ever had, i go to many dept stores with surround sound setup and none sound as good as this. I've had several AVR and this one is the best of all. I didn't purchase this AVR for its video capabality. I'm a firm believer of NOT SPLICING the video signal.

I was looking for something with plenty fiber optic inputs, digital coax inputs, HDMI inputs, i wanted an AVR with 120wats per channel or >, w/a very low THD% (0.05%) and what i really like about this AVR is that every channel is independently driven, this badboy weighs 38lbs. Nine different settings for subwoofer crossovers. I'm bi-amping my, i have my front LT & RT channel and my "B" channel into my nfinity Beta 50 Towers. The sound is much more powerful than when you Bi-WIRE. And, im using 12g speaker wire for my rears infinity beta20. (u hav got to hear the xplosion in I AM LEGEND, from my INFINITY Beta 20's which i also bought from right here @ AMAZON, they sound like little powered subs... they made my back wall shake!! the scene where Will smith sets off the xplosions w/the hand held control)

This AVR allows you to set Variable adjustable crossovers for all channels. I performed the automatic setup it was very good , better than what i originally had setup, but, i like to think that i improved it from that point. I kept the distances and Time delay that the system had automatically configured, but i adjusted the decibals and x-over frequencies to each channel to my liking. I have to admit , I think i did a better job than the auto setup. I had the most hardest of times trying to figure out, WELL what should i set the xrovers for each channel at? so check this out, this is what i came up with, look at the freq. ranges of all your speakers example my infinity 360cc, ranges from 45HZ-20KHZ so i set it @ almost midpoint @ 60, i did this for all my channels and speakers, this is provided your AVR allows for variable adjustable xrovers for all channels.

You'll see several reviews going around online about this AVR sounding thin, WELL this is the kicker here , when you perform the auto setup it will automatically increase something called the "EFFECT LEVEL" if im not mistaken i think it ranges from zero to 15, set this @ zero and max out your BASS and half your TREBLE. I guarantee it will no longer sound thin. It sounds extremely full.

Some people complained about the manual, the difficult setup, bla, bla, bla... I dont work for a PC company or anything like that, when you start the setup.. its a menu, there is a directory and that directory has its sub-directory, so you scroll, select left or right and press enter on what ever it is that you want to setup.

Best thing to do is to hook-up an S video cable from this AVR S-video output to one of your TV's S video input. Simple right, and then just read the book, oh yeah another thing, a couple weeks before i bought this AVR i downloaded the manual (pdf) file and it gave me a heads up and so I wasn't overwhelmed when the day came. The manual applies very well to the reciever (but if you use the s-video cable you get a better idea) one step at a time or one section at a time. My only regret is not waiting a little longer when the Denon AVR 3808CI came out, NOW THATS THE JAM DUDES!! This reciever is shear RAW POWER, with my combination of Infinity Beta50 , 360cc, beta20's in the rears 3 of them im runing a 6.1, infinity SW12, this AVR is really expensive, well if u get it from amazon you wont pay for all of that overhead, this AVR rocks, and the setup has a lock so no one changes your setup, of all my prev AVR none had this feature. DENON builds a very strong product, it has alot of bells and whistles to play with, and i like to play with my HT, till my bonus room blows up!!

I am sold on DENON from here the only place to go is up for a better DENON!!

"Unmatched Sound Quality!" 2008-05-13
By Larry M. Manfrede (Orlando, Florida)
Despite reading many negative reviews, I purchased this receiver for the sound quality. I had no problem setting up the unit to work with my TV, HD DVD player, PlayStation 3, or any other device. The sound quality is unbeatable, and I am thoroughly satisfied! Make no mistake, this unit is not meant for the beginner, but if you have a good working knowledge of electronics, you should have no problem setting it up and once you configure the unit, you will enjoy many years of pleasure from this high end receiver.

"Clear audio, but impossible to setup" 2007-12-27
By Brian Barkley (Overland Park, KS, USA)
The Denon brand name does not have a good reputation for nothing. This unit has excellent sound. HOWEVER, I have spent the entire last week reading through the manual trying to figure out how to "setup" this receiver. The manual is EXTREMELY poorly written. The person writing the manual took it for granted that the reader is high-tech, and consequently does not give good explanation in many areas of setup. Secondly, the remote control is the absolute worst that I have ever experienced, and I have owned lots of remote controls. In short, although this unit can possibly give you good sound if you are willing to spend the next six months trying to figure out how it works, you are much better off buying another brand that is easier and simple to setup. In fact, I am seriously thinking of selling my 3806 on Ebay and replacing it with an Onkyo receiver, probably the 805.

"Every rose has it's thorns..." 2007-07-12
By Danno (West Chester, PA)
Some of the reviews of this product are from customers who purchased it refurbished from an "e-tailer". Let's give common sense a chance folks, if you buy anything refurbished, you take your chances. There's a reason why those units were sent back. Secondly, it should be understood merchandise can be obtained for lower prices from e-tailers at the sacrafice of service. I paid a little more for mine from Tweeter, but I was able to have my questions answered because I am a steady customer. The service IS worth something. There's a reason why manufacturers distribute through retailers--for customer service! Many of these problems would either not occur or be addressed by the retailer. Perhaps they should have purchased it from Amazon, as they are one of the few web-based dealers out there that will support their products. They cannot provide the level of support that a store front can. It's just not possible based on logistics.

Granted, this receiver is complex, and the remote is a pain, but it is a trade-off for the vast number of features. There will come a day when these devices will come with a PDA-type device for configuring, but it's not here yet. When it does, you'll be able to see everything on a monitor. For now, we have to live with the 2-line display. The only issue that bothers me about the remote is the battery life, but that ultimately can be corrected. This receiver puts out a full, warm sound uncommon with many other brands. It provides a great deal of flexibility for setting crossover preferences, re-directing sound frequency and multiple surround options which actually are applicable! It also has a very strong center channel, with a great deal of range, even into the lower frequencies. If you can endure the difficulty of the interface, you will find it is worth the time invested.

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Denon AVR3803P 7.1 A/V Receiver with Dolby Digital Surround EX, Dolby Pro Logic II & DTS ES Discrete 6.1

2010-02-21T05:54:00.001-08:00

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DENON AVR-4802R 7 Channel Surround Receiver

2010-02-20T02:12:00.001-08:00

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The AVR-4802R is a new and enhanced version of the AVR-4802, featuring THX Ultra2 certification and processing, as well as the full suite of technologies from DTS-ES, including the latest high-quality DTS 96/24 5.1 decoding for DVD-Video. Adding to its decoding flexibility, the AVR-4802R lets you enjoy 96/24 PCM, and Dolby Digital 2-channel sources in Dolby Pro Logic II mode or DTS NEO: 6 mode. Now, you can truly surround yourself with multichannel sound in the mode you like best. The AVR-4802R owes much of its chassis design to its more technologically advanced, critically acclaimed sibling, the AVR-5803. This high-end approach virtually eliminates the mutual interference from the various circuits to ensure that you experience all the delicate nuances of pure audio sound, as well as the clearest and most dynamic realism that is Denon home theater entertainment.
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Denon & Boston Acoustics Bundle Package

2010-02-19T12:08:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR-1910 Independent Zone Home Theater Receiver & Boston Acoustics CS 226 Floorstanding Speaker & Boston Acoustics CS 26 Bookshelf Speaker & Boston Acoustics CS 225C Center Channel Speaker Bundle
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Denon AVR-3300 Dolby Digital Audio/Video Receiver

2010-02-19T11:48:00.001-08:00

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Featuring the newest Analog Devices SHARC 32-bit DSP processor, the AVR-3300 provides Dolby Digital and DTS decoding with superb precision. The AVR-3300 is the most affordable A/V component to include the SHARC processor as the heart of the DDSC-D technology, and features premium 24-bit, 96 kHz DACs on all output channels. Prepared for the future, the AVR-3300 features 8 Channel external input, for connection to future multi-channel surround formats, along with 8 pre-amp outputs, providing a full upgrade path. A high quality, discrete power output section provides a total system power of 850 watts (1 kHz, 6 ohms).In addition to providing five pairs of composite and "S" video inputs, the AVR-3300 is equipped with two sets of component video (Y, CB, CR) inputs (DVD and TV/DBS), and one set of component video outputs for connection to high resolution video displays. Dual Surround Speaker switching allows the use of two different types (and placements) of surround speakers - connect a pair of diffuse surround speakers for movie soundtracks, and a direct radiator type surround speaker for multi-channel music surround.
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"POWERFUL" 2001-10-15
By (Brooklyn, New York United States)
If you want high quality sound then look no further because this unit blows away the competition I heard yamaha ,onkyo ,sony ,technics,kenwood ,harmon karden,and NONE of them even came close to the sound quality because the DENON just beat them all.The bass was unbeatable the sound reproduction was state of the art and unsurpassed .Now if that does'nt convince you then go and find a denon dealer and listen for yourself....

"Prepare for the Future" 2000-11-01
By Petko (Northern VA United States)
Featuring the newest Analog Devices SHARC 32-bit DSP processor, the AVR-3300 provides Dolby Digital and DTS decoding with superb precision. The AVR-3300 is the most affordable A/V component to include the SHARC processor as the heart of the DDSC-D technology, and features premium 24-bit, 96 kHz DACs on all output channels. Prepared for the future, the AVR-3300 features 8 Channel external input, for connection to future multi-channel surround formats, along with 8 pre-amp outputs, providing a full upgrade path. A high quality, discrete power output section provides a total system power of 850 watts (1 kHz, 6 ohms).

In addition to providing five pairs of composite and "S" video inputs, the AVR-3300 is equipped with two sets of component video (Y, CB, CR) inputs (DVD and TV/DBS), and one set of component video outputs for connection to high resolution video displays. Dual Surround Speaker switching allows the use of two different types (and placements) of surround speakers - connect a pair of diffuse surround speakers for movie soundtracks, and a direct radiator type surround speaker for multi-channel music surround.

"Simply the best" 2000-10-27
By Jeffrey B. Abernathy (Kirksville, MO United States)
This reciever simply blows all others out of the water. I have had it for about 3 months now and I love it. It seems like there is nothing that this piece can't do.

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DENON AVR4806 7.1 Channel A/V Surround Receiver

2010-02-19T11:44:00.001-08:00

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DENON has become a world leader in the manufacture of high quality audio and audio/video equipment and software products for the entertainment and information industries. Its professional-use and consumer-use equipment and software products are recognized internationally for their originality and standards of quality, durability and innovation. DENON is recognized internationally as Japan's leading manufacturer of high-quality audio and audio-visual products, and is the only company in the industry involved in the development and production of both hardware and software.
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Technical Details

- 130 Watt x 7-channel A/V surround receiver for dynamic home-theater sound
- 12 x analog inputs; 1 x 8-ch. analog input; 5 x digital optical inputs; 3 x digital coaxial inputs; 3 x component video inputs; 8 x composite inputs; 8 x S-video inputs; 8 x analog PRE outputs; 4 x analog REC outputs; 2 x analog multi-zone outputs; 3 x digital optical outputs; 2 x component video outputs; 4 x composite outputs; 4 x S-video outputs; 2 x multi-zone outputs
- Digitally-tuned AM/FM
- Expansive support of advanced surround playback formats, including Dolby Digital EX, Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic IIx, Dolby Headphone, DET-ES, DTS 96/24, DTS Neo - 6 and DTS-HDCD
- AL24 Processing Plus technology provides you with high sound quality
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"Phenomenal, to say the least..." 2006-12-19
By James Cooper (Pennsylvania)
I started out looking at $500 A/V receivers, and gradually worked my way up to the Denon AVR-4806. Sometimes I think I must have been crazy, but more often I glad I bought this unit. What do you get for 3 grand? Needless to say, you get great sound, but you get a lot more.

It is THX Ultra2 certified and will handle up to 10 speakers. So no longer do you have to live with a mere 2 channels of surround sound. It actually gives meaning to the word surround. It comes with a microphone (on a 20' cord) used to set the system up you plug it in and place the mike in various listening positions, and it determines all the distances and sound levels for each speaker automatically. Very cool!

It has 3 HDMI inputs, so you can plug in your DVD player, Tivo Series 3, and Playstation 3 using HDMI and output them all via HDMI to your TV. In the present technology world this is the best way to connect things digitally. If your equipment doesn't have HDMI outputs, it will also accept component, analog and optical output and upconvert them flawlessly.

The manual is about 150 pages, and not terribly easy to understand. When I bought it, it was offered by Crutchfield, and from Etronics (for several hundred dollars less). I paid the premium that Crutchfield charged, and I'm glad I did. With all the possible settings and confusion, I've already taken advantage of their lifetime tech support to get things working.

The AVR-4806 is now discontinued, and is replaced by the AVR-4806CI. I understand the CI stands for `custom installation'. What the exact differences between the two are, I don't know, but for the additional $1,000, I doubt they're worth it.

If you want an audiophile quality receiver that is able to upscale all your inputs to 1080p, and can afford the relatively steep price tag (although half the price of the next level up), you won't be disappointed in this unit.

Although no longer listed on Amazon as a vendor, Crutchfield still has a few left for $2,999 (the AVR-4806CI is $3,999 from them).

Update 01/10/2007 - I must apologize for this review. After trying to hook up a 1080p device I learned that this unit does NOT switch 1080p. In fact that is the main difference between the AVR-4806 and the AVR-4806CI. The unit is now at Denon being upgraded to a CI. The AVR-4806 is discontinued, but still available from a few vendors (no longer at Crutchfield). I would not recommend buying from somewhere that doesn't offer robust tech support as it is a very complex piece of electronics.

Again, my apologies to anyone who may have been mislead by my erroneous information.

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Denon AVR4310CI 7.1-Channel Multi-Zone Home Theater Receiver with Networking Capability & 1080p HDMI Connectivity BigVALUEInc HDMI Accessory Saver Bundle

2010-02-19T11:41:00.001-08:00

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Technical Details

- Denon AVR4310CI 7.1-Channel Multi-Zone Home Theater Receiver
- HDMI to HDMI 6.5 Foot Digital Cable
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Denon AVR-4306 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel - silver

2010-02-19T09:18:00.001-08:00

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The AVR-4306 is a brand new model for the Denon A/V Receiver line-up, with features and connectivity at a price point never before seen. With a robust 130 watts for each of its 7 channels, Denon's exclusive Dynamic Discrete Surround Circuitry, the AVR-4306 follows in the Home Theater footsteps of its critically acclaimed siblings the AVR-4806 and AVR-5805. The Audyssey MultEq Auto Setup/Room Eq system is featured, with included microphone, to provide you with the ultimate sound environment possible.Where the AVR-4306 charts new territory is in its connectivity, and control, of portable music players as well as streaming audio from a Windows Based PC and other popular music servers. Add to this the ability to upconvert analog video images to HDMI, XM Satellite Radio Ready functionality, and true 3 source/3 zone control, the AVR-4306 is sure to become a most welcome addition to any home theater.
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Technical Details

- Dolby Digital EX, DTS-ES, DTS 96/24, Pro Logic IIx, and DTS Neo - 6 processing
- HDMI digital video switching (3 in, 1 out) / Analog-to-HDMI video conversion
- Component video switching - 3 in, 2 out (100MHz bandwidth) / Component video conversion (composite to S-video, or composite and S-video to component) / Digital inputs - 5 optical, 2 coaxial / 2 optical digital outputs / 3 audio inputs (including phono) / 7 audio/video inputs (including 7 S-video)
- Manufacturer's warranty - 2 years
- Dimensions (WxHxD) - 17-3/16 x 6-3/4 x 16-15/16 inches
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Denon AVR-687 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver

2010-02-16T10:08:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR687 Home Theater Receiver
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Technical Details

- 7.1-channel home theater receiver with 525 watts of total power; meaxures 17.1 x 5.8 x 16.1 inches (WxHxD)
- 75 watts at 8 ohms across seven amplifier channels
- Auto Setup feature precisely balances speaker levels and fine-tunes the delay settings (microphone included)
- XM Radio ready and XM-HD surround sound capable; control iPod via optional dock
- Surround modes: DTS 96/24 decoding for DVD video; DTS-ES 6.1 and Matrix 6.1; DTS NEO:6; Dolby Digital EX; Dolby Pro Logic IIx; Neural Surround
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"Great reciever for price" 2009-09-23
By Sean R. Plantz (Rochester, NY)
I bought this a couple months ago to round out Home theater, and for the price, I am very impressed.

As many said though, the manual is rediculous, it took many tries to get things working right, especially seeing I used the surround rear remapped to bi wire my fronts. Once it was set though, amazing results. Just stick with it, and read/understand the whole manual before tweaking anything, reading as you go will doom you to confusion of a whole new level, because they do this thing where certain parts of the setup are not grouped together, and are explained more 10 pages in, maybe mentioning the final info you need 20 pages in. And thats just for speaker setup!!

"Denon AVR-687" 2009-06-29
By A. Logan (Madison, WI)
Don't buy it! Powere shut off and power indicator blinks red. The troubleshooter says overheat (I placed a fan over vents) or bad speaker connections at back of unit. I checked, and tried different connections over and over again.

"Take your time" 2008-04-04
By David Droste (MI)
Took a little bit to connect all of the equipment I have, but was very simple to do. Using the speakers from a samsung htib that this replaced, with a larger gauge wire, I have noticed an immense improvement in sound quality. Depth is still a bit lacking, but this is more than likely the samsung satellites that will be replaced. Using a Harmony remote, my wife has no difficulty operating this unit.

"Great Sound Great Deal" 2008-01-19
By Frederick J. Ashby
Pros:

All 7 amps sound great, Digital Dolby sounds great, Many different surround modes, HD over component and video format conversion

Cons:

Always have to flip over double sided remote - Not a good layout, No HDMI inputs.

Summary:

This is a great quality receiver for a bargain price. I am only using it for the audio inputs, so I can't speak for the video performance. It has 2 coax and 2 fiber digital inputs which work great. I don't think I will use analog inputs again if I can avoid it.

"Welcome to the Minor leagues" 2007-08-24
By Brwzr (Texas)
I bought this on Amazon for 40% less than C City, & I feel like that I stole it. I have this hooked to Sat & DVD, it is only used for TV. The room is 30' x 23' & I have not had it over 0; it is way loud. I was a little concerned since it was rated 75w, but @ 6ohms it is rated 110w.

This is my first experience with this level of equipment, so the manual was confusing & redundant; plus when you made some adjustments it automatically undid other adjustments that you had made. With some inputs you are adjusting speaker volume [which I understood], but the inputs that I used [optical]. The only adjustment is in feet. I did figure out less feet = less volume. I did all my adjustments from the Receiver [it seemed much easier]. The auto-setup mic in my case was useless. One feature that I do like is you can cut it off on the receiver & it uses no electricity. I did get it balanced perfect, excelent sound; & unbelievable price.

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Denon AVR-2807 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel

2010-02-16T10:05:00.001-08:00

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The AVR-2807 is Denon's latest addition of versatile A/V Receivers, which incorporates all current surround formats and enhanced installation flexibility, all with great simplicity of setup and operation.The AVR-2807 can automatically store the surround mode for any of three inputs signals: Analog and PCM 2 channel, Bit stream 2-channel (DolbyDigital, DTS) and Bit stream multi-channel. If the type of input signal changes, the most appropriate surround mode is automatically selected for the signal.The Audio Delay function corrects slight lags between sound and picture that can occur when a video signal is processed, such as in a Progressive Scan DVD player or outboard video processor.
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Technical Details

- 110 Watts per Channel
- 7 Channel Surround Sound & 5 Channel Stereo Sound Support
- Sound Modes - Dolby Pro Logic IIx, Dolby Digital Surround EX, dts ES Discrete 6.1, dts ES Matrix 6.1, dts NEO - 6, dts 96/24 5.1
- iPod Port
- XM Ready via optional Connect and Play antenna
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"Average quality receiver with problems" 2010-02-08
By David056 (Melbourne, Australia)
I've owned a 2807 for some years now, and haven't been impressed by this unit. For a start, the sound quality is not up to the quality of my inexpensive, 30 year old NAD amp -- which is disappointing. But a bigger issue is with the poor audio setup. The receiver seems to have a mind of its own when it comes to processing different types of audio input. For Dolby Digital it works fine. But for many other types of input I have trouble getting any reasonable volume out of the sub-woofer. I've had a couple of professional home theater techs look at it and it is setup properly. I think it is just not very good and processing certain input. You can manually ramp up the output of the receiver to the sub (LFE) or increase the volume of the sub itself, but that stuffs up the other processing modes.

This is not helped by the confusing manual and built-in setup.

I also found the built-in speaker equalization to be useless as it drops the sub output even more. I ended up buying a home theater setup DVD and manually setting it up. This way, the Dolby Digital and the music Stereo modes work well, but other modes are temperamental and the crazy levels to the sub in different modes is frustrating.

"Great Sound" 2007-06-07
By Jason S. Mincer
This is a great receiver with awsome power, however the on screen guide, programming and remote control need some refining.

"Denon" 2007-05-26
By Harold D. May
While I am not an experienced audiofile, I have been extremely impressed with this product. The sound is better than any I have ever experienced, and coupled with my KEF 3000 speaker system, I am in heaven.

"AVR 2807" 2007-05-13
By B. Hamway
Highly recommened by real audiophiles, however it was very complicated to set up. The manual was difficult to understand. Now that I have it working I'm pleased.

"If sound quality is your priority, buy Rotel instead." 2007-03-30
By A. Amy (USA)
My last receiver was a Denon, and I was impressed with it, so I naturally assumed Denon would be my first choice again, given their reputation for excellent receivers.

I listened to it and felt something was missing; it didn't quite sound natural. I then tried a Rotel, and the sound quality was truly astounding, the best I've ever heard. I bought the Rotel that same day, despite the fact that it has fewer features and looks a little antique.

Do yourself a favor and at least listen to a Rotel before you buy; it makes ordinary CD music sound clearer and more natural than any of the "mainstream" brands. Even relatively extreme passages that sound harsh or gritty on other receivers sound normal on a Rotel. If sound is more important to you than features, the Denon is NOT your best choice (nor is Pioneer Elite).

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Denon AVR-2307CI - AV receiver - 7.1 channel

2010-02-16T10:00:00.001-08:00

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The AVR-2307CI has been designed with technical improvements to bring it to CI status, making it the choice of installers for applications in the mid priced HD home theater environment. HDMI 1080p digital video circuits have been added to accommodate HD digital video sources such as cable and satellite set top boxes. Video up conversion to HDMI as also been added so that Composite, S-Video and Component sources can be sent out the same HDMI connection to the HD monitor for ease of use. Add to that auto calibration, 7 DSP surround modes, and a litany of adjustments, and you will find this receiver to deliver top performance in the current fast paced Hi Tech home theater world.
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Technical Details

- Dolby Digital Surround EX decoding, including Dolby Pro Logic IIx Cinema, Game and Music modes
- dts decoding - including dts 96/24 5.1 for DVD-Video, dts ES Discrete 6.1, ES Matrix 6.1, and Neo - 6 Cinema & Music modes
- 7 channels equal power amplifier section with 100 watts per channel (8 ohms, 20 - 20kHz, <0.05% THD)
- 2 Source/Zone Audio and Video
- 1080p compatible HDMI switching (2 in/1 out) / Analog video to HDMI output conversion / Video conversion to Component
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"Great system, remote is a horror" 2008-12-06
By J. Jensen (Boonton, NJ USA)
This system is an excellent system for the price. I have everything hooked into it. 42" plasma tv, souround sound speeker system, ps3, vcr/dvd player, directtv hd dvr, sirius unit, and even a turntable for records (remember them?). The only problem with this unit is the remote. You need to be a rocket scientist to understand it. To solve this problem get yourself a logitech universal remote. I have the harmony 880. Now everything works great.

"Only last 10 hours and dead" 2007-11-05
By Steve Wang (Canada)
I bought one in July, played about 4-5 movies, and it's DEAD, I opened the metal top enclosure as I wonder maybe the fuse was burned, well, I can't believe what I saw, the 2 AC input receptacle housing metal contacts were loosen from the PCBA, it seems to me a defect of "cold solder", the other AC bypass housing was came off the PCB as well, no wonder when I set it up, the AC outlet on the back has never been worked!

Terrible quality assurance, this cold solder should never pass the "vibration test".

"A Great AV Receiver!" 2007-02-22
By Dodman

I feel I have gathered enough experience on the Denon AVR-2307CI in the past 5 weeks to be comfortable to share my opinions with others.

Prior to purchasing the 2307CI I did my homework and found the two major complaints against the 2307CI are

1) the layout of the remote control, and

2) the receiver's on-screen menu is only visible in 480i mode.

Neither deters me from making the purchase because 1) I use a JP1 compliant universal programmable remote control for my home theater to replace all the remote controls that came with each component; there is no way I will be able to live with the cluster of 6 remotes :)

As for 2) I don't find myself venturing into the receiver's setup menu often once it's set up properly. On the rare occasion I need to do that after the initial setup, I can always switch to a component/device that's not connected such as phono; and the video output automatically switches to 480i. There are 9 inputs on the 2307CI so I don't foresee running out of unused inputs in the near future for my setup. Keep in mind this 480i restriction only applies to the 2307's own on-screen menu, other components' menu will show independent of the resolution.

Video:

Currently I have two DVD players, a DVR, a VCR, an external video processor, and a laser disc player connected to the 2307CI, and the 2307CI's HDMI output goes to the Toshiba 62" HDTV. They all work perfectly. The devices with analog component video outputs get converted to HDMI with zero problem. The quality of the converted video is the same as the cable analog channels. There is some video delay as mentioned by the other reviewer, but in my case it's only two seconds instead of minutes, more than acceptable to me. As a matter of fact, I chose Denon over comparable Onkyo A/V receivers for exactly this reason: more reliable HDMI implementations.

Audio:

As mentioned by many other reviewers, the sound quality is very good for home theater systems. Now don't try to compare the 2307CI to true audiophile components, that's just not fair. My mono-block amplifier for a single channel alone costs more than the 2307CI. But for watching movies and broadcast programs the 2307CI renders high quality sounds.

Installation and User Manual:

I found the installation to be relatively straight-forward. Yes, it would probably take more than a couple of hours to set it up, especially if you have more than a couple of components in your system. But the procedure is very straight-forward. Though I must admit this is not my first home theater system; to the uninitiated the installation may seem more complicated. Though I still don't quite understand the reason for the other reviewer having to connect the DVD recorder directly to the TV. I have only one HDMI cable going from the 2307CI to my HDTV; all the other components/devices are connected to/through the 2307 so the great mass of cables stay where they belong - behind the cabinet and invisible.

It's obvious at least parts of the user manual were translated from Japanese and it's not the best translation possible. Yet I still find the user manual sufficiently informative. One must keep in mind that this is a sophisticated piece of equipment that performs multiple functions; it's very difficult to cover all possible scenarios without knowing exactly what other equipment and in what combination they are used with the 2307.

Pros:

In a nutshell, I find the 2307 an excellent A/V receiver in its price range.

Cons:

Installation could require some work if this is your first time setting up a home theater system. And the layout of the remote can use some improvement.

"Video delay" 2007-01-30
By Dean B. Berkus MD (Los Angeles CA)
I purchased a new system from a local authorized Denon store who is a reputable audio/video dealer. They came and unpacked the boxes and set up my system including an Aquos 42" LCD HD TV, the Denon 2307CI, etc. to mate with my new HDDVR from DirecTV. The set up included use of HDMI cables for all video and audio between the new components. After set up everything seemed to be working fine until the first time I turned it on when the technician wasn't present. When turning on the receiver and TV for the first time in the day or after it has been off for an hour or so the audio comes on and the video won't come on until fully 5 or more minutes when trying to view the HDDVR. This is insane as the over the air signal is immediately on. We have exchanged the monster cables added a high quality monster surge protector and tried almost every imaginable programming variation on the Aquos and Denon including varying which unit I turn on first and second, etc. but to no avail. The audio will come on and the video won't despite the apparent correct settings. If anyone has a solution maybe a programming trick for the Denon 2307 other than changing out the Denon 2307 for their 2807 please let me know at dberkus@pacbell.net.

"Oh, the horror of the remote..." 2006-12-01
By P. McCoy (washington)
This is my first Denon product I've purchased. I was looking at this model, and the step up--the 2807. I do not have a HD monitor yet. My budget was in the $800-$1100 range. I've had my unit for almost exactly a month, and not too much time to use it, but enough so that I feel I need to write this review...

If you do some homework on looking for a receiver, Denon will inevitably come your way. They have a good reputation for performance, value, and customer service, which I find important. In order to safeguard yourself in the event that you do need to utilize the latter, be sure to buy from an authorized dealer. I purchased mine from Onecall, aka Huppins, located in Spokane, WA.

All the technical abilities of this machine are clearly highlighted via many online sources, so I really won't get into those. Just look and ye shall find. It does a remarkable job for its price range. I love the actual unit. Hefty, plenty of power, inputs and outputs - both digital and analog. Ease of use for all the buttons on the front of the unit.

You will note in findings that yes, the on-screen display is only output in 480i, which seems like a big oversight once one considers Denon's ravings on its HD performance. I don't have HD capabilities yet, so I can't comment on its HD abilities.

I found the onscreen displays on my soon-to-be archaic tube tv great for setup. And speaking of setup--the options are immense. You could spend hours tinkering with the setups. Anything from audio delay syncs from your DVD player, to manual EQ setup for different frequencies on speakers. Amazing...

My one HUGE gripe is the remote control... Oh, my this thing is a piece of junk. Two-sided, and clumsy. Had I been able to see and use the remote, I probably would not have bought it. The two-sided annoyance: Many of the main functions are available on the front - some (not all) of the input selections, volume, etc. There are secondary fuctions applied to some of the functions. Take a look at some images online. For instance, the DVD input selection mode. unless you look at the remote from just the right angle, it's yellow printed lettering is totally unreadable, as are any of the yellow lettering. In the month that I've had this, the paint on the 'play' button and the '+' for advancing chapters has noticable wear. Say you want to watch your tv - you press the 'tv' input button. Then you have to switch one of the dials on the bottom section of the remote to 'tv' as well in order to utilize any of the other buttons to use the tv. OK, fine. Now I want to listen to a cd on my cd player. Well, in order to do that first you must make sure the left, bottom switch is on 'audio' (opposed to 'video'), then you must flip the remote to the other side and open the flimsy door, find the 'cd' selection and press. What? Seems like a cd player is a pretty common, well-used appliance... Why is it not on the front of the remote? Come to think of it; why aren't all the input functions on the front of the remote? I could go on and on...

Bottom line: absolutely 5 stars for the receiver. 1 star for the remote.

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Denon AVR-1507 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel

2010-02-16T09:58:00.001-08:00

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The AVR-1507 updated with some of the latest features and processing, allows Dolby Digital and DTS sources to standout from the crowd, resulting in an awesome home heater experience. Armed with a bunch of convenience features like XM satellite radio ready, iPod connectivity and jacks for home video recorders, this receiver will pack a punch against any receiver in its class. Carefully designed and built to high quality standards, the AVR-1507 will provide years of enjoyment.
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Technical Details

- Includes - glo-key remote control.
- Surround - up to 75W per channel
- Stereo - up to 110W per channel
- 6.1 Channels - Front L/R, Center, Surround L/R, and Surround Center
- High Resolution 32-bit Floating Point DSP
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Denon AVR-3808CI Home Theater Receiver and DVD-3800BDCI Blu-ray Disc Bundle

2010-02-15T08:53:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR-788 Dolby Digital Surround Receiver

2010-02-13T21:59:00.001-08:00

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Dolby Digital Surround Receiver
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Technical Details

- Dolby Digital Surround EX decoding, including dts Decoding
- 7x 85 watts per channel, 2 source/Zone Audio, XM Satellite Ready
- 1080p Compatible HDMI 1.3a Deep Color(2/1) switching.Network client compatible port (for use with optional ASD-3N/W Dock)
- Video conversion to component; Audyssey MultEQ w/calibration microphone included
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"Audiophile quality and 20 seconds setup" 2009-08-06
By E. Rafei (Sugarland, TX. United States)
Superior sound quality and surround processor, plenty of power, easiest setup ever. Setup is done out of the box, yes this system can do so many things, but the default from the factory works on its own. No configuration is needed. I use banana plugs for my speakers, so the speakers are plug and play (12 gauge wires). In addition to the speaker I have 3 cables, that is it: one HDMI from the HD cable box, one from the DVD and a third to the TV. Cables are plugged, ready to go! For front speakers I am using a pair of JBL pro control 30 connected to speaker B. I have pair of JBL speakers connected to speaker A, except they have 15 inch woofers, so they are bi-amped, and yes the 788 can drive 3 pairs of front speakers thru three separate front channels. This in addition to the powered sub and surround speakers. The sound is AWSOME. All are controlled by a Harmony remote! my 2 year old has no problem using it

I cannot believe the price, you can spend more on the 789 or the 889 if you want the extra HDMI input and the video upscaling. My favorite if you can afford it is the 3809, or 4308 if you want WIFI. Or the pioneer elite VSX 94TXH. You will be getting a lot more features and power..

Please not this receiver DOES NOT support Dolby True HD, the format used with blue ray disks. It does support Dolby digital. You will notice the difference if you have all 7 plus sub high quality speakers (NOT CHEAP SATELLITE).

"Denon AVR-788" 2009-04-27
By Shawn J. Freeby
I love this receiver. It has all of the connections that I needed and it works well with my RF remote! I got this for a great price, but it took 3 weeks to get it shipped from DakMart. I did not pay for express shipping though.

"Denon AVR-788" 2009-01-20
By P. Harrison (ga)
Great sounding receiver. Best price on the internet too. The manual is terrible though. Not even the Denon engineers understand it. [...]. Only thing I dislike about this receiver is that it does not have HDMI pass through. The receiver has to be on for audio to be heard, only plays through surround speakers (you can go into the set-up and change it to play over the tv's speakers, but to hear surround sound you again have to reprogram it to play over the surround speakers). Newer models have pass through that allows the audio to be played over the tv's built in speakers when your not in the mood to hear sound played over the home theater speakers.

"Difficult to set up" 2009-01-13
By Bush Pilot (Grants Pass, OR)
Very frustrating to set up. Manual difficult to understand. System had annoying feature of going to mute each time system turned on and at first I thought system was not working. Sound level with system set for HDTV and then switch to CD was ear shattering high. Never did solve this problem, except to not switch to CD before turning sound way down. I can not imagine anyone operating this system without a great deal of sophistication with electronics. I could not get system to operate until I had spent several hours setting up and studying the manual. Great sound when set up correctly.

"Great Receiver but complex" 2009-01-12
By andes744
This is a really nice receiver and it sounds great, but it is non-trivial to set up! I am an engineer and I think it took me about 2 weeks to get it correctly set up. The HDMI is switching only, so you need separate cables for sound--not a big deal to me. The remote did not always work with the setup--I had to turn the Rt knob manually sometimes--kinda annoying but it works. The Setup menu does not work through HDMI so you have to have the component video connected as well--again, kind of annoying but no big deal really. There are lots of options for sound outputs, plenty of inputs (I have mine connected to a computer, DVD, VCR, iPod, and Cable Box) and the inputs are programmable, which is very flexible, but you have to spend some time figuring out the setup. Overall, this is a great receiver. If you have a techno-savvy friend to help you set it up, or you are well versed with electronic stuff you should be fine, but if you are a novice, watch out, or be ready to spend $$$ for someone to set this up and plug in all the connections for you

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Denon AVR-2805 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel

2010-02-13T17:18:00.001-08:00

Buy Cheap Denon AVR-2805 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel

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The AVR-2805 is Denon's addition of versatile A/V Receivers, which incorporate all current surround formats and enhanced installation flexibility, all with great simplicity of setup and operation.AVR-2805 features latest generation 32bit floating point DSP to decode all current surround formats, 96kHz signals and also processing room equalization. This DSP's processing power allows even the analogue input signals in all surround modes to be handled at 96kHz, which undoubtedly assures never-before-experienced high quality.The AVR-2805 is equipped with an Auto Setup and Room Equalization function, to achieve the most ideal sound field for your room. With the accompanying microphone placed at your listening position, the powerful new 32bit floating point DSP automatically and accurately analyzes, adjusts and sets the speaker configurations of your system. Also, the AVR-2805 analyzes and adjusts the frequency response of the speakers to the room with an 8 band parametric equalizer. The microphone (DM-S305) is especially designed, high performance unit with a heavy duty base to suppress vibrations for accurate analyzing.
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Technical Details

- 100 watts x 7 into 8 ohms (20-20,000 Hz) at 0.05% THD
- Dolby Digital EX, DTS-ES, DTS 96/24, DTS Neo - 6, Pro Logic IIx, and Widescreen 7.1 processing
- Auto Setup & Room EQ Adjust
- Dual-room/dual-source output (composite video and preamp or speaker-level stereo audio output for 2nd room)
- ALPHA 24 Processing Plus
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"A terrific, detailed non-HDMI receiver" 2008-04-18
By J. Howard
Price Paid: $354.00, used, from eBay on 10/03/2006

I'm writing this review because I'm disappointed by the poor reviews from the other Amazon folks that this great receiver does not deserve.

Summary:

This receiver was released 06/01/2004 with an original retail price of $899, & its professional reviews were glowing. I had researched many different non-HDMI receivers at the time and also liked the Yamahas. Anyway, my main incentive was that I wanted a solid 7.1 receiver to produce Dolby Digital EX, Pro-Logic IIx and DTS-ES 6.1 discreet.

At the time, I was waiting for HDMI (which this Denon 2805 receiver does not have) to continue to invade the marketplace to drive the price down, and was using a Teac Dolby Digital & DTS receiver which worked fine.

As you've probably read, some have complained that: there are too many complex settings and options on this receiver, the manual is poor (but it's filled with pictures & diagrams, is detailed and made perfect sense to me), or that the remote is confusing. The fact is, yes, all of it takes a while to learn - but after investing some time playing with the receiver/remote/manual (which takes time), things begin to make sense and detailed adjustments can be made and appreciated. Honestly!

This receiver also comes with DM-S305 setup microphone, at least I made sure mine did. I used this and it provided great speaker placement. My theater room is fairly even (like a rectangle).

Because I like the surrounds a tad more aggressive, I manually made the adjustments. If you get a used Denon AVR 2805, it would be wise to make sure you have the microphone, because as you graduate to other receivers (that can handle HDMI etc [this one does not]), the microphone will add a nice selling point to a buyer when it comes time to sell.

My speakers are ACOUSTECH 5.1-CHANNEL LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM + I purchased two more additional, matching Acoustech surrounds to create a 7.1 system. The speakers sound is terrific and very clean with the Denon.

http://www.audaud.com/audaud/MAR04/component/comp1.html

Back to the receiver, here are some options:

http://usa.denon.com/AVR28053ProductSheet.pdf

I frequently use Dolby Pro Logic® IIx Cinema (which provides 7.1 channels) with cable TV shows. It's terrific and can open up the atmosphere. And the Music mode of Dolby Pro Logic® IIx is wonderful and expansive with music on TV such as concerts. The same goes for using the DTS Neo modes. They don't sound gimicky, but more transparent & involving. Though be aware that direct 5.1 mixes from DVD movies sound far more distinct.

There are still many things I haven't investigated and certainly lack understanding such as the EQ settings, multi-room use (if you use 5.1 speakers and use the remaining two speakers for another room), and video up conversions. Also, I use it maybe a couple of hours ever few days, so I don't run it hard, and I've never had one problem with it. Not once.

The introduction of high definition and HDMI connectivity AFTER this receiver was produced has quickly made this and other non-HDMI receiver less relevant and, thus, the price has been reduced on eBay and the overall marketplace. And that is certainly fair.

If you are still waiting for quality HDMI receivers to decrease in price or are waiting for HDMI advances, it's hard to go wrong with this intermediate, non-HDMI 7.1 receiver in the meantime (also called the 985).

For an example, any of the three Lord of the Rings Extended DVDs in DTS-ES 6.1 Discreet sound breathtaking.

Being non-HDMI I can't give the 2805 a 5 star rating, which I would have back in 2004 upon its release. HDMI is proving to be necessarily relevant with the advent of high definition in today's home theaters, as well as the release of Dolby True-HD and DTS-HD Master Audio that is becoming available, which the Denon 2805 does not support. Of course, newer Denon receiver$ do.

But for what it does, it's enjoyably excellent.

Strengths:

Power, versatility, detailed settings. Learning remote. Clean, hefty sound; 100-watts per 7 channels. Good 100 page manual, which includes many diagrams. Many inputs. 7.1 pre-outs. On-screen display for helpful set up and information. DM-S305 setup microphone for speakers. Dolby® Digital EX, DTS-ES® 6.1 Discreet, and Dolby Pro Logic® IIx decoding. Multi-room, video conversions.

Weaknesses:

Non-HDMI. No sleep feature (auto-shut off after 30/60/90 etc minutes), which I use on other electronics. The one quirky, frustrating thing is that an older film (like from the 1980s-1990s) recorded in 2.0 surround will always throw the receiver into Dolby Pro-Logic IIx mode, and the manual confirms that is exactly what it will do (on page 42). What if you want to watch it strictly in 2.0 surround speaker placement? You have to turn off some speakers. So it's workable. It's a minor complaint.

Some who are not into fine-tuning the details may find the receiver, remote and manual overly complex. It takes some time. Overall, its been awesome for me. [Yes, I go overboard on mentioning the non-HDMI thing with this Denon receiver, because if someone is new to the Home Theater, they really should investigate and understand HDMI ..... @ hdmi.org ]. Hope this review helps.

"Excellant Receiver for the money" 2005-05-05
By D. Pauley (Charleston, WV)
I just purchased this receiver and found it to be quite wonderful. The Dolby Digital and DTS surround for DVD's is terrific. It's handling of CD's is very, very good too. I found it easy to set up and the auto set up of the speakers is very easy to do. My only complaint is that the remote is a little bit confusing when you first start using it, but once you get used to it's layout and which buttons handle what feature, then it's a breeze to operate. It's bit on the heavy side to hold in your hand, but otherwise it's very good. Highly recommended for it's advanced features and ease of operation.

"A decent unit but very poor remote and manual" 2005-05-03
By John Keelan (Golden, CO)
I previously owned a Yamaha DSP-1000 sound processor that had more power, sounded as good or better than the Denon, and had a much better remote and manual. I would not recommend it for the above reasons.

"Awesome Receiver" 2005-03-22
By Heath Taylor (Friendswood, TX United States)
This is the best value for the money on the market in A/V Receivers. I have owned this one since its inception and it has been great. I strongly recommend it to anyone!!!

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Denon DRA-395 Multi-Source/Multi-Zone AM/FM Stereo Receiver

2010-02-13T16:39:00.001-08:00

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AM/FM/FM Stereo Multi-Source/Multi-Zone Stereo Receiver ¿ 80 watts x 2 into 8 ohms, 20Hz - 20kHz, <0.08% THD ¿ 4 ohms stable ¿ Signal Level Divided Construction ¿ Banana-plug compatible speaker terminals ¿ Composite Video switching: 3 inputs/2 outputs ¿ Video/audio signal mixing for simulcasts ¿ Discrete Multi-room, Multi-source audio and video outputs for 2 Source, 3 zone control ¿ Independent, remote-controlled volume for second and third zones ¿ Discrete Main and/or Zone activation by remote or front panel ¿ Discrete Source select ¿ Speaker A/B Selector ¿ Subwoofer preamp output ¿ Phono Input ¿ Tone controls and tone control defeat ¿ Loudness contour ¿ Record out selector ¿ IR Remote input ¿ AM/FM/FM Stereo tuner with 40-station auto preset FM memory
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Technical Details

- 2-source/3-zone AM/FM stereo receiver and integrated amplifier with 80 watts per channel x 2; 4 ohms stable (using speakers A or B)
- Independent zone 2/3 control using supplied remote and external remote-control equipment such as Denon's RC-616 and RC-617 (optional)
- Signal Level Divided Construction (SLDC) keeps low- and high-level signals separate for greater clarity and fidelity
- Composite-video switching: 3 inputs/4 outputs; offers phono input (MM only)
- Measures 17.1 x 5.8 x 16.4 inches (W x H x D)
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"Not Bad for the Price" 2009-10-08
By TD (Philadelphia, PA)
I've had mine for four years and I have high quality Polk Audio speakers and the sound comes through great. The AM and FM tuning is not very good. And it does heat up a little bit. But I can't really complain. The dual zone speaker option is great as I have one set upstairs and one set downstairs.

"Unhappy - keeps dying" 2008-10-21
By TWO'S (Concord, MA United States)
I bought this product in 1/06. The LCD & audio to the speakers died by within 9 months. I had it repaired and it died again a little more than a year later. Now it's out of warranty. There is no servicer nearby so I'd have to mail it in and it's not small. What a waste of money and time!

"Denon Dra-395 - Don't buy one" 2007-11-24
By Steven Carr (Northern NJ)
What a piece of junk. The sound is fair and I would take that just to drive some in ceiling and outside speakers, but not long after I purchased it it would shut off after playing. I got it fixed and it worked for awhile then died. It just won't turn on. I have had receivers last for decades. This one only made it a couple of years and with only very lite use.

"Avoid" 2006-04-13
By S. Mayo
Sound is only ok. FM tuning is not fantastic.

But the big problem is that if there's a problem, a fuse (hidden inside the case, that the manual doesn't mention), blows. If you open the case and find it, you discover it's a 125V 6.3A mini fuse, which Radio Shack does not stock. (I can't tell if it's a slow blow or fast fuse, either. The manual should specify that; did I mention the manual does not mention the fuse exists at all?)

This is just ridiculously poor design. Fuses should be in externally accessible holders, they should be mentioned in the manual, there should be a spare in the shipping box, and in home use products, a shorted speaker lead shouldn't blow a fuse in the first place - the receiver should display a message and turn off the audio.

I don't know what they were thinking, but I'm thinking I'm sorry I bought this.

"Denon is not what it used to be" 2006-03-21
By fendertubeman (USA)
If I could "easily" return this unit, I would - unfortunately I bought it via the web. The bottom line is that the unit just sounds OK, that's it. Yes it has lots of features, but the sound is just slightly better than a boom box. I hooked the same speakers, CD player, and monster cable interconnects up to another amp and it was much, much better - night and day. If you're OK with something that looks decent and has plenty of features, then maybe you'll like this unit. If you care about the quality of the sound and want "high fidelity", look else where. Denon has become a provider of mass market, made in China stuff these days - no where near the quality they delivered 10+ years ago.

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Denon AVR5700 THX Audio/Video Receiver

2010-02-13T16:36:00.001-08:00

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Denon, the developer of the world's first A/V components that combined the magic of Dolby Digital with Lucasfilm's THX 5.1 technology, now elevates the performance standard with the new AVR-5700 A/V receiver packed with virtually every desirable feature for outstanding home theater and music surround sound enjoyment, the AVR-5700 is the only A/V component that provides optimized surround sound for both movie soundtracks as well as discrete multi-channel music surround. Powered by the newest high speed dual 32-bit DSP processors, the AVR-5700 includes Dolby Digital as well as DTS decoding, along with Lucasfilm THX 5.1 post-processing, entirely in digital domain - the world's first A/V receiver with this capability.The AVR-5700 is engineered for the future, with eight channel (7.1) inputs for the future multi-channel formats, and 8 channel pre-amp outputs for a clear system upgrade path. Able to accommodate virtually any present or future Source, the AVR-5700 provides component video switching along with "S" and composite video switching, and nine digital inputs (including one for RF laser disc), Premium 24-bit. 96-kHZ DACs on all six channels with Denon's exclusive 24-bit Alpha processing for the main (L/R channels), and a THX Ultra-certified five channel power amp section with an output of 140 watts per channel, all add up to the best-sounding A/V component available today.
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Technical Details

- THX Ultra audio-video receiver
- Dolby Digital decoding
- DTS decoding
- 140 watts per channel
- 24-bit, 96-kHz premium Burr-Brown DACs on all 6 channels
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"Definitely Ahead Of It's Time, Owned For Over 10 Years!!" 2010-01-22
By Douglas Fitzpatrick (California, Mission Viejo USA)
This Denon AVR-5700 THX Ultra Receiver at it's time of availability was equal or better than many high-end seperate Pre-Amp Processors! The sound right out of the box sounded extremely detailed which no other receiver could match at the time, it's powerful 5-channel amplifier section 140W x 5 RMS is a monster! I have been driving my M&K THX Certified speaker system for just as long as I've owned this receiver, all while driving 4 ohm loads! My front three speakers (Left|Center|Right speakers) are rated at 4 ohms with a maximum 200W unclipped, I have always wondered how much more watts I'm pushing into a 4 ohm speaker?

The amplifier is rated at 140W into an 8 ohm load, the fact that I'm pushing double that means this receiver can handle more than claimed by Denon! I have noticed a LOT of consumers are upgrading their receivers just to have the ability to play the new HD codecs Dolby True HD and DTS HD Master Audio, while there has been a double blind test at Dolby Lads in San Francisco, CA, the difference between the new and old codecs is at best subtle. These test were performed in an acoustically treated room and still very subtle differences were found! I have decided to continue using this receiver for a few more years as I'm using my Oppo BDP-83SE's 7.1 multi-channel analog outputs to the 7.1 multi-channel analog Ext inputs, the BDP-83SE's DACs are actually better than the Denon's Burr Brown DACs by a lot!

"AHEAD OF ITS TIME" 2003-04-19
By ERIC CABRERA (SAN DIEGO, CA United States)
Unlike many units out there, this one stands out as ahead of its time - and even by todays standards, still a major contender. Like the Acura legend, the AVR 5700 remains legendary. Quality build, rock solid performance for the HT enthusiast. Musical performance is also decent, especially due to ALPHA 24 processing. I have never clipped the amps on this unit running full throttle - of course, you must use tone defeat in order to eliminate risk; with good source the sound is very clean and undistorted. I use 5700 to drive 5 full range Paradigm's and often with subwoofer off - low end reached 30hz; ended up purchasing a sunfire sub to reach bottom end of 18hz.
No regrets.

"You can't go wrong with Denon." 2002-03-25
By W. H. Jamison, Jr. (Burien, Washington United States)
This receiver is just about perfect, and when Denon came out with the AVR5800 they did achieve perfection. This receiver packs 140 watts per channel, every Dolby decoding mode known to God, Ray Dolby and man, a clean, ergonomically sound interface (no Tokyo Light Show as in other receivers and a pertty decent learning remote.
The only thing I don't like about this receiver is the fact that it does not do high bandwidth (HDTV) component video switching and the tuner stage is pretty weak. But if you want fantastic, solidly built, expandable A/V gear then Denon is the place to go.

"Excellent for 1999" 2002-03-01
By RushFanRich (Chicago)
Yes. This is a phenominal piece of electronics. But Please, Get more up to date if your gonna spend full asking price. The new model as of 2/28/02 is the AVR 5800 and it is leaps and bounds more advanced then this one....
Happy shopping!

"What a great toy to have" 2001-08-05
By Nicholas Schaub (Palm Desert, CA)
Let me start off by saying that this receiver has practically anything and everything that most people will ever need for their home theater. Dolby Digital and DTS surround sound means that you can watch your favorite movies in any format you like best. THX-Ultra certified means that it is the top of the line. It has a very cool 5-channel stereo function, which I find wonderful when I listen to my CD's, music playing equally from all speakers. It has a plethora of inputs and outputs for basically everything. It has digital inputs that you wouldn't believe: 4 Optical, 3 Coaxial and an RF input for Laserdisc Players. It has 2 sets of Component Video inputs and 1 set of outputs. It has inputs and outputs for: Phono, CD, DVD, VDP, TV/DBS, Video Aux, VCR-1, VCR-2, MD/Tape-1 and Tape-2. It also has S-video inputs for all video sources. Surround sound wise, the AVR-5700 comes with 2 sets of hookups for surround speakers, Surround A and Surround B (it is the first receiver to have this). This is so you can use different surround speakers for music and movies. Which is very nice since some surround speakers are built specifically for movies while others are for music. It has a Video Select Function, which allows you to watch one source (visual) while listening to another source (audio). The remote this Denon comes with is a learning remote, which makes it so nice not to have a whole bunch of remotes laying around. It is also future sound format upgradable via 8-Channel inputs and outputs. All in all, this little baby (not too little, weighing in at a whopping 50+ pounds!) is worth every penny and more spent. I love my Denon, it has so many cool and interesting features, so much more than I can say. Buy this, and you won't be disappointed.

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DENON AVR-3803-R Home Theater A/V Receiver - REFURBISHED

2010-02-13T16:35:00.001-08:00

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Denon DVD-2500BTCI Blu-ray/DVD/CD Player

2010-02-13T16:26:00.001-08:00

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DENON BLU-RAY/DVD/CD/ TRANSPORT WITH 1080P/24fps OUTPUT CAPABLE.
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Technical Details

- Complete digital-only transport to eliminate interference
- Single-cable HDMI connection and Digital HD output up to 1080p
- Fully 10-bit processing for i/p and scaling circuit
- Blu-ray 1080p/24fps output capability
- Up to 36 bit Deep Color support via HDMI
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"Denon DVD-2500btci magic" 2009-12-09
By CARALMOL (SAN SALVADOR)
The sound is perfect, I have PS3 and watch bluray movies for over two years. The PQ is very similar, colors look more natural, but the sound, that's where this thing shines. Denon and Onkyo, may say not a good combination but with my 875 sounds terrific.

Great product.

"Great player - worthy of the Denon name" 2009-12-01
By Mr. Opinion (USA)
I was lucky to purchase this Blu ray transport at a great price through Amazon (from Vann's), which made it competitive with a number of other players. I have several Denon components and like the brand, so I chose this model. I have not been disappointed!

The DVD-2500 is not for everyone... note that it has one connection out - HDMI only. If that won't work for you, then don't buy this player. However, if that does work for you... so will the 2500. Picture quality and sound are amazing! Though it takes some time to load discs (as they all do), there is no lag once you start playing. What I am also very impressed with is the upscaling of DVD video to 1080P-quality images. This makes re-veiwing your existing DVD collection a treat - almost as if your entire library has been upgraded.

The unit is built like a brick - heavy and sturdy. I anticpate years of use and enjoyment, and would make this same purchase again. The only reason I give it four stars instead of five is for the lack of Internet capable features that most players support now. I can live without those features, but for the price range of this player one might expect it to have Internet capable features - which it does not.

"Best Value I've Seen In A While" 2009-08-21
By P. Montgomery (Southeast US)
When first introduced, MSRP for the DVD-2500BTCI was $1k. I liked it and would have paid that much for it eventually. But when it went on sale for $500, I just couldn't resist. Assuming Denon hasn't substituted cheaper parts somewhere along the way, the current sale prices of under $350 are almost like legalized shoplifting. This is my first Blu-Ray player so I don't have another to compare it to. But both picture and sound are outstanding. As long as you only need an HDMI output, and are patient at least in some regards, I can't recommend this unit enough. Observed Strengths & Weaknesses below.

STRENGTHS:

With just about every receiver, pre/pro, etc., out there already having an array of surround decoders, D/A converters, etc., I found it annoying that these were duplicated and charged for in just about all DVD/Blu-Ray players. Not so in the DVD-2500BTCI, which is why it is called a "transport" instead of a "player." You're only paying for what you need...no useless stuff that's duplicated elsewhere in a typical system.

Unit has a nice, high-end feel that rivals that of $2k pieces from anybody. Front panel buttons have a nice, positive feel, and the disc drawer is silken-smooth and nearly silent.

Detachable power cord

Can program it with a 2nd remote code so as not to interfere with other Denon units.

When you're at Chapter 10 or higher, there is now a space between the Chapter# and Time, instead of one big row of hard-to-read gobbledygook all run together, as on Denon's previous players.

Remote has a nice, quality feel in many ways.

WEAKNESSES

Response is sloooooooooooowwwwwwwwwww; Stop command during Blu-Ray disc playback sometimes took 30 seconds for player to acknowledge. This may be more a property of Blu-Ray players than of Denon specifically, but I am mentioning it anyway since responsiveness is at least to some degree important to me.

No Power Off, just Stand By.

Among the 3 brands of DVD transports/players I have used heavily, the transports on the Denons have consistently been the least precise. For example, if you are fast-forwarding and then press Play, playback sometimes doesn't resume even close to the point where you pressed the Play button. Other brands land close or dead on.

Remote buttons have to be pressed firmly to work.

I've bought (almost literally) a ton of Denon products over the years. Counting only the ones I bought new from authorized dealers, many have arrived defective, or had "issues" shortly after the warranty expired. The people that answer their Tech questions have actually been OK, but those in their repair center have been aloof, evasive, and sometimes questionably competent. Making things worse, repair/replacement parts have been discontinued insanely early on many of their most expensive pieces.

"Goes great with a Denon AVR-4308CI" 2009-07-15
By But It's a Dry Rain (Seattle)
I have a Denon AVR-4308CI bought at a bargain price (not from Amazon). Everyone said that the DVD-2500BTCI would go great with that receiver and they were right.

Connecting the DVD player to the receiver with an HDMI cable was very easy. I think that's the ONLY way to connect the two.

People who say the 2500BTCI is built like a brick poop-house are correct; the unit is solid and feels like it will outlast the Blu-Ray format (which could be all of two years, the way technology is changing!)

What impressed me most was not the picture, which is awesome, but the way the 2500BTCI and the AVR-4308CI work together to create the best SOUND I've heard outside of a movie theater. And I really don't have a fancy home theater system. I've got two Vienna Acoustic Haydn Grand speakers, a Vienna Acoustic Waltz Grand center speaker, and an REL Q108 subwoofer.

I feel I got a bargain buying the DVD-2500BTCI from Amazon for $279.

"Denon Blu-Ray" 2009-07-10
By B. Weitzel (USA)
As you would expect with any product manufactured by Denon, this is a beautiful piece of equipment that performs flawlessly.

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Denon AVR-587 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver

2010-02-13T16:20:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR587 Home Theater Receiver
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Technical Details

- 7.1-channel home theater receiver with 525 watts of total power; meaxures 17.1 x 5.8 x 16.1 inches (WxHxD)
- 75 watts at 8 ohms across seven amplifier channels
- XM Radio ready and XM-HD surround sound capable; control iPod via optional dock
- 56-station AM/FM/XM random preset memory tuning
- Surround modes: DTS 96/24 decoding for DVD video; DTS-ES 6.1 and Matrix 6.1; DTS NEO:6; Dolby Digital EX; Dolby Pro Logic IIx; Neural Surround
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"Enough for a Home Theater" 2007-01-03
By Hector Perez (Angleton, TX)
Excellent product for that price; not that easy to calibrate because the instruction manual is kind of confusing. Set the second zone is also not an easy task.

I have it installed with the screen in my first floor and enjoy it a lot more than the Bose lifestyle 38 set in my game room upstairs; with the JBL speakers (in ceiling) inside and the outdoor Yamaha speakers in my backyard, I expend one third of the money I paid for the Bose system. The quality of the sound and possibilities of changes in the sound is a lot better with separate amplifier as this Denon.

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Denon AVR-1705 - AV receiver - 6.1 channel

2010-02-13T16:19:00.001-08:00

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PRODUCT FEATURES:Dolby Digital Surround EX, Pro Logic IIx decoding with Cinema, Music and Game Modes;dts ES Discrete 6.1 and Matrix 6.1 decoding;dts Neo: 6 Stereo to Surround decoding;dts ES 96/24 5.1 decoding for DVD Video;Analog Devices HammerHead SHARC 32 bit floating point DSP processor;6 Channels equal power amplifier section;Analog Devices, 24 bit, 192 kHz high resolution DACs on all eight channels;True 24 bit, 96 kHz Digital Interface Receiver;24 bit, 96 kHz A/D conversion on all Stereo analog inputs (Not EXT. Inputs);Adjustable High and Low Pass Crossover (40/60/80/100/120/150/200/250Hz);3 Assignable Component Video inputs (100MHz Bandwidth), with On-Screen Display;Video Conversion of Composite to S-Video and/or to Component, with on-screen display;4 sets composite and 3 "S" video inputs;5.1 external wide bandwidth (100 kHz) inputs for multi-channel formats, such as DVD-Audio and Super Audio CD;5/6/7 Channel Stereo;Digitally regulated volume control with .5dB increment adjustments and step range of -80 to +15;Personal Memory Plus;3 assignable digital inputs (2 Optical, 1 Coaxial);8 analog inputs including built-in AM/FM tuner;Direct Access Tuner presets by remote;Glo-Key pre-programmed remote control.
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Technical Details

- Built-in RDS AM/FM tuner
- Dolby Digital and DTS decoding, Dolby Digital EX, Pro Logic II decoding with Cinema and Music Modes, DTS-ES Matrix & Discrete 6.1 decoding, DTS Neo - 6 Cinema & Music Surround decoding
- 32 bit Analog Devices DSP processor
- 6 equal power amplifier channels, 75 watts per channel into 8 ohms (20 Hz to 20,000Hz)
- Personal Memory Plus
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"Fantastic value for money" 2004-10-22
By S. Roberts (London, United Kingdom)
From a company I trust, this is truly the definition of bang for your buck. Sitting on your shelf or in your hifi cabinet, it manages to have a dominating presence while looking sleek, the embodiment of elegance. It caters for a wide array of inputs and outputs - 3 digital inputs greatly appreciated - and has the power to more than adequately fill a large room. The buttons and remote are quality (the latter takes a little getting used to), and the setup is simple. And oh yes, it sounds brilliant. Get one! Now!

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Denon AVR-888 Home Theater Bundle with Klipsch Speakers

2010-02-13T16:13:00.001-08:00

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Everything You Need to Kick-Start Your Home Theater

If you're looking for a better home theater experience, you've found the right place to start. The Denon AVR-888 receiver is a great entry-level piece to start taking advantage of high-end features like HDMI, Dolby Digital, and more. Get support for multiple zones, 7.1-channel sound, compressed audio restoration (perfect for listening to your digital music), and advanced HDMI features like Deep Color and 1080p passthrough. The Quintet III and Sub-10 make up a powerful 5.1-channel surround system in a small package, with horn-loaded MicroTractrix tweeters and high output woofers that deliver huge sound for small- to medium-sized spaces. This bundle is the perfect solution for small- to mid-sized rooms where space and budget are an issue but you don't want to sacrifice great sound.

This home theater bundle consists of:

One Denon AVR-888 7.1-channel AV receiver (Learn more)

One Klipsch Synergy Quintet III speaker system (Learn more)

One Klipsch Synergy Sub-10 subwoofer (Learn more)
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Onkyo TX-SR606 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)

2010-02-13T16:10:00.001-08:00

Buy Cheap Onkyo TX-SR606 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)

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As part of the second generation of Onkyo high-definition-capable receivers, the TX-SR606 is at the forefront of affordable home theater. The key is to have the most capable version of HDMI. The TX-SR606 provides high-definition video and audio processing for four source components—another first for Onkyo at this level. From Blu-ray Disc players to gaming consoles and cable/satellite boxes, you have everything in the digital realm covered. Apart from 1080p video, the TX-SR606 can upscale all video signals to 1080i, regardless of the connection, for output via HDMI. Onkyo’s own RIHD (Remote Interactive over HDMI) also gives you inter-operability with the displays and playback components from other leading brands. And with an expanded version of Audyssey’s room correction technology, the TX-SR606 maintains the fullness of surround sound audio quality at low volume levels. The TX-SR606 offers all-round excellence rarely seen at this level.
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Technical Details

- Affordable 7.1-channel home theater receiver with full HD integration and video upscaling
- Power output: 90 watts x 7 channels (minimum)
- HDMI v1.3a Repeater (4 inputs, 1 output, 1080P compatible)
- 1080i Upscaling powered by Faroudja DCDi Edge
- TrueHD, DTS-HD Decoding
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"Has Known Issues - Research Before You Buy!" 2010-02-06
By jodha (New Mexico)
Onkyo in general seems to have a good reputation when it comes to receivers. So I bought this receiver and was initially happy with the performance. I had 3 devices connected to it via HDMI. Then one morning, I turned on the tv to watch, and no picture. If I'd wait 30 minutes, the picture would finally come in. Then one day, no picture from the PS3 or Blu-ray player. Today, I haven't been able to resolve why there is no picture. Have tried to contact ONKYO, but no response. I researched this issue via the internet, and what do you know, numerous folks have already posted this on various sites asking for help. I've tried all the ideas I've read, but to no avail.

So, bottom line, do better research than I did. If you're using for 1080p components, then do some Googling before buying.

"Great price, great functionality, just very unreliable" 2010-01-25
By A. Adams (San Carlos, CA United States)
Does everything it says it does. Sounds great. With 4 HDMI inputs at the price point was in a price point of its own. It does run hot like everyone says. I've had mine for just over 9 months, its been sent for repair once already and yesterday the sound stopped on one of the HDMI channels and now HDMI switching has gone all together. The money I saved on not buying a more expensive Denon has gone on shipping costs to send it for repair. Sadly, browsing the internet, this seems an all too common problem.

"Receiver is a FAIL" 2010-01-19
By N. Zigon (Dallas, TX)
I bought my SR 606 last year for Christmas, about 1 year and 10 days later, it won't switch to different inputs without constantly cycling it on and off. Literally 30-40 tries, its ridiculous. It appears that many other people on here are suffering this same problem. The receiver itself is a good unit, although the very long delay between switching inputs made it difficult to set up initially. The sound is excellent and its full of features, it does everything I need it to do, except work when I want it to. The receiver does run very hot, enough to burn your hand, which seems like an oversight in production. Service is as mentioned in a previous review, "backed up", and I'm not willing to be without it for a couple of months, at cost to me. I'll be upgrading to a different unit soon. I will not buy Onkyo again.

Please take our advice and spend money on a better product.

"Top pick" 2010-01-09
By audiodreamer (Bethany, OK)
I believe that this was a top pick of Home Theater Mag, when they were reviewing it. I can't complain. If I had more money I might have spent more money. So what more could I ask for? More money, a bigger house a theater room bigger badder speakers, thats what we all want right. Still dreaming.

"Great while it works BUT...." 2010-01-08
By Michael H (Mount Laurel, NJ United States)
I purchased this in August, 2008. The only complaint I could offer about it is that it runs a little hot, but not a big deal. Until recently...

Everything runs through the HDMI ports. I started getting random issues where it wasn't getting a signal from my PS3 that was running through the "Game" port. I also have an Xbox running to the "VCR" port that was not having any issues. Thinking the issue was with the PS3 or the HDMI cable, I switched cables, and still got no results. I then ran the PS3 through the "VCR" port and it worked fine. SO for about two weeks I just switched the HDMI cable from the back of the PS3/Xbox and ran them both through the "VCR" port. Now I can't get a signal from either of them unless I skip the receiver completely and run them straight to the TV.

Not the ideal surround sound set-up! My warranty should still be valid, so I'm going to try to get it repaired/replaced by Onkyo. Wish me luck!

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Denon AVR-787 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver

2010-02-08T22:48:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR787 Home Theater Receiver
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Technical Details

- 7.1-channel home theater receiver with 595 watts of total power; meaxures 17.1 x 5.8 x 16.1 inches (WxHxD)
- 85 watts at 8 ohms across seven amplifier channels
- Auto Setup feature precisely balances speaker levels and fine-tunes the delay settings (microphone included)
- XM Radio ready and XM-HD surround sound capable; control iPod via optional dock
- Surround modes: DTS 96/24 decoding for DVD video; DTS-ES 6.1 and Matrix 6.1; DTS NEO:6; Dolby Digital EX; Dolby Pro Logic IIx; Neural Surround
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"Very Very Happy" 2008-02-12
By Mark C. Hamer (Batesville, In USA)
So many choices from so many locations. I started thinking cheaper was better, WRONG! Cheaper is just cheap. I bought a 5.1 Yamaha speaker set. Then thought I'd buy a low cost system available from my local Wal Mart. The thinking was to scrap the receivers speakers & use the Yamaha set. Got home, read the reviews on the receiver and took that unit back. Returned home & did a little more reading. Read the 2 outstanding reviews here and made the purchase. This unit is very nice and I'm thrilled with it. Yes the owners manual can be difficult to decipher and if you've never ran a patch cable in your life... get some help from someone who has or pay the fee to have a pro do it. I was able to save a little on the cables by shopping around. I will buy Denon again. Heres an interesting observation that was made by my wife. This receiver on it's own actually outweighs the total weight of the returned system, box, speakers, cables and receiver.

"Great performance for a reasonable price" 2007-07-09
By Charles E. Brown
I couldn't be more pleased with this purchase. But a little planning is advisable.

I ordered this unit on July 5th and received it on July 6th with overnight ordering using Amazon Prime. The additional shipping cost with Prime was only $1.99.

Right after I ordered it, I went on to the Denon site and decided to start to read the owner's manual. It was quite an education. Before you attempt to install the unit, make sure you study the wiring diagrams and the setup instructions in the first few pages of the manual.

That being said, plan on about $300 in additional costs buying the proper cabling. For maximum results, you need 3 sets of Video Composite cables (One from your television/DBS box, one from your DVD player, and from this unit to the video inputs on your television. Also plan on 2 optical cables for sound: one from the television DBS box and one from the DVD player.

Provided you did your homework in advance, and have the proper cables, the installation took me about 60 minutes or so. I used the provided microphone to do the automatic speaker balancing. However, after that, I did a little additional tweaking for my own taste.

If you set the TV/DBS box as Composite 2 and the DVD player as Composite 1 the default settings take over and there is little else to do in installation.

Past that, the sound is great and everything seems to be working flawlessly. I am going to get the iPod dock next.

Great performance at a reasonable price.

"Great AV Receiver Value" 2007-04-12
By DigitalMan (Denver, CO)
I am a huge Denon fan. I own two high end Denon's (One I have had for 15 years and it is still rock solid). I bought this one for my inlaws (in their 70's) because I wanted a quality value product. Denon's value products are really just scaled down versions of their high end stuff. You cannot go wrong with this unit. It set up quickly and easily and performs flawlessly.

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Denon AK-P100 - iPod audio cable - white

2010-02-08T02:08:00.001-08:00

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Marketing description is not available.
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Technical Details

- Denon's exclusive noise canceling technology reduces ambient noise by up to 99%
- Acoustic Optimizer technology for balanced, uncolored sound
- Powered by a single AAA battery, widely available on the go
- Headphones can be enjoyed with or without noise canceling function
- Compact case, includes two cable lengths, dual airline adapter, adapter
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"Denon AKP-100 (connecting AVR 4306 to iPOD nano)" 2008-05-19
By Anonymous
I purchased this product for my Denon AVR 4306. I have connected this to an iPOD nano. This cable is the only recommended cable for iPOD connectivity to the AVR. Upon connecting the iPOD and selecting the iPOD option on the AVR, the iPOD can then be controlled via the Denon/remote control. The controls are logical and simple from the Denon unit. Only audio functionality is available. The sound output from the iPOD via my Denon unit is excellent given the AAC compression of the tracks from Apple/iTunes. The cable does not support video functionality. The iPOD can also be charged via the Denon Unit. Overall, the product works well. The only disadvantage is the price which I believe to be unrealistic.Denon AKP-100 iPod Cable

"Great product!" 2007-01-28
By S. Singh (Kendall Park, NJ)
My research showed that Amazon had one of the lowest prices for this product. I received it within 3 days of my order! The cable out of the box worked as advertized. My Denon AVR-4306 works just great with all the Ipod's functionalities accessible through the Denon remote. Highly recommend it!

"iPod Cable - Does the Job" 2007-01-10
By Sidharth Mohan (Singapore)
This cable does the job of connecting the iPod to the Denon Receiver. However the user interface is very basic in nature. The Denon remote can be used to select songs.

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Denon AVR-3808CI - AV network receiver - 7.1 channel

2010-02-08T01:31:00.001-08:00

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The AVR-3808CI is an addition to Denon's acclaimed three thousand series A/V receiver line. Technology advances and careful engineering has yielded a receiver with the features and functions to take it well into the future of home theater. The AVR-3808CI has joined the CI ranking with the addition of expanded connectivity including networking and Internet radio. Updated Audyssey audio processing has refined the calibration process producing better sound and room balance, even with difficult acoustical conditions. The AVR-3808CI now has HDMI v1.3a, which brings with it the new surround formats for HD decoding. Portable device hookup has also been improved for ease of use.
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Technical Details

- 130 Watts Per Channel x 7 Channels, All Channels Rated at 0.05 THD / 4 DVI/HDMI Video Inputs/1 Output, 3 Component Video Inputs/1 Output
- 5 Optical Digital Inputs/2 Outputs, 2 Coaxial Inputs, 11 Analog audio Inputs, Incl. Tuner / XM-Satellite Radio Capability, 8-Channel External Analog Input
- 7 S-Video Inputs/3 Outputs, 3 Composite Outputs, Digital to Analog REC Output
- Complete digital-only transport to eliminate interference / Single-cable HDMI connection and Digital HD output up to 1080p
- Fully 10-bit processing for i/p and scaling circuit / Blu-ray 1080p/24fps output capability / Up to 36 bit Deep Color support via HDMI
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Denon DRA-CX3 Audiophile Stereo AM/FM Tuner/Amplifier

2010-02-08T01:20:00.001-08:00

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Compact in size, the DRA-CX3 AM/FM tuner/amplifier combines precision design with a powerful amplifier section able to drive the widest range of audiophile loudspeaker systems. Featuring 75 watts per channel into 8 ohms, the DRA-CX3 is equipped with generous headroom for the widest dynamic range, along with 150 watts per channel capability into lower impedance 4 ohms speakers, and features separate power supplies and ground circuits for each critical stage. A range of inputs includes a phono section with both MM and MC cartridge capability along with a dedicated CD input that features Denon’s high grade gold plated machined brass input terminals for compatibility with audiophile interconnects, with 3 additional line level inputs for connection to other sources, along with iPod dock control. The audiophile grade speaker connectors are gold plated machined brass for compatibility with quality speaker cables, and the Pure Direct mode turns off unnecessary circuits and disables the front panel display for maximum fidelity. The elegant slimline remote control is thoughtfully laid out for ease of use.
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Technical Details

- Compact, yet powerful 75 + 75 watt amplifier
- Power supply features extended peak dynamic capability
- Built-in AM/FM tuner. Moving magnet and moving coil phono stage
- Audiophile grade gold-plated machined brass CD input terminals
- Machined brass gold-plated speaker output jacks that accommodate large-gauge audiophile speaker cables
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Denon AVR-4306 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel - black

2010-02-08T01:18:00.001-08:00

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The AVR-4306 is a brand new model for the Denon A/V Receiver line-up, with features and connectivity at a price point never before seen. With a robust 130 watts for each of its 7 channels, Denon's exclusive Dynamic Discrete Surround Circuitry, the AVR-4306 follows in the Home Theater footsteps of its critically acclaimed siblings the AVR-4806 and AVR-5805. The Audyssey MultEq Auto Setup/Room Eq system is featured, with included microphone, to provide you with the ultimate sound environment possible.Where the AVR-4306 charts new territory is in its connectivity, and control, of portable music players as well as streaming audio from a Windows Based PC and other popular music servers. Add to this the ability to upconvert analog video images to HDMI, XM Satellite Radio Ready functionality, and true 3 source/3 zone control, the AVR-4306 is sure to become a most welcome addition to any home theater.
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Technical Details

"Fine AVR" 2009-10-31
By Wolfie777 (NY,NY)
I agree with all the good things that have been said and I have just a few brief comments to add.

The remote takes time to get used to. I had to call Denon Support a few times for more than a year every now and then to learn what I needed. Now I love it.

My manual is dog-earred. It has to be because there were times that I found what I needed when Denon Support was either dead wrong and/or unaware of what I needed to know. I don't always get the technical stuff right away, but if I put the time in, its almost always in the manual. Denon Support is less than perfect. They are sometimes a little abrupt, short tempered, can take forever to get through to, and sometimes just plain wrong. However, I'll give them a B+ at worst because God knows, I've called them enough and I usually get the right answer.

I'm sold on Denon and I'm looking forward to a new 4810. Another nice thing about Denon is that there are few radial changes in recent years and jumping up a notch or two is OK from the standpoint that you are not going to be completely confused, quite the contrary the newer models seem to build on the previous.

If I can't get a new Denon soon I'll still be happy with my 4306.

"Terrific receiver, but steep learning curve" 2008-03-20
By A. Fear (Austin, TX)
I agree with pretty much every review here already done. This receiver is a tank, sounds great, but you must buy it knowing that you will be challenging yourself.

To put it this way, this receiver has been integrated into my home theater for 9 months and I sill find myself tweaking it to make it sound better.

Overall, I'm happy with it but wish I had bought the slightly newer model "CI" that supports 1080p upconversion since my projector supports it. But that's the my issue, not the receivers, and you always face that problem buying technology.

"Outstanding Performer- not for the inexperienced User" 2007-03-05
By Philip J. Pollina (Long Island, NY USA)
Absolutely outstanding feature set and performance. Very easy to set up, the net radio feature is very cool. I have and oldish VCR, a DVD player and DirecTV HD DVR set up through system, works flawlessly. I am waiting for the High Def DVD wars to settle before jumping in, but I will be ready when I do because of the outstanding number of HDMI and other inputs. The Audyssey MultEq Auto Setup/Room Eq is fabulous, worked very well in my oddly shaped room with my Klipsch surround system. I have not had any issues with the video performance, and the upscaling is wonderful. It is very nice to have one cable run to my Plasma as opposed to three! The remote is descent, but the 'hide and seek' portion is a little annoying. I was able to get all of my most needed functions into it, and the macros are nice for powering up and shutting down all components. Sonic performance is well, Denon-esque- meaning beautiful. This is a high-end AV receiver for a high-end user. If you are a true home theater enthusiast, you will extremely happy with this wonderful piece of equipment.

"Denon 4306 has several drawbacks" 2006-06-26
By L. Templeton (California, USA)
As a 4306 owner, I agree with many of the comments by previous reviewers. Sound and video quality are excellent, HDMI switching works fine. Tons of features and somewhat complex to set up. The manual is marginal in many respects.

As stated in previous reviews, the remote control is not very good, but you'll probably want to use a good universal remote if you have more than a few units in your system.

My big problem with the 4306 is this. When playing my Sony VCR through the Denon composite video input, the 4306 often completely freezes and displays only green and/or yellow vertical lines on the screen. This cannot be corrected with the remote control. You have to go to the 4306 and manually cycle it off/on in order to restore normal operation. This is a significant glitch in a high-priced product like the 4306.

I also discovered that the 4306 does not provide audio line outputs. I want to listen to headphones while the main speakers are turned lower or off. (I'm hard of hearing, my wife is not). The preamp outputs are controlled by the same knob as the main speakers. Turn the main speakers down or off and you turn the preamp out levels down or off. Plug the wireless headphone base unit into the heaphone jack on the 4306 and it completely disconnects the main speakers. There doesn't seem to be a clean solution.

Aside from the above problems, I am satisfied with the performance of the 4306.

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Pioneer VSX-919AH-K 120 Watts A/V Receiver with Full Color GUI/OSD, Advanced MCACC and Analog to HDMI Up-Conversion (Black)

2010-02-08T01:14:00.003-08:00

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VSX-9I9AH I20 Watts x 7 ¿ PHAT II @ 1 kHz Full Color GUI / OSD USB input for iPhone and iPod certified playback. Charging and Album art in 1st room. Advanced MCACC 9 Band EQ Symmetric EQ X-Curve PQLS ¿ 2 Channel Auto Level Control ¿ Multi-Channel Sound Retriever ¿ Multi- channel Neural THX / WMA-9 Pro Kuro Link Analog to HDMI Up-conversion PureCinema Video Processing 3D Noise Reduction 3D Y/C Separation Audio Inputs (4 in / 1out - includes Tuner) Digital Inputs (3 - 1 coax / 2 opt) Multi-Zone A/V Pre-out New Preset Remote Control
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Technical Details

- I20 Watts x 7 ¿ PHAT II @ 1 kHz
- USB input for iPhone and iPod certified playback. Charging and Album art in 1st room
- Advanced MCACC, 9 Band EQ, Symmetric EQ
- Analog to HDMI Up-conversion
- New Preset Remote Control
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"Pioneer VSX-919AK-K" 2010-01-31
By T. Dyer (Waterboro, ME USA)
Nice receiver! So much versatality it's mind boggling! I'm still learning it's full potential. The hand book is ok but not very easy to find your way around. At first I counldn't get the sub-woofer to really crank but after dilegent tinkering finally figured it out. That's the only downfall of this receiver, is trying to get it to do what you want it to do. It takes deligence and lots.... of patience. Once you get things all figured out it's a really nice receiver. It's nice to have alot less wiring going on behind it. I wish it had one or two electrical jack plugs so you could plug in other components. For instance a sub-woofer! So when you power on/off the receiver the sub-woofer would power on/off too! The remote is really busy and hard too read in a typically lit living room. But works!

"Pioneer VSX-919 Pristine sound Quality with guts and oomphs" 2010-01-18
By VELMUR (Boston,MA)
I first purchased VSX 819(5.1 channel) model, which I liked for few weeks except initially setting up the receiver took more than 2-3 hours. then when I was looking to buy 919 for its 7.1 channel but at the same time Sony released its STR-DN1000 model so I purchased this Sony but after having hooked it up with JBL speakers fairly very quickly than vsx819 and begun listening and noticed this Sony failed to produce very clean sound quality especially in dialogue and in songs but it produced thunderous bass LFE to SubW, and also it doesn't offer lots of sound fields unlike vsx819 offers, therefore I dissappointed in this Sony despite being ardent Sony fan. I returned this receiver and I wanna go again with Pioneer but for VSX919 7.1 model, So placed an order with Amazon that quickly shipped the receiver.I was able to quickly setup the receiver and ran AutoMCACC setup that did fantastic job of calculating accurate spkr. distances and other acoustic options.then I begun playing Lord of the Rings Bluray disc on Sony BDP360,I was thrilled by Pioneer vsx919 ability to produce pristine sound quality and it produced right amount of Bass effect to SW, and I was able to hear very small sound effects in the movie being played which I didn't notice in Sony and vsx 919 offers variuos sound fields in both stereo and multichannel sources and it has industry popular Sound Retriever function for Analog sources also Dialog Enhancement feature.and another fantastic feature is iPhone 3GS support that I used with it.

the only CONS it has is while switching sources, it displays HDCP Error but it corrects itself when correct input is selected. I love this Excellent 4.5 Star Receiver despite the fact Pioneer offers only 1 year warranty but Sony, Denon, etc offer 2 or more.

"Comments from a rusty audiophile" 2010-01-16
By Tiger51
I'm not a up-to-date audiophile like most buyers of this product but thought some basic comments might be helpful to users like me. I just got this Pioneer through Amazon (Electronics Express)and it came without any problems. I bought it to connect my new Samsung LN52B750 TV and BD3600 DVD with my existing Kenwood 5.1 surround sound speakers. Hook-up was pretty easy, considering I haven't hooked up components in 10 years. It took 2 HDMI cables, one from the BD3600 to the VSX-919AH(A/V) and one from the A/V to the TV and 1 optical audio cable from the TV back to the A/V, to hook the three components together. Along with some time to connect the 5 speakers. The result is really outstanding, not only on blue ray but SD cable as well. I listen to way more cable TV than DVD's so TV picture and sound is very important to me. The picture is great and the sound is also. I really like the "classical" setting on the Pioneer that sends good TV sound through all 5 or 7 speakers. On Blue Ray, of course, it's awesome. The only thing I do not care for is the remote - very small buttons and a lot of them. The Samsung remotes are much easier to use but the Pioneer itself works great!

"Awesome Features & Sound, but Quirky. Poor Remote & Manual" 2010-01-15
By Christopher Hansen (Sacramento, CA USA)
I used banana plugs for the speaker connections and hookup was very easy. I highly recommend.

I hooked up HDMI from PS3 and the TV audio with composite (Red&White) that I will upgrade to Toslink Optical. Analog audio is quiet and you have to crank up the volume. This is pretty typical.

Just one HDMI cable goes to my TV, which is very nice.

Auto setup was easy enough, but it takes a while and needs to be run for each seating position. After doing the setup, I realized that the crossover was set too low for my speakers. Not knowing if this impacted my speaker calibration I had to run it again. There are many buried features in the on-screen setup menu.

I was happy with the results, although I will probably adjust the settings as I go along.

I wasn't able to find a setting that enables me to output stereo to all 7 speakers, although that is a more minor complaint because the sound from my iPhone was still excellent.

The iPhone interface is temperamental. The simple workaround is to make sure the iPhone/iPod is plugged in when you turn on the receiver, if it is on, turn it off and back on.

The HD sound with TrueHD and DTS HD audio are amazing. I shook my apartment building and heard every little detail. I've tested with Blue-Ray's like IronMan and Black Hawk Down. Wow. I think audiophiles would even be impressed with the quality to price ratio and quality for a consumer unit.

The Pioneer Kuro Link (HDMI-CEC) that many people have issues with is just a misconception. All the devices must have the feature. If they do and you turn off the TV, the receiver will also turn off. However, it is setup to enable you to turn off the receiver without turning off the TV.

The same thing applies to the PS3 slim. If you turn off the PS3 slim, the receiver will switch over to TV and it will change the TV input as well. The PS3 will only turn off with the TV/receiver if it is not playing a disc.

I'm using a Samsung TV with Anynet+ HDMI-CEC and the PS3 with the Bravia-Sync feature turned on. You have to make sure the feature is setup for all the components. If you have devices that aren't HDMI-CEC (Anynet, Bravia-Sync, Kuro-Link etc) you will want to turn this feature off for all devices.

The remote might be the most frustrating part of the system. If you have a high quality universal, you can disregard this next part.

The layout is pathetic and there are too many buttons that do multiple things. Oddly, there are too many buttons that do just one thing as well. Small buttons gallore.

Ideally, the receiver would be able to control my TV using HDMI-CEC. Unfortunately, it wasn't designed with this in mind. I am not sure if this is a receiver flaw or something in the HDMI-CEC protocol.

The remote controls the TV just fine after it is setup like a universal, but only when the receiver is on the TV input. A possible reasoning is that the TV and receiver share a few buttons, so this eliminates that problem. Why is there are TV control/receiver control toggle buttons AND dedicated TV control buttons. Seems to me, they could have done without one or the other.

I ran into this issue trying to use the receiver remote to control the PS3 (via the TV and HDMI-CEC). I'm probably asking too much, but it works fine with my TV remote or by hitting the TV input on the receiver remote while covering the sensor I can get the receiver remote to work as well.

Needless to say, I plan to get a high-quality universal remote.

The biggest negative I have to say about this unit are the extreme ventilation space recommendations. The manual recommends 24" on top, 12" on each side, and 4" in the back. That means the total space requirement for the unit is 30" vertical space, 41" horizontal, and 18" deep. Most TV stands aren't even that big!

I haven't noticed any heat issues as I've put mine all alone to the side of my TV, but this is hardly practical and is a temporary solution. I worry about what happens when inside a stand. I've read that some put additional fans in the stand to keep the temperature down. The last thing I want is to burn out my new receiver, but I also don't want to spend the $50 I saved on the unit into cooling it down. I've contacted Pioneer and will update when/if I get a response.

This would be a 5-star unit if it wasn't for all the software quirks, poor remote and poor manual.

It isn't that what's in the manual is bad, it is that not everything is in the manual.

I'd buy this unit again in a heartbeat, because the issues in the end are minor when compared to the features and sound quality you get with this unit.

For well under 4 bills, you can't go wrong.

"Wattage Rating is not 120 watts compared to other A/V Audio units" 2010-01-15
By TJ (Denver, CO USA)
The owner's manual indicates that the wattage is actually 90 watts. To get the 120 watts, you need 6 ohm speakers. The manual is also the same for the VSX-1019AH-K.Pioneer VSX-1019AH-K 7-Channel A/V Receiver (Black)

From the owners manual:

Continuous average power output of 90

watts* per channel, min., at 8 ohms, from

20 Hz to 20 000 Hz with no more than

0.2 %** total harmonic distortion.

Front (stereo) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90 W + 90 W

Power output (1 kHz, 6 , 0.05 %, 1 ch driven)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120 W per channel

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Denon AVR-3805 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel - black

2010-02-08T01:14:00.001-08:00

Buy Cheap Denon AVR-3805 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel - black

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This product has been Factory refurbished to perform as new. It comes with Denon USA 90-Day Parts & Labor Warranty. DENON AVR-3805 -- High-end home theater savvy, beefy 7-channel power, and impeccable construction meet in Denon's remarkable AVR-3805. The sound is powerful, pristine, and totally enveloping, thanks to 120 watts x 7 channels of Denon's high-current amplification. 5/6/7 Channel stereo modes New DDSC-Digital EX featuring Analog Devices Melody 100 32-bit DSP processor 24-bit, 192kHz A/D on all stereo analog inputs Sixteen Burr-Brown 24-bit, 192kHz DACs AL24 Processing Plug on all channels Speaker Selector Assignable, Ultra Wideband (100MHz) Component Video switching (3 inputs / 1 output) Video Conversion (Composite to S-Video to Component) Discrete Multi-room, multi-source A/V outputs 7 assignable digital inputs & 2 digital outputs New EL learning / pre-programmed Remote Control Detachable Power Cord
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Technical Details

- A host of surround options includes -
- Dolby Digital Surround EX decoding -- including Dolby Pro Logic IIx Cinema, Music & Game modes
- DTS decoding, including DTS 96/24 5.1 for DVD-Video, DTS ES Discrete 6.1, ES Matrix 6.1, and Neo - 6 Cinema & Music modes
- New Auto-Setup & Calibration (with optional DMS-305 microphone -- sold separately)
- 8 Band Parametric EQ
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"Faulty unit, very poor Denon customer service" 2006-10-02
By James Olson
Read the reviews of other Denon Products and see how many agree...

BE CAREFUL WHO YOU BUY THIS FROM -- MOST etailers are NOT on Denon's approved list -- and they will NOT honor the warranty if bought through them. Denon has two tiers of product marketing: very high price thru an "authorized" dealer and warranty support or low price thru an "unauthorized" dealer with no warranty support. Visit Denon.com to view the limited authorized supplier list. Denon will have NO MERCY if you buy thru a non-authorized dealer, despite having sold to them in the first place! You won't find this technique employed by Sony, Panasonic,...

My unit performed perfectly for about 4 weeks. The sound configuration takes some figuring but is sheer beauty when done. The 7.1 signal processing works wonderfully. Unfortunately, the component output completely stopped working without any warning and I am left with a large "boat anchor" in need of several hundred dollars of repair. I'm pretty discouraged...

"Why would Amazon sell discontinued products?" 2006-06-09
By Gaurav Garg
I bought this receiver a couple of months ago. I am generally satisfied with the quality albeit, I was shocked to know that this is a discontinued product! This means, there is virtually no chance of Denon offering any updates/patches on this product.

I hold Amazon is high esteem but I am very surprised to find it discontinued products on the catalogue. For couple of hundrer dollars, I could have bought something is HDMI switching right on this website.

"Fabulous unit that will drive you nuts!" 2006-03-26
By William R. Koplin (Boston)
I am proud owner of one of these, hooked up full THX with (big) Bose (not the tiny uppie systems for people who want to hide their speakers) and Snells. It replaced a 5700 when I added the 2 extra channels. Up until the 5700, I never had to read a manual in my life (62yo), and even that wasn't too bad except the 5700's remote wasn't very friendly). This beast (3805)is a different story, the remote doesn't make sense, the manual is impossible to figure out, and what a pain in the butt to program every input to the format you want to use (i,e, analog, coax, optical, VHS, S-VHS, component, composite --you get the jist) And if you want to plug something else in temporarily (like my car Sirius recever in its home dock) you're going to get a migraine trying to figure out what to unplug to plug the Sirius in before the program's over.

SOUNDWISE THIS UNIT IS FABULOUS--MORE THAN MATCHES THE 3 LEXICONS I'VE OWNED, but finally gave up on because of their total lack of versatility for use in the real world.

BOTTOM LINE I ENTHUSIASTICALLY LOVE THE RECEIVER, HATE THE REMOTE, AND ALWAYS TAKE MY SHOES OFF WHEN I CHANGE ANY SETTINGS SO I WON'T BE TEMPTED TO KICK THE #### OUT OF IT IF IT STILL DOESN'T WORK AFTER THE 3RD TRIAL SETUP

"Great Performance and Quality / Attrocious Manual" 2006-01-04
By J. Simmons
I just installed this receiver over Christmas. It was a bit of a jump from an older Denon receiver (still perfect after 13 years), but we need surround sound and 3 zones of music. We basically used all of the surround sound and multi-zone features in this unit.

The positives:

It performs as well as could be hoped for. Sound quality is amazing and build quality is better than I thought was available from a large manufacturer.

The interconnect options are unbelievable. Other than no DVI (which a friend who's a pro camera man recommends), it's got everything.

It does everything as advertised.

The negatives:

It's heavy (44 pounds) Watch your back! As an engineer, I find it reassuringly heavy (high quality), so this is a positive to me.

Setup took ridiculously long because of the manual (2 hours to get a Denon CD changer to output sound to zone 2/3). I'm an engineer in a high tech company with tons of electronic integration experience, so I don't think it's me. If you only hook up the 5.1/7.1 speakers with a DVD player and a couple of stereo inputs it shouldn't be bad. But, when you start using multi-zone, etc. it gets very involved. My observations on the cause:

First, there are many undocumented limitations (E.G., which input formats will drive which outputs for audio multi-zone).

Second, the manual was apparently translated from Japanese to English by someone who spoke neither Japanese, nor English. It's a confusing mess.

I talked to a local Denon shop and they said they send a tech out to do the setup with every unit they sell.

My overall opinion: It's a beautiful piece of work, but prepare your significant other for 2-3 days of immersion in the project if you are going to use all the system capabilities.

"the ups and downs of Denon" 2005-12-11
By banzairun (Plano, TX United States)
Denon AVR-3805

Pros:

+7.1 surround (this is a con for your bank account)

+Clean pure sound without coloration

+Nice display

+Automatic room EQ settings via microphone

+Lots of connections

+Good build quality

+Pre Ins/Main Outs

+None of the costs went to George Lucas or Creative Labs for a now meaningless THX rubber stamp

+Overall build and sound quality are much better than the price would suggest

+Not Bose

Cons:

-Remote usability sucks--most Denon remotes do so you may expect that

-Because remote lights up whenever touched, it eats through batteries quickly

-Amps could not drive my main speakers that were 6ohm (but sometimes likely dropped to much lower)

-I solved that by adding an external amp to drive the mains, but then the automatic room EQ setting did not work at all

-Somewhat difficult to navigate the UI from the display alone, somewhat dependent on the on-screen display

-No DVI switching or pass through

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Denon AVR-486S 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver

2010-02-08T01:08:00.001-08:00

Buy Cheap Denon AVR-486S 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver

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The AVR486S's chassis is designed to absorb vibration, supporting its large transformer inside a highly rigid frame to secure it more solidly. In addition, a cushioning material is used around the core of the transformer to minimize interference on the signal and allow more faithful reproduction of the original sound. A Twin Drive Rectifier design brings out the maximum potential of this large transformer. Since the rectifiers recharge the large block capacitors at low impedance, they are able to supply ample current to accurately reproduce deep bass as well as sudden bursts of sound. A large heatsink made of extruded aluminum is placed in a design that ensures mostly uniform temperatures so that the output transistors for all channels can be driven under the same conditions. This ensures that all channels respond with equal performance to the demands of the audio signals. The aluminum face plate also helps with the reduction of unwanted noise. Basically, it means that the audio from this Denon 75 watt per channel receiver will actually sound better than other 75 watt per channel receivers. The AVR486S recreates the surround sound produced at the dubbing stage, and it's packed with the most modern surround sound format technologies. 6 Adjustable DSP Surround Modes (Room Size/Effect Level/Tone) Surround Modes - 6 Channel Stereo, Rock Arena, Jazz Club, Video Game, Matrix, Mono Movie High Resolution 32-Bit Floating Point DSP High-Current, Discrete Amplifiers, Independent Power Supplies Large Aluminum Extruded Heatsink Low Impedance Drive Capability Stereo/Direct Modes with Pure Analog Path Active Center Channel in All Surround Modes Auto Surround Mode (Analog or Digital Input Type) Banana Plug Speaker Terminals for All Channels Front A/B Speaker Selector 56-Station Auto-Preset Memory Tuning (FM Only) Direct Function (Tone Bypass) Subwoofer Pre-Amp Output Relay-Controlled Protection Circuit
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Technical Details

- Receiver processes all major surround formats, including Dolby Digital Surround EX, DTS ES Discrete and Matrix 6.1, and Pro Logic IIx; 58 AM/FM station presets
- 7.1-channel audio/video surround receiver with plenty of A/V inputs and outputs
- 24-bit/192 kHz digital-to-analog conversion for all seven channels to ensure premium playback sound
- 75 watts per channel x 7 (into 8 ohms at 20 to 20,000 Hz)
- Measures 17.1 x 5.8 x 16.4 inches (W x H x D)
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" sparkie receiver" 2007-01-05
By Star Fan (Memhis,10)
I purchased this receiver for my speakers that are installed in my ceilings and outside on the patio. From the 1st day I have had the system it would turn off if I turned the volumne up, I had to play the receiver on low volumne. 2 days before Christmas 2006 I had company over playing music the system shut off, I turned it back on and it started sparking in the rear. I contacted the company who installed the system and complained about how hot the system would get then turns off. The receiver doesn't have a fan in the rear to cool the internal parts. It had to be shipped off to be checked, I'm awaiting the company's findings.

"Hmmm dissapointed with this one.. " 2006-07-19
By Hubert Pham (Regina, SK Canada)
I'd have to disagree with the two previous posters. Let me share with you my experience.

First off, my system is a Polk Audio RM6800 Series home theater in a box system. Don't let the home theater in a box designation throw you off, this system is amazing in terms of clarity and some say is even better than Bose's Acoustimass Series.

I've tried three amplifiers with these speakers, a yamaha HTR5920S($300 canadian), this Denon AVR-486($499 cad), and a Harmon Kardon AVR140($699 cad). Of all the amplifiers, the yamaha turned out to be the best in terms of sound quality, home theater experience, and music reproduction. Why? It simply has more clean power(110watts RMS) per channel. When I tried the yamaha with my favorite movies, at loud volumes or even low volumes, I was amazed.

The Denon amplifier did not sound good out of the box, and yes I did do the setup of speaker sizes, distances to listener, etc. I found it to be lacking in mid range. I had to really crank it up to hear the midrange, and then the lows and highs were then too loud. I ended up compensating for this by increasing the center channel level by a few notches, which slightly improved the sound, but the sound wasn't as clean. Listening to music was good, but didn't give me that "wow" feeling as with the yamaha.

The Pros of the denon was being able to switch different sets of front speakers(A/B), it also looked better than the simple yamaha, remote was better although the yellow fluorescent buttons are kind of tacky(some say the denon's remote is cheezy looking). I'm sure it is a fine amp for most people, but in my opinion the 75Watts/channel is mediocre, espeicially if you like it loud.

Bottom line, decent features, sound quality is good but if you like it loud and clean-underpowered.

"Most Receiver 95% of us will *ever* need! Superb!" 2006-02-20
By jdmurray01
This unit is a conservatitely rated 75w x 7 receiver with all of Denon's usual crispness, features, and quality of build. It's virtually identical to Denon's higher-powered receivers, minus exactly that - the higher wattage. I'm sure you sacrifice some true audiophile trappings, but if you're like me - somebody who simply appreciates awesome sound, massive flexibility, and still far more receiver than you'll likely ever need in your home - you'll be floored by this receiver.

The first thing I noticed was how clean the unit is - I've auditioned Onkyo, Harman Kardon, and Yamaha, and the Denon easily matches them in quality. Fear not - at this point, it's primarily personal preference for the appearance of the unit, and the Denon is an attractive design, to be sure.

The second, and huge consideration, is the fact that it's got *reams* of inputs. This is the *only* receiver I've seen in this price range to include 3 component inputs. Coupled with about a half-dozen S-video/composite inputs, you'll never want for connections. If, by chance, you have an HDMI or DVI requirement, you can simply run that straight into your TV/Projector, and the Denon will still output via the 2 digital coaxial and digital inputs from the same DVD player.

I have my top-flight Panasonic S97S DVD player (also available at amazon.com) hooked up via an HDMI cable straight to my Panasonic AE900 projector, but the Denon is using a Digital Coaxial cable from the same DVD player to drive the surround speakers. Every other piece of electronic gear in my living room is running completely through the Denon:

Cheap DVD Player (editing and parental control software): composite video input (I could use s-video, but the s-video is wired so that if you use s-video in, you've got to use s-video out, and I didn't want yet another 25' cable running to my projector)

PS2/GameCube/XBox: Each using a component video input

Sirius satellite receiver & CD Changer: each has a dedicated RCA input

All I do is flick the buttons on the (hugely powerful) remote and can use any of of them *instantly*.

Pure heaven!

Although the manual does an adequate job explaining things - and it will get you up and running - it will take some time experimenting with all the bells and whistles this baby's sporting. From the usual speaker-delay distance, to the Dolby ProLogicIIx/Ex/DTS/ES/Neo/etc/etc, it's all here.

Another awesome input: the receiver has (2) AC power outs - meaning, you plug up to 2 subwoofers into those, and when the Denon powers up, it sends a signal to the subs to turn on, too! Sweet!

The receiver is feature rich and does far more than I'll ever need - in fact, I was astonished that as Denon's so-called 'entry' receiver, I have little doubt it would easily hold it's own against receivers costing twice the money, if not more. The quality is unparalleled for the price.

This receiver *IS* a Denon. It's top-flight quality and has reams of features I'll never even use. Only a true audiophile would want more than this unit provides - it looks, performs, and sounds absolutely magic. For amazon's asking price, you will *never* find a better bet on quality - it easily holds it's own, in pure sound quality, with models costing more than twice the price - it simply has less digital doohikies that 99% of HT users (sans audiophiles) will never even touch. It's perfect for a room in the 400 square foot range, as 75 watts x 7 (or 110 x 7 if you use 6-ohm speakers) is more than sufficient to power a highly competent home theater.

Bottom line is this - I can't imagine needing any more than this unit provides. At $300, it's not only the centerpiece of my home theater audio, it will probably be for as long as it runs... which, for a Denon, is usually a *long* time...

"Best for the money" 2006-01-29
By Hungale
I purchased 7 speakers individually (mostly Missions and Energy). The receiver delivers as it advertises, powerful and clean sounds on all speakers.

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Denon AVR-588 Dolby Digital Surround Receiver

2010-02-08T01:00:00.001-08:00

Buy Cheap Denon AVR-588 Dolby Digital Surround Receiver

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Dolby Digital Surround Receiver
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Technical Details

- 7.1 channel home theater system with 75 Watts per channel
- Dolby Digital Surround EX and DTS decoding
- Component video switching with 3 inputs and 1 output
- Multi-room capable
- XM Satellite ready
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"Denon AVR 588, pretty good for the $$$" 2009-07-18
By S. Murphy (Austin, TX.)
I bought this Reciever a little over a year ago, and as many here have noted, mine went belly up shortly after I purchased it. I was lucky and the regional repair location is in our town. They fixed it, and I put it right back in the cabinet it was in, and have not had a single issue with it since. I have it powering a 5.1 system with Polk audio inwall speakers and a 10" sub. I also have it set up to sent audio through the optical from a home theater computer, and it works great for that too. The setup took me a while to figure out, for everything, but once I did get it it works great, and for $200, you just can't beat it !!!

"Unreliable" 2009-07-14
By Allen F. Cox (Los Angeles, CA United States)
Good sound quality, but it has been in for repairs four times. Today, I brought it in for the fourth time and another person was bringing the same model in for repairs. Unfortunately, it is out of warranty. If it is too expensive to fix, I'll cut my losses and buy another brand.

The interface is very difficult. I'm a relatively technically adept person (I've spent a lot of time in recording studios and I have a degree in Physics) and it took me six weeks to find the bass and treble!

"No HDMI Audio - makes no sense" 2009-06-09
By deaconblues (Michigan)
Was excited , got this for a good price with the Boston Acoustics speaker system. Was very frustrated that I could not get the HDMI Audio to work on my DVD player. Bought a Blue Ray to take full advantage of the Digital experience also , even went out and bought the more expensive HDMI cables thinking it was a cable problem. Manual says right in the DVD setup area that HDMI is for both Audio and Video combined (page 11). On top of it, can't really use the Blue Ray digital as it has no Coax output - only HDMI and optical and the DVD on the amp only accepts Coax, not even optical ! This is really nuts.

"Very poor reliability" 2009-04-01
By E. Cookson (Asheville, NC)
Sounds great, but has broken down (requiring shipping off at my expense for warranty repair) twice in 9 months. That kind of reliability is simply unacceptable.

"Great Receiver" 2009-01-21
By S. McDonald (Colorado)
This is an excellent receiver in terms of sound quality. The only problem, as everyone else has already noted is that it does not receive HDMI audio. It took me a little while to figure this out. Your only options if you want digital audio are optial or coaxial. My particular unit came paired with Boston Acoustic MCS 130 speaker setup. These two together sound exceptional. I have yet to test the unit using my Blu Ray player as I did not anticipate needing an optical audio cable (the only non HDMI digital audio out on the PS3). For the money, it sounds excellent and blows my old Sony system out of the water.

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Denon AVR-485S 6.1-Channel A/V Home Theater Receiver, Silver

2010-02-08T00:53:00.001-08:00

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Dolby Digial Surround EX decoding, including Dolby Pro Logic IIx Cinema, Music and Game modes * DTS Decoding, including DTS 96/24 5.1 for DVD-Video, DTS ES Discrete 6.1, ES Matrix 6.1, and Neo:6 Cinema & Music modes * Analog Devices Melody 100 32 bit DSP processor * Analog Devices 24 bit, 96 kHz A/D * 6 channels equal power amplifier section * 75 watts per channel ( 8 ohms, 20 - 20kHz, <0.08% THD) * Variable low/high pass crossover * Assignable Ultra Wideband ( 100 MHz ) component video switching (3 inputs/1output) * GloKey pre-programmed Remote Control * Silver Finish Only
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Technical Details

- 6.1-channel audio/video receiver with component-video, S-video, and composite-video switching
- 110 watts per channel x 6 (into 6 ohms at 1 kHz)
- Processes all major surround formats, including Dolby Digital EX, Dolby Pro Logic IIx, and DTS 5.1
- Assignable component-video inputs with 30 MHz bandwidth
- Measures 17.1 x 5.8 x 16.4 inches (W x H x D)
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Onkyo TX-SR707 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver

2010-02-08T00:08:00.001-08:00

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Building on Onkyo’s fine legacy in the popular mid-range AVR category, the TX-SR707 offers a wealth of audio and video features that combine to earn it the prestigious quality assurance of THX Select2 Plus . On the connectivity side, six HDMI 1.3a inputs handle all your high-def sources, while also transporting video signals upscaled to 1080p via Faroudja DCDi Cinema . Along with the pristine, lossless audio of Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio , the TX-SR707 handles two new surround formats: Audyssey DSX and Dolby Pro Logic IIz. These formats open up an immersive vertical dimension for games and movies, and bring more flexibility to your speaker set-up. As well as advanced Burr-Brown audio DACs, the TX-SR707 incorporates Audyssey equalization technologies to ensure an audio balance that fits your room like a glove. Peripheral devices are looked after by a Universal Port, while a customizable remote controller puts you firmly in charge. Pound for pound, the TX-SR707 stands out as a muscular and versatile middleweight contender.
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Technical Details

- THX Select2 Plus Certified with THX Loudness Plus
- HDMI Version 1.3a to Support Deep Color , x.v.Color , LipSync, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio, DVD-Audio, Super Audio CD, Multichannel PCM, and CEC
- 100 Watts per Channel at 8 Ohms, 20 Hz¿20 kHz, 0.08%, 2 Channels Driven, FTC
- Audio and 1080p Video Processing via HDMI (1 Front/5 Rear Inputs and 1 Output)
- HDMI Video Upscaling to 1080p with Faroudja DCDi Cinema
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"2ND ONKYO" 2010-02-02
By R.ALLEN (R.I.)
I bought the Onkyo TX-SR707 to go with my new Plasma HDTV,it was a no brainner that I would buy another Onkyo.I bought the SR707 to replace my beloved DS777 ,it's ten years old now and plays & looks like new,just isn't HDMI.The DS777 is built like a tank,so is the SR707, very tough and well built,always liked that about Onkyo,they just make great products.The TX-SR707 is WAAAYYY easier to set-up and configure,not like my old one.Pleny of connection options,the HDMI ports are great or you can use comp. as well.The sound quality on this unit is awesome!,so clear and crisp,no matter what mode you choose,it's always clear and non muddy.Movies,music and video games all sound better with this unit,and for the money you just can't go wrong.

"great for the price" 2010-02-01
By J. McFadden
Does this receiver does almost everything I could want. But to get everything I would have to go to something 4 times the cost, so I'm very happy with it.

Tons of features, including the ability to do do the new sound-fields using rear surround, front wide or front Height, but only 7 speakers total at a time, so you can't do all those modes at once, just 1 of them. I also haven't been able to get it to do HDMI pass through while the receiver is off. I wanted this to be able to watch satellite using just the TV speakers, but I couldn't get it to function properly. So I just ran the HDMI from the Dish direct to the TV, and ran the optical audio cable to the receiver, works fine for me this way.

I can't really speak of it's amplifiers, as I run external amps for all channels except my rear surround (single as I currently run a 6.1 setup).

All in all, I couldn't find anything near the price that was as good.

Oh, one word of caution. It does run pretty hot. Even though i only use it to run 1 channel of amp which isn't even always used, it still gets hot. I would be worried about putting it in a closed rack, mine is open, and I think it's OK. But if you are thinking about putting this in a cabinet, I would also consider some fans

"Good reciever" 2010-02-01
By Mel Hinshaw
Everything it is supposed to be. Lots of features with good sound. Although it is rated as a 7.2 system, it will actually support 11.2 speakers and gives you options for the amount of speakers you want to use in the directions. The automatic sound set up worked great. I paired this receiver with Onkyo's 7.1 satellite speakers and it is great for home theater. It's just like being there.

"Onkyo TXSR707B Will Not Disappoint You!!" 2010-02-01
By dcom1 (NY, USA)
I have been searching for the right AV Receiver for a while and I went ahead and made this my choice for my new finished basement. Needless to say I had butterflies because this is the first real receiver I ever bought. It's big and it's beautiful! I have Klipsch 5.1 speakers to accompany it and let me tell you, this receiver is AWESOME! There are so many options to listen to movies, music, tv and games...it's sometimes difficult to say which one sounds best. The THX is a sick addition to listen to as well. Very easy to set up and the manual was easy to read too. I had a question on why when watching dish tv why HD stations were lower in sound than non HD stations, so I called customer service and they were very happy to assist me in fixing this issue. Onkyo like my friend said to me before buying is "Top Notch". I concur.

"It has vedio problem" 2010-01-30
By xgalaxy (Canton, MI)
Here is my experience with this receiver. I have nice boston acoustics 5.1 speaker set, sony dvd player and Yamaha RXV363 receiver. Every thing is working fine but I had a feeling in my mind that I purchased a very low end yamaha receiver. So got tempted and purchased this Onkyo TX-SR707 receiver after 3 months of intensive research and reading hundreds of reviews and comparing to other high end receivers. Luckily Amazon put this on sale for $499 and just placed the order with out hesitation. Got it very quickly and replaced my Yemmy with this one. The instructions are very clear and did the Audyssy set up. Then watched Kunfu panda movie same night. I do not have blue ray player and my projector (MITSU HC1600) is hooked up with component in and component out. The audio I always use optical. After it calibrated the sound is very good and very warm. The basement is pretty big but its filling moderately. The center channel is not producing that great quality on the movie dialogues (KIND OF LOW VOICE). But I decided to tweak it later. But some thing else was bothering us while watching the movie. We couldn't figure out. OK we rented couple of other movies and started watching, because I want to test this within 30 days. Still we are not comfortable. My wife said why dont we re hook up our low end rxv363 back again and watch the same movie. I did, then we realized whats the difference. Its the brightness and white color. This receiver is blocking the sun light shots taken in the movie with a light darker color like a filter. I dont know how to explain this, but imagine a pure white color in the movie looks slightly tanned cream color. We were surprized how a high end receiver can do this compared to a $170 receiver!!. Its not worth it and cant watch movies like this. I studied again online and found a review some one posted, with component vedio connection the Faruja DCDi vedio processor have some issues and other manufacturers like Denon have dropped using this chip and opting for Anchor bay technologies chips. Thats it, we decided to return this and do not want to take any chances with a replacement. Guys, we LOVE Amazon, they are the best in the industry in their return policy. It was shipped back to them with out any cost to us. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU AMAZON. For the benefit of doubt I gave 3 star rather totally degrading. Hope my review helps.

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Denon DRA-697CI AM/FM Multi-Source/Zone Stereo AV Receiver

2010-02-03T15:06:00.001-08:00

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Denon DRA-697CI AM/FM Multi Source/Zone Stereo Receiver with 100X2 Audiophile Power
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Technical Details

- 100 watts x 2 channels
- Signal Level Divided Construction (S.L.D.C.)
- RS-232C control
- Serial IR remote ports
- Subwoofer output
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Denon DP-200USB Fully Automatic Turntable with MP3 Encoder

2010-02-02T05:48:00.001-08:00

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Now you can easily convert all of your favorite records to modern MP3 digital audio tracks with Denon¿s DP-200USB fully automatic turntable. Equipped with an internal MP3 encoder, along with a front panel USB port, the DP-200USB lets you play your favorite LPs and create MP3 tracks easily and automatically. The included PC software features Audio Waveform Recognition, which checks the first 15 seconds of each track and searches the extensive Gracenote Internet music tracks database to capture the track¿s meta-deta (artist, title, etc.). The software also features Auto Track Divide, which notes silent breaks between tracks and automatically inserts a new track tag for each track (you also have the option of doing this manually). The front panel USB port allows direct connection to a PC, as well as connection to a USB drive or an external hard disk drive. In addition to the USB connection, the DP-200USB features conventional stereo outputs, which can be configured with or without RIAA equalization, for full compatibility with the widest range of audio components.
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Technical Details

- The DP-200USB Easily converts your record collection to MP3 format on a USB memory stick.
- Includes Trans Music Manager PC software that contians either automatic or manual track splitting functions. The software can obtain artist / title information for your converted songs from the Gracenote music ID server.
- Includes moving magnet phono cartidge and swithable built-in RIAA phono equalizer allowing connection to any audio system with AUX or PHONO inputs.
- Fully automatic operation for ease of use and gentle handling of records.
- DC Servo motor coupled with a belt drive system on die-cast aluminum platter delivers low stable rotational speed and low noise.
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"Dead easy to set up and use" 2009-08-18
By Quicksilver (Hong Kong)
This is the USB turntable for someone like me, who isn't interested in researching and sorting sound cards, software and cabling, and who loves music but isn't a compulsive audiophile.

Here's how it works: unpack and set up the turntable, connect it to a sound system, stick a flash drive in the port, put on a record (LP or 45), push a couple of buttons, and you're in business. Records in real time, files are stored at a rate of 192kbps. The software for splitting files is easy to work with--however, Mac users need not apply (don't know if there's a workaround). "Auto splitter" works okay if the vinyl is pristine; I use "manual splitter" mostly to eliminate the sound of the tone arm drop at the beginning of each side. As another reviewer has noted, the Gracenotes option for naming tracks isn't much use, as that database largely covers only CD era releases. I rename files after importing them into iTunes.

So yes, labor is involved: You have to hang around while the record plays; you have to split and rename the files. Doesn't seem like a LOT of labor (splitting and renaming an album's worth of files takes about 10 minutes at most). If you want to eliminate/minimize clicks and pops, you can look online for other software.

The turntable itself is pretty basic, and definitely not built for hard use. However, it's of significantly higher quality than Ion's USB turntables, and is adequate for use within a home entertainment system. The only annoying feature is, as another reviewer also notes, the lack of a tonearm lever.

I'm perfectly happy with my purchase. Again, it's not for high-end audiophiles or club dj's, but if you just want to port your vinyl-only releases to your mp3 player, it's a fine solution.

"Easy and wonderful outcome" 2009-07-28
By Marcus Andre Lang (Büren an der Aare, Schweiz)
I purchased this turntable after quite a long research.

When I unpacked it I was at first a little put off by the somehow cheap design and making.

But recording is just so easy :-))

And the included software allows to easily split up into single songs and name them via grace-DB.

As I always took much care in handling (and buying) my records I can enjoy them as they are without having to use noise reduction.

I'm very happy :-)

"Better options available" 2009-07-12
By Chepard (Titusville, Florida United States)
I purchased the Denon DP-200USB to transfer vinyl LP's to CD. It was to replace a TEAC P-A688 amplified turntable that I have had for some time and is due a needle replacement. I considered the Denon amplified turntable to be an upgrade. This did not work out as well as I had hoped. The method of transfer is through the line-in of my Creative Audigy sound card. I have used both Nero Wave Editor 2 and Audacity software. Upon connecting the Denon, I noticed a reduced signal based on what I had expected based on the TEAC. I connected both the Denon and TEAC to the aux input of my Bose Wave radio and confirmed that the TEAC had slightly more volume than the Denon. I had verified the Denon On/Off equalizer switch was in the correct (default) position. This in itself was not a showstopper. The major drawback to the Denon is the lack of a damped tone arm system for lowering the tone arm anywhere but at the beginning of the LP. I do not feel comfortable trying to pick up the tone arm and placing it at the correct spot on the LP if is other than the beginning. This manual "splitting" of the songs on an LP can be simpler than doing it with software splitting.

The Denon DP200 has a USB port designed to allow recording to a USB storage device (thumb drive). The instructions are adamant about not connecting the turntable directly to a PC USB port. I don't understand why, but it is Denon's product and I did not try to do this. To record to a USB storage device and then manually connect it to the PC port is a bit of a kludge. This might be designed so that the Denon can be connected to a sound system as a traditional turntable and as an afterthought be used to record and transfer music to a PC. I reviewed the Trans Music Manager. This is pretty rudimentary software, which will probably do the basics. The Gracenote section of the software included for track identification is pretty useless. It requires a connection to the Internet so that it can compare the recording with their online database. However, if no CD exists to compare your LP to or the CD version is re-mastered, no match is possible. Since my LP transfers are primarily Jazz which are not available on CD or have been remastered, Gracenote is useless. The USB transfer method supports only MP3 and I prefer to use the Waveform through the sound card. I did not try the USB transfer method provided by this Denon turntable so I don't know how well it works.

Therefore, I cannot recommend this turntable if you plan to connect it to your soundcard to record LPs. You are paying for a USB recording system that I consider unusual at best. The lack of a dampening system for the tone arm is a showstopper and I have reconnected my old TEAC turntable to my PC.

"Denon Never Disappoints Me" 2009-07-04
By Mail Debaser
Initially I should mention I'm partial to Denon. I've owned their products for years, because they last for years. Recently I'd experienced trouble with my 20 year old turntable, and had been seeking a USB turntabe from a reputable brand. Viola! I located this Denon DP-200USB from a small stereo shop several months ago, right after it made its US debut.

Although I've never run my LP's on the turntable for dusting/cleaning, I haven't otherwise noted a lack of power, or an unusual amount of skipping, as mentioned in another review of this item. Then again, I also don't have a great knowledge of other brands for comparison, so only take that information at face value. I'm also very protective and caring of my vinyl, so I cannot relate how it may track even slightly scratched or otherwise marred record.

As expected, the sound is fantastic. Listening to Fleetwood Mac's 'Rumors' on vinyl sounds darn close to the recording on compact disc. The USB recording couldn't be easier. I'm vaguely computer illiterate, yet was able to record severel live vinyl recordings without a hitch.

I reviewed at four stars, as my 20 year old Denon turntable, which was manufactured for easy connection to mini componant systems, had a lever to lower the arm. (It was the base model at the time). I like this function and can't understand why it wouldn't have been included with this model.

Overall, per usual, I'm very happy with my purchase and expect nothing less from Denon.

"Denon DP-200USB turntable has its high's and low's" 2009-03-21
By S. Trudgen (Sunny Serra Mesa, CA)
I did quite a bit searching and waiting to find a decent turntable that I could both connect to my stereo system for LP playing, as well connect to my computer for digitizing of those same LP's. Having owned and used a traditional Denon turntable for 20yrs, I thought I'd stick with a brand that I knew and could trust. My first impressions of this turnable have been mostly favorable....it works with well/sounds good playing LP's and the digitizing is quite easy using a UBS drive and the provided software. Once you've recorded your music onto the USB drive, the "autosplitter" function breaks up your music into tracks. With a bit of renaming, the end result is good for both listening on an MP3 player or burning an audio CD. Things that are really annoying/dumb: 1)the recording function doesn't stop when the LP has ended and the turntable has turned itself off..so unless you're standing by the turntable you end up with a lot of dead air recornded. 2)the turntable belt drive is underpowered....lightly trying cleaning your LP with a Discwasher brush will bring the turntable to a stop. And 3)there is no tonearm up/down lever...so you must manually lift and place the tonearm onto the LP if you want to skip a track. 4) the tonearm feels very light and skips easily with slight scratch on LP or hard step to your floor. Denon should have put about $10-15 more into the turntable design to add basic features that anyone who grew up playing LP's would expect. Overall, however, I like the unit.

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Denon AVR-3310CI 7.1-Channel Multi-Zone Home Theater Receiver & DVD-1800BD Blu-ray DVD/CD Player Bundle

2010-02-01T15:27:00.001-08:00

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Featuring all high-end materials and striking cosmetics, the Custom Entertainment Solution setup delivers unrivaled home theater performance for those who demand the very best. This entertainment bundle consists of the Denon AVR-3310CI 7.1-Channel Multi-Zone Home Theater Receiver & Denon DVD-1800BD Blu-ray DVD/CD Player. This recommended system lets you enjoy all of your favorite entertainment experiences in their full glory. Denon AVR-3310CI 7.1-Channel Multi-Zone Home Theater Receiver

The AVR-3310CI is a technological tour de force, designed for consumers wanting to network their AV system. Ethernet connectivity opens up your AV system to host of exciting capabilities like audio and jpeg photo streaming and Internet radio. Additionally, subscription music services like Rhapsody and Napster are supported. The AVR3310CI packs a punch with 7-channels of onboard amplification producing 840-watts of total power (120 per channel). The amplifiers can be assigned for 7.1 channel surround sound, or a 5.1 channel system in the main room and power a pair of speakers in a second zone. Denon DVD-1800BD Blu-ray DVD/CD Player

Experience all of the beautiful detail your HDTV can provide with the Denon DVD-1800BD Blu-ray player. It can output video at "Full HD" 1080p resolution and a film-faithful rate of 24 frames per second, for exceptionally clean and smooth images from high-definition Blu-ray discs. And if your Blu-ray library includes titles with Bonus View features, you can watch picture-in-picture bonus material with just the push of a button on the '1800BD's remote.
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Technical Details

- Bundle Package Includes:
- 1 X Denon AVR-3310CI 7.1-Channel Multi-Zone Home Theater Receiver
- 1 X Denon DVD-1800BD Blu-ray DVD/CD Player
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Onkyo TX-NR807 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Network Receiver (Black)

2010-02-01T07:42:00.003-08:00

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The TX-NR807 brings together the very latest mid-range home-theater functionality and adds one major upgrade: networking capability. An Ethernet port on the TX-NR807 allows it to receive and output audio files playing in real-time on your PC. Alternatively, you can bypass your PC and enjoy a direct connection to streaming internet radio stations such as Pandora and Rhapsody. Naturally, the TXNR807 also handles all of your high-definition audio and video sources—courtesy of six HDMI 1.3a inputs—and upscales any video input to 1080p via Faroudja DCDi Cinema. This powerful THX Select2 Plus Certified receiver also comes with Audyssey DSX and Dolby Pro Logic IIz, two new surround-sound formats that expand the spatial dimensionality of games and movies. Meanwhile, Audyssey room-correction and equalization technologies help ensure a convincing and detailed audio performance, regardless of the volume level or the shape of your room. An intelligent customizable remote controller puts the finishing touch to what is another benchmark-setting all-round performer from Onkyo.
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Technical Details

- 135 Watts per Channel at 8 ohms, 20 Hz–20 kHz, 0.08%, 2 Channels Driven, FTC
- THX Select2 Plus Certified with THX Loudness Plus
- HDMI Video Upscaling to 1080p with Faroudja DCDi Cinema
- Audio and 1080p Video Processing via HDMI (6 Inputs and 1 Output)
- Powered Zone 2 and Zone 3 for Playback of Separate Sources in Other Rooms
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"Just Buy It!" 2010-01-30
By T. Costa (Detroit Area, MI)
Was going to purchase this receiver at Best Buy for $999. Found it here for $729. Best AV Receiver I have ever owned. It would have been worth the $999!

"Honest" 2010-01-27
By Lee the Builder (Mountains of New Hampshire)
The idea is to dl the unwashed facts.

I am not an audiophile. I can and do build my own computers as well as just about anything with wheels and this is the 4th AVR I have owned.

This machine replaces a dead 6 year old Onkyo. It is a drop in into my 6.1 living room setup although it did not just "drop in".

The good:

Connectivity, the global kind- . The packaged internet features offer a vast improvement over the AM/FM airwaves, both in sound quality and shedding the mindnumbing drivel. I have not tried to add alternate sites to the list yet. The machine has recognized my home network and works with my stored musical content.

Connectivity, the input/output kind- Despite omissions to legacy analog stuff, there are ample connections. The amount of HDMI connections alone is atypical of <1000$ machines.

Power- I expect to add an amp and speakers to this setup for a 9.1 height system in the future. The added amp is to get dedicated outputs for true 9.1 which is not possible with the 807. It is a 7.1 AVR with a pile of extra connections to share the 7.1 output in different configurations. DO NOT THINK OF THE 807 AS ANY MORE THAN A 7.1 RECEIVER (with options)!

That said, the power is exceptional. It becomes uncomfotable due to volume but my ears do not detect any distortion at any level. Incidentally there is a maximum volume setting that is factory preset to allow the user to modify the range. I haven't played with the setting and probably won't. No need to put my ears or my equipment through that. This box is not your fathers receiver. It is a beast.

Heat. I am pleased and surprised that this box puts out less heat than it's predecessor. Since it is inches taller than my previous Onkyo I raised the shelving to allow a six inch ventspace over the unit anticipating the Onkyo heat but that turns out to be overkill.

Reliability- Reports of sound cutouts and the need to depower and then restart can be found in these reviews and elsewhere. That has not been the case with my unit. It has performed reliably so far, a month at this writing. I should note that I do depower the unit nightly through my conditioner/generator. I am not an electrical engineer and have no idea whether that activity is affecting the chances of unintended cutouts.

Reasonable interface- Audessey setup was a breeze although I was familiar with the process. I will put my own tweaks in as time passes but for now the time spent was little, the result was impressive.

The On Screen Display is not particularly thrilling. Neither is it rudimentary. Regarding complaints that it is not polished remember the function of the display. It is the point of interface and from it the user gets information and issues commands. On that basis it is both reasonably formatted and intuitive. Further moaning at the bar is for wishes that don't merit granting. In a few clicks of the remote the user will have mastered the fundamentals of communicating with the 807. That is its function and Onkyo has done a fine job of it.

Cost- Within a two or three year timeframe, a machine sporting these bells and whistles would have set me back five times what I paid through Amazon. The package of tech and power, brains and brawn still has me on a learning curve.

The not so good:

Relays clack- Onkyo claims that that is the way it is. Relays click and clack when they are called on to shunt power. Shame on Onkyo. Onkyo should say "Unlike other Onkyo receivers, both legacy and current, as well as the receivers sold by our main competitors, the NR807 uses the clacking variety relays. They were speced for this machine, we have made thousands of these units which we absolutely refuse to admit fault with lest we be forced to do the honorable thing and correct this issue." I'm not holding my breath. As it is the click happens maybe once every ten minutes on average. YMMV.

For the record I am not put off by the clicking. If I had a dedicated theater room with all the toney accoutrements I would have long since boxed this up and returned it from whence it came but the course of my life is less refined and my home theater is 90 percent home, 10 percent theater. A little background noise is hardly reason to lose sleep.

Passthrough?- Maybe. If you can call at a minimm layering your information, like input type, volume indicator, etc. over the top of the signal. The data stream may not be altered but the resulting picture is not the same as the source material. Small potatoes you say? Maybe so, but I would like the passthrough function to be exactly that.

Analogue sound outputs- Not. No concern of mine but there are many who swear by them. This is their showstopper.

Wireless connectivity- Not. I can't imagine why someone would spend this kind of money and then mench about lack of wireless capability when hardwired ethernet is so much superior but there you have it.

Net functionality- Not stand alone. These subscriber services that Onkyo includes require the use of a computer to make functional and to maintain. It doesn't have to be connected to the machine or even the network but it does have to happen. I have a HTPC at the TX-NR807 so it is a nobrainer for me, but by the same token I already subscribed to Pandora and VTuner through the computer and played those stations and others through the home theater prior to the addition of the 807 so what I gained in the 807 networking is redundancy, and limited redundancy at that. Still, too much is better than not enough and if I were in the market for a receiver and my computer was not regularly integrated into my home network, the net functionality would be a big deal.

Net funtionality Part 2- Not a showstopper but the net log on is automatic and it is hit and miss. Mostly miss. I am a high speed DSL subscriber and have wired ethernet throughout the home. Things happen quickly on our monitors. Nonetheless the 807 takes minutes to do its business on startup handshaking the worldwidewebs. Makes me cringe. That is if it gets lucky on the first date. Often the process has to be repeated a time or two but once connected it never drops out. So there's that.

Output sourcing. You get what you got. I run practically everything out of the 807 through HDMI but I have need of component out also due to the wife persons unwillingness to adapt to the seamless integration of the 807 into our lives that I promised.

That means that I have to run a macro through the remote forcing the series of button pushes the Onkyo needs to change from HDMI to component out for my wifes ancient DVD changer. It doesn't strike me as that hard a thing for Onkyo to do to retain routing patterns for activities. I guess I'm wrong on that because I have had to teach the remote to create the changes each time the demand changes.

On balance, I feel like I made good use of my home theater budget this year. The 807 will have to last me at least five years for me to feel good about the outlay. In the meantime if it continues to behave itself it was money well spent.

"Basic functionality is great. Falls short on some advanced settings." 2010-01-27
By John (San Diego, CA)
I'm not a real audiophile, but I've got a fairly decent ear.

I have this hooked up to a set of Klipsch Reference speakers and the sound quality is great. That is, to me, the most important thing here.

The remote has some activity functions like "watch tv" that mostly work well and make life easy.

The above comments make up 70% of my opinion on this thing so far. Now for the not so great stuff... The interface and menus are notably ugly. Very low resolution and design right out of 1990. I can deal with that though.

The real problems are with the functionality once you dive into the menus. There are options for a wide range of things, but a few necessary functions seem to be missing.

HDMI-CEC controls seem to cause nothing but headaches with my system. If I use my "watch TV" function on the remote, it properly turns on the receiver and the TV and sets the receiver to the cable box input. But the TV takes a few seconds to fully power up and when it finally does, the receiver automatically switches to tv/tape input (even though the TV is only hooked up to the HDMI output line). Well, there's no audio coming from the TV, so then I don't hear anything until I manually switch it back to cable. My blu ray player also causes annoying quirks with HDMI-CEC enabled. I called Onkyo support to see if there was a way to adjust around some of these issues. They were surprisingly inept. It took a very long time for them to understand my questions (even though I feel I gave crystal clear explanations) and then they tried to tell me the basics of what HDMI is, as if my question didn't demonstrate that I already know what HDMI is. I practically had to beat a yes/no answer out of them (and was on hold repeatedly), but the final answer is that the receiver can't work around these quirks and I had to disable HDMI-CEC altogether.

My new nuisance is with bi-amping. The receiver supports bi-amping the front channels and my speakers have separate tweeter/woofer posts for this function also. But the receiver doesn't seem to let me choose where (if at all) it crosses the tweeter/woofer frequencies. I just sent my third email to customer support about this issue and am curious what they will say. On my first email, they sent back a copy/paste from the manual explaning what bi-amping is (even though my email clearly demonstrates I already understand this and already have the receiver and speakers set up this way). On the second email, they told me where to find the crossover frequency for the front channel -- which I already know. But that just tells me where it's crossing the front channel as a whole, not where it's crossing the woofer and tweeter sections of the front channels. As far as I can tell, it's sending a full frequency range to each woofer and tweater, which defeats the benefits of bi-amping and is actually detrimental... I believe the enclosure's own internal crossover is bypassed when bi-amping.

The last thing is the Audyssey setup: I have major doubts about how effective it is. It seems to be accurate to within a few feet for how far the listening area is from each speaker, though it's easy enough to set this with greater precision by just measuring it with a tape measure. It got the correct crossover frequencies for my speakers (not counting the bi-amping issue above) one time, but every other time has shown incorrect values for at least one channel. For the sub volume level, it originally set it to -13.5 db. There was clearly too much bass with this setting though. I tried setting the sub's level to a point where Audyssey would set the sub volume on the receiver to 0 db. That ended up being -20 db on the sub. But at that point, it seemed the sub was now too weak. I'm currently splitting the difference with -10 on the sub and -6.5 on the receiver, but I'm overall starting to lose my faith in Audyssey as having any real value.

"The good the bad and the ugly" 2010-01-26
By R. Adler (Laramie WY)
1-25-10: I'm hi-tech challenged so this receiver I think is smart enough to go to the moon ... only I don't know how to go about doing it. Yes there is an intense instruction manual ... all 95 pages of it. The audio is spectacular no matter what hi-tech audio mixing option you want to use, and the video I have to admit got rid of the jaggies and other garbage. My DvDs never looked so good. NOW ... what I bought the damn thing for: Audessey DSX or the ability to have 9.1 channnels. The setup is supposed to be easy but what happened to me has happened to other reviewers (not here though). The setup tests each speaker. At first it worked, and then I moved some speakers so I wanted to recalibrate the system. Now it doesn't see my front left speaker even if I put the test microphone right on top of the speaker. I AM SOOO DISAPPOINTED. I've got six extra speakers all for nothing.

"Plume of smoke" 2010-01-17
By Mark Featherston (McAlester, OK)
I bought the unit back in Oct but I didn't set it up until Dec as that was when I bought my new plasma tv. The unit worked great, excellent picture good sound, for about an hour and half at which time the sound cut out. I tried all the troubleshooting steps listed in the instructions to no avail. I contacted Onkyo and they said I'd have to send it to an authorized repair store on my dime but that it was still under warranty so the repairs would be free and the repair shop would ship it back to me for free. All that took place though the repair shop called me twice to let me know they were ordering new parts so it ended up taking around a month to get the unit back. Got it hooked it up again and again I was happy with the pic and sound then after using it for around three hours then, while watching the blu-ray of Amadeus during the Don Giovanni scene, the sound cuts out again and a plume of smoke rose from the unit. So I'll be on the phone with Onkyo and probably the repair shop on Monday (Sunday now) to see whats what. I realize I'm probably just unlucky and have a especially poorly constructed unit but I can't recommend this unit.

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Denon RCDCX1 CD/Super Audio CD Receiver

2010-02-01T07:42:00.001-08:00

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The RCD-CX1 CD/Super Audio CD receiver combines audiophile design and ease-of-use into a compact unit that takes little shelf space. Featuring Denon¿s S.V.H. vibration suppression disc transport/loading system, the RCD-CX1 provides true audiophile sound with music CDs as well as high resolution Super Audio CDs. The powerful amplifier section features discrete devices along with high current compatible power supplies, to provide 75 watts per channel into 4 ohms. Denon¿s renowned AL24 high resolution digital audio processing assures optimum clarity and musical fidelity with your favorite discs. The RCD-CX1¿s extensive connectivity includes provision for moving magnet or moving coil phono cartridge, along with additional inputs and outputs, including stereo pre-amplifier outputs as well as an optical digital output. In addition, the control dock port permits connection to an optional Denon iPod dock (ASD-1R/11R) that lets you enjoy your favorite portable audio tracks, and stream photos and videos to your TV.
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Technical Details

- Plays Super Audio CDs, music CDs, CD-R/RW MP3 and WMA tracks
- AM/FM tuner built-in; moving coil and moving magnet phono stage
- 75 watts x 2 power amplifier section (4 ohms)
- Gold plated input jacks, pre-amp outputs; machined brass gold plated speaker terminals
- Aluminum chassis with machined aluminum front panel
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"Worthy competitor in the CD-Receiver race" 2009-08-28
By James T. Shaw (Omaha, Nebraska USA)
The past several years have seen a number of better quality CD and DVD Receivers enter the marketplace. The Arcam Solo comes to mind as perhaps the first truly aimed at audiophiles; but Denon, NAD, Music Hall, and Primare have all staked claims in this niche. The Denon RCD-CX1 more than holds its own; indeed, at my house it is the last unit standing after I spent several months with both an Arcam Solo and Music Hall Trio.

The RCD-CX1 is voiced to sound a touch warm, but this departure from neutrality strikes me as being well-suited to a bedroom or office. It has enough power to drive many speakers, but I suspect it will sound best with small two-ways. I am using a pair of Arcam Altos, and I think they sound better with the RCD-CX1 than they did with the Solo.

I have been very happy with the RCD-CX1 as it plays CDs, and the FM tuner works very well. My only complaint is that the AM tuner lacks sensitivity and even the strongest AM stations are usually beset by noise. I rarely listen to AM radio, so this has not proven a real problem for me. Even so, the lesser quality of AM reception cost this review a star in my rating here.

Followup, October 19, 2009: I recently acquired a Kaito AN-200 Tunable Passive AM Antenna, which made a notable improvement in the AM reception and still offers the convenience of a relatively small indoor antenna.

"Denon CD/amp" 2009-06-05
By T. Richards
Absolutely incredible. This unit exceeds everything I've ever owned. I have a vintage Luxman and a 90's much larger Denon amp pushing a pair of Bowers & Wilkins. This amp has the warmnest of the Luxman and the clarity of the Denon in a much smaller package. Both of the others are huge. Very compact. Looks very refined and clean in my bookcase. CD/Integrated Amp- I highly recommend this. If it played DVDs,I could get rid of that too!

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Denon DRA-37 AM/FM Stereo Receiver

2010-01-31T02:27:00.001-08:00

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Am/FM Receiver
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Technical Details

- Two-channel stereo receiver with 100 watts of power (50 x 2)
- AM/FM tuner with 56 presets
- XM Radio ready (with optional receiver); control iPods with optional dock
- A/B speaker selector, preamp output, tone controls and tone control defeat
- Includes remote control
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Denon DRA-697CIHD Premier AM/FM Stereo Multi-Source/Multi-Zone Stereo Receiver with HD Radio

2010-01-30T16:12:00.001-08:00

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The DRA-697CIHD receiver will shine as the core to your high end Hi-Fi stereo multi-room audio system. Equipped with many new features including HD Radio, it can handle almost any configuration combination. Its two source three zone capability allows you to run multiple sources to multiple areas at the same time with pure clean sound. With the HD tuner as a second tuner source, regular AM/FM can be listened to in one zone and HD Radio can be listened to in another zone. Being 4 ohms stable, it can handle the most demanding speakers, yet deliver smooth fidelity. Custom integration is no problem either as this enhance receiver has all the connections an installer needs to integrate to third party control systems.
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Technical Details

- High-Quality Power Amplifier
- Signal Level Divided Construction Chassis Design
- Multi Source / Multi Zone
- HD Radio Digital Tuner built-in
- Subwoofer output
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"Liberation from the limits of traditonal radio scheduling" 2008-12-23
By megesquire (Philadelphia, PA)
It works. I have not used all the advanced features such as connecting with speakers in far flung rooms but the ability to get alernative HD stations means I can hear what I want to hear when I want it instead of being limited to the limited programming of the analog mainstream. For example, when my local Public Radio is filled with talk, I can choose its classical music stream and play it on my main speakers. I do not have to stream it on the computer where the speakers are puny.

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Onkyo TX-SR507 5.1-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Black)

2010-01-30T03:58:00.001-08:00

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If you’re looking for a budget-friendly A/V receiver that offers versatile connectivity and compatibility with the latest processing technology, Onkyo’s TX-SR507 has you covered. With four HDMI 1.3a inputs, it can accept up to four high-definition sources—from Blu-ray Disc to HD broadcasting to high-def games—and output them to your compatible HDTV. HDMI 1.3a also enables you to enjoy the pristine “lossless” audio of Dolby® TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio™, as well as secondary audio on Blu-ray Disc via DTS-HD Express. The TX-SR507 comes with a suite of Audyssey surround-sound technologies to help tailor audio output to the unique dimensions of your entertainment space. Meanwhile, a new universal port makes it easy to incorporate an optional Onkyo Dock for the iPod® or Onkyo HD Radio tuner into your system. With all this, plus four high-impact Game Modes and the ability to send different audio to two rooms simultaneously, the TX-SR507 puts a huge amount of entertainment potential at your fingertips.
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Technical Details

- 80 Watts per Channel at 8 Ohms, 20kHz, 0.08%, 2 Channels Driven, FTC; 100 Watts per Channel at 6 Ohms, 1 kHz, 0.1%, 2 Channels Driven
- HDMI Audio and Video Processing (1080p; 4 Inputs and 1 Output)
- Audyssey 2EQ; to Correct Room Acoustic Problems
- Powered Zone 2 and Zone 2 Line-Out for Playback in Another Room (Separate Source)
- DTS-HD Master Audio;, DTS-HD High Resolution Audio;, DTS-HD Express, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus Decoding
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"Best Value For the Money" 2010-01-25
By 1gringofromLA (West Covina, CA United States)
I did a LOT of research before piecing together my first home theater system. I used reviews on Amazon, Best Buy, NewEgg, manufacturer websites, and plain old asking around to friends and professionals. Onkyo kept coming out as the #1 brand in this category. Denon also ranked very high, if not higiher, but is in a price range that I could not afford. The reviews of this receiver helped me seal the deal, and so far it has lived up to it's expectations as a high quality, high value receiver. Since I was purchasing ALL new components, having ample HDMI inputs was critical. This receiver has four, which is more than I needed. I also have a somewhat unique application in that my gear is being housed in a closet on an adjacent wall to my TV, so I had quite a bit of in-wall cabling to do. Since I used all HDMI connections, the installation is clean, I have fewer cables in my closet, and I only had to run one HDMI cable between the TV and receiver. This was a key feature for me, as I understand that not all receivers (especially in this price range) can deliver video AND audio via the receiver/HDMI cable.

Concerning heat, I have run the receiver along with the DirecTV HD/DVR and also BluRay player for a couple hours at a time and notice it gets warm, but not unusually hot. I don't believe I'm "pushing" or putting added stress on the receiver with my application (Receiver/Sat Box/BluRay/ CD Player), but I know others have reported high temperatures when playing PS3 or Wii games for extended periods. Another reviewer mentioned that the manual was useless, but I would disagree with that. I found it rather helpful in getting the receiver set up, HDMI inputs assigned, using Zone 2 outputs, etc - all things I needed a little help with out of the box, which I was able to easily find straight-forward instructions for in the manual.

So far, I am pleased and don't have any problem recommending this receiver to others looking for a great value from the best brand in home theater.

"Phenomenal Receiver, great price." 2010-01-21
By Travis Kahrs (Sunny California)
I bought this as open box from Warehouse deals, and it came in the original packaging looking brand new. If you're going to buy one of these, wait for an open box from them, it saves a bunch of money and you wont be able to tell the difference. This receiver works great for me, I have the polk 6750 speaker set with it and they really sound fantastic. The four HDMI inputs are great, and just so it is clear, it takes the audio from the source and DOES send it to the TV, so you dont always have to use surround speakers if you don't want to. I have a Blu ray player, Xbox 360, and Wii connected to it and they all look/sound fantastic. The automatic setup with the speakers works well, i tweaked it a little bit to get my center channel to play louder since it's a little weak, but overall it was painless and really simple. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who wants a high quality receiver, especially if you're deciding between buying one of the lesser-featured receivers like i was (the yamaha 365BL or the 6230).

"Poor quality product" 2010-01-18
By Manish Kumar (CT,USA)
I bought this receiver from tigerdirect.com in Dec09. The receiver had quality issues so I returned it back and now I am waiting to get my money back.

Pros:

- The sound quality is good.

- It works good with all the sources. I used it with DVD player,HDTV,laptop and FM antenna.

- Easy to connect with the speakers,sub and input sources.

- Audyssey setup is easy and it improves the sound quality based on the location of speakers and sub.

Cons:

- It has quality issues. The remote started malfunctioning after my first week of the purchase. I replaced its batteries with a new pair but it did not last long and I had to change it again after 7 days. Finally I gave up and returned it.Note, it is not easy to operate this receiver without remote control.

- The manual provided with the receiver is of no use.

- There is no HDMI upconversion.

- The peak volume is not that high though I did not test it. The volume range is from 0 to 80. If you are watching movie from DVD or online sources like Netflix then,you have to set up the volume in the range of 45-55 to get the surround sound effect from Neo6 or PLII.

I would suggest that do not buy this product from tigerdirect.com. They have a pathetic customer service.

"great sound" 2010-01-12
By Sergey Gorbaty (San Francisco, USA)
Great receiver.

1. sound quality - superb (0.08 THD)

2. built quality - does not overheat

3. feature rich - HDMI, 2 coax/2 optical inputs, all the latest codecs

4. looks good, nice and shiny

5. power - enough to power the floor-standing speakers

Cons: audyssey dynamic sound/EQ is not very impressive, I like the manual mode much more.

You can run the first time set up to adjust speaker volumes, distance, levels and then switch from audissey to manual mode for better sound.

Tried with blu-ray - awesome DTS-MA sound clarity.

Setup:

Polk monitors 50 - front

Polk monitors 30 - back

Polk CS1 - center

Polk PSW10 - sub

"works great for me" 2010-01-04
By K. Lewandowski (Central, NJ USA)
This receiver is exactly what I was looking for. I bought it to replace my Samsung Home Theater in a Box as that was not very conducive to expansion. Setup was surprisingly easy (and things are never easy for me as whatever can go wrong usually does). I used HDMI for all my connections and the Audyssey 2EQ Room Correction and Speaker Setup was so so simple. I just turned it on and plugged in the Speaker mic and the system did all the work.

This, along with the new Polk speakers, has totally changed the sound quality in my living, not to mention the ease. Before this upgrade I had to try and teach my wife how to switch to the PS3 to watch a Blu-ray disc and then how to switch back. Now it's just a matter of hitting a couple of buttons on two remotes! I had it on all day the other day and I did feel it to see how hot it got and though warm I didn't think it ran any hotter than any other system would have.

My set up is:

Samsung LNT4665F 46" 1080p LCD HDTV

Sony PS3 - Game/Blu-Ray

Polk Audio RM705 5.1 Home Theater System Speakers

I am giving it 4 out of 5 stars because while I do love this system so far, I only got it 3 days ago. If it contintues to impress in the coming months I will change to a 5.

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Pioneer VSX-1019AH-K 7-Channel A/V Receiver (Black)

2010-01-29T17:57:00.001-08:00

Buy Cheap Pioneer VSX-1019AH-K 7-Channel A/V Receiver (Black)

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The VSX-1019AH-K represents the pinnacle of the Pioneer receiver line. This hub for your home entertainment center allows you to enjoy your favorite movies on Blu-ray disc, DVD or VHS on your flat-panel television like never before. With standard features that include a phenomenal ability to upscale and convert analog video signals to 1080p when transmitted through HDMI to your high definition television, the VSX-1019AH-K¿s video scaler presents you with nothing but the best quality possible today ¿ regardless of what video source it receives.
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Technical Details

- 7-channel A/V receiver
- Features HDMI with 1080p video scaler
- Analog-to-HDMI upconversion, HDMI repeater (4 in / 1 out)
- Works with iPhone certified
- Color GUI
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"Room to expand" 2010-01-28
By M. Roberts (Santa Barbara, CA)
Nice features. I only use it as a 5.1 but nice to know it will provide 7.1 when I choose to upgrade speakers. I like that I can rename the input devices to my choosing. I purchased this to control my Samsung 52" LCD, Samsung Blu-Ray, XM radio, Cable box, VHS/DVD combo and a 5-disc CD player. It works great and has many more inputs still available, HDMI and composite. Amazon had the best price, no tax and free shipping.

Only two negatives. First, LOTS of heat. I had to remove the back panel of my cabinet to allow for more air exchange. Second, it seems to go to AUX by default for the input. I do not have anything in the AUX input. My universal remote sends the correct signal as to which input to go to but the receiver is not accepting it due to the LONG power on delay. Even adding a few seconds delay to sending the signal does not work. Otherwise, we love our new system.

"A few missing features keep it from being great" 2010-01-28
By SDE (Scottsdale, Az)
I bought this receiver when my old TV went out and I was having problems getting my Denon to work with the new TV (the Denon was 13 years old, but I loved it. Only reason I got rid of it was because it would lock into a analog signal when switching TV channels or I would have kept it). Overall, I like the receiver. Sound quality is great and it was easy to set-up. This review may come across as negative and I don't want it to...these are just some of the features it doesn't have that may or may not be important to you.

First, who decided it was a good idea to put the IPOD cable dock in the front? You have a nice looking black reciever in a stereo cabinet, with a white IPOD cable coming out of the front (ok, I know you can get black cables - even so, it still looks "wrong"). Also, you may not be able to close your cabinet door unless you push it back, which might interfere with your remote.

Secondly, my old Denon had a nice feature where it would remember the volume level you last used an input at, so that prevented the sound from blasting out when you switch from say FM to DVD, or TV to DVD. This one just has a volume control, and if the source has a higher volume output, the sound blasts out.

Third wish is I haven't been able to find a sound program on it where it basically takes a stereo sound and send the same signal to all speakers. For example, I got tired of the IPOD cable in the front, so I run RCA cables from the IPOD to the back of the receiver. However, haven't been able to get the volume to come out of my rear speakers. Maybe that's operator error, so ask you local store if I'm right, but I haven't been able to figure it out and I'm pretty good with electronics.

Having said that, I looked for a while and for the money, I'm not sure you can beat this receiver. The sound quality is good, and if you can overlook the items I mentioned below, it's definately work considering.

"Replaced Underwhelming Onkyo TX-SR606" 2010-01-14
By EAE (ny ny)
I purchased the Onkyo TX-SR-606 and had disappointing results with video conversion and shutdowns. Onkyo refused to fix it so I returned it to Amazon. Got the Pioneer VSX-1019 AH-K with Energy 5.1 Take Speakers and could not be happier. I use this home theater setup with my 60" Kuro Pioneer Plasma. Works fantastic with the LG WiFi Blu Ray player also. Excellent sound reproduction and strong Bass. I am very happy with this purchase and would highly recommend it. CNET review was right on.

"Loud buzz after two hours of operation, Poor customer service" 2010-01-13
By Tony
This unit was easy to setup using MCACC. It gives great picture and sound quality WHEN it is working.

After about a month of service, however, I noticed a loud transformer buzz emanating from the unit. It occurs after about one and a half hours of operation and it is extremely distracting when trying to watch a movie or listen to music.

I believe this is a heat related issue, and I've noticed other customers with similar heat complaints. I have the unit installed in a completely open shelf, but the transformer hum persists.

I noticed this phenomenon just as my window to return to Amazon had expired. Amazon customer service explained there was nothing they could do. If it were not for this limitation, I would have retruned this item.

Pioneer technical support was even less help. They would not send me a replacement unit, only service my existing one. After contacting several "authorized" customer service centers in the area, the quickest turn around time that could be found was 4 weeks from drop off. A one year "warranty" is useless if one has to wait a month for a defective product to be fixed.

Despite high ratings on other sites, I wish I had read more actual customer reviews of this product before purchasing it. In the end, I wish I had spent a little more money on a higher quality receiver.

"Disappointing. Overly complex. Features not well executed." 2010-01-12
By Nom de Guerre (Castro Valley, CA USA)
I'm a technology fetishist, but not an audiophile. I love gadgets and features, but the electronics world has such an embarrassing abundance, I don't have much patience for those that are difficult to decipher.

And thus my decision to return this Pioneer. For instance:

Remote. When I read the complaints, I wasn't worried because I use a universal remote. However, the remote is so poorly designed, I couldn't figure out how to transfer many of its functions to my universal. Fail.

iPod. I was very intrigued by the fact that iPod integration was included. However, I was less impressed with the execution. I actually wanted to use my iPod Touch to play Pandora. You can make this work, but it wasn't worth the effort. Specifically, you have to use the Pioneer remote to pause the iPod. Then you navigate the Touch to the Pandora app and control it from the iPod. However, the Pioneer didn't convert to surround sound. It only used the front speakers. Fail and fail.

HDMI Audio. I have a DirecTV HD DVR. I ran into the same issue as another reviewer. When changing the channel from HD to, say, the XM music channels, the audio cuts out. I had to run an optical cable (I think; I never confirmed exactly what solved the issue) and press the "HDMI" button on the remote four times. I thought, "well, I'll just program a macro on my universal remote to press HDMI four times." Unfortunately, I couldn't get it to work reliably. Fail.

Heat. Many reviewers commented on this, so it was not unexpected. I have active ([...]) ventilation in my equipment cabinet, so I knew I could keep it cool. However, it did run just as hot as my DirecTV DVR. I found this surprising, since the DVR has a HDD for recording and the Pioneer does not. The heat wasn't a deal breaker, but it was another strike. Fail.

FM Antenna. My old Yamaha had a screw-on F-connector for my outdoor FM antenna, while the Pioneer had a push-on. The push-on seems cheap and flimsy to me. Fail.

Sound. This was the only saving grace. I had the Pioneer hooked up to 5.1 Polk Audio speakers & SW. The surround sound setup with included microphone was easy and seemed to do a nice job of calibration. I was very happy with the sound. Success.

However, when purchasing an AV receiver, the "V" is as important as the "A." Also, it doesn't have to be iPhone simple, but I shouldn't have to enroll in night school to figure out how to connect and operate it. I've decided to go back to Yamaha, as I've always had good success with their amps.

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Denon AVR-889 700-Watt 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver

2010-01-29T07:42:00.001-08:00

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Packed with all of the latest high definition surround sound decoders, the AVR-889 is also equipped with sophisticated video signal processing and upconversion functions that breathe new life into standard definition sources. The video section features four HDMI v1.3a inputs that support high resolution audio as well as high definition video up to 1080p. The AVR-889 also includes Faroudja¿s renowned DCDi deinterlacing and upscaling that provides near-HD picture quality with standard definition sources such as DVD. The audio section features the latest Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio decoding, for the growing number of Blu-ray high definition titles that feature the ultimate in surround sound fidelity, along with Dolby Digital Plus, DTS ES 6.1 Discrete and Matrix modes, as well as Dolby Pro Logic IIx and DTS Neo6 decoding. Audyssey Dynamic Volume automatically eliminates irritating volume level changes between TV shows and commercials, while the Audyssey MultEQ room acoustic correction system automatically provides the smoothest, most natural tonal balance in the listening space. Audyssey Dynamic EQ ensures rich bass and smooth tonal balance, even at low volume levels. Full multimedia connectivity includes optional adapters to handle PC-based multimedia sources as well as iPod connectivity, and Denon¿s Compressed Audio Restorer brings near-CD fidelity to portable audio tracks.
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Technical Details

- 7.1 channel home theater receiver
- 100 Watts per channel
- 4 HDMI v1.3a inputs, 3 component inputs, 4 composite inputs, and 4 S-Video inputs
- Audyssey Dynamic EQ, MultEQ, and Dynamic Volume
- 7-Channel Equal Power ensures highly balanced output
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"Denon 889 Solid performer" 2009-07-02
By robert meier (East Brunswick, nj)
I'll start with the pros and cons:

Pros: 4 HDMI's, good looking, sturdy, sounds great.

Cons: Horrible remote, big(hangs out of my cabinet), instructions(i know i need glasses but please make the type a little bigger), very long setup.

OK the main points are that it sounds great. Thats its main function. I'm no expert on this stuff and 99% of the time the defaults are fine. Why do the instructions go thru each settings? It took a good 4 hours of running the wires and plugging in all the stuff. Then running the config wizards. The review from Alvin Bruney is spot on.(he obviously doesnt work for denon).

"Denon 889, Great Receiver" 2009-04-26
By Jk Lewis (Pluto, BABY!!)
For starters, this is a wonderful receiver at a very good price. I got it for $499.00 which made buying this even sweeter. The remote is probably the only item that I can complain about, my god it is cheesy, poorly laid out and you have to open a flap on the back to get all of the functionality. It feels like a piece of crap and it is. It has no backlighting, it cannot learn from other remotes and the little flap already broke on mine (not my fault). Now as for the sound, it is amazing for movies and music is not lacking at all. I have not listened to enough music to give a complete answer but from what I heard, it was great. I have some slight older Polk's and without this machine being calibrated it sounds incredible in 5.1, especially the 80 lb towers I have, it can actually get them moving. I do not care for how long it takes to switch between sources, about 20-30 seconds but that is a minor drawback. The picture coming out is perfect, especially when I used pass-through for my 1080p signals. I have a 65" Mitsubishi and movies look amazing in blu-ray or HD-DVD. I would have to say that anyone getting this receiver will be more than happy, the only receiver in this price range I would think about getting would be the Marantz 5300 (my mother in-law has it) $799.00. It's a great machine with fewer HDMI inputs but a better backlit remote and 5.1 pre-outs. If you have the means I highly recommend this device, cheers!!

"Good Performer" 2009-04-18
By T. Pyatt (St. Louis)
The AVR-889 was in the "sweet spot" for me in terms of performance and price. Thus far, I'm thrilled with the performance and build quality of this unit.

Pros

*Terrific sound for music and cinema in a small to mid sized room

*Very solidly built in Japan

*No issues with heat

*4 HDMI inputs

Cons

*The on-screen menu system is rudimentary at best

Recommendations

*Although the menu system looks like something from a Commodore 64, it works. Be patient.

*Setup can be daunting, but if you use the included microphone for automatic configuration, you can have very good sound within twenty minutes of plugging the device in.

*Read the manual. Several times. Things will make more sense if you are having difficulty with setup.

*Be sure to measure the depth of your av rack or entertainment center before purchase.

*As others have mentioned, invest in a Logitech Harmony One (or your favorite universal remote).

"Superb Sound - Difficult to Set Up" 2009-03-24
By David P. Vandagriff
I've given this product five stars because it produces extraordinary sound, particularly with blu-ray disks. I'm not familiar with the performance of similar Denon products, but I would have to spend at least twice as much to get the same quality from competing manufacturers.

It is difficult to set up, however, and the manual doesn't provide easy access to all answers you may need. If you search the web, you can find some sites that provide more-easily understood directions for setting up Denon products.

"Excellent Receiver - Buy a Harmony Universal Remote" 2009-02-14
By Ronald Lamb (California)
Excellent Receiver. Follow the manual to set up, but assume you'll end up tweaking the connections and settings. I bought a Harmony 880 after a month of juggling about 4 remotes and trying to make the Denon remote act like a universal remote. The big difference is that the Denon remote will try to replicate each of the other remotes (e.g. TV, DVD, CD, ...). To change from one input device to another may require changes to the receiver and the source device, plus??. The Harmony on the other hand is designed around what you want to have happen. That is, if you want to see a DVD, it will change the receiver and the DVD pressing one button. Want to change to a CD?. It will turn off the DVD, and change the settings on the receiver and the CD. Setting up the Harmony was incredibly simple, since all the settings are kept on their online site for every device they have been able to come across. Don't hesitate. The Harmony shows up on sale on ebay continuously or on Amazon. Back to the Denon. DVD's played on a very old low end DVD player are up-converted and looks unbelievably great. It's slowed me down on buying a new DVD player as planned.

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Denon AVR5308CI Reference-Level 7.1-Channel Multi-zone Network Streaming AV Receiver

2010-01-29T02:00:00.001-08:00

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Reference, Next generationA/V Multi Source/Zone, Network Streaming Receiver. THX Ultra Certified this all new receiver from Denon is the top of the line in terms of best of class technology. Setting the reference standard for sound and video quality, the AVR-5308CI is packed with all of the latest technologies for the ultimate home theater experience. Featuring THX Ultra2 certification, the AVR-5308CI features Denon’s legendary D.D.S.C.-HD surround sound decoding, employing no less than 3 high speed DSP processors, along with precision Burr-Brown DACs in differential mode on all output channels (12). Able to decode the latest high definition audio formats, such as Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, and DTS-HD Master Audio via the latest HDMI v1.3a specification. Video sources, regardless of resolution or format, are upconverted to high definition via the top-performing Realta HQV video processor, all the way up to 1080p. The versatile multi-zone functions include independent high definition and standard definition outputs. A host of digital media connectivity features includes network audio and photo streaming, via Ethernet and built-in Wi-Fi, along with internet radio stations, built-in HD radio, and XM satellite-ready capability.
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Technical Details

- 7.1-channel multizone/multisource A/V home theater receiver with 150 watts per channel power output
- Supports Dolby Pro Logic IIx, DTS Neo:6 Surround, DTS-ES Extended Surround, DTS-HD, and Dolby True HD multichannel formats
- Expanded LAN and Wi-Fi network connectivity lets people stream music directly from their PC to surround speakers
- 6 HDMI v1.3a digital video inputs and 2 HDMI monitor outputs; THX Ultra2 multichannel audio certification
- Measures 17.1 x 8.5 x 19.25 inches (W x H x D) and weighs 62.7 pounds; 2-year warranty
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"met my expectations" 2009-01-25
By johnny
I have owned the 5308ci for about six months. This receiver has every conceivable feature. You can basically connect everything and anything to it including 7 channel components. It has all the latest and oldest connections and has three subwoofer connections (I currently have 2 JL Fathom F113, also highly recommended). I read on Denon that it will even be upgradable to Denon link version 4. It decodes and upscales everything so there is no need to buy expensive DVD players to get these functions. The on-screens work very well which which was a big advantage to getting the Denon. I just didn't trust the likes of Onkyo, Yamaha, Pioneer to get it right. The firmware is updateable and so far Denon has released new versions about once a month. It does have wireless but I find it slow so I use the wired connection (Denon recommends using the wired connection for firmware updates). A nice feature is it is compatible with Windows so you can connect to your computer's Windows media player and play your music through the Denon. The Denon Mp3 interface is a little quirky but it works reasonably well. The unit comes built in with Audyssey and a microphone for automatic speaker calibration. The calibration did wonders on subwoofer imaging.

The negatives. This amp can only handle 6 ohm and 8 ohm speakers, no 4 ohm support. It is a lot more expensive than the competion, although I have seen them online for around $3,600 which is a bargain. Depending on your application the amplification may not be enough, although you probably be buying separates if you needed more power. There is a distortion penalty for using 6 ohm speakers vs 8 ohm (.7% T.H.D. vs .05 % T.H.D for 8 ohm.) You do pick up an extra 20 watts to 170 per channel when using an 6 ohm speaker though. I am using 6 ohm speakers and haven't noticed distortion issues. I don't think the amp will accept SACD signals via HDMI, instead you will need to connect SACD using the Denon Link connection or analog cables.

Overall I recommend this production, but if money wasn't an issue I would move up to the Denon separates. Make sure you have a deep cabinet to handle the size of this beast.

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Denon AVR-1708 Dolby Digital EX Decoding Receiver

2010-01-28T08:26:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR-1708 A/V Dolby Digital EX Decoding Receiver
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Technical Details

- 75 watts x 7 channels
- Audyssey MultEQ audio calibration
- XM Radio ready
- 100MHz component video switching
- HDMI 1.3a video switching with deep color support
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"Worst choice" 2009-05-16
By R. Filizola (Sao Paulo, Brazil)
Even though it has good features and good sound, my receiver broke down six months after I bought. The worst thing is that when I took it to repair, I found several others with the same problem. I thought the DENON would be a reliable brand in quality. My mistake. It is not.

"Great bang for the buck!" 2008-09-13
By E.B. (Florida, USA)
I purchased this receiver in June '08 as one of the key pieces of building my new home theater system. So far, I've been very pleased with this unit's functionality, customizable options, and, of course, its look and fit with the rest of my home theater system.

Hooked up to this receiver are:

-a Nintendo Wii;

-a Sony PS3;

-a Bose® Acoustimass® 10 Series home theater speaker unit;

-a 52" Samsung LCD TV;

-a HDTV DVR cable box from my local cable company;

-a Panamax 5100-PM Power Line Conditioner;

-three (3) 4' Monster M1000 HDMI cables; and,

-two (2) 6' Belkin optical audio cables

Setup was a relatively quick and straightforward. The manual was easy to read and follow. Once the speakers were hooked up, I plugged the Denon into the power supply and went to audio heaven. This unit supplied plenty of power to all 5.1 channels. Right out of the box, the audio seemed just right for my room; without making any fine adjustments, I experienced ZERO issues with any aspect of sound: no muffled/muddied voices, harsh highs non-existent, and there were zero indistinguishable bass notes. The LFE output on this unit really gets the living room walls shaking with the low notes and rumbles from explosions when watching movies, or when playing Call of Duty 4. Even when listening to the everyday radio or mp3's on my iPod, this Denon receiver delivers clean, clear power to every speaker and channel.

The one thing that's worth noting concerns those all-too-important the HDMI slots. The two HDMI inputs on this unit are for VIDEO ONLY and the one HDMI output carries VIDEO ONLY. So if you want your HDMI connection to carry both audio AND video signals, then you'll have to find another Denon receiver because this unit won't do it for you. Though this may be an inconvenience for some people, this wasn't an issue for me, as I wanted to keep all audio signals separate from video signals (to maximize bandwidth within the cables). I wanted the HDMI cables devoted only to carrying video signals to maximize bandwidth to the TV to minimize as much audio/video lag as possible (of which there hasn't been any)

I cannot comment on the remote control because I do not use it for day-to-day operations. For that, I use a Logitech Harmony One Advanced Universal Remote my wife bought for me, which gives me access to nearly all the functions that the Denon's factory remote control allows me to do.

All in all, this receiver is a great purchase for the cost. It's an efficient and powerful receiver that's easy to set up and easy to customize. I look forward to many years of satisfaction from it!

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Denon AVR-2308CI A/V Dolby Digital Surround EX 7.1 Receiver w/ HDMI Switching

2010-01-27T23:44:00.001-08:00

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Denon AVR-2308CI A/V Dolby Digital Surround EX 7.1 Receiver with HDMI Switching
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Technical Details

- 100 watts x 7 channels
- DCDi Faroudja video processing
- XM ready tuning
- Video up conversion
- Power amplifier assign
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"AVR-2308" 2009-11-07
By Robert R. Carron (Walla Walla washington)
Excelent product, purchased as a display model and the only issue was the remote rear cover was damaged ,so I bought a Logitech Harmony to replace it (much Improvement)

the unit is easy to setup and produces some of the best sound I have ever heard from a AV recever. I have reviewed several and the only one I thought sounded even close good was a Sherwood Newcastle (all the pioneers where to easy to clip (power issues ) the yamahas where stout but flat for music, the Sherwood sounded good but ran hot and did not like the looks.

"This thing is SWEET!" 2009-03-08
By Paul Plaster
This stereo is totally sweet. I personally didn't find it complicated to set up at all. I took it out of the box and had it all set up within an hour. The complicated remote doesn't bother me, because after it's all set up initially, all you are using it for is to switch inputs and adjust the volume. I took a couple of opportunities to really crank this thing up and at max volume I didn't hear any distortion whatsoever. All of my music sounds perfect and all of my movies are better than the movie theater I worked at. Connected to my HDTV, this makes the ultimate home theater system. There is no better choice for the money, even before the HDMI up-conversion abilities of this receiver.

"Great Reciver for the Price!" 2009-01-16
By Tim (Utah)
I upgrade to the Denon 2308 ci after inputs and outputs started to go out on my old Yamaha. As well as i wanted something that could handle some HDMI switching for when i upgrade my system to HD.

I have been very pleased with this receiver and it has been a nice upgrade from my old Yamaha. Great sound and i am now getting allot more range out of my speakers. Also, with the included microphone for auto setup, my speakers are almost perfectly tuned without having to fiddle with the levels manually.

Once you get used to the "interesting" user interface of various twisting and pushing nobs and the intermittent use of up and down arrows, it is quite easy to set up with the menus popping up on what ever monitor(TV,Projector, exc.) you are using. More inputs then i could ever use and the True Audio sound is amazing. The low dialogue is clear and easy to hear and i don't find myself adjusting the volume up and down between action sequences and dialogue scenes in movies and on TV like i used to with the Yamaha. It also seems to run cooler then my Yamaha did and is whisper quite.

My only complaints are that the remote is huge, bulky and quite funky as others have said, that there are only 2 HDMI imputs (which i new when i bought it) and that I can not find a remote code that will work with my dish network echo star 5.0 remote.

Overall its a great receiver at an unbeatable price.

"Excellent quality for a bargain price" 2008-12-20
By twf
The quality of the audio is excellent, far better than that of a very good Onkyo receiver that cost about twice much 13 years ago, which I've replaced with the Denon. I bought this Denon 2308CI largely to listen to music either on CDs or Apple TV. It matches nicely with my B&W DM602 S3 speakers, when bi-amped. I'm very pleased with the result. I also use this for playing DVDs and watching HD channels with digital audio.

The best advice I can give those who have trouble setting this up is to not use the remote, but the buttons on the front of the receiver itself, which is what I ended up doing until I later figured out the funky remote control.

For those who get frustrated with all the remotes and all the "modes" that have to be set to use each kind of media device, I would highly recommend getting one of the Logitech Harmony remotes. Just plug it in to a USB port on your computer, tell what your devices are, and then set up each of the activities. After that, you just need the Harmony remote, and life gets much simpler since it turns on the appropriate devices and puts everything into the right "modes" so it all works. My wife loves it.

Also, you need to know that the Denon 2308CI is being replaced by the newer 2309 model. So the 2308CI is about half the price it was before, around $450 where I bought mine online in Nov., 2008. If you need more HDMI inputs, then you'll need to go with the newer models. A lot of the frustration in the initial setup could be avoided, if you use only the buttons on the back of the main remote control, or you use the buttons on the front of the 2308CI itself. Even so, once I got my bi-amped speakers wired up to the 2308CI, I was playing CDs my DVD player in about 5 minutes.

Granted, I'm experienced in setting up electronics, home networks, computers, etc., so I did not pay attention to the manual much (and that's why I missed the part about using the back of the remote). If you use the buttons on the front, some of them do not work in the Menu setup--e.g., the Return button, to go back to the previous menu--so you end up getting stuck).

The Denon engineers ought to do some usability tests of their menu systems for setup, which sometimes use unconventional ways of selecting or setting things and are inconsistent in some button functions which have further "modes". For example, in the setup menus, the left-arrow button is sometimes used to go forward to a sub-menu, whereas the convention in most user interfaces is to use the right-arrow. At other times, the left/right arrows are used for scrolling through horizontal lists of choices.

The main remote control that comes with this 2308CI is also laden with "modes" especially when it comes to controlling different devices--using the combinations of different positions on the 2 slide switches at the bottom. This can drive you nuts, if you're not paying attention. E.g., if the left switch is not set to audio, then the buttons on the back for the Menu setup won't work, yet another obstacle to doing the initial setup that is frustrating.

The fact that I'm very happy with the quality of the audio (and HD video) outweighs the initial frustration of dealing with all the "modes" that need to be understood to do the initial setup. The excellent quality of audio/video engineering this receiver and the bargain price, for me, outweighs the usability challenges in the remote control in setting this system up, due to all the modes. In my opinion, as one who has done hundreds of usability tests of software interfaces, Denon ought to hire some usability evaluators, and observe the problems people have in trying to user their manuals and remote controls. Then maybe they would improve their manuals and remotes, which unfortunately are a far cry from the excellent engineering of the audio and video quality.

"Receiver could have been a great unit" 2008-06-21
By A. Cohn (Bay Area, CA United States)
(This review was written about the nearly identical AVR 888.)

Reviews on other sites lauded the build quality and quality of the power this unit puts out but warned about a shoddy manual and remote control. Those comments were right on both counts, but understated how difficult it is to program this this unit due to the manual and remote, which are both POS.

My wife, a geek who maintains our networked, 1-Mac, 2-PC household (and built one of them), built her own DVR, and programmed our Harmony remote, is stumped by this equipment, able only to grasp the basic functionality. She's spent 8 hours so far searching for information to supplement the manual, which incorrectly describes many controls on the remote, which itself seems defective.

We can watch our DVDs and listen (with Belkin dock) to our iPods through the receiver, but we can't take figure out how to take advantage of the many advanced features listed in the documentation because it's so bad.

In addition, the user interface on the front of the unit is screwy. For example, the default volume display goes from -100 dB to 0 dB, with 0 being the *maximum*. If there's an alternative way to display the volume, we haven't figured it out. For another example, to play music on the ipod, you have to flip the remote over, open the back, and press a special button to switch the surround sound mode to -- get this -- "DTS Neo:6." How much more convoluted could that get?

The 2803CI and its kissing cousin, the AVR 888, could have been outstanding units, if Denon had spent a few bucks more to get the user experience right. As it stands, though, buy these units only if you have prior experience in setting up mid-range audio gear or know someone who does.

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