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Home Theater Receivers Reviews
Updated September 2007
This report covers component home theater receivers used as part of a total home theater setup that also includes surround sound speakers and a DVD player. While experts say that buying these components separately gives you the best performance and flexibility, those looking for simple setup and lower prices can consider a home theater system, which includes a receiver, surround-sound speakers and (sometimes) a DVD player in the same box. See our companion report on home theater systems . There are many places to read reviews of home theater receivers, but CNet.com has the most comprehensive coverage, and CNet's editors do the best job reviewing budget receivers. CNet also assigns ratings to tested home theater receivers, giving readers a way to quickly compare results. Two enthusiast publications -- Sound & Vision and Home Theater Magazine -- provide reports that are richly detailed. Some affordable home theater receivers are rated or discussed, but the emphasis is on luxury receivers. Consumer Reports does cover budget home theater receivers, but its recommendations are outdated. There's lots of user feedback and opinion at AVSForum.com, CircuitCity.com and Amazon.com, which is helpful for gauging owner satisfaction. Home theater receivers differ from stereo receivers in that they can drive five or more channels of sound for a surround-sound system (stereo receivers can drive two channels). You can spend over $1,000 on a home theater receiver, and while these can deliver pitch-perfect sound to the speakers, they are simply overkill for a typical home-theater setup. Instead, many critics say that there are great choices for both movies and music in more reasonable price ranges. For this update, we focus on budget and mid-priced home theater receivers that should mesh well with all but the most extravagant home theaters. In many ways, a home theater
receiver is the most important part of a home theater system. Its primary
task is to deliver audio to the speakers. However, many receivers are loaded
with additional features that transform them into the theater's hub. Those
features include switching capabilities, which can greatly simplify the task
of getting various components such as a DVD player and a cable TV or satellite
receiver to co-exist peacefully. Some home theater receivers can accept and
route through an all-digital HDMI connection, which means the typical "rats
nest" of wires found behind A/V gear can be reduced to just a couple
of cables. Some receivers also include sophisticated video processing features,
such as upscaling, which optimizes standard-definition video input for display
on an HDTV. While the inclusion of
HDMI inputs is a hot selling point for many home theater receivers, HDMI is
not the only type of signal a receiver might be asked to handle. According
to reviews, that's a point that seems to have been lost on Sony when it designed
the
Sony STR-DG810
(*est. $290)
. On the plus side, there are three HDMI inputs
and one HDMI output. Another positive is that this home theater receiver can
handle and process multi-channel LPCM (linear pulse code modulated) digital
audio signals that come in via HDMI. Many receivers in this price range can't
even accept, let alone process, HDMI audio. Other audio connections, however,
are surprisingly sparse. For example, there are only three digital audio inputs
-- one coaxial and two optical -- far fewer than many competing home theater
receivers. Multi-channel analog audio inputs are also not included. In their review at CNet.com,
Matthew Moskovciak and Steve Guttenberg note some other shortfalls of the
Sony STR-DG810 home theater receiver. Many receivers now incorporate auto
speaker calibration, which simplifies setup. However, Moskovciak and Guttenberg
say that the auto speaker calibration in the Sony STR-DG810 does just the
opposite. The process is complicated by the lack of on-screen displays --
not unusual in a receiver in this price range -- but the real issue is a "downright
awful user interface" and a poorly written user's manual that needs to
be cross-referenced throughout the process. Setting up the speakers manually
is only "somewhat easier." Sound quality is not bad, but CNet editors
say there are other home theater receivers in the same price class that sound
better.
While CNet.com feels that the presence of three HDMI inputs is not enough to overcome the other issues found, the Sony STR-DG810 home theater receiver has fared considerably better in user reviews. Judging from the comments we read so far, most are either pleased with the Sony home theater receiver, or they’re willing to forgive its issues in light of its low price and HDMI capabilities. ... Continued
Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
Reviewers tell us that there are great home-theater receivers to fit almost any budget. Performance and features generally escalate with price. The no-frills Onkyo TX-SR304 is the cheapest receiver that receives a recommendation in reviews. The Yamaha RX-V659 lacks HDMI capabilities, but has virtually every other connectivity option available. The Onkyo TX-SR605 is one of the most future-proof receivers you can buy. It has HDMI 1.3 compatibility and on-board Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio decoders. The Sony STR-DA5200ES has a groundbreaking graphical user interface that looks cool and generally makes the receiver easy to set up and use. An announced successor model, the STR-DA5300ES, adds HDMI 1.3 compatibility, high-resolution audio decoders and even more inputs. Advertisement
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© 2008 ConsumerSearch, Inc. A service from 
, a part of The New York Times Company. All Rights Reserved.
ConsumerSearch and ConsumerSearch.com are registered trademarks of ConsumerSearch, Inc. Other trademarks or service marks on this site are the property of their respective owners. ConsumerSearch is not sponsored by any source reviewed, and we accept no consideration or payment for including, excluding, or ranking any reviews, products or services in our reports.
* Pricing information is approximate as of the time this report was written and is based on observed market selling prices and/or list prices. Actual selling prices may differ.
