Featured A/V Receiver Reviews

The Marantz NR1403 is a bare bones receiver with some of the best bones we've ever seen. With discrete amplification, tons of HDMI inputs, and Audyssey MultEQ, it is a new buyer's dream at $400. But if you want more, Marantz has it with the NR1603. Adding video upconversion, two channels of amplification, a second zone, Apple AirPlay and other streaming options, you are getting a lot for your additional $250. Add to that the attractive slimline case and you've got a product that will be turning heads not only of first time buyers but those that are looking for a second (or third) receiver. Great looks and features, reasonably priced, compact form factor, and carrying the Marantz name- what's not to like?

The new Pioneer Elite SC line for 2012 is truly full featured. The question you need to ask yourself is what you really need in a receiver. They are all great but you'll pay a premium for specific features that you might not need. Even the SC-68, the top of the line offering, is only $2500. Even in this economy, that seems pretty reasonable. Pioneer has made a name for themselves on making sure their receivers work with your phone. With these Elite receivers, they are making sure they work with your custom installer and all your high-end music files. If you are on the market for a receiver, you owe it to yourself to take a look at these new Elite receivers.

NAD has built a reputation on "audio quality first". Their latest generation of modular receivers (T 787 & T 777) once again proves they are living up to their heritage as evident by their beefy power supplies and full disclosure of amplifier power. NAD has done a lot to make sure that their amplifiers and components will give you all the power you need without any distortion. For video...well, the receivers will pass the signal unmodified. The seven HDMI inputs and two outputs are a great improvement for the company as is the inclusion of Audyessy MultEQ XT room correction. These products don't come cheap. However, the fact that NAD provides an upgradable path via their "Modular Design" approach will likely ease audiophiles concerns about future obsolescence. The question is whether the rest of the public will value their sound quality as much as the hard-core audiophiles. NAD knows their fan base well and NAD owners rarely seem displeased with product performance or feature sets.

Onkyo has long been known for having the most features for the money in their receiver offerings and the TX-NR717 and TX-NR818 receivers are no different. It is easy to get excited about the $1000 TX-NR717 until you see what the extra $200 for the TX-NR818 gets you. Audyssey XT32, 13.5 extra pounds and 25 extra watts per channel, full 9.2 outputs, DTS Neo:X, and a host of installer features including ISF calibration controls? It's hard to see why you wouldn't spend the extra cash. With both having THX Select2+ certificaiton, 9.2 channels, 8/2 HDMI 1.4a connections, full featured networking, and loads more, consumers have a lot to drool over.

The new 2012 Pioneer-branded line of receivers should have consumers excited. Bringing fully functional HDMI connection (including 3D, ARC, and Standby Through) plus MCACC room correction to the entry level models is a fantastic draw. While there is a large assumption that most of your devices will have HDMI (and maybe an accurate one for many consumers), there is a lot to like. Starting at $250 and going up to $600, the line has something for everyone. AirPlay, Qdeo 1080p upconversion, streaming, control apps, native iDevice compatibility, dual subwoofer output... the real question you have to ask is: What do you want your receiver to do? Because Pioneer certainly has a model for you.

The new Distinction line of Integrated amplifiers from Teac appear to offer some high quality construction and parts which should appeal to audiophiles wanting clean quality raw power. Regardless of the stereotypical black color scheme, the brushed aluminum front plate looks to be very attractive and, dare we say it, distinctive in a sea of gloss black components. The no-frills operation hints toward high fidelity and ease of use. The largest in the series, the AI-3000 is rated at 200wpc into 8 ohms and 360 watts into 4 ohms. Although these amps seem a bit pricey, they do appear to offer all the ingredients of a quality no-frills audiophile piece of gear as evident by the large power supply, heatsinks and clean board layouts. The $1000 AI-1000 may be a nice solution for a budding audiophile's first two channel system. The Distinction series of Integrated Amplifiers appear to be a hopeful line from TEAC and one that we'll be keeping an eye on.

There is very little that we find more interesting than new budget receiver offerings. Onkyo has made a name for themselves over the last few years for offering the highest feature to dollar ratio. So when they announce that they are updating their budget offerings, we can't help but perk up. While Onkyo has placed their WRAT amplifier typology throughout this entry-level line and have tried to incorporate as many streaming and convenience features as they can at all price points, they don't have any room correction for any offering under $500. While we think users of all but the bare bones TX-SR313 will appreciate Silicon Image's InstaPrevue feature, mostly would be more impressed with a room correction system than a better amplifier typology. We'll have to see how the public receives the new Onkyo 2012 line to know for sure.

Today we're looking at the new Sony STR-DA3700ES Receiver. We're actually pretty excited about this one because we got to see it up close and personal at this year's CEDIA event in Indianapolis. What's the big deal? Well, Sony has completely redesigned the GUI on-screen display and setup system. They haven't just redesigned the setup menu, they've took an axe to the whole way you connect and engage music, video and streaming media. In all honesty, we had to restrain ourselves from lifting up the receiver to look for an Apple logo. Sony is back in the game, except that they never really left, they just haven't been pushing the envelop over the past several years. Now other manufacturers are going to have to sit up and take notice.

AudioControl announced the launch of their new Concert AVR-4 HD Home Theater Receiver. The Concert AVR-4 HD is said to fill a gap in the market for an audiophile quality receiver, at a great price, that does not compromise on the quality of its components, delivering a stunning movie experience rich in top tier audiophile sound quality and video performance. With a high efficient Class H 120wpc x 7 (all channels driven) amplifier design, the AVR-4 HD seems like it will deliver oodles of power for upscale home theaters while remaining cool in operation making it an ideal choice for rack mounting. The AVR-4 HD supports all the latest in HD audio and video decoding including 3D video pass-thru. We look forward to learning more about the new AVR-4 HD Home Theater Receiver from AudioControl when info becomes available.