AVR-4306 Measurements and Analysis

 

The Denon AVR-4306 scored impressively on our maximum unclipped continuous power tests.

As is typical, we measured CONTINUOUS unclipped power in these tests. Estimated THD at these measurements was between 0.5 - 1% (max) and tests were done with an 8-ohm test load for one and two-channels as well as a 1 channel test with a 4-ohm load. The results were above average to say the least. This 130wpc amplifier scored well above that value (around an average of 150W) when driving 2 channels into an 8-ohm test load. When pushing a 4-ohm load the power jumped to around 240watts. One thing that became abundantly clear (and showed through in our listening tests) was that the AVR-4306 has a healthy power reserve to be used wherever it was needed during multi-channel playback.

We tested the preamp section of the Denon AVR-4306 and were able to drive over 6.25Vrms before the receiver capped the output - this is an exorbitant amount of preamplifier output and will drive ANY power amplifier we are aware of to its maximum potential without introducing any distortion or clipping - even at maximum volume settings on the receiver (we had it up to +18 in our tests). Of course if you send that much voltage to an amplifier - we don't want to hear about the internal fuses you blew in your amp, how many drivers you blew in your speakers or breakers you tripped...

 

Amplifier output impedance vs. frequency at 1 watt power

We measured the AVR-4306's output impedance vs. frequency at 1W. It varies about +/- 0.035 mohms throughout the audible range. The Denon receiver should not have a problem driving a wide range of loudspeakers - even those with an inconsistent impedance profile. It comfortably met our benchmark goal of 100mohms or less through the entire audio band - an excellent achievement for a receiver in this price class.

 

Damping factor vs. frequency response at 1 watt power

The damping factor of the receiver hovered for the most part around 220 and went as high as 550 around 20Hz and above 5kHz. Anything above 50 throughout the audio band is excellent. This is simply a strength of this product and is consistent with what we have come to expect from mid-fi and up Denon receivers.

 

Attenuation (in dB) over the total frequency bandwidth at 1 watt power

Measuring attenuation versus frequency, the Denon demonstrated only a 0.07 dB variance at the high end and 0.19dB variance at the lower limits of human hearing (some of which we can likely attribute to instrumentation error). The AVR-4306 exhibited very linear frequency response just like our listening experiences confirmed.