AVR-5308CI Overview, Speaker Options and Firmware

I began with a bird's-eye view of the product at hand. This is a good idea for anyone integrating a new AV receiver (really the "brains" of any system) into your home theater, Here is a brief feature comparison (focusing on things we thought would be of particular interest to some):

The AVR-5308CI would handle all AV switcher duties, but it could also do much more. Since it had dual HDMI outputs I could eliminate an entire component - a Next Generation Home Products 4x2 HDMI Matrix Switcher I had used to get signal simultaneously to both my theater and living rooms. While excellent for a reviewer, this also does wonders for Super Bowl parties. Looking further, we can see that the AVR-5308CI has six (count 'em) HDMI inputs and six component (YPbPr) inputs. One of the component inputs is BNC, as is one of its dual outputs. I chose to use three small BNC-to-RCA adapters to convert these to something that would mate to my existing arsenal of cables. The receiver has 7 amplifiers, each capable of driving 150W into 8-ohms. With seven channels, home theater virgins have a ton of options:

• 5.1 surround + powered Zone 2 OR Zone 3 (or Zones 2 & 3 in mono)
• 5.1 surround + bi-amped mains
• 7.1 surround
• 7.1 surround OR 2-channel bi-amped
• 9.1 surround (for larger rooms via SR-A + SR-B in parallel)
• 3.1 + powered Zone 2 AND Zone 3

Since Denon allows so many configurations, though surprisingly not some of the more useful ones I'd expect, we'd like to spend some time here to help users understand the possibilities this receiver offers. If you were to simply throw this into your rack without understanding the options you'll likely miss out on all that it can do - or presume it can do something it cannot.

9.1 - Got a Big Room?

Starting with the biggest rooms you'll note that you can, in fact, run a sort of 9.1 surround system. Go to a movie theater and look around and you'll see that the Side Surround "channels" are made up of an array of loudspeakers. This is great for long rooms (let's say over 25 feet) with multiple rows of seats. Now let's see what other options you have in this 9.1 configuration. Without moving a single cable you can operate your system in either of these modes:

9.1 (left), "7.1" + Powered Zone 2 or 3, "7.1" + Powered Zone 2 AND 3 in mono

In the above example, Denon runs the Surround A and B speakers in parallel, so it gets it's a 9.1 designation even though the receiver only has 7 amplifiers. While the system does deliver an array, it's not discretely amplifying those channels. This should be noted for those looking to run 4-ohm surrounds, which would put a 2-ohm strain on the amplifiers (not recommended.)

Denon can also shift the system into a 3.1 audio scenario in the main room when using powered Zone 2 and Zone 3 simultaneously in stereo mode. This allows for a powered three zone system for time that you simply want your whole house filled with sound during dinner events or parties.

Bi-amping Made Easy

Moving on, we see that Denon is paying attention to those who wish to use the Amp Assign-2 connections to bi-amp the Front speakers. The AVR-5308CI takes the Surround Back channel amplifiers and re-routes them to biamp the mains. This leaves a 5.1 + array system with the extra channels utilized up front.

Two-Channel Ecstasy

Two-channel fans will be pleased to know that the AVR-5308CI has a special mode designed for use with those who have a separate, dedicated pair of speakers for Stereo listening. By enabling Direct/Stereo mode and configuring a bi-amp (or Bi-wire if you so choose) connection to the dedicated speakers, you can switch from a true 7.1 system to your biamped stereo speakers with the press of a button.

Press a button and literally jump from a 7.1 system (left) to your dedicated bi-amped 2.0 system (right) without moving any wires.

Firmware Updates

Having the ability to download firmware updates directly via the Internet is a mixed bag for me. To put it into perspective let's take 2 different companies. Company 'A' has a product that has no firmware update capabilities and never needs it. It always works and there are no bugs. The quality control is simply stellar. Company 'B' puts out a product that has a firmware update every few weeks for the first several months of its life and then takes user feedback (ie. free beta testing) to update the product and release new fixes and modifications for the next year. Company 'A' gets almost no recognition for putting out a solid product with no required updates, while Company 'B' is endlessly praised by the Internet community for its "attention" and "responsiveness" to its customers and heralded as a great company. Go figure. Denon now seems to be somewhere in the middle. They put out a solid product with relatively few bugs (we actually appear to have discovered one or two) and seems to be forced into the firmware update cycle simply because of how many advanced features the receiver possesses. In the end I suppose it's hard to complain about that.

Denon has two tiers of firmware updates: "Firmware Updates" and "New Feature" updates. Denon hasn't announced any upcoming feature updates, but it has reserved the ability to charge money to add additional functionality to the AVP and AVR flagship products by using this feature.

Since its debut both the AVP-A1HDCI and AVR-5308CI have received two firmware updates, and presumably a third is in the works. The first was a small update that corrected some minor but important audio and video issues. The second was a mammoth 60 minute update that scared the daylights out of me and anyone else who has ever "bricked" a product waiting for a firmware update to install. Fortunately everything functioned correctly and the system received a ton of updates and corrections to the Rhapsody software, HDMI issues, HD audio issues, and much more (around 12 in all). Updating the system's firmware is simple. First, ensure that you have a solid connection to the Internet via Ethernet (we don't recommend using Wi-Fi for firmware updates (just say 'No' to bricks). You go to the Option Setup menu which is part of the Manual Setup menu in the GUI. From here select Firmware Update and you're good to go. During firmware updates the GUI will shut off along with all audio and video, but the front panel gives you the current status. Don't expect to update your firmware while catching up on lost episodes of Friends. The Denon is smart in that it fully downloads the firmware completely before applying the update. This means that a glitch in the download process won't leave you helplessly staring at an expensive doorstop. Both firmware updates I applied went smoothly, though the second 60-minute marathon firmware update was a bit of a nail-biter.