Denon AVR-3805 Receiver Review

Denon AVR-3805 Introduction

Ever since agreeing to take on the review of the Denon AVR-3805 I couldn't go a day (much less an hour) without getting an email or a forum post requesting info on the unit or a deadline for my review (you know who you are!) I hadn't experienced this level of anticipation on Audioholics for quite some time and wondered if the new receiver would hold up to everyone's preconceived expectations. As is typical with Audioholics, the AVR-3805 receiver would receive a thorough workout, with all of its functions dissected and exposited for all to see. Suffice it to say, at the time of this writing this review, the AVR-3805 is the most feature-rich receiver in its price class... and not by a small margin. Some of its more notable features include:

• DENON Link 3rd Edition for "one-cable" SACD and DVD-Audio decoding from compatible Denon DVD players.
• 16 Burr Brown 192 kHz/24-bit DACs in differential configuration on all 8 channels (Note: Upon having Gene review the schematics for the AVR-5803 and this receiver, he discovered that Denon counts the + and - of each differential DAC as a separate DAC. In reality, this is still one DAC. Hence, there are really 8 DACs all configured differentially, with paralleling two DACs per channel for noise averaging in "direct stereo mode.")
•  Dolby Pro Logic IIx
• HDCD decoding
• Auto Setup and Room EQ feature (optional Denon DM-S305 or compatible mic)
• 100MHz component video inputs/output (with component video up-conversion and monitor out via component video overlay)
• 120W x 7-channels (8 ohms, 20 Hz-20 kHz, < .05%THD; FTC spec rates with 2-channels driven)
• Lip Sync delay (up to 200ms)