Showing posts with label yamaha receiver. Show all posts
Showing posts with label yamaha receiver. Show all posts

6/25/2012

Yamaha RX-V1800BL 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black) Review

Yamaha RX-V1800BL 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)
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I was forced to upgrade to the Yamaha RXV 1800 earlier than planned as my older Yamaha model gave up the ghost. I was very pleased with the previous model which I had for over 10 years. This past November I had acquired the Samsung 52 LNTF and the Toshiba HD A35 player, with plans to upgrade the amplifier sometime this year. These are all HDMI 1.3a enabled devices, supporting true 1080p
First the amplifier is impressive in size. It is not your father's amp. It is feature rich and is intimidating for those who are technically challenged.
Since most of my components are HDMI enabled, it was good to run less cables from these to the unit. (My wife was very pleased with, this.) This is the beauty of HDMI cables, one cable carries the stereo audio and the three primary colors. This is the first gain to be realized from the system, the reduction of wires needed. The unit has 4 HDMI inputs already pre-programmed. By this, I mean each input has been configured for a particular device. There is one for 1080p DVD players (Blu Ray or Toshiba HD), one for regular DVD players, one for cable box/satellite set top box etc. Meaning you cannot criss cross the inputs with the devices and expect it to work. I discovered this the hard way.
Connecting the wires is less intimidating than originally thought. I used screw in banana plugs that made connection to the speakers a breeze. It does require one to have enough free wire to allow for slack when the unit is positioned.
There is a cool feature "YAPAO" that is used to set the sound levels for the speaker based on the listening position. The test showed me that one of my main left front speaker was out of phase (that is the rec wire from the speaker was connected to the black input port on the unit.) The trick is to be able to locate the supplied microphone in the right location to conduct the test.
The entire wiring with assistance from my wife took about an hour. Plan everything ahead and read the set up instructions. You cannot afford to short circuit such a monster of a unit.
I am still struggling with the multi-room zone controls. They are not simple. All I really want to do is to share the audio from the main zone to my bedroom which is zone 2. My previous model had an A/B switch that was easy enough to use. Just turn in on and the sound was distributed to my bedroom. I am still researching the multi-zone set up.
The remote control is not user-friendly either. It is overloaded and lacks in ease of use or human-tech friendliness. Others have recommended using the Harmony to control all other units. I struggled with the set up and was able to get it to control the TV, the DVD player and the CD player. For the life of me I cannot figure out how to get it to control the Cable set-top box.
The sound settings and offerings are too numerous to mention. Most of this you will only master over time.
Once I had it connected, I listened to some cds, watched a HD sourced movie, and HD sourced TV. I use Comcast and it have some nice HD on Demand features, especially the Gallery Player photos. The sound is awesome. It really makes a huge difference to the entertainment experience. It is hard to imagine how much you miss when you do not know what you are missing. I thought my previous sound experience was very good, the unit moved it up about two more levels.
Setting up the physical connections is not a challenge, less wires to deal with, but the programming and use of the remote will set you back many hours just trying to figure it out.
Am I pleased with my investment, very much so. So if you plan on purchasing this unit, realize it is no walk in the park, you do pay for what you get.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Yamaha RX-V1800BL 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)

The Yamaha RX-V1800 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver offers excellent levels of sound and video quality for total home theater enjoyment.It provides 910 Watts of total power, pushing 130 Watts to each of its 7 channels.With features including Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio decoders, the latest HDMI 1.3a specification support, video upscaling to 1080p, iPod compatibility, YPAO Auto Setup with Quick Start and multi-zone custom installation support, it will become the cornerstone of your home theater experience.

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6/20/2012

Yamaha RX-V1700 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel Review

Yamaha RX-V1700 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel
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I purchased this receiver at Ultimate Electronics in Nov 06 for $1000. I absolutely love this reciever. I compared this with the denon for around the same price and both are very comparable. The only difference I saw was that the yamaha reciever was easier to switch between modes for other devices and the different sound settings that are used. I have the system hooked up with my tv using the hdmi cable and all other devices are also hooked up through the reciever. This is great because I only have to use 1 remote to control which device I am using since I don't have a universal remote. The receiver delivers 130 watts to each of my speakers and sounds great. What I like about this receiver is that their is not a million little buttons all over the place and the ones that are their actually do something. Here are some of the specs on the receiver and a link to decide for yourself whether this receiver is for you.
[...]
MAIN FEATURES
High Sound Quality
7-channel 910W powerful surround sound (130W x 7)
Digital ToP-ART with extremely high quality parts and devices used
throughout
Pure Direct for higher fidelity sound reproduction
2 in/1 out HDMI (ver. 1.2a) for handling digital signals including
Super Audio CD
Assignable amplifiers for bi-amp connection
Advanced Features
iPod song titles displayed on front panel and on-screen display
Improved YPAO sound optimization
Superior zone control with additional zone remote unit
High Picture Quality
1080p compatible HDMI (2 in/1 out)
High-definition video up-conversion
De-interlacing (480i to 480p)
Wide-range component video bandwidth (100MHz -3 dB, 1080p
compatibility)
Surround Realism
CINEMA DSP with 23 DSP programs
Dolby Digital EX and DTS-ES 96/24 compatibility
OTHER NOTABLE FEATURES
Audio Delay for adjusting lip-sync (0-240 ms)
Dialogue Lift for dialogue to screen center
Selectable 9-band subwoofer crossover frequencies
Subwoofer Phase Select
Night Listening Enhancer ensures can be heard clearly at low volumes
SILENT CINEMA and Virtual CINEMA DSP
iPod song titles in English language on the front panel and on-screen
display
Detachable power cable
Extended remote control codes
Remote terminal for Zone 2 or Zone 3
Dual programable +12V trigger outputs


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6/12/2012

Yamaha RX-V661BL 7.1-Channel Digital Home Theater Receiver Review

Yamaha RX-V661BL 7.1-Channel Digital Home Theater Receiver
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I was looking at receivers for months trying to make sense of it all. I was set on one of the similarly priced Onkyos when an AV friend of mine came out of nowhere and recommended this Yamaha V661.
I love it. Everything was very easy to use and setup, and there are tons of customization options. I couple this with some Klipsch Quintet IIIs and a custom sub, sound is fantastic. I love the fact that I was able to program my own customized input names. I have each input labeled "Wii" "Xbox" "PS2" "Cable Box" etc accordingly. Furthermore, with the use of the buttons on the bottom of the remote (can't remember the name but they let you preprogram inputs/settings for devices) you can program full names like "Nintendo Wii" or my other longer one "Xbox Media Center."
The auto setup was a dream, and the sound quality is fantastic. I love the amount of inputs, it even includes HDMI. What more could I ask for!?!?!?
Highly recommended.

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6/11/2012

Yamaha RX-V565BL 630 Watt 7-Channel Home Theater Receiver Review

Yamaha RX-V565BL 630 Watt 7-Channel Home Theater Receiver
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There are two model numbers for this AV Receiver as disclosed on CNET. One model number is the RX-V565BL, the other is the HTR-6250BL, which I purchased. At various times, the prices of the two vary on Amazon, so I just went with the cheaper one. I coupled the receiver with the Energy Take Classic 5.1 and was able to get two satellites on Ebay to complete a 7.1 speaker system. To round out the system I have the Mitsubishi DLP 73". I also have the PS3, xbox360 and Wii hooked up.
Unlike another reviewer who had a problem with his Tivo Series 3 with RX-V565 version of the receiver, I had no problem at all. If you have a problem with the HDMI, just use the Tivo component out and digital optical out direct into the Yamaha. It works perfectly.
The biggest problem I had in hook up was my inability to connect the Wii directly through the Yamaha. I use the component video cable for the Wii. This Wii cable has two rca connectors for audio.
There are two composite inputs on the Yamaha. One has a coaxial audio and the other has digital optical audio. There is no connection for composite video plus two rca female audio inputs. I ended up connecting the Wii output video straight to the tv, without the benefit of the 1080p upscaling of the Yamaha, and the audio only to the receiver. Because of this I can only give the receiver 4 stars.
The sound from the system is very clear. I am still playing with all of its sound options and will update the review after I have more experience with the sound options.
UPDATE I found this inexpensive work around for the Wii audio hookup on Amazon: RCA DT2AD 2-Way Signal Converter DT2AD. It allows conversion of the analog audio to digital audio.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Yamaha RX-V565BL 630 Watt 7-Channel Home Theater Receiver

Yamaha RX-V565BL 630 Watt 7-Channel Home Theater Receiver

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5/20/2012

Yamaha RX-V867BL 7.2-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black) Review

Yamaha RX-V867BL 7.2-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)
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I searched the Internet thoroughly before buying my first receiver in about a decade. I have been an audiophile since the 70's and used to use tube electronics and other exotica, but I was out of date regarding practical family-friendly AV receivers. I was put-off by the emphasis that some manufacturer's place in iPod/iPhone compatibility -- that feature is a nice-to-have in my book but it doesn't address the core requirements of a good home theater system. In the end, I selected Yamaha due to consistently good reviews for performance, reliability, and customer service; good reviews for sound quality in the British press; Internet software upgrade capability; CinemaDSP and similar features; and positive previous experience with the brand (although with musical instruments rather than electronic equipment).
I hope that my review will touch on topics of interest that are not well-covered in Internet reviews such as late-night listening, two-speaker systems, and the operation of CinemaDSP and other DSP functions.
So far I am very satisfied with the product. I hooked it up and got it going without consulting the Easy Start guide or the owners' manual (provided on a CD). The menus are intuitive for nearly anyone who has worked with other AV equipment in recent years, and it has defaults set for parameters that one either doesn't understand or doesn't care about. In fact, I only needed to consult the owner's manual for two issues: Updating the firmware (which worked flawlessly) and operating the network features.
Unlike most users (apparently), my living room isn't well-suited for surround sound. So, I run my system with two high-end speakers and a subwoofer. Therefore, I was very interested in what CinemaDSP could do to make the two-speaker system into a credible home theater system. To my surprise and delight, it actually works very well: Dialog is well-centered and the background effects seem widely spread beyond the edges of the speakers. Although it isn't a substitute for real surround, it is much better than my previous receiver which created a traditional 2-channel stereo sound field. The CinemaDSP effect is somewhat retained off-axis as well, so it isn't necessary to sit precisely in the center "sweet spot."
I have the two speakers wired up in the receiver's bi-amp mode. (Note that this isn't a true bi-amp mode; it only works with loudspeakers that have a built-in crossover designed to function in this manner.) The music reproduction is vastly improved compared to my previous Pioneer receiver and is somewhat "high-end" in character with outstanding clarity and a treble that is very clean rather than harsh. Since this model has pre-out jacks, one could use a true external audiophile-quality power amplifier for the main speakers (and any other channel) if desired.
The YPAO automatic calibration system couldn't be easier to use. I mounted the supplied microphone to a camera tripod, plugged the cable into the receiver, turned it on, and the receiver knew what I wanted to do and guided me step-by-step through the process. I had it do measurements at three different listening positions and setup the calibration automatically; the whole process took 20 minutes (including the time it took to find the tripod in the basement). Although the receiver provides the option for manually tweaking the equalization, it claimed to have achieved a flat frequency response so I see no reason to change it. The sound quality was significantly better, with improved midrange clarity and smoother bass performance. Maybe the Audyssey system of other receiver brands is more sophisticated, but the YPAO seemed to do the trick of taming the resonances of my highly reflective listening room.
The networking functionality was very easy to get up and running. Configuring it for my household LAN was performed fully automatically. By setting Windows Media Player to "streaming" capability on my Windows 7 machine, I was able to access my complete music collection using the receiver. The user interface is easy to understand, and it displays cover art on the TV screen as well as correctly displaying English and foreign alphabets. It seems to be able to play the variety of file formats that my collection is in (AAC, MP3, WMP). The Internet Radio feature allows users to search the world for radio stations and easily play them; the sound "Enhancer" significantly upgrades the sound quality from these sources.
My lifestyle usually dictates that TV-watching or what-have-you begins rarely earlier than 9pm on most evenings. And that means that sleeping children and neighbors are not far away. So my primary concern is with high quality sound at low-to-moderate levels rather than the full-impact of THX reference-level theater sound, which I can only rarely use. Practically, I was looking for dynamic range compression that enables the dialog to be heard reliably, without constantly changing the volume levels using the remote throughout the show. The Yamaha has two methods of controlling dynamic range, and I have been using both. They seem to do a good job of keeping dialog audible at lower listening levels and preventing the commercial "blast away" problem, but without adding audible side-effects. I don't know how it compares to Audyssey's Dynamic Volume, but it does work and is very easy to adjust as desired. Also, it reduces the quantity of low bass when listening at low levels (kind of the opposite effect of a "loudness" button), which reduces annoyance to others trying to sleep.
The application of CinemaDSP to headphones is fascinating - it changes the character of the sound from being "inside your head" to a more natural sound field. It doesn't give you true surround sound when wearing headphones of course, but it does give you a more convincing experience than regular 2-channel audio. I like it a lot - it really improves the headphone listening experience. Note that when you plug headphones into the receiver, it automatically configures CinemaDSP for headphone use.
Other random thoughts: The thin remote is elegant and easy enough to use (although it doesn't fully replace the functionality of my other remotes, which is par for the course); the HDMI and video digital conversion features are working without a hitch; and the receiver runs cool when running at normal volume levels, although it is installed in a cabinet. Overall, this receiver is a very well-integrated design that is sophisticated underneath but easy to approach for users. If you just want to do basic functions, then they are easy to do. If you want to geek-out with tweaking, you can do that as well.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Yamaha RX-V867BL 7.2-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)

The Yamaha RX-V867BL Home Theater Receiver supports 3D and Audio Return Channel over 6 in / 2 out HDMI, HD Audio decoding with CINEMA DSP 3D, 1080p upscaling with precise deinterlacing, new GUI, YPAO and network functions.

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5/17/2012

Yamaha RX-Z7BL 7.1-Channel High-End Network Home Theater Receiver (Black) Review

Yamaha RX-Z7BL 7.1-Channel High-End Network Home Theater Receiver (Black)
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I've had mine for a couple of months and am completely pleased with the purchase. At first I had my doubts, since I've always had much more expensive component systems. This is my fourth Yamaha receiver, but the others I used for the kids, and for the whole-house stereo system.
I had just switched from a 9" crt projector to a Panasonic 3000 LCD projector, and decided that going fully digital was in order. I spent weeks reading reviews, downloading both user and service manuals for about a dozen brands and models. When all was said and done the decision really was quite easy. This thing has virtually everything a person could want.
I have a large dedicated theater that is designed for both reclining and listening to music, or for viewing movies on a 120" screen. I have carefully assembled a system that does both flawlessly, and I didn't want to mess it up when it came to this purchase. This came as close as I could have hoped for. Mind you, it isn't as good as my old system when it comes to sound. But then my power amp alone was $4500, and could power a normal full-sized movie theater's speaker system.
This does have plenty of power for my nine-speaker setup. It just has a hair less detail in the sound. Before I could hear if a pianist hadn't fully trimmed his or her fingernails, because you could hear the ends click when they hit the ivory on the piano keys. This doesn't quite get there.
That being said, my wife likes this much better because she hated hearing every tiny detail, especially the bad mixing and mic placement on so many recordings. She especially hated listening to Midori play the Paganini caprices - hearing Midori slide her fingers into position when my wife had spent years believing that to be one of the best performances ever. She is back to loving the performance, and I have to say I like it better too. Detail can get a bit overrated, because you get the bad with the good.
As to video, this thing leaves nothing to be desired. One of my DVD players is an Oppo 981, which always gets great reviews, and is an excellent player, especially for upconversion of older DVDs to 1080p. At first I was just going to have this pass the signal straight through without any alteration. After going back and forth a bunch of times I actually chose to have this receiver do the conversion on everything, from the analog sources as well as the digital ones. It does a top-notch job and I have no complaints.
That being said, there are so many choices and possibilities it almost gets to the point of being frustrating. As you pop through the possibilities of hearing the music in a cathedral in Munich or a church in Freiburg it is pretty easy to lose focus on finding what sound you really like. My suggestion is to relax in an easy chair, close your eyes, and have someone else do the changing of settings so that you really do select the best setting.
For those building their system up from something of lesser quality (meaning most of the units out there), or for those who have been like me and have gotten tired of lugging around massive components that take up lots of room and generate lots of heat, this has something for most everyone to like.
The possible negatives of the unit are: needs at least a couple of inches of ventilation on the top for air circulation (could just hook-up a 90 or 120mm computer case fan if things are tight); like most of these receivers the remote (there actually are two remotes that come with (one full function and the other a stripped down model)) could be better and might take a little trial and error; for those like me who are used to having more than one subwoofer this is designed for just one (although my Supernova Earthquake 15" nearly knocked marble off the wall in the master bath when I was watching the newer version of War of the Worlds).
1/29/2010 Just wanted to say that I have installed the firmware updates and have yet to have a single negative thing occur concerning this receiver. Originally I screwed a few things up and Yamaha support always got back within a day. Turns out I was at fault, but one interesting item is that I had an audio CD in the player and thought it was a DVD. The output gave me a green screen, and that really had me scratching my head, and that of the Yamaha engineer, until I checked what was in there. Otherwise, I have been using the PS3 for the Blu-ray movies, Oppo for standard, and absolutely everything has been superb. Odd to have not one complaint.
12/15/2010 Not really anything to add except it works flawlessly. I still wish there were fewer choices in terms of shaping the audio output. When I find a setting I really like with one kind of music it might be a month before I come back to it again. It might help if I kept a notebook by it and just made notes as to the combinations I like. I still mostly keep it on seven-channel stereo unless I really don't like how it sounds. Other than that I haven't even looked at my old equipment for months now. As stated before, there has not been a single issue with this receiver. I'm 100% satisfied.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Yamaha RX-Z7BL 7.1-Channel High-End Network Home Theater Receiver (Black)

Expanding on the highly acclaimed Z-Series, Yamaha introduces another benchmark: the RX-Z7, a 7.1-channel Network AV Receiver. This new receiver provides an enormous range of exciting multimedia features, extensive custom installation capabilities, video adjustment features and cutting edge technologies. The RX-Z7 performance provides great enjoyment for the home theater experience.

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4/17/2012

Yamaha RX-V2700 - AV network receiver - 7.1 channel Review

Yamaha RX-V2700 - AV network receiver - 7.1 channel
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The RX-V2700 has more features than any receiver I know of in any category. The main features that distinguish it are:
* Play MP3s (off PC running the proper software)/Internet Radio
* High Power (140x7 - One channel driven into 8ohm from 20hz-20khz)
* Handles 7.1 multi-channel PCM over HDMI, helpful for Blu-ray and HDMI
* YPAO (Automatically adjusts levels, and bass management features; I believe it also has some basic equalization features)
* Three HDMI inputs (not a common feature of AVRs)
* Can pass 1080P
Cons:
* Remote control longer than usual; controlling network features a pain
* Clunky GUI for network capaibilities
I connected a number of component video sources and audio sources and ran a single HDMI cable to my display. I have no video issues with this setup. I used YPAO to do the initial setup. When that was done I set all speakers to small and the LFE/Bass crossover to 80hz. There's no good reason to let your speakers handle bass if your subwoofer can do it. 80hz is what THX has reccommended. Everything worked fine. The diagrams in the manual of the back panel were hard for me to read. This made it harder for me to try to wire it up with less than two feet between it, and the back wall. There are some photos online of the back panel that might be easier to use.Sound quality is good. If you already had a good receiver, don't expect amazing improvements. Amps tend to sound very much alike. Processing modes are typical. Select straight mode, and it should do the right thing most of the time. I prefer 7-channel stereo for normal music listening, though.
As for video, because I have a plasma, and I feel it does a good job deinterlacing (480i -> 480p) and scaling (to it's native 1024x780,) I only use HDMI conversion. I did play around with the 2700's deinterlacer and scaler options. I saw no improvement. I also see no degradation, which is what I expect. I use the 2700 to convert component to HDMI for a DVD player/Tivo box and my XBox 360.
The network features work ok. I see usual problems with disconnects, etc. To stream MP3's from your computer to the RX, you will need Microsoft Media Connect, or Windows Media Player 11 (which comes with Media Connect.) You don't need to run Win Media, Media Connect will run as a background process, which is nice. Setting it up was easy enough, but I have spent my life working with computers. You will need to go into Win Media Player or Media Connect and add the 2700 so you can share music to it. The ability to play internet radio is one I quite like. You can't add stations, and are limited to MP3 (I think.) The 2700 uses the vTuner database, which is extensive, and you can suggest stations to it. The GUI for the network capaibilities is painful. It's slow for one thing. It will stop displaying with no keypress in 5 seconds or so. However long it is, it's not always long enough forcing you to hit the display button on the remote again. Very dissapointing for a product with a suggested retail of $1700.
As mentioned above sound quality is good. It's powerful enough that I can turn it up as loud as I want without audible distress, and I can't say that about other receivers I have owned. Like most receivers, it's only rated with one channel driven, but don't let that concern you. If it's not loud enough for you, you either have a big room, inefficient speakers or a need to damage your hearing. As for it's sound quality being better than other receivers, I can't say that it is. Most receivers sound pretty close (in tests, even trained listeners have trouble picking out one amp vs. another.)
A brief note about Blu-ray and HD DVD. This receiver will handle 7.1 multi-channel PCM at 96khz/24bits. That allows you to take advantage of the lossless audio formats available on the new high def media formats, such as TrueHD. You will need to set your player to output multi-channel PCM over HDMI. Some people have reported diminished LFE (low frequency channel) when PCM was used rather than bitstream. I don't have room for a full discussion of this alleged issue. It is unconfirmed by any formal review, and some people have reported that LFE over HDMI/PCM works fine. This is only a potential issue if you want to hear the best quality from uncompressed audio on Blu-ray or HD DVD. You always have the option to let the player convert to DTS or Dolby Digital and send that via bitstream over HDMI (or S/PDIF.)
As for video quality, all I asked of it that was it converted component to HDMI, which it does with no obvious degradation.
Why would you spend over $1000 on a receiver? Probably for the feature set, and high power. Yamaha also has a reputation for quality. It's my fifth Yamaha receiver, so I am obviously a fan.

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4/10/2012

Yamaha RX-A3000 7.1-Channel Audio/Video Receiver (Black) Review

Yamaha RX-A3000 7.1-Channel Audio/Video Receiver (Black)
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My interest in Home Media originates from a musical background as a musician and avid listener.
The RX-A3000 is my 6th Yamaha DSP A/V receiver since my first (DSP-E300) in 1990--having owned other A/V amps including the first ever Dolby Digital (AC3) compatible (Pioneer). Yamaha's major feature to me is the natural sound on all their DSP SoundFields. Most every other receiver listened to does Dolby and DTS movie surround sound decoding just fine, but if you are into listening to 2 channel music processed to sound like different venues such as The Roxy, The Bottom Line, various concert halls in Europe etc. nobody does it better than Yamaha. Other receivers have rather phony sounding processing using their proprietary chips.
I think the key to the Yamaha is the original research and recording done back when they designed their first DSP unit the DSP-1 in 1986 or so. As a matter of fact, I liked the processing on my Yamaha DSP E-300 so much that I daisy chained it to later more state of the art A/V amps so that I could use it for music listening. Now with the RX-A3000 it has just about the same amount of concert venues as the E-300, plus a bunch of DSP Cinema Modes as well.
Yamaha makes the optimization of your listening environment quite easy with their YPAO setup. It goes through a checklist of speaker connections and phase of each speaker. Then it sends out tones which are captured by a microphone to analyze the room acoustics and sets a variety of parameters, such as the speaker size, the distance of the speakers and even the sound pressure level. It also allows for what I'd call a "blended" setup whereby measurements can be taken and stored from more than one listening position so that the end result is not tailored to just one sweet spot in the room.
The unit can be expanded to 11.2 channels with external amps, but an out of the box 7.2 setup is more than adequate for me (the RX-A3000 has outputs for 2 subwoofers which can be configured for Front/Rear, Front Mono, or Front Stereo).
Since this is a Video as well as Audio device, it must be noted that there are no fewer than 8 (7 + 1 in front) HDMI 3D compatible inputs and 2 HDMI outs. A new OSD GUI can now overlay on HD sources, and after a little bit of practice becomes very intuitive and useful.
The RX-V3000 has a new HQV Vida high-class video chipset, which has a myriad of adjustments if you want to tweak the picture (potentially more useful for SD DVD and analog video) or just let the signal pass through. I let the Yamaha upscale to 1080p, TiVo OTA/Netflix, SD DVDs, AppleTV, as well as OTA TV with stunning results. The receiver is the first piece of equipment in my eventual upgrade to full 3D, but in the interim, 2D Blu-ray, and HD DVD are an awesome experience due to its sound and state of the art circuitry.
Indeed, the physical chassis has been beefed up in this series featuring a 5th foot for stability and vibration control, and H-shaped cross member frame with double bottom construction. With all its improvements Yamaha has seen fit to extend the OEM warranty from 2 to 3 years.
The Yamaha iPod dock I've been using since the days of the RX-V2700 is compatible and the OSD has been improved greatly making it more of a pleasure to use compared to the old interface. The main improvement for me is the ability to scroll 10 pages at a time to find music, but it's too bad there's still no alpha/numeric search because I have over 13,000 songs.
The unit can be controlled with an iPhone app, in addition to a regular web browser when the Yamaha is part of your LAN. And speaking of control, the remote is not exactly the best around with some of the more used buttons (for me) being buried under a hinged door. But if you happen to prefer a universal remote (my choice is the Logitech Harmony One), that's all moot. Yamaha is very good at disseminating their remote codes both the default and extended which have a lot of discrete ones not on the OEM remote (e.g. accessing a particular Classical Hall directly instead of toggling though the choices etc.).
So if you're looking for an extremely versatile piece of equipment to be the heart and soul of your video experience, which can also bring immense musical enjoyment, I can't recommend this unit more highly.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Yamaha RX-A3000 7.1-Channel Audio/Video Receiver (Black)

AVENTAGE is a dramatic, inspired step forward in audio/video component design. AVENTAGE brings studio grade sound and sophisticated video enhancements to the home as a result of unparalleled attention to detail in design, engineering, and fabrication. Details that, at first glance, would not seem to affect the quality of sight, sound, and control, when brought together within an AVENTAGE component, produce a work of visual and acoustic art.The RX-A3000 A/V Receiver offers 3D and Audio Return Channel over 8 in/2 out HDMI, CINEMA DSP 3D, HQV video quality, new GUI, new YPAO with Reflected Sound Control, network functions, control via web browser, Zone 4 digital output, and Control4 certification.

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4/09/2012

Yamaha RX-V1900BL 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black) Review

Yamaha RX-V1900BL 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)
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I purchased this receiver to replace my older Yamaha RX-V1000 which I liked a lot and had no problems with the entire time I had it. I purchased this receiver to get HDMI, HD Radio, and Zone 2 amplified sound. I have the amplifier set up to drive an LCD HDTV via HDMI and a projector w/ component video.
Sound Quality: This was high priority for me as I primarily listen to music. I was VERY happy with the sound quality and I feel like it sounds better than my RX-V1000 (which I feel sounded much better to the Denon 38xx receivers and was on par w/ a B&K receiver my friend has). I don't use any of the different DSP effects for sound stages, etc. The surround sound (at least 5.1 as that's all I use) audio sounds better than my RX-V1000 too. Sound from the center channel is much more defined and clear. Not sure why but it's nicer. BOTTOM LINE....excellent sound!
Connections: The receiver could have a better layout for connections but in the end, I really don't have any problems with it. There are a lot of connections so you should be fine. I would have liked dual HDMI outputs but you get that w/ a more costly receiver and it wasn't that important to me. Note, as with many other multi-zone receivers that I have used/tested, only the main zone can handle digital audio inputs, other zones must have analog inputs so you must connect all your audio sources to analog (or digital + analog) if you want audio in Zones 2 or 3. Bottom Line....very good quantity of connections of course I would like vendors to "drop" support for composite and s-video....I mean, c'mon, who really needs those connections w/ this type of amp? :) Also, it's difficult to get to the speaker terminals and would be better if they were all in one line at the bottom of the receiver. BOTTOM LINE....good array of connections.
Setup: Typical Yamaha on-screen menus. I did not use the YPAO to set up the receiver yet so I can't comment on that. I set it up manually and it wasn't particularly difficult. I like the fact that the amplifier has a "maximum volume" setting as I use this for Zone 2 so I won't overdrive the amp by accident. I also like the fact that the the main zone and 2nd zone are completely separate. The main amp can essentially be "off" while zone 2 is playing or vice-versa. Granted, not all electronics are off when you do this but turning off the main zone keeps the amp running cooler if all i need is audio in the 2nd zone. BOTTOM LINE....setup is average and probably just as easy/painful as one might expect.
Surround: I find the Surround Settings to be odd. I obviously need to play w/ the amp some more but it's not clear to me when dolby digital or DTS sound is being played as I can make the "dts" sign light up even if it's just Dolby Digital. Still, I confirmed that DTS works at least w/ regular DVDs. I'm sure Blu-Ray dvd's will be fine but I'm still fine-tuning this portion. BOTTOM LINE.....the audio from Surround sources sound great, getting the Surround settings configured correctly is a bit confusing.
Tuner: I really only listen to 1 station that supports HD Radio but strangly enough, I can't pick up the HD signal from this station but I can from others. Being public radio, I'm guessing that they don't broadcast w/ as much power as many other stations so I think I'm too far to pick up the HD Radio signal from this station as I understand that the HD Radio signal is like 1/10 of the power of the normal analog signal. Oh well, it still sounds good but tuning stations w/ this receiver is as painful as my previous receiver. Again, this should normally only be done during initial set-up so the pain should only be front-loaded. BOTTOM LINE.....it's a tuner and does its job, just a somewhat painful setup.
Remotes: Somewhat standard Yamaha remote controls.....average, poor, confusing. I definitely like the Zone 2 remote control and really wish that it had a "sleep" button on it like the main remote does. I mean, if I can set Zone 2 to a sleep timer with the main remote, it seems like I'd like to have this feature on the Zone 2 remote, right? :) Ultimately I don't use the remotes all that much except for simple things so it's not too much of a pain for me. BOTTOM LINE.....somewhat painful main remote but zone 2 remote is nice.
Summary: I am very happy with this amplifier and would recommend it to anybody.


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Yamaha's latest 7.1-channel AV Receiver offers superb HD Audio and Video realism, with the most extensive multi-zone custom installation compatibilities that will bring new versatility and excitement to the home theater entertainment experience.

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4/02/2012

Yamaha RX-A800 7.1-Channel Audio/Video Receiver (Black) Review

Yamaha RX-A800 7.1-Channel Audio/Video Receiver (Black)
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So I've had my RX-A800 for a few months now, and I can say that I am fully satisfied with it!
I've got it wired to my 5.1 system, main LR speakers are bi-amped, too. I've got it hooked up to my TV, PS3, cable-box DVR, Nintendo, and my computer on occasion. Handles everything like a champ.
Everything sounds great, but more than that, I love how it handles the video, as well. Makes everything so simple to wire, especially with HDMI. I can't say that the video-upscaling has really "wow"ed me, but I have no complaints about it, either (the Nintendo is the only non-HD device I have!).
Likes:
-HD Radio! Cool!
-"Scene" buttons... instead of powering on, switching through all the inputs, just press "TV" or "BD/DVD" or "Radio" and it'll take you directly to that input, and set it to your preferred sound program (7.1, 2.1, etc).
-On-screen display ... makes adjusting and fine-tuning the sound super easy, plus displays all the RDS radio tags for songs, etc.
-Really good price compared to other units (including other Yamaha's!)
-Works well with Harmony One remote
"Dislikes":
-I know this is reaching, but I think there are too many different sound-modes. "Concert Hall Vienna" or "Concert Hall Munich" or "Cellar Club" or "Roxy Theater" ... they all just sound extra reverby to me, and I prefer a clean, straight-from-the-recording sound, so I don't use them.
-Bluetooth, iPod, and Sirius Radio adapters all cost extra.
-The FM antenna needs an upgrade (it's just a loose wire).I highly recommend the RX-A800. Sure, the A1000 (or +) is probably even better, but that small step up would have been a large step up in price for me, so I'm happy with my purchase!

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AVENTAGE is a dramatic, inspired step forward in audio/video component design. AVENTAGE brings studio-grade sound and sophisticated video enhancements to the home as a result of unparalleled attention to detail in design, engineering and fabrication. Details that, at first glance, would not seem to affect the quality of sight, sound, and control, when brought together within an AVENTAGE component produce a work of visual and acoustic art.The RX-A800 A/V Receiver supports 3D and Audio Return channel over 6 in/2out HDMI, CINEMA DSP 3D surround sound, with or without Front Presence Speakers, RS-232C interface for custom installation, and HDMI for Zone B.

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3/06/2012

Yamaha RX-A1000 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black) Review

Yamaha RX-A1000 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)
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As I write this review, I am listening to my favorite music DVD (Eagles, hell freezes over), and I have the volume cranked to about 70% to match the listening volume of the Yamaha HTR 5790 (50% volume) that this RX-A1000 replaced. The 5790 had 110 watt vs 105 watt per channel for the RX-A1000. It was time to replace my 5790 because I recently purchased a Samsung 8000 series LED TV and wanted to pass 1080p signals from my BluRay player to the TV via the Yamaha receiver. The 5790 did not have any HDMI ports and you can't pass 1080p signals through component cables. The old Yamaha could not process Dolby True HD either. One of the nice features on this new receiver is the ability to pass video and audio to the TV via the HDMI cables even when the receiver is off. How cool is that? We don't always need 735 watts, especially when we are only watching a news channel. Another cool feature is the NET Radio. I connected the RX-1000's LAN jack to my router (via a gigabit switch)and 24 hours later (I could not get it to work imediately), I am listening to 15,000 radio stations. It took 24 hours for the receiver to figure out it was connected to a computer network? I don't understand why it didn't work right away. I checked all my settings over and over and then turned it off when my patience started wearing a little thin. The next day when I turned it on, the NET radio was working. This unit is about a $200 step up from my old receiver, but in my opinion does not match the sound of my older Yahama unit. Gosh, did 5 watts make the difference? Yamaha spent 2 years designing and building the Aventage series from the chassis up. This was not a redesign, (building and improving on an existing chassis), it is a complete new design including the number of feet (5) on the bottom. Well all in all I like this unit, but if I had it to do over, I would have waited a month and bought the RX-A2000. The RX-A2000 has video processing and upscaling that would improve the picture quality of whatever you are jacking into it, as well as 130 watts per channel.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Yamaha RX-A1000 7.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)

AVENTAGE is a dramatic, inspired step forward in audio/video component design. AVENTAGE brings studio-grade sound and sophisticated video enhancements to the home as a result of unparalleled attention to detail in design, engineering and fabrication. Details that, at first glance, would not seem to affect the quality of sight, sound, and control, when brought together within an AVENTAGE component produce a work of visual and acoustic art.The RX-A1000 A/V Receiver supports 3D and Audio Return Channel, with 8 in/2 out HDMI, new GUI, new YPAO, network functions, and control via web browser.

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2/24/2012

Yamaha RX-797 Audio/Video Receiver Review

Yamaha RX-797 Audio/Video Receiver
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This is an excellent 2-channel Stereo Receiver, for several reasons. Let me explain why I chose this brand/model over others and how I came to it. If you are in the market for Stereo Receiver, it may be useful for you.
A few months ago, I was listening to a jazz CD on my cheap ($200) Sony Home-Theater-In-A-Box and noticed that the sound was noticeably tighter than when I listened to it on my much more expensive, but significantly older stereo system. My old stereo system was purchased as separate components in 1993. It consisted of Sony STR-D990 Receiver ($400), single-disc Sony CDP-211 CD player ($100) and pair of Advent Baby II speakers ($250). Mind you, each of these components work and sound as good today as they did 15 years ago at the time of purchase (kudos to Sony for that), but I suppose I'm getting a little pickier now that I'm in my 30s. Music plays a MUCH larger role in my life than movies or television does (hence the cheap Home Theater set-up), so I decided I needed to upgrade.
PRIORITIES: 1) SPEAKERS--> 2) RECEIVER--> 3) CD PLAYER --> 4) CABLING/INTERCONNECTS
I decided that speakers were most important and thus the place to begin. After reading several reviews, I decided that Polk Audio Rti6s might be a good choice. I went to a retail store to listen to them and they sounded really good, but then the sales associate let me listen to the Polk Audio Lsi9s. Whew! They just blew me away. I had never heard anything like them. While the Rti6s run for $270, the Lsi9s are $900, but well worth it for that price, as a long-term investment (Polks come with a 5-year warranty). But I noticed that these run at 4 ohms and need a low-impedance amplifier/receiver, that is, one equipped with so-called "high current amplification," to drive them. Well, my old Sony did not have this function (it could take only 8-0hm current speakers). So, I looked all around for a receiver that could fit the bill and the Yamaha RX line became the obvious choice, after reading positive review after positive review. Since the Lsi9s can handle 200 watts per channel, I chose the RX-797 because while it has a power rating of 100 watts per channel at 8 ohms, it allows one to use two 4-ohm speakers and when doing so there is a power boost. Customer representatives from various retailers couldn't give me an exact watt rating (because Yamaha does not conduct tests at with 4-ohm speakers), but the general concensus was that it would increase to about 140 watts per channel with 4-ohm speakers. (I just didn't want to shortchange my speakers). I also chose this receiver because of the extremely low Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) rating of .019% as well as the Pure Direct and CD Direct modes for the lowest possible distortion. (Compare these features to say Onxyo and Harmon Kardon A/V receivers in this range and you'll see that the advantage lay with Yamaha).
When the RX-797 arrived, it not only lived up to but exceeded my expectations. Paired with the Lsi9s, I can hear a much, much crisper separation of instruments, and this is especially nice for my digitally remastered jazz CDs. I live in an apartment complex now and never have the need to turn the volume beyond the 9 o'clock position. I have gone up to 11 o'clock for testing (when I knew my neighbors weren't in!) and, as expected with these ratings, I couldn't hear any distortion whatsoever. (I can't wait until I move into a house for a larger sound stage). Other pluses: The knobs and controls have a nice solid feel and look great. It picks up many more FM radio stations than my old receiver, and the reception is noticeably cleaner. The remote is simple and sensible (just how a remote should be). My only gripe is that one cannot program CD players made by other manufacturers with this remote, but perhaps thats standard practice. This has other nice features such as being XM Satellite Radio Ready and dual room/dual source for those who are interested, but the main selling points for me were the 4-ohm capability, the wattage rating and the extremely low distortion. The fine looks and sensible controls/display and remote are icing on the cake.
I found one from an authorized dealer by a fluke for $350, but certainly would have been willing to pay the full $499. If you see one for less than $450, be sure to first confirm with the seller (or better yet Yamaha) that they are indeed an authorized dealer; otherwise your two-year warranty won't be honored if you run into problems (not that I'm expecting to).
In sum, if you are looking for a receiver with ample, clean power, extremely low distortion, the abilitiy to drive 4-, 6- or 8-ohm loads, excellent FM reception, and easy to use and well laid-out functions for 2 channel (as opposed to Home Theater) listening, I don't believe you can do better for under $600 than Yamaha's RX-797 receiver.

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2/17/2012

Yamaha RX-V567BL 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver (Each, Black) Review

Yamaha RX-V567BL 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver (Each, Black)
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When my old TV died I replaced it with a new HD LCD. One of the things that bothered me was audio sync with the picture. I started checking into the problem and found that the sound being sent to my faithful old Technics receiver was being decoded faster than the video sent to the TV was. After some research and listening at local retailers I decided on the Yamaha RX-V567.
Here is why:
-HDMI 1.3 compatible. Syncs audio and video for high definition sources.
-Passive HDMI switching. Switches sources even when the receiver is off.
-Scene settings. Allows you to set an input, sound field program, initial volume level, etc for each of 4 scene buttons.
-YPAO. Makes setup of speaker levels a snap. Not so great for setting equalizer settings though - but that's just an opinion.
-Sound delay. Up to 320 ms sound delay that can be set manually.
-Direct Sound Processing Mode. Shuts off all unused portions of the receiver and processes surround stream using only the DAC and amplifier.
-Customizable Input labels. Set a custom label for any input.
-Tons of customizable options from setting speaker impedance, to allowing the use of multiple remotes, to an 8 band parametric equalizer that can be set differently for each input. As a matter of fact there are so many options that after a month of owning the receiver I don't think I have seen them all. Don't feel intimidated by this though, the receiver is configured so you won't need to mess with a whole lot of this stuff if you don't want to.
-Yamaha amplifiers. Awesome sound and plenty of volume.
-DAC processes a ton of digital standards up to and including Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD and switches automatically or can be set for each source.
Things I didn't like:
-The only thing I didn't like was the fact the manual came on CD.
-The remote has lots of smallish buttons and no back light. A bit disappointing as it is expected to be used as a universal remote.
Also Available:
-Optional IPod dock and Bluetooth receiver. These are available but I myself don't own either. I have a Logitech Squeezebox for playing digital music as I don't care for compressed music sources.
-Sound Field processing. Again something I don't use but its there.
I am very pleased with the receiver so far. It has surpassed my expectations in many ways not the least of which is the ability to customize just about everything about every input on the thing. Sound quality is excellent and setup is quick and simple - it took longer to straiten out the YPAO cable than it did to set it up, and the sound field setup is excellent.
This is the first Yamaha electronics device I have ever owned and I am very impressed with it so far.


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The Yamaha RX-V567BL 7.1 Channel AV Receiver is a powerful receiver to help take your home theater experience to the next level. It features the latest HDMI specifications (4 inputs/1 output) with Audio Return Channel and 3D-readiness (with firmware upgrade), 1080p HDMI compatibility, an onscreen display, and renowned Yamaha technologies like SCENE and CINEMA DSP. Expand your options even further with optional docks (sold separately) to add your iPod, iPhone, or Bluetooth sources.

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1/29/2012

Yamaha RX-V665BL 630 Watt 7-Channel Home Theater Receiver Review

Yamaha RX-V665BL 630 Watt 7-Channel Home Theater Receiver
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I chose the Yamaha V665 after careful comparison with other units, and was very impressed with ease of setup and features. The sound quality is excellent, and while I had initial concerns with power output, at 90 watts it demonstrates more useable power than my previous NAD unit at 100 watts. I particularly like the four "Scene" buttons which allow linked input sources and sound fields and switch the unit on with one action. Contrary to other reviews on Amazon you can easily assign whatever input you wish together with a preferred sound field and assign it to any of these buttons. On the downside, you cannot assign different tone adjustments to these four "Scenes" which means I have to manually attenuate the bass to listen to spoken radio broadcasts which tend to create disturbing bass reverberations at times.
However the one big disappointment, which because of its nature I only discovered too late to return the unit (and I would not have purchased this unit had I known beforehand) is evident when a TV input from some (possibly all?) cable boxes is connected to the unit and passed through using the receiver as a switching unit (one of the key features of any modern receiver after all). In this mode the signal is subject to frequent dropouts of sound and video. Some days these dropouts are hardly evident and only for a fraction of a second, other days they are frequent and last long enough to leave the screen blank for a second or two or to delete entire words on the audio track. This happens with every possible connection I have tried, whether HDMI or component video (I have also tried monster cables to no avail). I have since seen other reviews reporting this same problem on other Yamaha units. My cable box is Time Warner but there are similar reports with Verizon Fios, so the problem seems endemic. Updating the current Yamaha firmware seems to have no effect.
There are always so many variables that it is difficult to track down the source of the problem, and I would hate to criticize Yamaha unfairly, but as the problem apparently occurs throughout the Yamaha product range, it would seem wise to hesitate on purchasing Yamaha until this problem is resolved.

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Yamaha RX-V665BL 630 Watt 7-Channel Home Theater Receiver

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1/27/2012

Yamaha RX-V1600 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel Review

Yamaha RX-V1600 - AV receiver - 7.1 channel
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I am happy with this receiver and my Home Theater sounds great coupled with my Axiom Epic Grandmaster Speaker setup. I paid $750 for this receiver through amazon in October 2006. Thought about going up to the $1500 price point but realized I didnt need the added functionality. A few complaints, 2 of them rather minor.
1. Volume readout text is too small. WOuld be nice to have larger text so I could actually see what level I use for different listening situations. As it is I cant actually read the number from where I sit.
2. The remote could really use some backlighting. This complaint shouldnt be lessoned by the fact that many remotes suffer this same design oversight. They are all poorer for not incorporating this idea.
3. When running my Xbox360 via component wires to this receiver and then via HDMI to my Samsung LNS4692D HDTV the picture is darkened. When I run the Xbox360 straight to my Samsung LNS4692D HDTV the picture is less dark (preferred). This makes a huge difference in games like Gears of War and Call of Duty 3 where the scenes are already dark. I decided to just leave the Xbox360 connected straight to the HDTV via component and run the digital audio to the receiver. This issue wouldnt allow me to run "just one cable" (the whole idea of HDMI) to my TV. Yamaha needs to look into this issue and figure out why going from component to HDMI darkens the picture.

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1/20/2012

Yamaha RX-V2065BL 7.2-Channel Network Digital Home Theater Receiver (Black) Review

Yamaha RX-V2065BL 7.2-Channel Network Digital Home Theater Receiver (Black)
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I just received this receiver (no pun intended) yesterday. I spent around 2 months researching this purchase and finally decided to go with the RX-V2065 because I have always owned Yamaha receivers. I'm amazed at the sound quality!! This unit replaced my old Yamaha HTR-5140 and there is a world of difference in the sound. The internet radio is amazing. It sounds great and there are thousands of stations to choose from. I was listening to a radio station in India earlier. The HD radio is also a very nice feature and the few stations that I do get sound great in HD. I did have some trouble getting connected to my network because for some reason I had my router only assigning 11 IP addresses and they were all taken, so the 2065 wasn't being assigned an IP address. Was an easy fix once I discovered it. So if you have any problems connecting to your network, be sure to check your router settings first, as the Yamaha should just connect with no intervention.
CONS:
As some people have stated in other forums, Yamaha has cut some corners on their new receivers. My Yamahas have always had two power outlets on the back and I have always used one of these to plug in the subwoofer. The 2065 has no power outlets which I did not notice until after I bought it. I'm going to have to get a power strip in order to plug everything in and I won't be able to power on and off the subwoofer simply by turning the 2065 on and off.
The FM reception is not very good at all. I cannot get the two local stations that I listen to (and I could easily get them on the HTR-5140). If you go to the AVSForums and look in the 2065 thread, you will see that others have complained about this as well. With all the choices I have with the internet radio, this isn't going to be a big issue for me, but it might for someone who listens to the radio a lot.
The speaker connectors are very close together. I spent way more time than I should have getting the wires connected. If you do not already have them, I highly recommend getting banana plugs for the connections to the receiver. As soon as I get the chance I'm going to order some banana plugs and cleanup the connections.

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Yamaha RX-V2065BL 7.1-Channel Network Home Theater Receiver

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1/02/2012

Yamaha RX-V1065BL 7.2-Channel Digital Home Theater Receiver (Black) Review

Yamaha RX-V1065BL 7.2-Channel Digital Home Theater Receiver (Black)
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I needed to replace a couple of old receivers so I found a great deal on the RX-V1065 and RX-V765 on Amazon. I ended up getting both of them for aboout what 2 V665's would have cost me a a Big Box store. I first setup my Main Theate Room with the 1065, I thought it was somewhat difficult to get everything the way I wanted it but the automatic speaker setup was slick and the sound is fantastic compared to my old Sony I had previously. The Menu system takes some getting use to but once you do it's not bad to navigate. All in all I was pretty darn happy with my purchase, My JBL's sounded much better then before and although I didn't really notice any difference in video quality, it was as good as before and now I had everything coming thru the same box. Surround sound was a huge step up from my old receiver also, you are almost looking behind you now because you'd swear someone is behind you, where on my old Sony it was more or less a quieter front speaker.
I then went to hook up my 765 in my cave TV room, first thing that I noticed was that is basically identical to the 1065, sure the menu system is not as polished but as far as the functionality that I need it is the same. I have a few year old Bose surround sound in this room with a JBL center chanel speaker and what a HUGE difference this receiver made over my old Onkyo, the Onkyo was really good for music but surround sound was sub par, but it was 10 years old I guess. Granted I'm only hooking up a Xbox 360, blue ray and TV in this room but watching Vikes beat up the the Packers in surround sound with this receiver was great, I haven't figured out which sound field I like best but there are a couple perfect for sports.
One of the coolest things was when I grabbed the TV remote from my Samsung LCD by mistake to turn the volume down and it says RX-V765 un the upper corner and starts to tun down the volume of the receiver from the TV, displaying the volume the whole time it's changing. I guess that Anynet capability on the Samsung TV's with a HDMI reciever gives you a few more bells and whistles. Also really cool is when I turn on the Xbox or turn off the TV the receiver will come on or off accordingly. I haven't setup the remote for additionaly devices yet, but it seems to be easy to use and is exactly the same for the 765 and 1065, I actually expected the remote to be better for the 1065 so i was a little disapointed when I saw it, but in using it it seems OK/
One thing I do not like is the Zone 2 ability on the 1065, I almost wish is was more or less a A/B speaker selector, I have a normal 5 speaker surround setup, in addition to that I have 2 speakers in the kitchen, right behind the TV room which are connect to Zone 2 that when I'm listening to music we like to have on so that you have more sound. The problem is that Zone 2 running the same input as the Main Room is off by a few fractions of a second and if you stand right between the 2 rooms, it sounds like the song is a half a second behind in the kitchen, I tried the lipsync thing, which only made it worse, I haven't given up on it yet, but it's not obvious how to fix this.
Bottom Line -
Both the 1065 and the 765 have more inputs than I know what to do with.
Neither have HDMI on the front, I didn't want it anyway, as I think it looks stupid to set all your equipment up and then have a big cable hanging off the front of your system anyway. That's why the put the jacks on the back, right???
May not have quite as many sound fields as some others out there, but I pick the 2 or 3 I like for movies, sports and music anyway and don't care about the rest.
The YPAO is cool and works great to setup the speakers.
The onscreen Menu is better on the 1065 but adequate on the 765.
HI-DEF Radio sounds amazing on both.
Don't think I will ever use the remotes as universal remotes, but they are adequate for running the receivers.
I cannot comment much on the video conversion, as everything I am running is HDMI and looks the same as it die running straight into the TV.
Sound on both of these is fantastic, even at volumes that start to hurt, the sound is clear, the bass is crisp not slow and there is no distortion, my old receivers would make my speakers start to hiss at a much lower volume, and these receivers never do.
Save yourself some money though get the 765, once it's all setup and you don't need to go into the menu anymore, you'll never notice the difference.
I read a lot of reviews and narrowed it down to Onkyo and Yamaha, at last second I pulled the trigger on Yamaha and for what I paid on Amazon for the 2 of them I am thrilled with my purchase

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Yamaha RX-V1065BL 7.2-Channel Digital Home Theater Receiver

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