Build quality, bass management, lack of poer in 5 channel

I was looking for an all-in-one-unit that would be good for music in my second system in my bedroom. I read the reviews here and saw one cheap enough on ebay and won the auction. Never have I been so disapointed in a product. I found the stereo sound that everyone raves about here to be average and what I would expect from a receiver. Does it sound better that most of the mass produced junk out there? yes. Is it anywhere as good as cheap seperates, no. Is it a magic bullet for 2 channel stereo, no again. I found it to be as good as my denon 3801 in my HT rig for 2 channel. What is everyone here comparing it to? This is far from the 5 star numbers people here give it. It has poor bass management feature, is incredibly light weight and cheap feeling and lacks a little power when tested in dolby digital 5.1 meaning it seems to distort when pushed. I also did not like a 100hz crossover, way to high.

I think there are much better units out there for the money with more features and better build quality that sound just as good. This unit will be going up for sale shortly.

Similar Products Used:

Numerous AV receivers and seperates

sounds great

bass management.

for this price, you will not find a better unit. unless of course you go to non-authorized marantz, elite, denon dealers online that sell their units for 50% off. there is nothing on the market with the same "LIST" price as the avr100. enough said there.

this unit is excellent in 2 channel, and great in surround. music and movies sound the way they should.

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many

Extremely simple to set up and operate. Outstanding build quality. Excellent Dolby Digital, DTS, and Stereo

Remote is sub-level, but this is insignificant. Buy a good all in one remote for everything else.

This product is it!!! If you want outstanding Home Theater and superior stereo, this unit surpasses everything else I have owned or auditioned. Arcam has created superior stereo sound, and Home Theater in one simple to use unit. Setup is simple, and clearly documented. I formally owned a fully active Linn system for two channel, and a Yamaha DSP-A1 for Home Theater. The Linn had certain amount of detail and clairity that Arcam lacks, but I actually find the Arcam more natural, and enjoyable for two channel listening. And the Linn two channel preamp and amps cost over $15,000!!! The Yamaha is not even in the same league as the Arcam for Home Theater let alone two channel stereo. The Arcam is the first product that actually makes Home Theater sound enjoyable.
The real plus here is that you do not need a dealer to set up the Arcam. Anyone can make make adjustments to the system via the super simple on-screen menus.
I had it up and running in 15 minutes.
I can also upgrade by adding a good 3-channel amp down the road if more power is needed. So far I am very satisfied with the Arcam's ability to drive my Linn speakers.
The other advantage is that the whole family can enjoy Home Theater due to the simple front panel controls on the AVR-100.
For the money, this unit should be on your short list.

Current System:
Arcam AVR100
Linn 5140's (4)
Linn 5110 center channel
Rel Storm Sub-Woofer
Pioneer DV-09
Harmonic Technology Truth Link digital interconnect.
Monster Cable M Series speaker cable

Similar Products Used:

Linn,Yamaha, Pioneer. Bel-Canto.
Auditioned many other lines.

pure quality, no gimmicks

remote is very similar to DV88

Excellent sound in stereo, prologic & Dolby Digital.

Its difficult to fault this box, but when used with the DV88 the two products don't entirely gel together. The overall sound/video quality is superb, but little things like the stanby power led on avr100 is red, but its not on the dv88. You can also turn the diplay off on the dv88, but not on the AVR100. Also the two remote controls are very similar and can easily be mixed up. I recommend getting the Arcam CR9000 learning remote at the same time. (if you talk nicely to your dealer you should be able to get it for free :-).

Dont let these little things put you off, this product is superb.

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Denon

Detail,soundstage,dynamics and natural sound

none

This is my first Home Theater receiver. I think the Arcam unit is wonderful. It is very clear, detailed and presents the music in natural fashion. I have some very exotic home equipment and this unit holds it's own, and then some. I would like to see the previous review omitted. It is very unfortunate that the user has had problems with his 2units, but it is a unfair review of the sonic attributes of the AVR100. I wholeheartly reccommend this unit to anyone who is in the market for a first rate HT receiver. Iwould definately give it 6 stars if possible.

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none

Jonathan,

Please to take this as an attack on you, I just want to make sure that others reading this link understand that there appeared to be a lot of emotion in you "review" and that all thing must be considered before making a decision about purchasing a audio product.

I have a review below in this link, and I gave the AVR100 a good, but not outstanding rating, as I also feel that that are areas of improvement, but I did not rate is low because I feel that I did get a good product for the dollar amount spent.

I am sorry that you have had such a problem with the AVR100 that it took you to the point of such apparent frustration that you felt that you had to restrain yourself from using language that cause you to be sued. I believe that most good audio stores would let you listen to the product before taking it home. That would have given you some insight into the issues that you have identified in your review.

I believe that the ARCAM web site, as well as some of the reviews below, indicate that there is no bass management/LFE for stereo and that the ARCAM literature indicates that they have designed this unit to be used with full range speakers. That way the analog signal would not have to be adjusted or filtered through the digital domain which might have the misfortune of corrupting the signal.

I agree that there is not a lot of volume from this unit, but then again it is not designed to run inefficient speakers in a large listening space. I do not know the parameters of you listening room but I would guess that it is either rather large, or you enjoy the volume at loud levels. I am curious about how you made the unit jump all over the place. My AVR is pretty heavy and hasn't moved since I put it in the cabinet.

If the problem is that you feel that you want more volume, you should consider the p85 amp to supplement the AVR100 through bi-amping. Almost all high quality, full range speakers allow for this option. If you want to bi-amp the front three speakers (LCR) then you would use the p85/3.

I don't have a problem with you descriptions of the product, but I feel that your emotion might have caused you to not read the rating scale. I think that if you were to rate this according to its true value, you probably would not consider it a "complete joke." I think that that would be a rating that someone would put on something that they wouldn't even consider taking home, after spending time listening to it in the audio shop.

I do not have any affiliation with ARCAM so I am not biased because of any type of compensation issues. I just want this web site to have value to all readers based on factual and considered observation.

Stereo performance

Limited facilities

Fed up with having to sacrifice stereo performance to have Home Theatre.This could be your answer.Arcam have always been first and foremost dedicated to the best sound quality at their given price point and that tradition continues with the AVR100.Limited set up options,less power than most and only one dsp mode,this receiver is stripped to the minimum.But give me performance over features any day and this amp performs.In straight stereo it out performs any price comparable HT amp that I`ve heard,by some margain.Dolby Digital and DTS tracks are reproduced in all their glory.It doesn`t have the `slam` and power of some others but to me seems more natural.If you want every film sound moment to be a jaw dropping demo look elsewhere but if you want to be absorbed into the film and forget about impressing the neighbours then give this a listen.In very big rooms with insensitive speakers it would be underpowered but if you can live with its limitations and stereo is important to you then this has to be on your short list.

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Denon 3801,Sony 940

Comes with a very pretty plug!

Where do I start?

I work in a HI-FI shop in England, and regularly listen to products. I’m a major
HI-FI fanatic. I test products with my ears, not their name badge like some people. I took the Arcam AV100 home, Knowing Arcam reputation for good quality sound, having already listened to the whole of the Arcam, Alpha and Diva range, EXPECTING NOT TO TAKE IT BACK!

This is where I really have to control myself, keeping it clean so that I don’t get sued. As soon as I but it on in stereo mode, it had very clear high and mid frequencies but, yes here comes the but, some PRAT at the Arcam company decided not to include any bass response in this unit at all. What a gimp! It sounds life less, boring and unfulfilling. Well done Arsham for such a good job! WELL DONE!

My second infuriation with the unit is when you turn the volume up the, the baked bean can of which I believe it is, or is not far from, starts to jump all over the place, and if you dare to turn it above 55,60db on its display you’re a braver man than I. It sounds like a cat being castrated with a blunt spoon, nice?

It’s not all bad; it does come in silver, which looks very grand. To be honest, every other functions ok, but this is NOT in keeping with the Arcam well disserved reputation for sound class!

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Marantz sr4200 sr5200, NAD T741,51,61 yamaha dsp620,rvx800, NAK AV 8,AV10 sherwoods and the dreaded sony's

Clear sound, solid construction (so far), few "bells and whistles".

For some people, few "bells and whistles" and "low power rating". The remote is very difficult to use in poor light, even with my bifocals.

I want to start by emphasizing that this is a basic AVR component. If you want lots of gimmicks (effects) to compensate for poor quality speakers or poor room acoustics, this AVR is not for you!!!

This set does exactly what it appears it was designed for. It reproduces movies and music in a basic, clean, and efficient manner.

The setup is simple. The speaker presets are somewhat limiting but well known and documented, so there is no suprise here.

Now into the more subjective areas. The reproduced sound is clear. To my hearing, and personal choices, the sound is crisp without being shrill. The amplifier is very capable of effectively and efficiently reproducing both music and video. If you are using it with full range speakers, and feel that the system is underpowered, I recommend, (so does ARCAM) that you consider bi-amping the fronts with the P85/3. Since my listening/HT room is fairly small, and I don't like to damage my hearing with overpowering, in-your-face, sound. I have not encountered any situation in which the pwoer is lacking. It appears that the transformer is doing its job of holding and supplying ample power when needed.

I have listened to HT systems for 5 years while helping others hunt for and set up their systems, and while looking for the "start-up" system that I felt that I would be happy with. During that time I listened to some very impressive systems in many price ranges. I am telling you this so that you will have an idea of my tastes for comparison if you are using my input to help you make desicions. My dream system would either be the an all LINN sytem with 5100 series components, or a Meridian system. Both of these provide clear balanced full sound without gimmickry.

For my current HT system:

Arcam AVR100,
LINN Ekwal center,
LINN Ninka L,R,
Ruark Epilogue L,R rear,

With the full range speakers in front/center, I have not purchased a subwoofer. I know that this prevents you from hearing the LFE channel, but there is really nothing there but low frequency effects, hence the name. I personally don't need the effects at this time to enjoy the Audio Video experience.(I also don't have the money for a good quality sub at this time.)I have been in too many homes, theaters, and stores in which the focus on selling the system is how loud the "sound" is, not how clear or defined the sound is. The ARCAM system is in the latter category.

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Denon, Marantz, Yamaha, Sony, Panasonic, B+K, etc.

Simplicity, detailed sound

None yet

I have just upgraded from a Lexicon CP3 plus. I was looking for a home theater preamp processor that would not break the bank. The Lexicon converts everything to digital then back to analog and only had 4 imputs and no s video switching. Very limited! The Arcam sounds great. The dolby digital and the dts modes really open up against the THX on the Lexicon--no comparison! The 2 channel mode also sounds great. t has an analog direct feature that works really well with vinyl and cd's. My system consists of the AVR100-used as a preamp, a Fosgate 4250 4 x 225 (4 ohms), Marantz MA500 for the center channel, Sota Jewel table, ParasoundCDP100, AdcomGDA 600 D/A, Phillips DVD. My speakers consist of KEF 104.2, KEF reference 100 center channel, B&W DS6 surrounds. I did an AB comparison with a used Krell HTS at $4000 and although the Krell sounded better, it did not sound $3000 better! I was impressed witth the detailed sound of the AVR. The street price for the 1st generation AVR is about $800 now but do yourself a favor and buy version 2 with the bass management for $1000. The bass management is much more flexible on the new version enabling you to adjust speaker sizes and subs on all channels independently.

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Yamaha RXV-980
Lexicon CP3 Plus