Denon AVR-1803 A/V Receivers
Denon AVR-1803 A/V Receivers
[Feb 18, 2003]
roke2586
AudioPhile
Strength:
6ch. stereo,component switching, assignable digital inputs, dts es, pl2,power, price build, better than recivers twice its price
Weakness:
nothing for about 3 years i had the sony de 935 wich was wat i thought was good until the amp blew. while shoppping for a new one i had a 500 limit which was beteen the Denon, yamaha,and h/k. after looking throught the specs i decided on the denon based on the fact it had the most features for the money that i needed.After gettin the denon i was amazed on the overal preformance of this reciver. the sound imagery and overal full range power to each channel wrapps you up in the sound. Similar Products Used: sony de 935, Yamaha RX1, onkyo 787 |
[Feb 15, 2003]
galvonised
Casual Listener
Strength:
Good for music. Better with films. loads of connections. Can fill a large room with sound easily and drive most speakers.
Weakness:
Died after 2 days, slightly flabby bass The denon is a very musical reciver and i like the idea of having 5/6 channel stereo but it isn't as detailed as two channel stereo. Although music sounds very good, it cant match my arcam delta 290, but back to the Denon. It has all the connections you will need to hook everything up.The remote will control everything! Which i thoulght was neat, and it's very well layed out and colour coardanated to make things easier. At films the denon cant be beaten for under £500. I was very impressed with sound for films very impressed!That was the denons highlight. Also it has the advantage of dolby prologic 2 decoding and 6.1sound with extended dts. The only thing i can hold against the Denon is when i bought the 1803 it died 2 DAYS after my purchase which frustrated me. But denon were very helpful to get a new one back to me shortly. Overall i am impressed with the Denon avr 1803 and will continue to be a denon cusomer. Similar Products Used: arcam delta 290 technics power amp quad marantz techinics av reciver |
[Jan 30, 2003]
Metheny
AudioPhile
Strength:
Good sonical properities Musical in direct mode Great look in gold finish Great for movies
Weakness:
None I've been using this model for 2 months now, and i think i can write my opinion, i know the model enough. First of all it is a very musical receiver indeed. I listen to music only in direct mode, and it can make audible difference. Although u need a good setup to make it shine, I do have kef q series (the new), and it can bring out very good details. I started with vandenhul clearwater cables. Then i switched to vandenhul revolution, and it raised the receiver's value to a new level. For movies, it is fabulous, very well controled surround section, and creates a space with great motion. The tuner is good, although i don't use it too much. The remote is good, big, but i won't blame it, it is suitable to control everything, however i can't use it for my tv, but that's my tv's fault. The manual is fairly good, some details missing, but ok. And the gold finish makes it the my best looking part of my system. I use it with pioneer 350 dvd. Similar Products Used: old technics model tried yamaha630, marantz 5200, onkyo 600 |
[Jan 29, 2003]
Squared
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Clear and crisp sound easy to use looks great many useful features
Weakness:
only minor issues: poor manual single pre out This reciever sounds absolutely great. I use it mainly for movies, and at this price it can't be beat. To FOWLER: Denon is indeed a japanese company, not american!!! Quote from www.usa.denon.com: "DENON is recognized internationally as Japan's leading manufacturer of high-quality audio and audio-visual products" - Similar Products Used: Pioneer and marantz |
[Jan 26, 2003]
adc2000974
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
up to date features, design, 5/6 channel balanced stereo sound with no delay, also the 2yr warranty said only good things
Weakness:
i dont know if i should say power, also something that irritated me was that i could not find, if the power was measures in RMS or DIN, the big guys hid that one. After a offer to sell my previous 'sony str-de685', which i couldn't rufuse. I then set out reviewing many av-receivers as possible i norrowed the list to the 'denon avr-1803' and the 'sony str-db1080', I think i made a good choice being denon good solid history, or though i found it interesting to find out that denon/marantz are the same compony, it makes you wonder, but any how i do not regret getting it and i will say the same to my previous as well! Similar Products Used: sony str-de685 pioneer vsx-d510 yamaha rp-u200 creative dtt-3500 |
[Jan 23, 2003]
martygivens
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Power, switching capabilities, connections, surround capabilities, build quality and looks!
Weakness:
None noticed yet. After much deliberating I decided on the 1803 (I actually purchased the 883 but they are identical and at $327 you can't beat it!). I am very loyal to Denon products, they have never let me down! I was only deliberating on what model to purchase and the 1803 seemed to meet and/or exceed all my needs. I had read all the reviews posted hear so I knew what to expect and I am not at all disappointed. The reviews that denigrate the remote are a bit silly it seems to me. This is my first AVR and I had little trouble setting it up after taking 30 minutes to actually read the very helpful manual. The onscreen guide for setup is extremely easy to follow and the remote is just fine. It doesn't do everything it could, I suppose, but it does plenty. I can change channels on my DirecTV, I can run my VCR, my CD, and my DVD player with it-what more do people want? The sound is great! Pro Logic II does a great job with CD's, video's and TV and is a great enhancement over direct stereo, in my opinion. Even better is the Doly 5.1, DTS, and DTS-ES 6.1. What a huge difference these make to watching DVD's. This receiever does a great job with all of them and it really makes my system sound great. In case anyone wants to know what that system is: Denon DVD 800 Denon DCD 1420 Denon AVR 1803 Klipsch Tangent 30 mains Klipsch Quintent center and surrounds Vidsonix 10in 100 watt subwoofer Denon and Klipsch seem to go together like peas and carrots. Similar Products Used: SAE receiver. |
[Jan 19, 2003]
kavieesh
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
DTS-ES (Discrete and Matrix), DD-EX. I feel that Bigger remote with larger buttons are better than one with tiny buttons. Lot of input options for analog, S-Video, Optical and component sources.
Weakness:
These are very minor points..Switching between sources to use as universal remote could have been designed as button rather than a switch. BASS & TREBLE control is to done manually; It is not controlled by the remote. Everytime, You have to get up and go to the receiver to do it. Most other remotes don't have code for this brand so that you can not user other remotes to control this receiver. After 2 months research, I finalized and bought this item. I'm glad I made the right choice. This system works just great for Movies and Music as well. This sounds better all other I compared ( I have listed them below). Similar Products Used: Kenwood 6060, Onkyo 600, Panasonic 200. Pioneer 811s, JVC 8020. |
[Jan 19, 2003]
Akos Kiss
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
6ch stereo,DTS ES and DD EX, low price,great sound,dynamic,
Weakness:
only one pre out, I bought my denon 1803 last fall.and before it I had a 1601.The new stuff is fantastic.The CD sound is well,I love the 6ch stereo, and PLII is good.It's better than DTSNeo for me. But the greatest thing is the DTS ES discrete (for this price) 6. channel make a real cinema feeling in my home. Similar Products Used: Denon,Onkyo 600 sr |
[Jan 11, 2003]
Fowler
AudioPhile
Strength:
VALUE, VALUE, VALUE!!!! Best bang for the buck by a long shot! Great sound quality and killer theater performance.
Weakness:
none at this price Without question, this is the best reciever under $500! I work at Ultimate Electronics so I have had a chance to get feedback on, and play with, just about everything out there and this has got to be the winner for budget systems! It has enough punch to power almost any of your average speaker systems. From an audio standpoint it sounds better than it probably should for $500. There is a powered second zone ( unheard of in most things twice it's price ). It has all the latest surround formats and is even capable of 7.1 via pre-amp output. It even has a good remote, probably one of my favorites from Denon in a long time. Multi channel inputs make you SACD and DVD-Audio ready. What else could one ask for at $500! Don't let anyone fool you with low ratings based on remote or manual. the remote is top notch in it's class and the manual is easy enough if you have ever read one before. If you are planning on getting a new reciever at this price point you can't go wrong with the 1803. Disregard the review of Bob Weber! People should not give excelent products bad reviews because of manuals or remotes. This is AUDIO Review, not MANUAL or REMOTE Review. By the way Bob, Denon is an American company so it was never translated from Japanese. Please, educated reviews only Mr. Weber! Similar Products Used: everything under the sun. other denon, sony es, pioneer elite, marantz, yamaha, sunfire, krell, macintosh, etc... |
[Jan 09, 2003]
DSB
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
1803 is easy to use compared to the 3802, good tight fitting binding post,multi room cap.GREAT hometheatre sound,6 powered channels and preout for 7th channel
Weakness:
music sound is not that special,but maybe it is my DVD player it might not play music cd's that good, thats why i am buying denon cd player. i just bought the avr 1803 (for 700.00 canadian thats like 450.00 US) and would like to share my thoughts on its performance. If music is your thing i would say that Denon might not be the way to go but it all depends on your taste in sound, but when it comes to HOME THEATRE DENON is amazing!Now for the music issue denons are very Bright sounding u must turn down the treble to -8 atleast and the bass up 2 or 4 db's to get a good sound in both stereo and 5 channel stereo, but maybe that is what u like and possible it is ,maybe music is supposed to sound that way i dont think so though.Anyways i would like to tell people out there something else about denons music performances, i have had the 1601 then upgraded to the 3802 and now the 1803 and they sound exactly the same i could not hear any difference between them, but in hometheatre the 3802 is leaps and bounds better then the 1601.But i returned the 3802 because it did not have dolby digital EX decoding it did have DTS ES though, but i looked at my DVD collection and only found 1 DTS es title and several dolby digital EX titles so as hard as it was to return the avr 3802 that i got for 1200.00 CND i decided i would be better off with the 1803 because the 2803 isnt out and the 3803 was 1750.00 CND and it was more then i wanted to spend, but all in all the DENONS are great recievers and they are resonable priced and never have i regreted the purchases of any of these recievers so rest assure u will like the DENON aspecially for home theatre! i am now planning on buying the DENON DCM 380 cd player with the money i saved on my 1803. Similar Products Used: avr1601, avr 3802, NAD pro logic(amazing music sound) |