DTS-ES, Dolby Pro-Logic II, very clean sound, powerful enough for most home audio and HT uses, onscreen setup very user-intuitive

NA

This receiver is everything I dreamed it would be and more. After researching receivers for my home for over 2 months, I settled on this beauty of a machine and haven''t regretted the decision one time. There is plenty of power to go around and the DSP modes are few (that is a good thing, too many cheapens a receiver in my opinion). The ES-6 channel modes and the Dolby Pro-Logic II are a welcome addition to Dolby encoded or stereo source material. Even just normal television viewing comes alive so much more!! There are enough digital and analog inputs and outputs for the standard equipment (although more coaxial digital would have been nice, but I''m not complaining!) It powers my Boston VR speakers quite nicely and incorporated well with my Denon DCM-370 CD changer and Toshiba SD-3750 DVD player. If you are looking for a mid-range receiver with lots of bang for the buck and a very clean, open sound...look no further!

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo 575x, Harmon Kardon 220

Power. Connections. Ease of use.

Remote is useless as a universal remote but this is really nit-picking.

The 2802 was a replacement for an cheap Aiwa reciever rated at 80 watts. It is connected to a pair of NHT SuperZero front, NHT SC1 center and a pair of Kipsch SC2 speakers. The unit is rated at 90 watts but the different in power from the Aiwa is amazing and it makes all the speakers perform to their best. Connecting up the unit was a piece of cake. From opening the box to playing my first DVD took around 40 minutes. The remote control, although pretty large, is easy to use and the on-screen display makes setting up inputs and speaker levels easy. The remote is pretty useless as a universal remote but I have a SL-9000 unit that works really well. Dolby Pro Logic II is a major enhancement on version 1 I used on the Aiwa. Of course, the Denon is a much better receiver but Pro Logic II seems to be more "intelligent" at working out what should go where. The sound is excellent. The clarity and sheer power is amazing, more than enough for our family room. The unit automatically switches between Dolby Pro Logic II, Dolby 5.1 and DTS by sensing signals from the units and therefore I rarely have to touch the unit itself. 5 channel stereo is also a great feaure and makes stero music sources fill the entire room. Definitely better than Pro Logic II or DTS Neo:6 in music mode when you''re working around the room. Overall I''m really impressed and it sounds better than I hoped it would.

Similar Products Used:

Aiwa. Kenwood.

6 channels, PL II, component video, on screen display, clean sound

Average remote

I am on a budget and this was my first home theater system. I came in under $2000 including a salamander rack not including video and I am PUMPED. I did A LOT of shopping and had it down to this amp and the HK AVR320. I liked the sound of the HK slightly better, but after reading too many postings about HK reliability and the lack of a true 6th channel, I went with the Denon. Overall, I am very pleased. For the price, I challenge anyone to find a better receiver with Dolby PLII, on-screen display, 6 channels, AND COMPONENT VIDEO SWITCHING. I think to buy an amp now without 6 channels and component switching is just a bad decision. HDTV will be the norm in a couple of years and then you won''t be able to run everything through your receiver if you dont have component video. Also, I think as more movies come out in 6 channels, you will feel very sorry if you only have 5 (especially when your friend gets a shiny new 6 channel!!!). Setup is pretty easy. I would think twice before buying an AV receiver without on-screen display because big, clear menus are what make it easy. The sound is very good and it handles music and movies admirably. I am running JBL s38''s (HIGHLY recommend if you''re on a budget- I got them for $250 a pair online), 2 JBL s-centers (front and rear center), JBL PB10 sub, and a Boston Acoustic A40s as surrounds. The system supplies PLENTY of power. Although the sound quality for movies is not quite as good as big ticket THX type receivers, for this price you get plenty of bang for your buck. For music it is as good as you can expect a surround receiver to be. I have started to re-listen to a lot of CD''s and I am really enjoying it. The many modes of surround are fun to play with on music tracks as well. Lastly, with an XBOX, the 6 channel audio is downright AWESOME.

Similar Products Used:

Tested just about everything!

Sound Quality, Power (90Wx6), DTS-ES, PLII, 6CH Stereo, Audio reproduction fidelity.

Average remote. Could be improved. Got my first one returned. Did not work well under 6.1 setup (high distorsion afer a few hours of use). Got it replaced by a new one. The new one is perfect. Thanks to Gagnon Electronic.

This is my first home theatre receiver. I''ve been searching the "best buy" for over 5 months. Listened to Marantz, Sony, Onkyo and HK. Finally decided to buy the Denon 2802. If you think this unit do not deliver enough power, it''s because you are using it in an area. Otherwise, go see a doctor. Awesome sound in 6CH Stereo. Listening to DTS-ES movies on this unit is quite an experience. I''m using 6 Paradagim Mini-Monitors (6 identical speakers).

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo, Marantz Other cheap stuff Sony, JVC, etc.

Power. Wide range of connections. 6.1 support. 7.1 capability in the future. Prologic II. 5 channel stereo.

Remote is large and not a universal unit so I keep using my SL-9000. Having said that the remote is easy to use to set the unit up in the first place.

I purchased the Denon 2802 after nearly a month comparing it via reviews etc. with the Onkyo DS696. I 2802 won out because it has 6.1 sound (I only have 5.1 speakers, but I figure that I will have the receiver for a long while), 5 channel stero (more later), fully descrete (6) amps per channel, and a subwoofer cut-over setting. These features seemed to be much more useful to me in the long term compared to the Onkyo''s composit / S-Video conversion switching. Setting up the unit was very easy using the remote and the on-screen display. I have it linked to a pair of NHT SuperZero fronts, a NHT SC1 center channel, 2 Klipsch SC2 read surrounds, and a Sony SW20 subwoofer. Overall the unit sounds excellent no matter what I throw at it. Dolby Prologic II is a real improvement over regular Prologic. 5 channel stereo splits the stereo over the front and rear left and right to produce a much fuller sound overall. The digital input from my Panasonic DVD player work well. The improvement over my old AC3 analog inputs to the Aiwa receiver I had is amazing. Everything is clearer. I''ve seen reviews about lack of power. I didn''t find this with my system. With the setup mentioned above I can''t get to top volume - it''s just too loud in my family room / kitchen. Overall I am really impressed with 2802. I don''t think that you could go wrong with either the 2802 or DS696 but the 2802 won out for me and I''m really pleased (understatment) with the performance.

Similar Products Used:

Aiwa + Cambridge Soundworks surround III system.

musical,most for the money

remote,i only complain because its so easy to design a good one,front display very small,WHY?

To the last review,did you set the output level to +10 or higher? i have the 3802 and at -10 it really sings,even on my crummy! polk 2000i,ihave klipsch rf7 rc7 rs7 on the way,will re them too...,3802 remote kinda lame,but does most ops.if your here thinkin denon,listen i had onkyo 777 & 898, denons more musical,onks better looks/features,but sterile,cold sound,Good Luck.

Similar Products Used:

onkyo yamaha

Features. The look. Prologic 2.

Lack of power. A remote made for basketball players.

I did several weeks of research on the net. It was time to upgrade my 10 year old Sony STR-AV970x. To keep myself from going completely insane I finally narrowed my field to Denon, Yamaha, Sony, and Harman Kardon. Loved the HK look but was concerned about reliability issues, and lack of rated power. The current Sony models under $1500 (Cnd) all showed Total Harmonic Distortions of .09. (My 10 year old Sony was .03). Not acceptable. I finally went with Denon, and opted for the 2802 (.05 THD). Unfortunately, although I loved the look and features, the sound quality did not seem to be there. I was waiting for that "oh my god" moment with the Denon and just didn''t get it. The 90w power rating was also noticeable lower than my Sony (The Sony was rated at 120, but was not classed as ''high current''). Now to give the Denon some credit, I obviously didn''t take time to ''break it in'', and I wasn''t using high quality cables. But in the end, I guess the power was the biggest issue for me. I found that listening to a cd like the Proclaimers for instance, I was already up to about +6 DB, and the units max is +18. Long story short is I returned the 2802 the next day and opted for the Yamaha RX-V1000. I gave up the 6th channel amp, and dolby prologic 2, but I received the sound and power I was looking for.

Similar Products Used:

Sony SRR-AV970X

6.1/7.1 Surround, Component Video, Much more.

Really Could''nt find one.

I was replacing a Denon 3000G and went to Magnolia wanting another Denon. Right before said what i wanted or how much i wanted to spend the guy led me to the Denon''s. I must have looked at all of them. I was fighting over the 2802 and the 1802. I really wanted the 6802, the sound out of that was beautiful, but i was not going to pay that money. I came back the next day and they had a 2802 that someone had returned. I got that one in a heart beat. I am very pleased wiht this reciever. Denon is FAR better than any reciver.

Similar Products Used:

Denon Digital CD player, Denon 3000 Gold.

EX (6.1-7.1) sound at the lowest possible price. Easy features.

Unclear manual. Remote (Although not an issure for me since my MX-500 runs all my equipment)

I "needed" to repalce my Onkyo 717 because it could not support any of the new Dolby creations. I looked and listened to several different receivers and in the end it came down to two--Onkyo (696) and this Denon. I went with the Denon because for the money you get much more. You get 7.1 in the box. That''''s right, in the box. The guy at the store (and they sell both) explained to me that with the Onkyo you do not get EX sound, commonly known 6.1 ot 7.1. Because the Ex sound is mono, like the original Pro Logic the advantade of two rear speakers is only to "fill" the back sound. (You get a better non-directional sound from two speakers than 1). The solution is to series wire the rear speakers in phase. This way you get 7.1 with a 6.1 receiver. Further because you can adjust the sound you can adjust the rear accordingly to match the front/center/surround. To get this option with the Onkyo you need to move up to their $1,000.00 plus receiver or the Denon 3202 at over $800.00. Why waste the money--unless you want the extra watts in the Denon 3202. The on screen features on the Denon are very similar to those I had on the Onkyo 717 and most all other on screen displays. The 5.1 stereo is very nice althought I still prefer music in the direct mode. I did not have this option before. I believe for the money you cannot go wrong with this unit.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo

On-screen configuration set up. Sound quality and ease of use. Intuitive movement between inputs and settings. Settings show up on screen upon changes.

Somewhat confusing manual and connection drawings. Use of angled gold pins on back speaker connections is harder than it should be.

I bought the Denon 2802 after a couple of months of shopping and evaluation to upgrade from my 7 year old Yamaha Pro Logic receiver. I was down to this product and the Outlaw 1050 principally based on reviews from this website. I went with the Denon because of its proven reliability and value for the money in terms of features and performance. Most of what I found was consistent with other views. I thought the set up procedure was a bit complicated and the manual could definitely use a rewrite for the less technically inclined. The connection drawings are somewhat confusing to follow. I also ended up going to banana plugs for the speaker connections on the back because the angled gold pins were really hard to insert. If you follow the set up logically, and use the really helpful on screen configuration instructions, you can get to a great sounding system on the first try. The controls on the unit are easy to figure out. And the unit saves how you set up each component, so that you can have different settings for different uses. I also like having the changed settings show up on the TV screen for a few seconds after you make a adjustment. I particularly like the way the Dolby Pro Logic II sounds with the optical cable on the DVD. I have just begun to use the remote. It''s not as bad as some say, but it could be more intuitive. And I plan to use the macro function to help get to each setting easier.