Great sound, build quality.

Remote is awful.

Despite all the bad reviews about noisy fans, and buying these from online dealers like ubid.com, I went ahead and did just that. And guess what: No fan problem. No problems at all.

This is one sweet unit, with great sound, nice, heavy build quality, and tons of connectivity possibilities (even a phono input).

It does run kind of warm, but get a real audio rack instead of that huge wooden 'entertainment center' and I don't think the fan will be a problem.

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Pioneers, Onkyos

Airy sound, detailed, wide soundstage, decent dynamics and features

It runs hot but I'm not sure if that's a weakness. Make sure you measure your wall unit, it's big.

Right from the start I liked the way it sounded. The longer I use it, the more I like it. I was hesitant to buy an A/V receiver at first and was going to purchase separates. I kept reading positive professional and consumer reviews so I gave it a shot. I haven't heard many other A/V receivers to compare this one to, but it does sound comparable to many mid-fi separates I've listened to (Rotel, NAD, and Adcom).

The biggest surprise to me was the wide soundstage. This thing threw the congos from a Paul Simon disc outside my walls. The image was locked in and backround singers and instruments were where they were suppossed to be. The highs were a little bright but I didn't expect them to be this detailed. The mid-range was nice. The mid-bass and bass was right on par.

I'm using Paradigm Reference speakers, Rotel CD, Sony DVD, and a Panasonic TV.

Similar Products Used:

Nad integrated

Airy sound, detailed, wide soundstage, decent dynamics and features

It runs hot but I'm not sure if that's a weakness. Make sure you measure your wall unit, it's big.

Right from the start I liked the way it sounded. The longer I use it, the more I like it. I was hesitant to buy an A/V receiver at first and was going to purchase separates. I kept reading positive professional and consumer reviews so I gave it a shot. I haven't heard many other A/V receivers to compare this one to, but it does sound comparable to many mid-fi separates I've listened to (Rotel, NAD, and Adcom).

The biggest surprise to me was the wide soundstage. This thing threw the congos from a Paul Simon disc outside my walls. The image was locked in and backround singers and instruments were where they were suppossed to be. The highs were a little bright but I didn't expect them to be this detailed. The mid-range was nice. The mid-bass and bass was right on par.

I'm using Paradigm Reference speakers, Rotel CD, Sony DVD, and a Panasonic TV.

Similar Products Used:

Nad integrated

For the few minutes it worked, it had beautiful sound :(

Extremely poor quality, defective product

FOLKS WHO MADE THE MISTAKE OF BUYING THIS FROM UBID, SEE THE END OF MY MESSAGE FOR USEFUL INFO!!

I found out about the reviews AVR3300 reviews here AFTER I bought this lemon, unfortunately. Similar to Eric's experience, it was practically DOA. The unit would turn on, work for a few minutes, and switch itself off with a blinking light. Manual says this is due to a short circuit. Short circuit? I disconnect the speakers so it can't possibly be me, and turn it on again. It switches off again! On the second day, I got lucky and it remained on for an hour. Then... I thought there was an ambulance passing by the neighborhood but no, its the famous whistling (the precursor to the noisy fan turning itself on due to overheating) that went on for 5 minutes. The next day it started switching off again. For the short time it worked, it did produce a wonderful, warm and crystal clear sound however.

Now the UBID Saga, which is where I bought the unit. I
explained to them that it was DOA and I wanted to return
it. They said "Sorry, you need to contact the warranty
service" (some unknown shop in NY). I wrote a harsh letter
saying "the item is defective, not refurbished. As such,
it does not meet the criteria expressed in the auction,
and this amounts to false advertising. I will reverse my
credit card charges. You can resolve the dispute with
my credit card company". Within 15 minutes of this e-mail
message, they sent me a Return Merchandise Authorization!
If you feel you have been burnt by these online auctions
selling crappy products, DON'T GIVE UP, take it with your
credit card company! (American Express is the best card in
dealing with consumer protection problems such as this).

looks good, sounds good...(for a few minutes, at least)

MADE IN KOREA! Toss a couple of strips of bacon and an egg or two on top and breakfast is served!!

You've all heard about the 3300's hot nature, and I'm here to add to its reputations' woes. I purcahsed a unit directly from Denon (got a buddy with friends in high places) around 9/25. Got it home, hooked it up, and was stunned by the sound (first DD/DTS receiver for me). Awesome!!! After a few minutes though, I heard the dreaded "whir/buzz" of the fan cranking up that so many of you unfortunate 3300 owners have reported. What a nasty sounding fan! and the squeal as it turns off! What is that? A capacitor? Too bizarre. Anyway, I went to the receiver and put my hand on it. Ouch! The transformer doesn't get hot, but it's one of the power amps that seems to be the culprit. The rearmost one, by the back vent. I checked out its history on this awesome site, told my buddy of the problems, and he contacted Denon. They apologized, and immediately sent out another unit. I figured no way would I get two bad units in a row. Oh, how wrong I was. The next unit didn't even make it to my house. I unpacked the new receiver in my friends office, plugged it in (with nothing hooked up to it mind you) and told him I'd check back in an hour. About forty minutes later, he comes out and tells me the fan has kicked in. Unbelievable. This thing is cursed. It tempted me to avoid buying any Denon stuff at all get a refund but I went ahead and upgaded to the new 3801.
So far, so good..."Jurassic Park" stompin' around in DTS and "The Marix" blastin' away in DD haven't been able to faze this thing. More on the 3801 later.I have to wind up by saying I'm very disappointed in Denon for not taking care of such a widespread problem. Is it lack of QT in Korea? The 3801 is from Japan. Coincidence? For those of you that haven't had any problems, congratulations, but I can't recommend this receiver.

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None-first DD/DTS receiver

looks good, sounds good...(for a few minutes, at least)

MADE IN KOREA! Toss a couple of strips of bacon and an egg or two on top and breakfast is served!!

You've all heard about the 3300's hot nature, and I'm here to add to its reputations' woes. I purcahsed a unit directly from Denon (got a buddy with friends in high places) around 9/25. Got it home, hooked it up, and was stunned by the sound (first DD/DTS receiver for me). Awesome!!! After a few minutes though, I heard the dreaded "whir/buzz" of the fan cranking up that so many of you unfortunate 3300 owners have reported. What a nasty sounding fan! and the squeal as it turns off! What is that? A capacitor? Too bizarre. Anyway, I went to the receiver and put my hand on it. Ouch! The transformer doesn't get hot, but it's one of the power amps that seems to be the culprit. The rearmost one, by the back vent. I checked out its history on this awesome site, told my buddy of the problems, and he contacted Denon. They apologized, and immediately sent out another unit. I figured no way would I get two bad units in a row. Oh, how wrong I was. The next unit didn't even make it to my house. I unpacked the new receiver in my friends office, plugged it in (with nothing hooked up to it mind you) and told him I'd check back in an hour. About forty minutes later, he comes out and tells me the fan has kicked in. Unbelievable. This thing is cursed. It tempted me to avoid buying any Denon stuff at all get a refund but I went ahead and upgaded to the new 3801.
So far, so good..."Jurassic Park" stompin' around in DTS and "The Marix" blastin' away in DD haven't been able to faze this thing. More on the 3801 later.I have to wind up by saying I'm very disappointed in Denon for not taking care of such a widespread problem. Is it lack of QT in Korea? The 3801 is from Japan. Coincidence? For those of you that haven't had any problems, congratulations, but I can't recommend this receiver.

Similar Products Used:

None-first DD/DTS receiver

looks good, sounds good...(for a few minutes, at least)

MADE IN KOREA! Toss a couple of strips of bacon and an egg or two on top and breakfast is served!!

You've all heard about the 3300's hot nature, and I'm here to add to its reputations' woes. I purcahsed a unit directly from Denon (got a buddy with friends in high places) around 9/25. Got it home, hooked it up, and was stunned by the sound (first DD/DTS receiver for me). Awesome!!! After a few minutes though, I heard the dreaded "whir/buzz" of the fan cranking up that so many of you unfortunate 3300 owners have reported. What a nasty sounding fan! and the squeal as it turns off! What is that? A capacitor? Too bizarre. Anyway, I went to the receiver and put my hand on it. Ouch! The transformer doesn't get hot, but it's one of the power amps that seems to be the culprit. The rearmost one, by the back vent. I checked out its history on this awesome site, told my buddy of the problems, and he contacted Denon. They apologized, and immediately sent out another unit. I figured no way would I get two bad units in a row. Oh, how wrong I was. The next unit didn't even make it to my house. I unpacked the new receiver in my friends office, plugged it in (with nothing hooked up to it mind you) and told him I'd check back in an hour. About forty minutes later, he comes out and tells me the fan has kicked in. Unbelievable. This thing is cursed. It tempted me to avoid buying any Denon stuff at all get a refund but I went ahead and upgaded to the new 3801.
So far, so good..."Jurassic Park" stompin' around in DTS and "The Marix" blastin' away in DD haven't been able to faze this thing. More on the 3801 later.I have to wind up by saying I'm very disappointed in Denon for not taking care of such a widespread problem. Is it lack of QT in Korea? The 3801 is from Japan. Coincidence? For those of you that haven't had any problems, congratulations, but I can't recommend this receiver.

Similar Products Used:

None-first DD/DTS receiver

clear with fantastic movment sound between each speaker

no osd for volume

i replace yamaha rxv995 because the boomy sound all my friend felt that. and bought denon 3300.
now i want to make bi amp between both of them if any body has an idea please e-mail me on (thxultra@hotmail.com)

Similar Products Used:

nothing

clear with fantastic movment sound between each speaker

no osd for volume

i replace yamaha rxv995 because the boomy sound all my friend felt that. and bought denon 3300.
now i want to make bi amp between both of them if any body has an idea please e-mail me on (thxultra@hotmail.com)

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nothing

Great reproduction, plenty of power, flexible configuration, 5-channel stereo mode, multi-room support

Lousy remote (so use a Uni), quality control

This is an update of my last review, 5 months ago... I've now had this unit for nine months or so, with no problems other than the initial death of the first unit in the first day. No fan noise, no squeal, nada. It's used at reasonably high volumes due to large open spaces, but it has plenty of breathing room.

....................................................

I researched long-and-hard before buying a Denon AVR-3300. I performed side-by-sides with JVCs, Sonys, Yamahas, and the nearest competitor, the Onkyo 777. The sound of the Denon, plus the quantity of inputs, blew them all away. So I bought this unit 4.5 months ago.

The sound is incredible. Properly set up, it's amazing. The speakers are Def.Techs, with bipolar rears and a 100-series sub. The match is amazing. Additionally, the wife has fallen in love with the 5-channel stereo mode, especially for stadium-sound bands like Meatloaf, Trans-Siberian Orchestra, and Savatage.

There are a few problems: One, the first unit sounded muffled for one day and then died completely. Fortunately, I bought from a reputable local dealer. Do NOT buy this unit mail-order. The second unit has been flawless for the 145 or so days I've had it.

Second, the remote control is amazingly complex and counter-intuitive, AND can't be programmed into older universal remotes due to the frequencies it uses. However, the OFA URC-9800 can handle it and talks through walls; that's my primary remote for this system, and would have been even if the included remote were better.

Third, the binding posts for the speaker wires are plastic and rather tightly spaced. I had to switch to banana plugs (which are about $5 per end at most stores!) to make them usable. While the resulting $25 addition isn't much compared to the $900 or so of the AVR-3300, it IS annoying, especially since I had to run out to get them.

Fourth, the set-up of channel delays is annoying in that the unit REQUIRES certain types of spacing between the listener and the front vs. rear channels. Unfortunately, this is not always practical; it certainly isn't in our living room. Changing one limit-constant in their source code would solve this annoyance.

Lastly, I have never heard the much-feared fan (and I would if it made any noise.) This may because my system is on an open rack rather than in an enclosed cabinet, and therefore stays cooler, or it may be that they fixed those problems before my batch.

The bottom line is that this receiver has incredible sound and is flexible, with a few minor annoyances.