Clean power, DTS ES, versatility - so far so good

Manual, remote could be a bit better, programming inputs is tricky

First, let me thank all of you who posted insightful articles on this receiver. It made the decision harder at times, but, in the end, I can say that I made an informed decision.

Like many of you, I narrowed my choice to the Onkyo 787 and the Denon 3801. Both are great receivers, but I was convinced that the Denon sounded better. After all, your ears are the ultimate judge.

In terms of power, the Denon has enough. For movies, I need only set the volume to 0db (though it goes up another 30 I believe), and the room absolutely rocks. For music, I can push the volume to +10 and I'm in heaven.

Setup was tricker than expected. I had some problems getting the menus to display on my TV. Probably had just as much to do with my ignorance than the device itself.

Some of you bought units online. Indeed, you are brave. I am a low price fiend, but I'm also a worry wart. I didn't want to deal with a defective unit, or one with problems after six months, only to learn that because I bought it online, there's no valid warranty. That was another fear I had with the Onkyos - cheap online, but no warranty.

So, I went a local dealer and negotiated a good price on the Denon. Since they're an authorized Denon dealer, I won't have to worry.

Last comment - the Denon works very well with B&W speakers.

My system setup is as follows:
TV - Toshiba TheaterWide 40"
A/V Receiver - Denon 3801
DVD - Pioneer 434 (until the Denon 2800 bug is fixed)
Fronts - B&W 602 s2
Center -B&W LCR 6
Rear - B&W DM 303
Sub - Velodyne 12" (rocks!)
Wires - Monster M1 bi-wire, Silver Line digital connects. Don't skimp on cable!

Has anybody tried the Toshiba HD Satellite Decoder?

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha, Onkyo a/v receivers

Just about everything; ease of set up, remote, sound fields are unbelievable

none noticed yet

Before purchasing this product, I must have read one hundred or more reviews. Overall, the reviews were very good with a few people unhappy with things like the manual, remote, power ratings, sound quality etc. I went with the overall picture which was that the Denon AVR 3801 is a very good receiver and a steal for $850. Now that I have it I can say I made a very good decision. Sure, there are other recievers out there that may have more power, better manuals, remotes, etc. but this is one of the best for the price. It took me approximately one hour to hook it up and the manual and remote are both very straight forward and user friendly. I would recommend this product to anyone looking for a high quality A/V receiver that will meet your needs today as well as tomorrow. After all, if this receiver makes YOU happy, who cares what anyone else thinks.

power, features, super fast processing (demo the unit with the Matrix), remote, features- oh, did I mention features?

not too many, see below

Hey William Porter... Did the Denon receive five stars in Home Theater Sound, Music Sound, Features, and Value in Home Entertainment magazine? Canadian newstands haven't received the issue yet. Which other receivers were tested?
The Denon has more bang for your buck than any other receiver for the money. Although it is not as musical as NAD, Arcam, Marantz, or Harmon Kardon receivers for two channel music, it is a knockout with everything else. It's surround processing is by far faster than the aforementioned brands for movies. It also has the punch necessary for movies that the English brands lack. (I guess musicality doesn't mix well with what's necessary for home theater)
For everyone that has written a review for NAD, Marantz, and Arcam receiver, as well as the Nakamichi AV10 receiver, that is concerned with two channel music- I have a perfect solution. How about going with the best sounding "Home Theater" receiver for "Home Theater" that is user friendly and upgradable- Denon's never receive less than 5 stars for Home Theater Sound... and buying a couple of NAD seperates for a seperate stereo system. All receivers have comprimises. How can you sell a box that amplifies, pre/pro's, tunes, and has all chips necessary for any media etc. and expect top quality parts in every section for $1000 (...just a number out of the blue)? Also, I suspect that craming everything in one box is a nightmare as far as shielding tuners from pre/pro's etc. for pure sound. If you can't afford to buy seperates, try Rotel's 971 CD player with the 3801- stunning!
Anway, anyone out there who doesn't like the remote control should fiddle with remotes that come with receivers that compete with the AVR-3801. This remote is a gem! The volume and channel buttons lay where your hand rests, the remote tells you what mode your in, the colours used let you easily differentiate between sound, power, and number buttons, and it feels comfortable in the hands.
The only things that bug me about Denon receivers is that the receiver displays are hazy and hard to see from a distance (as apposed to the NAD T761's display which is out of this world), the units are looking dated, and you can't buy a high quality Denon single disc CD player or regular DVD player that has similar asthetics and buttons as the receiver line. (Check out the aformentioned NAD T761 receiver and the NAD 540 CD player- that is what I call a picture perfect match- a colour, button, oval display match made in heaven) Don't get me wrong, I like the 3801 better than the NAD. I like the NAD and considered it, but it ultimately lacked the Denon's savy for home theater.
Does anyone out there know if any receivers have Dobly Digital ES(as opposed to DTS ES)- which uses 7.1 speakers as opposed to DTS ES's 6.1 speakers? I read about the format in a British magazine recently.
I'll write back with and let you know how the unit sounds after I've burned in the unit for many months. Thank you all for your insite!

Similar Products Used:

NAD T761, Nakamichi AV-10, Harmon Kardon 510, Marantz SR-7000, Sony STRDB 940, Sony ES333, Arcam 100,Yamaha RX1000

Many

A few

Take a look at the Onkyo 787 consumer posts - 37-40 people bought the 787 and already problems in quality are showing up. The same thing happened last year with the 575 and other
Onkyo and HK receivers. The THX select certification doesn't seem to have made too much of a difference in the quality control area.
I was tempted by the Onkyo but went with the Denen because the only Denon reciever that seemed to have problems was the 3300 other wise people seemed to have a great deal of satisfaction with their purchase. None of the 3801 reviews here mention anything about it not working out of the box. Yet, you will find people posting on the 787 site that they are experiencing that problem.
To the so-called experts who have posted here the Denon doesn't compare and is guilty of lying about ratings, poor materials used in construction, and yet it works out of the box and keeps plugging unit after unit.
Go figure.
Could it be because it's built in Japan?

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha, Sony, Kenwood

Many features at its price point

Low quality compared to other receivers in its cat.

There are better receivers for music and HT out there, But if if you like the flavor of the month SS then this is it

Similar Products Used:

Marantz SR-8000, Onkyo 787, Denon 4800

Power, Built Quality (Made in Japan), Value (less than $1000), DTS ES 6.1, Lighted/Ergonomical Remote,... etc.

None so far.

Thanks to all those who have posted reviews on the AVR-3801. It really helped me decide which receiver I should get to replaced my 2yr Sony ES (Sadly, it'still in the Service Center in Irvine, and have to wait > 30 work days for them to fix - so much I get for 5 yr ES warranty).
This Denon works like a charm, like most of you have stated earlier, and right out of the box. You are also right about it's Quality, Power, and Clarity. My 6 yr old JBL 2060 and Infinity 2000.1 speakers never sounded this great before. Recently, my company posted me to work in one of our manufacturing plant in Japan for few weeks. Needless to say, I can assure you that 'Quality is always no.1' in Japanese mind and nature. So, I believe this Denon will be a nice investment for a long time. I have also compared with the Yamaha RX-V3000. But I can't afford it's $1600 price tag. This Yamaha is Made in Japan. So Quality should be good. But I really don't need all those 30+ DSP simulated sounds. Clarity and Power is about same as Denon's. But I like the Denon's new ergonomical remote. And for the price, built quality, power, clarity, and nicer remote, I finally went for the AVR-3801. Thanks again Denon, you have my VOTE!!!

Similar Products Used:

Sony ES (see my review on 30ES), Technics Prologic

Excellent A/V Reciever, DTS-ES Discrete & Matrix sound perfect.Fully Discrete, Equal power Seven Amplifier Channels. For 2 channel sound the Denon has DTS Neo:6. Overall an excellent built reciver with many functions that one will use.

As of yet nothing. Remote has been mentioned below as weak, but it is much better then the old remotes. Back lit is very useful and DVD controls on the Denon Remote are much better then most DVD remotes.

I have always been a Denon supporter and enthusiast. You have to admit, Denon always seems to have the best - no matter what the price range is.
First and foremost, I suggest buying the Denon from a local authorized dealer. You may pay $100.00 more, but it is worth it!
Here is my system:
Fronts: Paradgim Monitor 7's
Center: Paradgim CC-370
Surround (dipolar): Paradgim ADP-370's (awesome speakers)
Surround back: Paradgim Mini Monitor
Sub: Paradgim PS1000
DVD: Pioneer 414
TV: Tosiba 36"

I put the 3801 through its test the first week and on day 8 ran 5 DVD movies back to back. I was so impressed that after 11 hours the unit was only warm and running solid. There is no humming noise no nothing - just a solid performer.
I tested out the DTS-ES with T2 and Gladiator. The sound was strong and localized. You have to hear it to believe it.(Note: This unit will play DTS-EX just perfect).
On two channel sources I ran the DTS Neo:6 and again the sound was smooth through all channels.
If you a running surround back channel (in addition to your normal surround) you can switch them on or off in all modes. A nice feature to have. You can watch 5.1 recordings in 7.1.
One of items I was looking at having was a THX approved unit. If you are unsure what this is go on their website, but spend time reading the DTS website www.dts.com
You will realize THX is only a certification and this Denon performs just as good if not better then some THX certified A/V receivers.
The remote is a great improvement. The LED read-out is good and the unit is backlit. Inaddition, the remote comes with a code book to help with the programming. After the first week I found myself using the Denon remote to control my DVD.
Denon has on this receiver the "Widescreen 7.1 Channel" I have tried this on 2 channel sources, but I prefer the Neo:6.
In comparing receivers keep in mind the power source. Look at Denons "Separate Current Supply for Circuits" and "Power Transformer". These are superior to the competition and something you want to have when running 7 speakers.
Set up is very easy. I again had a pain running the speaker wire into the bindings, but its only once.
In comparing the 3801 the only other reciever I would have bought, in the price range, was the Integra 7.1. I went with the Denon because its simple and solid. If you want a whole bunch of buttons to press and 100 different modes, buy something else. If you want a unit that is solid and you will use most everything on, then the 3801 is for you.
Give the 3801 a test. Remember the 3801 incorporates many of the same components as the 5800; and who can compare to the 5800.
Enjoy this reciever and use it hard. It will perform better then you think.

Similar Products Used:

Integra 7.1, Pioneer Elite 36 & 37, Denon AVR-3300

Decoding quality, speaker/channel support, 5-channel stereo, overall value

Deciphering the manual will add time to your set-up process.

I don't think there is a better A/V receiver value on the market today. I love this product.

Upside...
The effect is subjectively interpreted, but I really enjoy 5 channel stereo. DTS will melt you in your seat and DD reproduction is outstanding- the decoding chip set in the 3801 is state of the art. My speakers sound better than they ever have. I haven't used the multi-zone nor have I connected speakers beyond a 5.1 configuration, but it's great to have this capability. The flexibility of the 3801 is unrivaled by anything in this price range. The discrete amplifiers of the 3801 are high current and produce a high quality signal.

Downside...
The manual is painfully lacking. For those of you who are new to the 3801, set-up of this reciever is done through a video connection to your TV/monitor (this isn't made clear in the manual) Also, the remote attempts to be universal, pay special attention to every piece of information the manual offers.

Caveat Emptor...
I think you're insane to buy even entry level audiophile gear from an "e-tailer" I orginally bought a similar unit though uBid (refurb e-tailer/close-out house disguised as a bid/auction site). If you have any problems after 7 days with these cats, they will not work with you at all! uBid is the polar opposite of being customer satisfaction oriented. They market like hell, get as many new people as possible to bid on their "wares" and really don't care if they create any repeat buyers! Denon, on the other hand, went above and beyond the call! If you simply must buy through the net, check Denon's site for authorized net dealers. I say the dollars saved are not worth the risk.

This is a great product!

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha

Sounds great

User interface

Overall I am NOT thrilled with the 3802. Sure it sounds
great, but that's not the whole picture. My number one beef
is that the user interface is piss poor. It is out-right
more difficult than it ought to be. I don't like the front
panel "wheel-of-fortune" click a button, spin a knob, click
a button design. It takes to much time to make simple
adjustments. Even the on-screen stuff is disappointing.
Especially since I run HDTV and the on-screen stuff only
comes out the SDTV connector. It is inconvenient to have to
switch to SDTV when making changes via the remote. Also, I
would have liked an easier to control AM/FM tuner. How
about a dedicated station tuning knob? How about a few
front panel presets for quick access to favorite stations?
How about a front panel AM/FM band selector button?

Buying online: here is my opinion: this puppy retails at
over $1000. I got it for $830 (w/shipping) brand new. If I
had bought the 3802 at a local audio shop, I would had paid
alot more, but I would have been able to return the Denon
and go with a different vendor. Furthermore, if I had
bought it locally, it would have been from an authorized
dealer. This is very important these days since electronics
can break and only authorized dealers fix warranty items for
free. Check-out http://ecoustics.pricegrabber.com/ for good
deals on this receiver.

I bought the 3802 from www.lgdsuperstore.com. The unit
arrived promptly, but it had a dead sb-l channel, so I had
to return it. I tried resetting the microprocessor and
swapping everything to noavail. LGD let me exchange the
unit, but I had to pay the roundtrip shipping. They of-
course gouged me on the return shipping ($48 in my case).
Now, I'm up to approx $134 in transport costs. Beware, they
are not an authorized dealer of DENON, only an online
distributor. Therefore, repairs for the unit can not be
done under warranty. The second unit I received also had a
problem. I can't change the tuner to AM from the remote
(the only way). Yes, I like to listen to AM when I want to
hear NPR in the morning. I haven't tried resetting the
processor since it's time consuming to reprogram the whole
AVR again, nor have I tried resetting the remote since I've
already got it trained to know about 4 other remotes.
Teaching the remote the buttons for the other remotes was
about two hours of my life.

The learning remote
It squeals (perhaps the factory shipped batteries are
ghetto) when the backlite is turned on. I was able to
successfully teach it many special feature buttons from my
EchoStar HD6000 satellite and Apex 660 DVD player remotes.
But, there were several buttons that it simply could not
learn. In this case, the remote indicated "Failed" on it's
LCD. A sweet feature of the remote is it's ability to store
multiple key sequences and recall them with a single-key
push. This is great for turning on/off all the components.
On a downside, I frequently encounter the remote switching
to an undocumented diagnostic mode. This mode totally sucks
since it takes about a minute to navigate your way back to
reality. During that time you can't control the equipment.

The manual could be alot better, but everyone except Denon
knows that..

Too few digital inputs:
1 digital coax input, 3 optical digital inputs, 1 digital
output. Other receivers I looked at had 2 digital coax, 5
digital ins, an 2 outs.


Rear Panel Speaker Terminals
I felt that the speaker terminals were to close together and
difficult to turn (perhaps I have big fingers??). My thumbs
were raw after connecting 14 terminals. It is clearly setup
for those out there who purchased those over priced Monster
brand banana connectors.

Surround Back or 2nd set of speakers, that is the question...
The user is forced to choose between the multi-room speaker
configuration or the home theater setup. You can't have
both. Your choice will probably be home theater since you
paid the $$$ and you'll want the DTS 6.1/7.1 ability. I
guess I'll have to buy another receiver for that other room.


MY SYSTEM:
Receiver : Denon 3802
CD : Denon (can't recall the model)
DVD/MP3 Player: Apex 660
Satellite : Echostar HD6000
TV : Sony KP-53HS10
VCR : Sony Hi-Fi

Main Speakers : Klipsh RF3's
Surrounds : Klipsh RS3's
Surround back : KLH's
Center : Sony
Sub : None yet

Similar Products Used:

none

Flexible input switching, great DTS/DD decoding, power to spare

Remote control ergonomics

I compared the 3801 to a lot of other receivers in the $900 to $1200 price range. The nice guys at the Stereo Shoppe in Boise, Idaho offered to let me take this one home and listen to it for a few days to decide if it was the "one". Well, obviously it is, since I'm writing this.

I was also swayed by a brief review in one of the mass market audio/video magazines, maybe Sound and Vision.

In particular, I think that this receiver does an excellent job with digital processing. Also, the amplifier portion of the receiver is quite powerful, particularly with all of the channels driven. The on-screen setup is quite flexible. There are plenty of inputs and outputs. Also, the speaker connections were not so crowded together. I didn't have to become a contortionist to connect seven speaker cables.

While I don't do any serious music listening with this receiver (I have a stereo for that), I do have to say that I was quite surprised at just how musical it is. Sure, Denon made some compromises to deliver an all-in-one receiver/processor/amplifier combo, but it strikes me that the overall design that they settled on was extraordinarily good. Also, for those who prefer to use 5.1 surround over 7.1, the extra set of speaker outputs can be used as a second audio zone to independently drive speakers in another room of the house. That's a nice feature.

I drive a pair of Snell E/III's, four B&W 602 surrounds and a 601 center channel with this receiver, as well as an older Infinity powered sub. Video output is via S-video to a Toshiba 50" rear projection TV. The video output looks quite nice.

I have a couple of quibbles...the first is that digital sources can't be recorded to analog equipment. It's a quibble for me because I do that sort of thing with my stereo, but it seems odd that it's not possible with this receiver. The second is with the remote. Ergonomically, I think that Denon made some mistakes with it. It's quite cumbersome to select virtually anything. That being said, I use a Marantz programmable remote that is better than pretty much anything that comes included with any receiver, and it's not too expensive anymore.

Overall, I think that this receiver is one of the best buys for the money that there is. For that matter, I also think that it's one of the best A/V receivers...period! Mine will be a part of my home theater for a long time to come.

Similar Products Used:

Marantz and JVC A/V receivers