Nice looking

too complex

I purchased one these units but had to wait a couple of days for the reciever to arrive at the store. This gave me the time to pull up the instruction manual from the denon website for study. I thought I would be prepared for the worst this way. Well I was wrong. This is the most user unfriendly piece of equipment I have ever encountered and the manual is so poorly written the ordeal was more than I could take. After trying to get the unit to play a simple cd with and without speakers A and B for 2 days of going back to the store for help I just gave up and took the receiver back to the store and exchanged it for a Yamaha unit. The remote is horrendous, you have to press too many sequence of keys, hop around on one foot but if you don''''t say the magic word nothing will happen. I was greatly disappointed by the arrogance of the design team from DENON. DO NOT BUY THIS UNIT UNLESS YOU ARE PREPARED FOR MANY DAYS OF FRUSTRATION AND STILL NOT BEING ABLE TO PLAY WITH YOUR NEW TOY

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yamaha RXV1200

Sound quality, build and finish.

Speaker binding posts are TOO close; manual is horrendous; setup is unnecessarily complicated; supplied FM antenna is hopeless in my hilly neighborhood: does anyone have any ideas to boost FM reception (no, please don''t say use TERK)?

After months of detailed research, I decided to go with the Denon AVR-3802. This being my my very first HT setup, the learning curve was very steep: it took me 3 straight weekends to finally set up my AV receiver, DVD, VCR, DBS receiver, all connected to my 40" HDTV-ready TV. I matched the receiver up with the Polk RM6600 speaker system + the PSW350 subwoofer. After farting around initially with cheaper alternatives for interconnects and cables, I took the plunge and decided to go all out with Monster cables and F-Audio (Omnimount) floor speaker stands! All this wasn''t cheap but I said to myself, "What the F, you only live once!" Overall, I''m more than happy with this receiver. Even though I''m using the non-recommended subwoofer line out option, the sound - even at the low settings - is house-shaking. I really didn''t have a problem with the remote, but the manual is absolutely atrocious! For example, it says that the S-video has priority over the composite video. That''s baloney! I wasted so much time just trying to get to the setup screen all because I was using an S-video monitor out to my TV. Finally, I realized that I wasn''t getting anything on my TV because YOU HAVE TO USE THE COMPOSITE VIDEO OUT -- nothing else will work!

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Lesser Aiwa rack system.

Good sound, lots of parameters to tweak.

Would be better to have offered more choices for LFE herz out to sub.

It''s been a long time since I bought a new receiver, so I waited a while before casting in my two cents worth. I''m happy with my choice. Run out and buy one yourself. I''m not as stressed out about the remote as a lot of people are. I''m still fumbling with the individual component remote controls. Sure, call me a dufuss. But I''m been too absorbed with listening to the sounds and adjusting the parameters and adding more speakers. I''m now up to a 7.0 set-up! I replaced a 1977 Sansui 8080DB stereo receiver with this Denon. I was worried that I would not be able to recapture the warmth of the old Sansui. Although that may be true to some degree, the Sansui''s sound might have been a bit thicker, the sound from the Denon is larger, more dynamic, punchy, and never harsh. Any harshness has been from the source material or from nine blaring tweeters when I''ve pumped it up to 7 ch stereo. But most times that sounds great too. The matrix mode is a joy for music listening, but then I do have a large living room. The stereo mode just doesn''t fill the room by itself, so I''m glad to have entered the multi channel world. The matrix mode (dismissed by some as another gimmicky DSP mode) does an excellent job of widening the sound field, filling in the sound stage gaps, and creating a natural sounding resonance in your listening room. Thumbs up! My wife however, enjoys the intensity of its seven channel stereo. Here''s my only worry. I''m researching what will be the best way for me to go to add a subwoofer. I''ve already got some pretty tough bass sound coming out and I will need an excellent sub to do better in my large living room. As an earlier reviewer stated, they should have given us more choices on where to cut the herz to the sub. 80HZ is your lowest option. This will put the other bass drivers on somewhat of a vactation. I know I''m told that it will tighten up their sound, but I''m concerned that I will also lose some directionality of the bass. If they had also provided a 60HZ cut, then it would preserve a bit more of the bass movement sensation in surround sound movies. Right now I enjoy the rumbling moving from behind me to the front speakers traveling through my floor boards. I understand that is the THX standard, but with all the bells and whistles it offers you would think they could have tossed in another frequency ch

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Sansui 8080DB 85 w/ch Demo''d Onkyo, Yamaha & HK

Easy to install , the onscreen menus were easy , just read the manual and the remote was easy to use too.

I wish the remote had more buttons to use the learn function ...

I just got this receiver... let me tell you how happy I am to finally settle down on an EXCELLENT receiver... The power is excellent , who needs more than a 110 X 7 channels..and DOLBY Pro Logic II .. I thought about the Denon 4800, which was still a good price at 1000.00 from 6ave.. but the 3802 was price at 695.00 , saving about 30% , compared to the 4800.. Of course you get 15 more watts and the THX cert.. but no 7 channels or Pro logic II... The 15 watts difference won''t even make a change in the decibal , you need at least 20 watts to make 1 decibal change... believe me with the bell and whistels this receiver got, you won''t need to upgrade for a very long time..

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Denon 2800, 4800 , 3300

Power, features and flexibility [translates to excellent value when priced right].

[minor complaints] Doesn''t receive upsampling rate [88k] from the Panasonic RP91k for CD playback. Volume LED display is too small. Crossover frequency should have been 60/80/100hz instead of 80/100/120hz to benefit those with large bookshelves or smaller towers.

The only major questions [concerns] after reading reviews, etc. were the remote, manual and possibly excessive warmth. The major selling points were power and features for the price. I was torn between the Onkyo and Denon. I eventually decided with the Denon since my only real concern was the occasional review stating that the Denon was too warm. The manual and remote were non factors since I''m familiar with A/V receivers and have a Pronto remote. The fact that my speakers are a tad on the bright side [like most satellite or large bookshelves] meant that they would make an excellent union with a warm receiver like the Denon. My speakers with my previous DD/DTS receiver were a tad bright on some material, while on others, were harsh sounding [no THX or R-EQ for compensation either]. Setup took a little while. Calibrated my speaker levels using a sound meter and VE disc and took it for DD and DTS sampling. The receiver was indeed warm but not excessive to the point of detail loss. Power was nice and "clean sounding" even at 5db above reference level. Gone was the brightness that I was experiencing in certain scenes from movies like Gladiator [opening scene] while playing them at higher levels. I can now watch most movies at high levels without enabling the cinema R-eq. Music sounds pleasing. I enjoy listening to my music warm. Brightness is a great way to ensure that you don''t listen to music for very long. The real kicker is that for those of us without true "full range" speakers in the front, we can use our sub to compensate for the lack of main speakers lows by outputting a "duplicate" of the low frequencies to the sub. This means that there is no need to crosswire your fronts to the sub to get low bass output while listening to stereo sources. The ability to turn this feature off [direct mode] or adjust the bass setting while in this mode is a great feature. If you have satelittes or bookshelves, or have neutral to bright full range speakers this receiver will serve you well for both movies and music. Those of you who have speakers that are considered warm should reconsider. Overall I''m very pleased with my purchase. Got an excellent price on line and received a receiver full of features, great sound and awesome value.

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Onkyo, Kenwood.

Clean detailed and refined audio great options for the price

THE MANUAL remote (stinks, had to go out an buy a Radio Shack remote to operate my components) nothing works with this remote, what a waste!

Just bought the 3802 and what an improvement over my Sony STRDA-50ES! i had no idea how much sound and detail my Sony had covered up. Now I can hear details that were lost. What a nightmare the manual is though. I felt like I was trying to decipher the Rosetta Stone! Why is it so hard to write an undersatndable manual. It really wasn''t difficult to set up the 3802, but the manual made it so. Does anyone know if the crossover can be bypassed in the 3802 in favor of using my subs own crossover rather than the presets in the reciever? According to the manual, you can''t play a digital source ( ie. cd) in another room using the dual source option. Has anyone tried to play a cd in another room while watching a dvd in the main room with this unit?

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Kenwood? Sony STRDA-50ES

acceptable sonics

terrible manual and remote; spkr connects; feature navigation

I''ve been an "audiophile" for about 20 years, and purchased this unit after significant research, upgrading from a topline Sony AVR. This is a very short review due to time contraints. The 3802 is installed in a standalone hometheater room in a so-called 7.1 setup, and completely separate from my main stereo system, which is utilized only for audio listening. Although I find the 3802 to be sonically acceptable (naturally not the equivalent of high-end components costing much more), I find, like some other reviewers have, that the remote control and manual are entirely bogus and unusable; indeed, I find the functionality of the 3802 nearly unacceptable. As a contrast, I find my components (listed below as merely a reference) vastly easier, logical and more logical to operate. I also find the so-called 6.1/7.1 processing opaque and the processing effects entirely unclear with poor imaging, e.g., when listening to a properly set-up (THX-environment) Star Wars: Phantom Menace. As others have mentioned, the spkr connects are waaay too close and cheap, and cannot accept mated banana plugs. HT System: 3802 Infinity IL120s SW Mission 783 front spkrs Mission 78c center spkr Mission 78ds (4) for surround and SR Toshiba SD9200 DVD Main stereo system: Apogee Diva full range ribbon w/ elec X-ver Mark Levinson No. 335 power amp Mark Levinson No. 380S pre amp Theta D/A and drive -various other components (tuner, DAT, etc).

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Sony, Onkyo, Yamaha, Harman Kardon, Marantz

110 watts x 7 at < 0.05% THD, made in Japan, many features with great price.

The remote is not a weakness. I use it to control my whole system as appropriate and the manual explained anything I had a question about.

The Denon AVR 3802 improved my sound so much that I had to have new speakers. I have matched the Denon AVR 3802 to Klipsch KLF 20 front speakers and the KLF C7 center channel. The natural horn sound of the Klipsch speakers is perfectly complimented by the smooth detailed Denon sound. The home theater sound in DTS is just awesome and stereo music (what I listen to most) is the best I''ve ever heard. I think I need to upgrade my listening profile to audiophile with this system.

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HK AVR 85, Technics A 10, JVC

loud,clear,good processing,i could have had the 898 in my budget,3802 better even if it were 400 more

need glasses to see panel display w 20/20 vision.how about large LETTERS denon,this is a minor problem without vol on screen

HI,so you are here to see if you can get advise,or confirm you did good.Well... if you purchased 3802,thought it was too good to be true,all this so cheep.ITS TRUE, IT REALLY IS A GREAT AVR that can play music.I just replaced my onkyo 777 2 yrs old and i am sooo glad i did.Surround is much better than 777 or 898 w/THX ,but music is where it really shines,loud, clear,musical,and no hiss like my old 777. The 898 is not clear, it is loud,Also i have never owned denon but wish i had.This is the best deal in HT.

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onkyo 777 898, yamaha 2200

Great stereo sound,quality build,plenty of feathures for the price.

There is no 2 speaker connectors for Bi-wirring main speakers.

I know that this is very unusual to post review so early(I have this unit only few days) and is in runing in period but what i can do when is sound so good. Stereo sound is big,great and sweet. It is a combination of warm and sweet Valve sound and hard hitting and precise tranzistor sound.This unit has the best from both world.It dig so deep and fly high. When you watch DVD then you get most cinematic and dramatic sound that i ever heard.It is fast with DD,DTS decoding. I will speak no more. I must go and listen to it. My system consist of: DENON AVR 3802 AV Receiver NAD T531 DVD player NAD C521 CD player Sony kv32fx65 wide screen TV Mission M74 main,M73 rear Yamaxa NSC300 Central speaker and AR sub S30.

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Aiwa NSX AV 65,Technics sceh 750,Yamaxa RXV495,Nad T760,Yamaxa RXV800.