Very Clean audio, easy set-up, loads of features, Very powerful remote.

can't adjust the bass to above the 80hz crossover. I guess that means I'll have to buy the THX speakers I've been wanting.

Before purchasing the Denon, I read as many reviews about it as I could, and not reviews from this site, not that there is anything wrong with these. Rather, I read professional reviews. I decided early that I really like the 5800 and so I bought it, for a good price too.

The 5800 was a very easy set-up. All of the movies that I have listened before sound quite different than with my previous reciever, a Sony. I have been very impressed and happy with its performance thus far. With music, the Pure Direct mode is awesome as is the DTS: NEO 6. Musis has definatly improved on my system and the movie experience is greatly improved. The Bass management on the Denon is far superior to the Sony which is to be expected for any THX product. However, I do wish that I could select 100 HZ crossover instead of the 80, but that is a small complaint and I plan on getting THX speakers anyway so that will not matter. The Denon is a very acurate reciever. All material is played as intended and I like that very much. Not everyone likes soundtracks to be accurate or music to be accurate. You'll find that there is much less bass amoung other things, but both music and soundtracks sound more natural. I also used a sound level meter to set up the system and AVIA's guide to home theater test disc.

The remote that comes with this system is very good. I will admit that I wish Denon had some better updating software that woud allow for the downloading of CCF files to customise the remote like other remotes like the Pronto do, but the software works quite well otherwise. The remote has very good potential, and I hope Denon continues to develop it.

I listened to a Marantz and some other recievers, but I felt this one sounded the best. Please keep in mind that everyone has their own tastes and opinions. You should do the research for youself and decide by your ears and knowledge. I can't wait until I get some speakers that can hold up better to its power rating and a good place to really see what it can do. I would recommend this reciever to anyone who is really into hometheater.

Similar Products Used:

Marantz SR-18

I actually own this AVR. It does what Denon claims. Don't buy this to hook up one CD player. If you need surround sound and many inputs,go for it.

Power, detail, connectivity, DTS ES, THX.

None!

The Denon 5800 is the real deal, the improvement over the DSP-A1 was astounding. Music has never sounded better, the power is outstanding and detail in all sources is awe inspiring.
I thought DTS-ES would be a good upgrade, boy was in for a real treat. The Haunting nearly blew me away!
If anyone is in the market for a new reciever, buy this one, Hurry!

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha DSP-A1, Sony STR-715, Pioneer 605

DTS Discrete, 7 channels of amplification

The best PERIOD. There is no comparison to any other AV Receiver out there, the Yamahas don't come close, seeing those reviews up there made me laugh. They obviously haven't heard the 5800. Strictly from a power standpoint, this receiver can't be matched. 170 watts per channel for ALL SEVEN CHANNELS. In a time when most receivers only provide 5 channels of amplification and leave the 2 surround EX or DTS-ES channels for you to amplify. This is one of the few receivers with DTS-ES Discrete which provides a DISCRETE back surround channel and one listen to a DVD that supports this like Gladiator or The Haunting will leave you speechless, it's that amazing. Yamaha is NOTHING compared to this. There's no other way to put this, this IS the best. As far as Onkyo, I can show you no less than 3 professional reviews comparing this to the Onkyo 989 Surround EX receiver, they ALL say the Denon is far better. And the Onkyo doesn't even have DTS Discrete yet (promissed with a later update) There is absolutely no hiss. Never heard any hiss, not for one day. The guy that gave it 1 star for some kind of hiss is a moron and probably never heard it in the first place. And when it comes down to it, to all the people who sit there and talk about separates, DONT. This is a review forum for AV RECEIVERS and in particular THIS AV receiver. If you want to go out and get separates, go do that, don't sit there and compare apples to oranges REGARDLESS of the price. I have absolutley ZERO interest in separates because I don't want to have to deal with all the connections, etc etc. To get DTS Discrete and Surround EX with 7 channels of amplification with separates is something I don;t want to have to bother with. So CUT the separates discussion, it's over. This receiver is the best AV RECEIVER out there.

Similar Products Used:

B&K 307, Onkyo 989

Dynamic Sound for both Home Theatre and Music (gotta love the 5 channel music mode)! Not that the Aktis software is out, the remote issue is gone, at least where it concerned me.

None

I wanted to address the two issues here. First the Aktiss remote. After muddled through the KEY LABEL editing features, I have the remote at a very, and I mean very usable state. If you LOOK at the Denon site and go to the Aktiss area, the editing software has been there since Dec 22nd! And might I add, works great! It is in the Download area, someone needs to tell Denon to update their site.

Next is the power issue. Maybe I am missing something here, but I don't crank my system up past -10db (Klipsch Legend KLF30s). I know these are very efficient speakers, so I can only imagine that the people who complain about a lack of power are terribly inefficent speakers. To get the same sound I would have had to spend around 8,000 - 10,000 dollars on seperates.

As a receiver for both music and home theatre, I find it tough to not recommend this great unit!

Similar Products Used:

Denon AVR3200, Denon AVR5700, Yamaha DSP-A1

nice, good when used with preouts.

remote and looks

Well, its not my reciever, it belongs to a friend who has leant it to me, I would never spend this money on a reciever...
It lacks power ( the 170 wpc rating is crap - go listen to a Plinius SA100 and tell me that its less powerfull than the denon.. ) The plinius drives my speakers far harder, clearer, deeper, more transpearently............ than the denon.
I think this reciever has good sound, however, although I would never use it without a seperate poweramp for at least the front 3 channels ( I use a pair of 300 wpc perreaux amps - these give stunning sound in comparison )
But, for someone who wants a good reciever, and is not fussed for seperates, yeah - not too bad.
Re the Mark Levison / Bob / john comments.
Do the latter two of you realise who your talking to?
I really dont think you should try to tell him much about amplification - his 75 wpc amps would sound infinatly better, and more powerfull than your 170 wpc denon.
Sorry... but true
And his points are totally true.
Denon like to give the impression thats it will deliver 170wpc into all 7 chanels.. My testing on Paradigm studio reference studio 100 speakers found that it will only so 159 @1%thd into 1 channel!
Anyway - this review aint too hot, but in all honesty, its not a bad reciever, you just are paying too much for what it delivers... the onkyo's are better sounding, no more powerfull, and for this money go for Rotel seperates or similar.

DPLII, THX 6.1, Dolby Headphone

Price ??? RS 232??? Inf Only denon.co.uk

DENON AVR-5800 Upgrade

1) Dolby Pro Logic ll
This upgrade provides Dolby Pro Logic ll decoding capability. The Dolby Pro Logic ll decoder reproduces dynamic 5.1-channel surround sound from 2-channel sources such as TV, videos and CDs. Dolby Pro Logic ll uses matrix decoding technology that has been dramatically improved over Pro Logic. With Pro Logic ll, for instance, the Surround (Rear) channels are in stereo instead of just mono with Pro Logic, and playback covers the full frequency range instead of just up to 7kHz with Pro Logic. These improvements let you enjoy a wide variety of 2-channel sources with the exciting effects of 5.1-channel surround sound. In Dolby Pro Logic ll, there is a Movie mode (*1) that creates a sound field for movies, a Music mode that does the same for music, and a Pro Logic emulation feature that reproduces sound effects in the way that conventional Pro Logic does.
(*1) On Denon A/V receivers, this Movie mode is displayed as “MODE CINEMA”.

2) DTS 96/24
The upgrade also brings you DTS 96/24. High-quality 96-kHz, 24-bit sound playback from ordinary DVD-Video recordings is limited to only two channels, and there are also limitations on the picture. DVD-Video recorded in DTS 96/24, however, allows high-quality 5.1 channel sound playback in full-quality, full-motion video. DTS 96/24 also lets you enjoy both digital audio output and video output from your existing DVD player.

3) DTS ES Discrete 6.1 + THX Post Processing
This upgrade further lets you enjoy Home THX Cinema Surround with DTS ES Discrete 6.1 Surround. Designed for the home listening environment, this provides THX post processing to give you clearly audible dialogue, more effective sound localization and directionality, and a greater dynamic range. The sound you hear in your home theatre more accurately reflects the sonic images intended by the producer and more closely matches the images on the screen.

4) Dolby Headphone
Dolby Headphone decoding is possible with this upgrade. In conventional headphones, sound is directed into the listeners ears from two sides in order to preserve the stereo effects from the speakers. Dolby Headphone, however, generates signals that more closely emulate surround sound from the speakers to give you a more realistic multi-channel sound effect through your headphones. Dolby Headphone provides three modes:
DH1: Referred to as Dolby Headphone “Reference Room,” this mode recreates a small, acoustically “dry” room, well suited to both music and movie programmes.
DH2: This mode has an acoustically softer effect than DH1, and is best suited for music recordings.
DH3: This mode gives a greater sense of distance and sonic dispersion to create a large room such as a concert hall or movie theatre.
Dolby Headphone supports Dolby Pro Logic, Pro Logic ll, and Dolby Digital as well as stereo and multi-channel signals. Dolby Headphone reproduces the sonic experience you receive through your speakers from stereo or multi-channel sources.

5) Panja and Crestron Compatability
This upgrade supports the Panja and Creston control protocols.

6) Improved Ease of Operation

a) Adjustable Cross-over Switching
The upgrade provides subwoofer cross-over switching with a choice of 3 cross-over frequencies: 80,100 and 120Hz. This lets you more accurately match the performance characteristics of the subwoofer to the main speaker system.

b) Improved On-screen Displays
The upgrade gives you the option to display the value on the monitor screen when you adjust the master volume.

Great remote, Excellent range on music as well as DVD Audio, Features, Multi Room support, Upgradeablity, Extensive Optical(Fiber) Inputs, Easy programing. THX and EX!

It's all good!

I searched high and low for the perfect addition to my THX home theater. I was so excited when I found this receiver for only $2549. Click Here! The 5800 is superb! It has every feature that you need for the up to date (and future) state of the art home theater. I don't believe in using many DSP modes so I just listen to movies in the Dolby THX mode. This is a huge step up in sound compared to the 5600's sound. I know this seems to be said for evry Pre-amp/receiver, but the detail is amazing. Not just the litle nuances but the seperation of music and sound effects. It has precision rear to front, front to back timing if setup correctly and the background noise is Black. I do use the seperate Cinevova amp for all the front channels (biamping the 3.3's)but the rears come from the Denon's power amps and the sound is just as good as the outboard amp! Pure Direct stereo is the way to listen to music. I used to have the MSB LINK DAC III but the 5800 makes this a useless peice of equipment. Again it is a detailed, precise stereo sound. The soundstage and depth are enormous combined with the 3.3's. I don't have any DTS DVD's as of yet but the DTS NEO option for music is also great. The remote control is a another great added feature.
The build on this thing is awesome and it is laid out real well. It really makes you feal proud of owning a high end piece.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo TX-DS989 $2299

The best receiver. Period. And an answer for Mr. Fenix's review

See previous review

Mr. Fenix
B&K may sound better to you, but is the 5800 moderate? I have listened to the B&K and I liked the Denon's sound, both in HT and in Pure direct. The truth is that I have listened to separates costing 10K and could hear no detectable difference, especially in HT modes.
Digital connections - 11, not enough?
Back panel - I do not see a major difference that warrants any consideration here
Binding posts - I can argue that having the binding posts on the sides is actually the right placement, and I had no problem connecting my wires.
Build quality - I am not sure that I agree with you here. Take a look at the consideration for shielding the circuitry and the placement of the transformer, it is really a work of art.
DSP modes - I disagree with you here too. Do you think that Yamaha users use ALL the 50+ modes? What about Onkyo? Denon gave a few modes that are actually enjoyable.
Fan noise? Did anyone hear any fan noise whatsoever? There are 2 fans and I tried to listen to them at any level, and I could hear nothing.
B&K does not have component video switching? What? Would you consider this as acceptable? I wouldn't even audition it for that. In addition, Denon sells 10 folds of its flagship receivers because they are better, it is that simple…
You mentioned a 'big fan' on the 4800 as a negative, why? It is multi speed capable and it is simply undetectable at any volume level (contrary to the early problems that Onkyo had with the 989), in addition there is another fan in the 4800 that kicks in before the big one does. What other problem does the 4800 have? It is the best value for money receiver on the market today with the total power of the 5700 / 5800 and the delicacy of the 5700.
You gave 3 stars for both evaluations, are you insane? Do you read magazines? Could you find one other opinion that will support your opinion? Don't you think that people notice that you are biased here? Do you also sell Bose?

Similar Products Used:

All Denon line and Sony separated. Auditioned the Yamaha, Onkyo989 and Marantz, listened to B&K307

Build Quality Built for the future remote looks features need I go on.

none

Summary I think it's the icing on the cake. When I read these reviews and other befor buying the 5800 they siad it all with nothing to add.

Similar Products Used:

Denon 3200