Price/Features

Lack of AC power input, volume level at Dolby Digital Surround Mode

I'm the one who gave comments on this receiver before buying it. After using it for a while, my rating remains the same. However, I should mention some weaknesses on this model:
(1) No AC power inputs (needed if you have old models of CD player, tuner, cassette deck that don't have POWER off button on its remote)
(2) No monitoring loop input. The built-in equalizer is good enough for casual listening. But if you really want to control the frequencies of the sound thru your external Equalizer, there is no such input.
(3) Volume level is good for stereo mode only (2 channels). At surround mode, especially Digital Surround for DVD, this model produces an unadequate loudness. I had to crank up the volume to 75 (90 max) for action movies.
(4) The built-in equalizer reproduces the high frequency sound too strong. Sometimes it causes the so-called "hiss" problem (I guess... I may be wrong :-)) especially if you you have good speakers with sharp tweeters.

Overall, it's still a very good receiver at that price range. A lot of features... ready for digital era. I recommend this for those who are not critical listeners.

Hope this review help.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer, Kenwood, Yamaha at same price range

OK - in following up on my earlier review, there does seem to be a problem with some of these receivers. One fellow reader kindly emailed me with a fix to the subwoofer-surround problem I mentioned below. If any of you are having this problem, here is the current fix: you MUST set the front speaker size to SMALL on the settings menu, no matter what their actual size. [This automatically sets the rears to small as well.] You then must set the crossover frequency (I recommend the lowest level - 80 - if you truly have larger speakers). The sub then works in surround mode, as well as with the surround off!! Thanks to a fellow reviewer for that tip!

** ALSO - I experienced the hum that some of you folks have written about when I made this switch. There seems to be quite a disparity between some of the below reviews concerning this hum - some hear it, some don't. I never heard it before switching to the SMALL speaker setting. Now, I hear it only infrequently, especially when the 888 is set to an input for which it is not receiving a signal (e.g. it is set to DVD, but you are in the process of loading a disc into the player)- I heard a noise at a fairly low level (60 volume) that some of you complain about. These two problems - the hum and the subwoofer signal issue - may be related, and could be a snafu on JVC's part. Are those of you who are hearing this hum at lower levels using the Small speaker setting? Maybe switch it to Large and see what happens. Who knows? I'm waiting to hear back from JVC itself on the issue.

Lots of extras. On-screen programming.

Rear channel audio problems galore. Poor instructions.

The RX-888VBK sure looked good at first. It has tons of extras for the cost and offers the "compulink" to connect it to other JVC products. Beware of some big problems though!

On any of the surround modes, the rear channels either hissed or provided very VERY little sound. I tried every different hookup and setting possible, but no difference. I even plugged in my friend's surround receiver to make sure I wasn't crazy (it worked fine).

Also, the instruction manual was not user-friendly at all. On several illustrations, cables are shown going behind a vcr/receiver, etc, but you can't even see the backside to tell which input they go in! What's up with that?!

Overall, after viewing many similar problems from others on this site, I'd steer clear of this receiver.

Great features for the price, on screen display, many inputs

JVC Quality Control

I've had this reciever for about 4 months now, and previous to today would have probably given it 2 stars at the most. Now i can give it 4, and would have given it 5 had it worked correctly out of the box... I experienced the hiss and hum that other users talk about when utilizing Dolby Pro Logic, Dolby Digital, or DTS at volume levels of ~55 and greater. I put up with it, but it finally got to me to the point of taking it apart to fix it. I had noticed that if you jiggle around the digital ins, particularly the Coax, the reciever would make popping sounds and sometimes lose it's digital signal. I took the unit apart and removed the shielding from the digital board. I noticed that the board was extremly hot for the period of time that i was running it. To make a long story short, i pushed the board into it's "slot" to seat it better and tried the reciever. At this point, the reciever would not make any sound at all and i was thinking that my idea wasn't such a good one! I opened the reciever back up and then noticed the glaring problem. At the top of the digital board there is a black ground wire that, instead of being soldered on, was merely wrapped around a post--and rather loosely! I proceeded to solder this wire on, fired up the reciever, and bingo, success. No hum at all using the surround processors, all the way to 90! I can now say that i'm happy with this reciever and can compare it to my friends DB830. To anyone not afraid of opening their reciever up that has this problem, i would recommend checking it for the same problem.

Similar Products Used:

Sony STRDB830, and various others from Onkyo, Yamaha, Pioneer, ect

Price/Features

None so Far

Had similar problems at first like others, But realize it
was the operator. Had hissing sound and overload at first,
but once everything was config right, all problems were
resolved. It's true, You have to be smarter than the unit itself. JVC RX-888VBK reciever is an excellent unit for the price.

Price, Inputs, CompuLink

No Digital Output, No DVD controls on remote

Well I have to say that I am impressed overall with this receiver. I have a five year old non-Dolby Onkyo, which does have a cleaner sound overall, but there is nothing wrong with the JVC. I am driving B&W speakers all around and the sound is crisp, clear, and powerfull (un-needed plug: if you've never heard of B&W check out www.bwspeakers.com, and then buy some, you won't be disappointed.) Anyway, the compulink is nice, I have a JVC DVD, but the remote is worthless for operating the DVD, a pretty bad oversight. Also, the volume level for different inputs varies greatly. And, it would be nice to be able to use S-Video and RCA connections (my VCR doesn't have S-Video) at the same time, but it's not a show stopper. So, if you are looking in this price range, definately buy this receiver. The comporable Onkyo (575) doesn't have any S-Video connections, Sony is way overpriced, and nothing else comes close. Besides, it has plenty of power, and a digital signal is a digital signal, so don't waste your money. (If you want to spend about $100 more, check out the Denon AVR-1800.) Ciao.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo

None.

All.

Hiss and buzzing in surround mode. Even on 2 channel mode the sound is not very crisp or clear. Do yourself a favor and get something better. I don't understand how someone could actually give this product a rating higher than 1 star!
If you want to stay within the price range of about $400, try the Sony DB line (even though I am not a huge Sony fan). But for the money, it is a great buy.

Similar Products Used:

Sony, Yamaha, Onkyo

Great Power, Excellent Digital Expanding Capabilities(DTS, DVD, DBS etc..)

Lack Instructions for the amount of features offered.

After a week of testing this great receiver I have to give it 5 stars. For the price you cannot bit the quality and amount of features. If you want a great receiver and be able to plug all your digital sound toys, this is the receiver to get for the price.
I have no hiss or hum problems.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo 676

I was able to return it

Everything

If You want to buy this receiver,make sure you can return it ,poor quality throughout

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood ,Denon

Help, Help

I love the RX-888 so far and only have one problem. No output from my powered sub??? I have a JBL sub and love it and worked great with my old receiver, but doesn't turn on right away when a signal is present in the RCA sub output line. Yes, i have the sub turned on and plugged into the receiver. I have the gains on both turned up and only got the LED light to change colors and turn on the the sub once while listening to FM and a CD. A signal should be present even with a low volume setting, any solutions. It has only worked with FM and CD's, not with Dolby Digital DVD's.