Unbeatable price, Great Sound.

No S-video hook up.

I spent about 3 months researching various recievers from Denon, Sony, Pioneer, and just about anything I could find in a reasonable price range. There is no doubt the Kenwod VR703 is just as good as any of the other recievers for half the money. It has all the options that are really needed, after all do you really need 5000 differant listening fields of sound. I have Cerwin Vega speakers all the way around including a 100 watt 10" sub. I don't know what the reviewer that said it lacks bass is doing wrong, because my sytems shakes every window in the house. If money is no object and you want a reciever to impress your freinds with all the bells and whistles then this may not be the reciever for you. If you want to impress yourself with agreat sounding receiver, this is it.

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Pro Logic JVC reciever model RX552V. Sounded like crap, Lasted about one year befor left channel went out.

Well what can I say Kenwood makes a great washing machine.
I'ts been working great and I don't feel like I will be
upgradind for a long time.

Easy to set up, great price, easy to use

not enough digital inputs.

This is my first Home theatre reciever, however I have heard many. This was an excellent bang for the buck. $300, and it is very easy to use. Nothing too fancy, but the sound quality is awesome so that is all that really matters. I bought this from Future Shop and it was a clearance model so if there are still any of these still available I would strongly recommend it for someone looking for a Home Theatre reciever that doesn't want to get caught up in all the buttons and knobby's of other recievers. It doesn't take more of your hard earned dollars out of your pocket either. I currently have 2 AKAI spkrs which are OK, however I am upgrading to Energy's Take 5 system.

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n/a

Good product for the price; uncluttered front display

Limited digital inputs; no S-Video inputs

My girlfriend and I bought a DVD player (first the Pioneer DV-525, then later the ProScan PS8675)and an RCA 32" T.V., but we only had a Kenwood VR105 Pro Logic Surround Receiver: It was time to upgrade to digital.

Before I begin, you should know about my speakers: 2 Cerwin Vega VS-80's; 1 Large JBL Center Speaker; 2 JBL Satellites; alas, no subwoofer yet.

I researched this unit extensively, and knew exactly what I was getting before I bought it. In my humble opinion, it is the best reciever you can buy in its price range ($300 CDN). One important consideration for serious home theatre people: it only decodes Dolby Digital (i.e., it does not support dts). However, I have looked at all my DVDs--I only have 9 so far--and NONE of them support dts, while ALL of them have Dolby Digital!

My DVD audio is connected through the only Optical connection (there are also two digital coaxial connections as well), and the sound (especially Dolby 5.1) is a significant (I mean an incredibly big) step up from the Pro Logic Surround of my VR-105. The two satellites are fed independent channels: Check out "Apocalypse Now" or "Saving Private Ryan" for the full digital effect. I should reiterate here that I don't have a subwoofer, the VS-80's pick up the slack. Further, the VR-307 detects digital input and automatically adjusts the speaker configuration accordingly.

If I had the cash to spare, I would have bought the VR-309, which allows the user to input all his S-Video connections (i.e., DVD, Cable Box, VCR, et cetera)into the receiver and output the desired connection to your TV; and incidentally is also compatible with dts. However, that luxury would have cost me an additional ($100+ CDN), so I had to pass.

I would recommend this unit to anyone;limited cash flow or not. Kenwood has served me well in my 4 years of serious stereo adventures...this unit is no exception.

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Kenwood VR-105; though this is my first digital receiver

Low price for AC-3 and a good amount of usefull features.

No 6 channel inputs!!!

I bought this receiver intending to use the Dolby Digital input with my Soundblaster Live soundcard. I wanted to get AC-3 output as well as 4 speaker support for my games.

Unfortunately, I can't hook up my front and rear analog outputs into the receiver, so I have to use Creative's crappy "Surround Mode" via the S/P DIF out, and this sounds like trash in games compared to 4 speaker mode (4 discrete channels).

Anyhoo, I'm going to buy the Pioneer VSX-D498 and return whichever receiver I like the least - which will likely be this Kenwood 307. Apart from that, with the 7 hours that I've owned the receiver, it's worked fine and sounded great for my 5.1 supporting DVD's.

The value for this receiver is top knotch, and I'm only taking 1 star off for the lack of 6 channel inputs.

Bottom line, if you're not playing computer games, and it's got all the features you want, hook yourself up.

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Crappy stereo receiver, heh.

Great remote control and display. Well-conceived listening modes for every type of user, room, speaker setup, etc.

None. For $200, I feel vindicated as a consumer.

I'm extremely pleased with this receiver. Using it only for music presently, but will develop home theater environment in the months ahead. Bought it at Outpost.Com for $199.00, overnight delivery, no shipping charges [best e-vendor yet, by far]. Sells at Sam's Club for $249.95 and still a bargain. If you want a loaded, top notch receiver, this one is very strong. Audiofiles with unlimited dollars and hyper-sensitive ears may disapprove of Kenwood and/or this particular model, but I'm not disappointed at all. NOT AT ALL!

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Fisher, JVC

This receiver is powerful, easy to use, sounds great.

none

I wanted to upgrade my system by getting rid of my shelf system "which are not that good to begin with"to a better one. I researched a little and found out a little about receivers, and what to look for. i went to Sam's and i saw this Kenwood VR-307 for $180 so i bought it. when i brought it home and hooked it up to some speakers it sounded great. i will later put Polk Audio Rt35i's too it with a sub. this receiver has a lot of power for the buck and good sound. i highly recommened this for any one unless you have a little more money and buy a pre-amp and a amp "witch was what i really wanted to do. But i am happy with what i got.

Delivers great sound in a variety of formats with a punch.

Too many function jammed into a couple of buttons and knobs.

I love the VR307, I've read the reviews posted he on it.
I've owned Cerwin Vega, Bose and a variety of other speakers. We are all familiar with the quality of Cerwin Vega U-12's and the feeling of the precursor of surround sound that Bose 501's attempted to deliver. In my humble opinon those models met the standard.

My vintage Cerwin Vega U-12's had the cone supporting material blown out by the VR307. The fans in the stands of
a Hockey rink, constantly ask me to turn the volume down.
Fuses of the various speakers used have blown 2x. I think that's enough said about the power of the VR307.

My only gripe after working with the majestic Merantz and Kenwood in the 80's & 90's. Would be the button and knob reductions on this machine. I like to make quick adjustments during the game and remembering which button does what. Makes me long for my old Newmark Mixer (after 24yrs of DJ exp).

I still think it's a steal even with the button & S-Jack issues.

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Merantz, Kenwood and many many others

SUPER Cheap entry level Dolby digital reciever

Not DTS, No S-Video Switching, Clumsy Interface, Lack of multiple optical interfaces, EXTREME LACK OF POWER

I got this reciever, used, because I wanted to take advantage of Dolby Digital with my new DVD Player. I couldn't figure out why it was in a used Audio Shop, and was still a current model. Silly Me, I traded my Onkyo tx-sv454 and $75 bucks for this reciever. ( what a fool I was, even if my Onkyo was only Pro-Logic)

Well, I got it home, hooked it up, fumbled my way through the manuals and was THUROUGHLY diappointed by the sound imaging I experienced. I then spent the next 9 months upgrading my cables, speakers, and rearranged my living room to figure out why this thiung sounds so poor. To listen to a DVD, I would regularly have to put the volume up to 38+.

Well, Now I know, the crummy thing is ONLY 48 watts per channel, RMS. Jeez. My boom Box has more power than that!

Anyway, I corrected my mistake by purchasing a Yamaha HTR-5450, and to date, have not regretted it a bit. Heck, I even got $124.00 out of the Kenwood on E-bay!!!!!

Save your money, don't be cheap when buying home theatre products!

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Onkyo TX-SV454, Onkyo TX-SV575, Yamaha HTR-5450, Sony DRE-975ex, Pioneer VX-508s

Great sound, simple, inexpensive

no DTS, confusing in the beginning

I use this receiver for a 5.1 setup in a fairly small room, so I may bot be gettin the mst from the system, but the Kenwood VR-307 is a good product. I've had for almost two years now, and I've gotten so used to the great sound that i'm almost angry when i rent a movie w/o a 5.1 track. the best thing about the receiver is taht its simple. the instruction booklet is pretty small, and the front of the receiver isnt all crammed with all kinds of useless buttons and dials. everything is easy access. a great product.

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