DD,DTS,AC3RF & New Pricing

No Source Auto Switching

I was interested in upgrading to a new HomeTheater AV Receiver Inarrowed it down to 3 A.The Denon AVR 3300 B. Sherwood MkII & C. Pioneer Elite VSX27. Denon pulled all the 3300's from the internet stating anyone caught selling this model would lose their license to sell any of their products,Pioneer was a little to steep for my wallet But when Sherwood Anounced a price cut to $799.00 for Either the 945 or the 945MkII I rushed out and bought one. I'm 49 years old & my hearing is not as good as it once was, All 3 Units sounded very good to me, I'm using it for Movies only, My music is on another system. For this price this system can't be beat.As for all the complaining about who made this Unit or Where it was made! Which is more important the way it sounds & its functions or where it came from? To Me ,I feel very good about my choice and If later I don't like it I'll replace it with something that sounds or performs better.

Similar Products Used:

Sherwood RV6030

Plain & simply THE BEST Pre-Amp I have ever seen with a beautiful chasse & remote to boot. Unfortunately, I purchased this TO BE USED as a receiver,NOT as a pre-amp!! As a pre-amp this unit would get 5 stars!!, but for "MUSIC" (cd's, vinyl, tape, etc.) this unit has to be the WORST sounding piece of garbage I have ever heard!! I purchased this through mail order last week, and, unfortunately I'm returning it. I'll Probably exchange it for the Yamaha 995. Normally I would have purchased the HK avr-65, but, since there's been so many problems w/it I'll be getting the Yamaha. Too bad that Sherwood DIDN'T put 1/2 of the configuration & design in the amplification stage of this receiver as they did in the pre-amplification stage. If they did, it would be one of the finest receivers EVER made. Unfortunately, THEY DIDN'T!! My 29 year old Fisher & my 14 year old Onkyo "sonically" put it to
shame, and THE MUSIC IS WHERE IT COUNTS.... Do any of you folks use these av-receivers for anything other than home theater? You really have me wondering....

For the gentleman?? before me who bashed one of the previous reviewers, I too have auditioned SEVERAL NEW receivers ($800.00 to $1,200.00) and have found that the R-945 DOESN'T even come close to the musicality of the Harman avr-65,the Yamaha 795, or even the 995!! Maybe Marc from Santa Monica (YEAH YOU) should stay in the west coast and listen w/your sushi ears!!! Are you sure you don't work for the 3 times now?? bankrupt Sherwood folks ???

This posting is for Sandra D.
Pleae re-read my posting. You too, don't seem to understand what this site is for. By the way, the same company, Inkel, makes Harman Kardon AND Sherwood Newcastle.
Angry, uninformed and illiterate is no way to go through life.

Okay, here's a, hopefully, unbiased, more informed and thoughtful review since people who are perusing this might be put off of a good product by people who will never hold a job as a writer or reviewer (the spelling, ugh!). First of all, Inkel (not Inktel or whatever) is the parent company of Sherwood and Sherwood Newcastle. They have made or do make equipment for Denon (not Dennon as a "dealer" spells it), H/K (the award-winning AVR-20 & 25 - Sherwood!), Marantz (I've heard, but I can't name a model), Kenwood, Fisher, well anyway, if you see a Japanese brand that says "Made in Korea" it's almost certainly from an Inkel plant. But most of the new stuff is coming out of their England plant for what it's worth. Anyway, the new Mark II is a great machine for its price. It has a good remote in the Universal SL-7000 (but limited compared to the SL-9000, available with more expensive, American designs), it has DTS which is a huge plus (although it's not automatic as is becoming more and more popular). It is very well built (and heavy) with new, upgraded power supplies with power caps for each channel in addition to the main power supplies so it is more powerful and dynamic than before. Dennon ;-) dealers should listen again with unbiased ears to the improvement. But, hey, it's obviously the amount of awards it has won that is causing such inflammatory remarks, because it certainly isn't the sound. This unit is an over-achiever for its price. You may have a different taste, but anyone who says it's awful doesn't know much about audio or sound. Plus, it looks so darn much better than its price allows for that "black box" audio manufacturers should be a little scared. This is definitely a case of try it and don't listen to audiophile-wannabes who try to tear everything down but their "pet" brand. If it had an SL-9000 remote, a 6-channel input for SACD/DVD-Audio and automatic signal detection it would be a 5 (and a world-class butt-kicker) for sure but it doesn't so I'll give it a 4. Lighten up everyone!

Hello everyone, I wanted to add my two cents on the review of the Sherwood Newcastle 945 MKII. I have owned the unit for about 2 months now and have nothing but good things to say about it. I looked for several months for a receiver that has the features of this unit with excellent sound quality. The main feature I was trying to get was a unit that has DTS, AC-3 decoding with a built in RF input for LaserDisc players. Believe me, for the price, this unit is the only unit that has all these features. The next unit that has all these features is the Yamaha DSP A1 which is $2000. I paid around $850 from Uncle's Stereo in New York for the MKII. I have listened to many receivers including, Marantz, Yamaha, Sony ES, etc..., and the Sherwood is definately in the same class as all of these. It is a very well built unit and I can drive my large 4-way 12" woofer speakers without a problem. The sound is extremely clean and quiet. There is very little hiss if any at high volumes. You would have to put your ear right next to the tweeter to hear any. This receiver is definately the most bang for the buck on the market. The automatic switching to DTS that some think they need is just goofy. It is like not only wanting electric windows in your car, but having them automatically open and close based on temperature inside the car. If you are switching from AC-3 to DTS, it means you are changing the media too and you are standing in front of your equipment anyway, so pushing the button is no big deal. The only slightly negative thing I have to say about the unit is that the remote is not a learnable unit, but preprogrammed where you punch in the codes. I've heard is is upgradeable to new codes though. However, it is still better than most remotes with it's backlighting, LCD screen and clean layout. Also the 4 or 5 surround modes that the receiver includes are just average. I never really use them anyway. DTS Laserdiscs with this unit are absolutely FANTASTIC.If you have a Laserdisc player that has digital outs for AC-3/DTS and you want a excellent receiver for under $1000 that can do it all, this is your only choice!

Dave

The AC3 Sound on both DVD and Laserdisc is fantastic, The new price of $799.00 & that remote, what a great remote it controls every piece of gear I have.

The owners guide could explain the various ac3 setups a litte better

5 Stars

Excellent dynamic sound

No auto-switching for DTS

I bought this unit after listening to lots of different units in the same price range, and I have not regretted it for a moment. It looks a bit clunky but the sound is just superb and I am really happy with it. Particularly for movies, this unit really rocks...

DTS, AC3

I've been using this receiver for 9 months now. Overall, the quality is good. However, I have these symptons/problems. I don't know if anyone has the same thing.
1) I have to turn the volumn up at least half way (~44) to get good sound. I thought with its high current and 100 W, I don't need to turn the volume up that high.
2) I have a satelite with digital output. The receiver does not convert digital audio input to analog (ie, composite) audio output for the VCR.
3) The S-VHS output for the VCR does not work properly. The image keeps jumping like the copyright-protection effect.

Haven't really found any.

I find this unit to be excellent!! Like the others stated, it needs volume to push sound. I particularly enjoy the concerts on DVD. I have custom built speaker cabinets with 7 cabinets and 30 speakers on bi-amp system. The Sherwood pushes 5 cabinets and 22 speakers very effectively. We are working on another sound system to increase the ambience. This unit will perform with those costing a lot more. I do not recommend this unit unless you have a good sensitivity rating in you speakers, i.e. 95db spl. I relly enjoy your website and will visit it often!!

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha, Harmon Kardon, Pioneer Elite