Appearance, functions, quality and sound are all 10/10.

Remote:

Don't drop it or hand it over to non-tech persons.
Point it directly (within +/- 5 degrees)at the receiver.
Be quick - the light goes out after 6 sec !
Don't get mad just because only half the functions are available and thereby force you to have all 5 remotes on your table ! Remote can not be programmed.
Check that all systems can be connected. A 2 year old top model Nokia TV could not be used on the remote despite 3 preprogrammed Nokia connections and 150 TV connections in all. A 1 year old Sony CD didn't have the correct on/off button to be used on the remote.

New hi-fi needed after 20 years with the same old junk. Why not go after some quality.

Well it's a jungle out there, but at the end it was Kenwood VR4900 or Sony STR-DA50ES. I took the Sony for the remote, which at first hand looked great. The remote is one big mistake, but I see that Kenwood gets the same remarks for a lousy remote (but Kenwood can be programmed). So forget all about 2-way all in one remotes.

Within a week I bought 2 more Sony ES products and 5 new speakers (I bought min. 2 sets of all products but kept only one of each). So my final set-up was:

Sony STR-DA50ES, Sony DVP S7700, Sony MDS JA20ES
Speakers: B&W Nautilus HTM1 + DM602S2, Whaferdale Topaz 15'' + Modus one.

DA50-ES sounds crystal clear and natural and for high volume there is no distortion even at levels where it hurts. The set-up opportunities are immense nearly too much to handle. Without the remote its a 5 star - with remote 4 star.

Similar Products Used:

Keenwood VR4900

awesome power, lots of soundfields to play with, lots of inputs and solid as a rock

big remote, need two hands.
no coaxial input for minidisc

i bought this baby from a guy who went bankrupt the same day he bought it, so i got it at HALF the price !
this baby will rock the house, drive any speakers of any given impedance, and the soundfields are....a lot
the only negative thing i found here is the remote. of course it is quite impressive to have a touch-screen remote, but it's not very handy. i have the one that shuts itselfs off after a few seconds, which was very anoying in the beginning, but once you found your ideal setup, you get used to it, you just don't need it for longer then that time.
for all the rest, this is a big and impressive machine and it gets five, only the big guys from denon or yamaha do better, but they cost twice the price!

Similar Products Used:

denon 3300, sony 930

Power,Features,Easy to use,Sound

Remote eats batteries

I use it with an Alesis monitor system.These speakers are very hard to handle.Though,the sound is slamming and punching with DVD and subtile enough to play from records and CD`s.I am very happy with it and heard also a soundsystem with regular speakers in a shop nearby.They recommended this receiver as an allround receiver with a lot of options and a powerfull sound.After one year of daily use I recommend this receiver as a five star buy.It sounds far better than a Denon and a Ymaha.Only the remote is far from perfect.This thing eats batteries!

Sound quality, Amplifier power, Number of inputs and outputs, Build quality

Operating temperature, No 5.1 channel input

I bought this unit to upgrade to Dolby Digital from my old Pro-Logic receiver. This is my first experience with one of Sony's ES products, and I have to say I'm impressed. The build quality lives up to its reputation. I had comtemplated buying the DA30ES, but I'm now glad I spent the extra money.

The sound of this unit is phenominal. The amplifier is plenty to make my speakers sing like they never did before. One listen and any doubts about spending the extra money went away quickly. Since I first purchased this unit, I've bought a powered sub woofer and a DVD player with DTS output. The sound from the DTS version of Saving Private Ryan is outstanding. The processor in this unit is incredible.

Aside from that I also like the features and connectivity of this unit. The soundfields are neat, but I really enjoy the flexibility of the equalizer that's built in and the control it gives you in the soundfields. The back panel is chocked full of inputs and outputs and I use all of them. The ES receivers feature a CD optical input which is very handy for me. I also enjoy being able to hook my MD recorder to the receiver with the optical ins and outs. I have found a noticeable sound difference using the optical cables over the analog ones.

This unit does, however, get very hot. It's now on a shelf with about 16 inches of clearance above it and it's doing much better, but still gets very warm. I guess that has to happen to produce all that power. It does a good job of dissipating the heat. It only takes 5 to 10 minutes to cool off complete once the unit is turned off.

I bought this unit in early June and it was replaced by the 555ES shortly thereafter. The 555ES has 5.1 input which I would have liked to have for future expandability, but right now I have no need for it. Many people don't like the remote, but I get along with it fine. I like being able to scroll through the titles of the CD's in my two 200 disc changers on the touch screen, and it shows the titles for my MD's too. The only thing I don't like about is that I have to sit up in bed and turn it one at night to do something. I still have the remote to my old Sony receiver, however, and it works on this unit fine. As a result, I don't use the touchpanel much at all. I have had it updated and it's working better now than when I first got it.

I highly recommend this unit or the 555ES. Both of them are great units for the money.

Similar Products Used:

Sony STR-D1015

funny the canadian site www.sony.ca and the canadian literature has always listed the 50es as 120 watts. so i have been told that sony didnt actually change the receiver just the specs for the US. yamaha is also very guilty of this. one thing you read says one spec and another says something different.
ps. i took my remote in for the fix and everything is fine. also the new sonys will come out this summer. i see the major change is 5 channel inputs. im not sure that is a big deal or not.

but still a 5 star reciver for under 700bucks.

Great surround sound, enough equal power to all 5 speakers, lots of DSP modes, can adjust distances, loudness, delay, and highs, mids, and lows responses to match different speakers perfectly. Remote is very eyecatching to guests.

Remote shuts off too quickly

This a great receiver. I picked it up for $500 shipped to me from Oade Brothers. Ask for Jim, he is a great guy to buy from. After much research, I decided on the vaunted ES series from Sony. I was thinking about the newer 555ES and 777ES models that are running for $750 and $1000 and noticed that the 50ES is the the exact same as the 555ES but without the 5.1 inputs in the back and for hundreds less. I've tried many speaker combinations with this receiver and none of them could not be driven excellently with this horse. So many options come with the 50ES to adjust for any speaker combination and the 26 different soundfields are almost an overkill, although the Digital Cinema Theatre that Sony creates is one I get a lot of use out of. The remote was harder to adjust to than most other manufacturers but after I did, everything was controllable with a couple of touched. It did draw many complements for it's touchscreen design but it still shuts off too quickly. You also have to get used to the ackwardly placed power off button.

If you are looking to buy a great receiver and are tired of that crap you see at Best Buy, Circuit City, and others, go with the Sony ES line. It is well worth the additional money and all ES receivers come with a 5 Year Warranty.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer VSX D906S,Kenwood VR-205, Sony STR-DE935

this is a note to all 50es owners who are frustrated with the remote. i to have gone through the sony fix at a service center and needless to say am not too happy. the LCD isn't much brighter and we can't keep the screen on for longer than 10 secs. not sure about the battery life... i have an idea which might help... the remote for the 30es does all the functions as the "other" remote and the battery lasts months!!!! longer. it's a pretty cool remote... some of the ergonomics isn't well thought out... but it does work for a longer time and the screen is visible. i would think that sony would offer this remote as a replacement for 50es owners at n/c. good luck!!!!!!!

DTS and Dolby Digital---Good Power

Remote control sucked really bad. I have had some bad remotes, but this one takes the cake! Runs hot/sounds much like other sony receivers

Basically, this unit wasn't too bad for the amount of money I spent...I feel sorry for those who spent 1000 bucks on this though! I picked it up for 550 new in box as a left over. DTS decoding wasn't too bad nor was its power. However, the sound clarity wasn't there at high levels. I used this product for 1 month and sold it. I purchased a Yamaha 995 for $749 and let me tell you --- there is a BIG difference in sound quality, imaging, and freedom from distortion. It seems Sony gave their "mediocre" receivers a few more watts and slapped an "ES" symbol on the front of the 50ES.
As for the remote--forget it. I wound up using a universal remote--which was a pain since it couldn't work all the functions. For this type of money---especially if you pay retail--the remote control should be user friendly.
As for anyone reading this trying to decide if they should buy one---Please dont. Spend your money wisely on a Denon, Yamaha, or Pioneer Elite---chances are, you will keep them alot longer! I give this 2 stars for the price I paid for it!

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha 995, Denon avr3300, Pioneer Elite 24TX

I recently went to a CES show that demonstrated the newest ES Receiver from Sony. This receiver retails for $1000. It has Dolby Digital and DTS with all DSP modes processed in 32 bit. It has a wealth of power for its price and size and has excellent sound in it's price category. I just think about how only one year ago they didn't even make a dolby digital receiver in this prie range and now they have become far more competitive with Yamaha by creating the worlds first Dolby Digital/DTS with 32 bit DSP for $1000. This unit smokes and kicks the hell out of the Kenwood 2090.Best of all, I found this fine product for $649 shipped to my door with a 5 year warranty !!!
IMHO, this receiver currently represents the best value of the market !!!
But don't take my word for it, go, listen, and be amazed !!!

4 star for overall performance (I reserve 5 star for the Yamaha DSP A1 of course)

5 star for the value it represents at $649 shipped to your door !!!!

Number optical inputs, ease of use

Questionable remote, power amplifier sound quality

I've had my unit for just about a year now and I truly enjoy it. I had some minor problems at first with the unit and I had to have the unit replaced. After using it for about a week I realized that soumthing sounded a bit odd, so I disabled the amplifier output and went pre-out to my Carver amplifier (which the Sony was replacing). It was then I noticed that the power amplifier was a bit rough sounding. Granted I am an audio snob and most people wouldn't have noticed, but I did. So the next thing I did was to pick up a Sunfire Cinema Theater Grand power amplifier to use instead of the power amplifier within the Sony. To me, it makes a huge difference probably because I prefer a smooth tube-like sound over a MOSFET type sound.

Things I like:
Usability, number of inputs, 2-way remote (very nice but needs work), overall sound quality.

Things I would improve:
Preamp imaging (doesn't compare to a Bob Carver product), power amp clarity, remote (add a joystick rather than force us to push arrow buttons and don't keep turning on the TV), add component video inputs and output, input/output mapping like on the Denon AVR-5700 (very, very nice)