The best receiver money can buy.

Mainly the manual, and lack of volume display

This thing is a monster…it’s one of the best receivers you can get for the money. The raw power is outstanding. I have the unit connected to Klipsch RB5 front… BTW these puppies are great also…but not as good as the RF3, the sound is pure, the distortion is not perceivable, taking in consideration you use a digital sound track. I found that a AAD recording to generate some distortions at higher levels, pass 7. But who can listed pass 7 for longer that a few minutes. If you do you will need a hearing aid. In any case the manual is limited to coloring book level reading. Lots of pictures and no information. The remote manual seems to contain more pages if you like to read the same stuff in several languages. I personally take English. The STR 777 is going fast, its being replaced by the STR -V555ES. When I got my 777 I believed that the V555 (which should not be confused with the 555) which came out last week would be an improvement over the 777. I tried the V555 at home next to he 777. There is a great deal a difference between the two units. I’ll list the major component differences 777 has (18000uF capacitor) V555has (15000uF capacitor) smaller caps means less power capability, 777 wins. The 777 amplifiers, all 10 (left and right for the five channels) are SONY NEP250, the V555 has SK SAP15, from the construction aspect the 777 amps have greater capacity, they have “beefier” construction, and who is SK? The transformer in the 777 is made in Japan, the entire 777 is made in Japan, and it’s also about 0.75” longer than the one installed in the V555, which is made in Malaysia, also the V555 is manufacture in Malaysia, Japan wins my vote when it comes to electronics. The 777 has the infamous serial port, for future upgrades, the V555 does not have such a port, again 777 has won my vote. The case construction of the 777 has little to no vibrations, but theV555 has a great deal of chassis vibration, due to fewer fiber beams glued on the units cover, 777 has 3 beams and 8 anti-vibrations pads, the V555 has two beams only. Also the big difference is in weight, the 777 is about 54lb, the V555 is 34(36) lb. The sound seems to be the same, the additions to the V555 are: composite video switching, which in my opinions should not be used, plug DVD directly to the TV, every connection and every cable adds to the loss of the signal. It also has a virtual 6.1 channel (the center rear channel) the future is coming. For the real thing look at DENON 5800 if you have the $. The V555 has a volume display, this is a big plus, also onscreen display this is nice, and the last item worth mentioning in the remote RM-TP504, it looks the same but the 10 sec timeout is adjustable from 10 to 30 sec and a few other menus, but overall the same.

In my opinion the 777 is a better receiver, V555 is second best.

Similar Products Used:

Denon, Sony

This receiver is the bad boy on the block. Nice, clear sound and willing to accomodate high end components easily.

Sony needs to put more work in the owners manual and they need to explain the remote control better.

I recently upgraded to the Sony STR-DA777ES receiver from a lower end Sony and I am a proud owner of this receiver. It is clear, it is loud, and most of all, its a Sony which I feel is one of the best brands one can purchase. One nice fact is this receiver is software upgradable in the even newer technology or features come out, this receiver won't be obsolite(sp) as easily. I do have one gripe. The owners manual is lacking in the knowledge department. Sony needs to understand that the consumers who purchase the receiver aren't the same ones that built it. This receiver has an upgrade jack (similar to a serial port on a computer). I had to call Sony up to find this out when it should have been in the owners manual. `

This is a six month follow-up. No problems at all. Some have mentioned a rear channel hiss in certain modes. I haven't experienced this at all even at high volume settings. There is a somewhat bootleg software upgrade making the rounds. How stupid are these idiots. Make your own cable, flash rom, hope you don't fry it! HA!
If Sony discontinues this model it will be only because they created the perfect affordable reciever thats built well. In a throwaway world, thats unacceptable.
Glad as hell I got mine!

Sound, Bass management

Sub does not turn off when only B speaker output is selected

I am not going to go too much into the sound of the Sony other than it is great as others have mentioned below. I am more going to post info on how the bass management works as I am sure most new users don't understand how it works.

First off-LFE is not the same as the sub. LFE is a distinct low frequency recording (up to 120hz) on Dolby Digital, hence the .1 in 5.1. It is used to enhance bass output by up to 10db over the mains. Sub is just the low frequencies that the sub produces by whatever crossover setting you select.

In my setup I have my mains set to 40Hz(Paradigm Studio 100's), sub set to 120Hz(Shiva SonoSub), center set to 70Hz(Studio CC) and rears set to 70hz(JBL's).

Dolby Digital
In this case the sub gets the full 120Hz LFE signal as it should as the LFE channel is recorded up to 120Hz. The rest of the speakers cross the bass below their crossover setting to the sub. Not too much of a difference IMHO over my old Yamaha RX-V2095 setup in sound quality but it is still a bit more seamless because the mains are crossed over at 40Hz vs 90Hz as in the Yamaha.

Stereo or any Non Dolby Digital source
In this case the mains play down to their crossover setting (40Hz) and then transfer that info over to the sub. So in my case even though the sub is set to 120Hz the sub does get any info over 40Hz as this is where the mains take over. This is where the Sony shines, everything is 100% more seamless. With the Yamaha I almost always wanted to turn off the sub when listening in stereo as I was always distracted by its presence, now I never even think of it, in fact I truly can't even localize it anymore.

So as you can see from the above there are two distinct bass management routes depending on the source. This this is important as the Dolby Digital LFE signal is designed to go up to 120Hz, setting the sub anywhere below that limits this and crossing that info over to the mains may hurt the dynamics. Sony has developed a way to have the best of both worlds by altering the bass management for both Dolby Digital and non Dolby Digital sources.

PS-I did not have any problems understanding the instruction manual. Just take the time to read it.

The lack of a light on the Volume does not bother me but Sony should have included it.

I love the remote. Unless you want to go out and spend another $200 plus on a remote this one is the more than adequate and allows me to finally have one remote for all my equipment. It even lists all my CD's by name as I have a Sony 200 disk CD changer.

The EQ allows you to change 3 parameters (bass, mid, treble) per speaker (mains, center rears) +/- 10db

Hope this helps some people. Terry

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha RX-V2095 for 6 months

Very solid, extremely tweekable, more than enough usable power.

Manual and online support are very weak. remote gets tiring in the beginning while setting everything up.

Just got everything set up and checked out all my favorite CD's and DVD scenes and I feel no remorse in shelling out the extra $$ over the 555ES as this amp will last for an extremely long time. If they change to a new format, it has a 9 pin serial port for reprogramming the decoder software and the power this thing pumps out is ALL good! If you wear hearing protection and have a set of speakers that can take the power you could actually crank it up to close to 10 :)

I checked with Sony and they say that the BTL mode (Balanced Transformorless Output) is when you specifically set it to 2CH stereo, and some stats claim in this mode you will be getting 200W X 2 or 120W X 2 @ .02% , but I have my doubts after doing some comparing. Still, very clean and sweet sound regardless.

The best thing about this receiver is the fact that you can tweek all the speakers to your hearts content! ( although for significantly less the 555ES has all those tweeks as well )

So, my observations are that if you want to save $400-$500 and still have a boat load of features, but don't thirst for raw power as much so, and don't mind the non-learning version of the touch screen remote, and wouldn't miss the added security of the software upgradeable decoding, go with the 555ES. Plus the 555ES is about 19 pounds lighter so you will save your back ;)

For me though, happiness is a warm 777ES!

Amps, clarity, expandibility, incredible value for the price

No EX (but who needs it)

I am not a Sony fan, but I purchaseed this product in January after reading some reviews and briefly listening to it. Apart from the remote, which I replaced with a Pronto, I have absolutely no complaints, but I go on raving about the great sound in HT DD, DTS as well as in audio direct to my high-end Cd player. I'd give this receiver 10 stars (20 for value) if I could

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha, Denon, Onkyo, Marantz all can't hold a candle to this receiver at this price

Terrific sound, solidity, versatility in creating sound fields,

haven't noticed any.

I bought this receiver last week. The day I brought it home and hooked it up I kind of regretted buying it. I thought I should have bought the Yamaha 2095 instead. The Yamaha was my preference until I read the reviews about the Sony on this site.
With my previous stereo receiver, a Heathkit AR1500, I turned it on, tuned in and listened. Not the Sony. The Sony is more like a computer that needs to be programmed. At first I couldn't figure out the receiver or the remote. After reading both manuals and experimenting with the receiver and remote, I now begin to understand. Now I wouldn't part with the Sony. The sound is truly spectacular and I now know why other reviewers were so ecstatic about it. I listen 99% to classical music and am really impressed by the sonic quality of the Sony. The remote control and the receiver programs are also straight forward. But they takes a little while to figure them out.

Power,54 pounds,waranty,style,remote to control all equipment,"YOU ARE NOT GOING TO BE MAD WHEN YOU GET IT"

The remote can take a little time to get use too.

When I first hooked up this receiver it made a big difference. The other receivers I had compared were not bad but not good enough to change my one the purchase. The Nik-10 for the price FORGET IT,Denon not a bad deal but not enoough,Marantz was a tough decision great sound-remote but the 777 proved to be the better buy. Very,Very,Very pleased with this product and I know you will be to.

Similar Products Used:

Marantz-8000 Denon-3300 Nikamichi-av10

Perfect sound, power and looks

none

The best receiver in the market under $1500. I am very happy with this puppy. Clean sound and enough gadgets to surrender any home theater enthusiast.

Similar Products Used:

Denon AVR-3300, Pioneer Elite 29TH, Yamaha 995

Superior clarity and power. Tight bass response, and very high tweakability factor. Build, Build, Build!

Some may find it a tad too bright, but that may be tweaked away with all the features this baby has.

I have Klipsch speakers and was very skeptical of the Sony due to all the comments I've read about the dreaded Sony/Klipsch combo. I had originally purchased the 2095 aforementioned and had it for about a week. Somehow it just didn't sound right to me in 2 channel stereo mode. Now I know that these receivers are home theater lugs, but my criteria for purchase was to have one that kicked butt in Home Theater as well as 2 channel stereo. All the experts seemed to think that Denon was the way to go in 2 channel. So I compared these three receivers:

4800, 777, and the 2095. The Sony won. The Denon was the closest as it's mid-range was a bit better than the Sony's and the Yamaha's. But the Sony beat them both in bass response or tightness of bass if you will. The Yamaha and Denon were just a tad boomy compared to the Sony. But the real surprise was the definition of clarity and depth in the soundstage. I heard separation of instruments on the Sony that I didn't hear on the other two.

This is not the 555! But don't take my word for it. Make sure you at least listen to this bad boy in comparison with anything else you want to buy before you buy. Don't base your decision on the 777 in relation to all the other Sony receivers. This has a lot more in common with the 9000 separates than with the other two ES receivers. You just may be surprised.

Lastly, the 777 can adjust the gain and frequency of the Mid-range, bass, and treble of the all the speakers in you home theater system. Pretty cool!

5 stars for the Sony in both categories.

4800, 3 stars for value (500$ more than the 777, and just for THX in my opinion), 4 for overall.

RX-V2095. 5 star for value due to all the surround sound features, but 3.5 star for overall. A good receiver but not quite as good as the Denon and definitely not as good as the Sony.

p.s. your results with the 3300, DSP-A1, 5700 and various other receivers may vary. Above all compare with your own ears, and not just the reviews on this website.

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha RX-V2095 Denon AVR-4800