Inexpensive, DSP

Only two optical inputs, unit runs a little hot, remote
has hidden panel that is NOT obvious

I was looking to update my older Dolby prologic unit for my new dvd player, and lucked out- I got a salesman who knew about this unit. Had all the features I wanted at a very good price. Definelty worth the price for those on a budget and can't afford (or don't want) the upper-end units avail.

Chassis is well-built

Sony reputation for building unreliable electronics

This unit loks about like all the others,in that they all look the same. This Sony has a lot more apparent quality in its chassis construction than the Kenwood VR-309. Its tuner has a rating that puts it in the top of this class, i.e. dBf selectivity of 11.2 vs. Kenwood's 15.2. I really don't know much at this point about why one receiver is better than another. I mean, all the reviews I read in the Mags (HOME THEATER for example) are so shallow in that they don't really tell you anything; just stupid stuff like "I recommend you run out and buy this now", to paraphrase. I need more nuts and bolts information. WHY is one product better than the other? Really why. Not just "I think it sounds great". I could go on but I don't see the point. Why are you still reading this? Its over.

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Onkyo tx-ds575

Price,Design,Capabilities.

remote,can't connect an equalizer.

The built in EQ offers very limited capability adjusting the sound. A very big minus is that the unit does not have a Tape Monitor option so no external EQ can be connected.
A big plus is Digital Cinema Sound which is a Sony Logo.

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AIWA

Price, features, sound

no svideo switching

Got the 635 from onecall.com for only $245 and it has really made a difference over my old pro-logic receiver when watching DVDs. This is a great product for anyone looking for a Dolby Digital unit for under $300. Lots of features and setup options. No regrets whatsoever.

-m

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Sony STR-305z

I’ve had mine Several months now – incredible sound and value. I had the Sony 333 ES and a Denon 3300 in my home for a short time and they were no better. I especially did not like the Denon because it had limited tone control. The 635 features can become a little overwhelming especially if your not a gadget freak but it rewards your efforts with exceptionally clear sound unique to your tastes.

I did notice in (2) of the units I previewed that the Right Rear surround was a little weak. This was true even when the noise generator test indicated a good balance although I had no sound meter to confirm this. I would recommend that Sony spend a little more time calibrating the rear channel balance.

You only get composite video connectors, but I have notice no detectable degradation in Video and until the HT industry gets there act together more on audio & video formats, I am unwilling to invest a lot of money.

Yes it runs hot, but no hotter than the Denon's or Pioneer's I'm familiar with. I always keep my gear on 24 hrs a day to reduce thermal cycling and inrush stress.

I use Infinity Kappa’s with a Sunfire True Subwoofer. For the money – nothing comes close to the 635. 5-Stars!!

Price

Remote

As far as value I feel I made out like the devil. I picked up this receiver at a very low price. 299.00 CDN, thats 199.00 USD. I couldn't have gotten a DD reciever anywhere near this price at the time I bought it, the *45 series Sony products were just arriving.

My only major complaint is the remote. I won't get into that since its been hashed over repeatedly before.

One other issue. I had had a Sony STR-D1090. The first thing I noticed when hooking up the STR-DE635 was that the surprisingly excellent bass response I got out of my mission 760 loudspeakers all but disappeared. Setting the speaker settings to large in the recievers setup helped, but by no means to the extent I had enjoyed before. This reciever is designed to be used with a subwoofer, period. I know what my 760s are capable of and this reciever isn't sending them the signal. Slightly irritating. I'm not too concerned since I do intend to put in a sub soon, but felt that its a point needing mention.

Has anyone else noticed this trend with 5.1 recievers? Curious. Drop me a note.

I do want to note, despite problems with Sony units, I still feel Sony always delivers in the 'best bang for the buck' department. I'm giving five stars for value based on its low price and feature set. I do warn a high learning curve on that feature set.

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Sony STR-D1090

All its features; Remote has alot of features, design of reciever & remote

Remote doesn't support alot of brands of certain electronics, heats up very quickly, & music doesn't sound as surround it should.

I purchased the STR-DE675 at Best Buy & got 6 free speakers with the purchase of any Dolby Digital reciever. So I am now using the reciever, but not those crappy speakers. This reciever is the best bang for your buck in my opinion.
The reciever is great for those who have many video sources. There are so many video inputs it is incredible... and most have an s-video input. Then there is an s-video output for awesome clarity. The audio features are 4 optical inputs and 1 optical output for perfect quality cd recordings. I would highly recommend this product, because of its incredible features and design.

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Philips, Yamaha

Loud, amazing surround, great price

no s-vid

Great reciever....first surround system I owned. So far never treated me bad, took everything i threw at it and kept running.
definatly worth it for a lower-midrange surround reciever

For the bucks a pretty nice reciever

Over all design of the remote and the complexity involved in setting up the EQ ranges.

All in all this is a solid reciever. The primary weaknesses are the often confusing and not too well laid out remote control buttons (the top portion flips up) and the features/settings that require some serious tinkering to figure out. These problems are the mark of a good deal of over-engineering.

Still I think there should have been more optical hookups one for the Cd and one extra for a future digital source
but for $199.00 (tax included) this is just a gripe.

Once you get the settings to your tastes, you should find the reciever fulfilling many ,if not most, of your needs as a good basic reciever. The bass response will get some kick out of most floor standing speakers and the Mid range and Treble can likewise be tweaked to meet your listening
preferences. For the price this is a good reciever.

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Sony Str-GX 700 ES, Kenwood KR-V107R

Got the unit couple of days ago and it rocks, the set up capabilitys is great as well as reproduction of our almighty sound. For the price it is a shure thing.The remote is better to handle than what we seen before from sony.
It drives my 4 ohm speakers alright, sound is crisp and clear.
Digital surrond is the way to go.
For the money it is an absolute...........