i've had this reciever for 1 week after initially buying a str-725(only 1 optical input) and upgrading to a str-825(defective subwoofer connections). i returned my 825 and the salespeople were setting up the 835. i knew of the new features on the 835 but no one yet had them. due to no more 825's and my willingness to buy someyhing else , i got the 835 for $ 333.( plus $ 50. for extended warranty). after hooking this unit up i was very happy but then i started seeing all of the glowing reviews on the new 833es. here we go again. the sony store where i got the 835 didn't carry the es series so today i went to another dealer to hear what the raves were about. here i auditioned the 333es vs. 325 (lower model but still 100w amp in 835) , and a onkyo 747. i listened to these thru KEF 35's , polk rt 800's and several PSB floorstanders. the salesman let me be with my c.d.'s and instructions on how to switch speakers/recievers. after approx. 40 minutes , i came to the following conclusions: the 333es sounded better on PSB's while the onkyo sounded better on KEF's.the lower 325 was only SLIGHTLY less detailed than either of the 2 audiophile recievers. this was in the same controlled environment with all things being equal. i did only listen in c.d. mode and NOT in home theater with dd/dts playing. in my home , with my accoustic environment and with my speakers ( infinity rs 5's ) who knows what would have sounded best. it was now easier to base my decision on sound and price. the best found price on the 835 is at onecall. for $ 313./$ 30. delivery/ $ 60. 6 yr. warranty. local was $ 333./ $ 16. tax / $ 50. 5 yr/3 strike unlimited warranty(4th repair of any kind in 5 yr. period gets new 835 or current replacement). oncall. has 333es for $ 629. delivered with factory 5 yr. limited warranty. local price was $ 650./$ 32.50 tax. for my ears and my money i stayed with the 835. the sound alone wasn't worth the extra cash. i did buy a 4 input/s-video a/v switcher to get 1 extra s-video for my hi-8 camcorder. count this $ 40. in with the purchase and i still feel i made the right decision.I spent a total of $ 442. and feel i have a great sounding unit with a solid warranty. like all other recievers , in 2 yrs this( and the 333es/onkyo 747) will be outdated and newer , cheaper models will be available. for all of the nice features( you know them) this value can't be beat. comparing the 333es vs. the de835 is like comparing a honda to an acura , they're both nice but the acura has slightly better features at a premium price. go with the 835 and save for the next new and improved audio technology around the corner. now for the rating: a solid 5 for sound/value cost ratio and a 3 for reliability due to my 825 ordeal ( probably a 1 time glitch ) average a 4 but still closer to a 5.

I also had a e-quote from onecall but I took it to JandR and they matched it. (good luck w/ them for 15 yrs and cheaper frt) I compared this unit with the Kenwood, Technics and Yamaha price equivalent. Frankly, based on the features that I wanted most (S-vid, 5.1 input, # of digital inputs) the Sony was the only one in this group that had them all.
I was replacing a 5 yr old Sony pro-logic that had served well.
I am impressed with everything they crammed into this price point receiver. My guess is that it has something to do with being the latest introduction.

I wanted to buy the Yam but it was weak on power and didn't have s-vid; neither did the Tech. So, Kenwood vs. Sony. Except no 5.1 on the Kenwood... So I either spend more or the decision is made.

I decided to try the Sony knowing that if it wasn't the one Jand R would take it back. I've had it for 2 weeks now and other than running a little hot it is performing well. DD works great (haven't tried DTS) and it sounds good with music too. I like that it still has the "semi parametric" eq of my 1011 and having a digital out is good for the future.

For a little over $300 this unit is a steal. It has all the features of a unit costing much more and delivers all the performance anything else in this class could. To do substantially better you would have to spend MUCH more.

I bought this receiver from Best Buy for $379. Although it has a lot of features, I am disappointed that it lacks S-video terminals and S-video switching. I may return this one and buy Pioneer VSX-D608.

Just go get one. What else can I say. The dollar value is unbeatable.
Circuit City honored a 10 percent discount coupon I had for Best Buy so I paid $349. It blows away my $800 Onkyo Prologic only receiver. Just watched Outbreak and I swear the DC3 was flying through my living room. The monkey sounds scared my cat.

Only down side is the remote is not preprogammed for my Nakamachi CD player. The remote works my Toshiba 2109, my Sony Cassette player, my JVC vcr and my Panasonic TV. There's even a cool button on the remote for TV so it makes the remote work the TV regardless of the last function selected. That's harder to explain than it is to use.

Easy to set up for defaults. Takes awhile to figure out the equilizer and tweaking adjustments though.

Digital Dolby is superb and the autoselection for input type works great.

Composite and Super VHS switching. But direct SVHS connect to TV from DVD is best anyway.

Audio digital conversion is excellent.

FM and AM sections better than my Onkyo as well.

Unless it blows up, SONY may have gotten it right with this one.

The 935 isn't out but it uses the crappy two way remote.

Jim Middleton

after returning a kenwood vr-2080 I settled on the 835(circuit city $324.00). it has alot more bass ouput than the 2080. I was very pleased with the value of this receiver compared to price.(more bang for the buck).The only negative item about it is that the sat input does not have a S-video input like the DVD and VCR inputs, so i can run the S-video out to my monitor and get a better picture.This is because S-video signals are on a seperate bus from the RCA video jacks and it does not output from both simultaneously.And also the manual does not indicate how it can be done.If you have all S-video components wouldn't you like to take advatage of the better picture?

Just picked up the 835 and I couldn't be happier! I took my old ProLogic Yamaha system back to Sears and moved into the land of Dolby Digital 5.1 sound. Picked it up for $324 plus tax. I have been playing with all the features for the past 4 hours. Recommended quite highly!

I just bought this unit from CameraWorld.com for $319.99. So far so good. Big difference with my Sony Pro-Logic.

Excellent value for the price ($379 at Best Buy). Optical connectors for digital components, S-video output and 5.1 inputs made the product interesting. The DTS & AC-3 decoder onboard are easily accessible with an "auto-digital detect" mode that makes family use almost simple:) A great beginner's receiver for home theatre. My only complaint was with the Remote Commander model RM-PP402 that could not seem to communicate with non-Sony products. The instruction manual even included an addendum that still did not provide the correct codes for my system, altho the remote with the Sony DVD player I purchased last month worked fine with non-Sony components. Go figure! Anyhow, for the price, I doubt that it can be beat.

After much research, I settle for this sony str-de 835 receiver beating out jvc rrx888, that's because i can't find one at a decent price locally. They both have comparable features except the jvc has more power. at any rate, this sony unit holds the ground on its own for the price and features. i got it at best buy for $349 a week ago. there are now s-video interfaces with which i can connect my s-vhs vcr and tv for excellent resolution. the sounds are pretty good at most modes. the only problem and concern that i have with it are the remote does not work too well with a non-sony component such as a philips s-vhs vcr model vr988 (it just does not recognize it) and get quite warm after running for a few hours. i thought this was a thing of the past. want to add another thing, the manuals can be improved with more details, examples, and instruction. other than these, this unit gives a good value and performance for its price if it doesn't overheat on me too soon. rating, a four.

Finally got ahold of one of these babies! I've been holding off on Digital for almost a year but the price/performance of the 835 is unbeatable. Honestly, I was so surprised to the point where I can say I got more for the money I spent. :) It has alot of tweaking to play with and if you don't like that sort of thing, set it to AUTO and forget it. The inputs/outputs really rock with svideo in/out, 3 optical and a coax. Sound is amazing as well, even though I still need a good pair of rears. Bass and LFE is great too. I have already recommended it to others and they are more than satisfied. I got the first 2 that arrived at my local Best Buy for $375. I know I could have waited or travelled to get it for $315 but I was impatient. Overall, an excellent receiver. Next is AC3-DSS.