Sounds Great! Plenty of inputs including digital, Digital output, easy to program. Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS decoding, DVD's sound great. LCD Remote is handy

No light on the volume knob (not too big a deal), Soudfields are not too useful considering they seem to be the main upgrade from less expensive models.

I was going to buy a similar Sony reciever which retialed for $299 and had many of the same options, but I was informed that this model including free speakers which were worth about $100. So I bought it. I must admit that it sounds really good. I hooked it up to some old crap speakers that are 15 years old and they sound good! I couldn't believe it. DVD's especially The Matrix and Ronin sound great on this reciever. If your into Jazz or Electronic music like me then you might enjoy the 27 different soundfileds which basiclly add reverb to whatever you are listening to. It looks cool which is a bonus. I went back and listened to some cheaper models that also had DTS and DD 5.1, but they didn't sound as clean. For $399 it's worth it, but look out because I know some of the Sony ES recievers are coming down in price. My Friend got the ES 333 for $499! Shop around but if you see this reciever for less than $350, go for it.

Sound, Inputs

Instruction manual, difficult to set up.

This is a great receiver for anyone. The sound is great. The biggest flaw is the instuction manual. It does not describe anything in depth. It was also difficult to get set up. Other than that it is great. At first I thought the remote was cool, but after using it for a couple of days, i have to agree with the other reviewers and say that it sucks. However the flaws in no way are enough for me not to highly recommend this receiver.
Thanks to all of the other reviewers for writing. It helped me out immensley.
Another thing, don't shop at best buy. The salesmen are very annoying. Everyone says "we don't work on commission" like i really care. Also, i was asked about 6 times to buy an extended warranty. It also took forever and they tried talking me into buying another receiver.

Similar Products Used:

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POWER!! Just everything! Great Receiver

Remote can be a pain. i still use some of the other remotes.

Ok, this receiver ROCKS. I'm fairly new at this whole Home Theater Thing but the Sony receiver is awesome! it replaced my old Kenwood receiver which did not even have close to as many features as the new sony. Yesterday I was watching football and had so much fun playing with the different sound fields. WOW!! Gladiator on DVD!!!!!!! The Digital sound is amazing! All of my speakers are Polk. Rt800 are my front, fx500 in the rear, Polk 245 for the center and a Polk 250 for the sub. Wow does a sub add so much more to the Sound. As you can see I'm Really happy with the purchase.

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood Receiver.

clean sound

remote, no lit visual indication of volume

This unit repaced another Sony (see above) that hissed. So far, the sound on this one is clear and clean. There is no hiss from any of the speakers. It is very easy to set up, the front panel readout gives plenty of useful information, and it plays DVD movies incredibly well. The only (minor) complaints I have are that the remote utilizes this little LCD screen that you must scroll through to control the various components of your home theater and there is no visual indication of the volume level -- the other unit had a lit numbering system on the front panel, this one has no indication other than a small white dot on the volume knob, but you cannot see this from across the room or in the dark.

These are minor quibbles. The sound is what counts and here it delivers in a big way.

Similar Products Used:

Sony STR-DE545

see previous review

This is an addition to my previous review (below). This receiver also has a very sensitive tuner. The 'DE545 that I replaced this one with could not bring in anything but the strongest FM stations (and this was while being connected to a decent antenna). This unit excels in that respect.

Another reason to get this unit.

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lots of hiss on rear chanels!!!!!! I am so dissapointed in the rear chanels hiss i hate this reciver, i have awesome avr9s for fronts and a acr4 for centenels for center and ar 15's for rears!

ok with low volume with small speaker pakage frome sony, but with any audiophile like myself who wants the best for less I recomend nothing other than the Marantz SR 7000 receiver.

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other sony recivers!

superb clairity,tons of bells&whistles,dts,3opt ins,5-s-videos,2 sub outs,ect.

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better than your average reciever some say theres alot of hiss not on mine.maybe its the speakers their using i have aiwa center and surrounds infinity towers for fronts best system ive heard and ive heard most all of them. THANX SONY

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pioneer

Great sound, nice features. Automatic decoding is excellent and soundfields are great. I had a TA-E1000ESD which was the top-of-the-line ES from about 6 years ago and ran over $1200 in the states and the 845 blows it away in clarity. I was running good amps too! By the way it is for sale, with amps.

A lit nob would be nice, no digital CD input and the remote..

This unit sounds great! No question about it. I am a pretty picky listener and buy what I like based on the the quality - whether it be because of sound reproduction in the case of speakers or capabilities and sound of the machine. My old system was a true lower end audiophile setup that would impress most people and would have cost over $6K in America - being military you can buy things abroad much cheaper near the source. Now, I don't even look back! Apples and oranges....

The DTS and Digital are outstanding... I'll just leave it at that... OUTSTANDING! Great volume too. I mated this unit to a Sony DVD player (DVP-S560) and it is great! I have B&W DM640 main speakers and B&W Ovale satelite rears. I just purchased a Sony SA-WM40 and let me say that thing is fantastic too! Blew all the other subs for twice the money out of the water. The only thing it couldn't come close to touching was a Cerwin Vega 15" that ran over $500. World of difference while playing movies! Again I purchased this by sound, then checked the reviews... My ears are still working great...

As I mentioned I was not fond of the remote initially, but I am tolerable of it now and like some of the features. For instance, when you switch the sytem to DVD mode, it will automatically switch the TV to the video setting (Video 1) and set the receiver to DVD and set the surround format. Kind of nice... I really like the Auto Format Decode which selects the highest surround possible for the DVD - that is unless you need to manually set the audio via the DVD menu. Really a nice feature. I would recommend this to anyone. My girlfriend and her it's just a stereo or it's just a car mantality (y'all know what I mean) even says "that sounds awesome, I can really tell a difference!"

B&W DM 640 main speakers (AWESOME!)
B&W Ovale satellite speakers (rear)
BOSE VCS-10 (*OK* sound - I like the compactness)
Sony STR-DE845 A/V Receiver
Sony DVP-560 DVD player - Monster Cable fiber connections
Sony CDP-CA80ES 5 Disc Changer

Similar Products Used:

TA-N1000ESD A/V Integrated Amp with TA-N330ES Amplifiers.