For $280 (UK£200) its a bargain Easy set up. Concise manual (not the size of a telephone book!) Controller works my DVD player/CD too. Dolby Digital/DTS just like the cinema Enough equaliser/sound settings to keep you going for years!

Uhhhhhh, hold on let me think. Needs room to breathe (can get quite hot) Anything else would be just picky.

I bought the DE875 about a month ago after deciding that my old Kenwood music system was well past its sell by date. I have hooked it up to my Sony DVP-536 with coax, Sony CDP-CE375 and newly purchased M73 Mission speakers + surrounds etc.. I found the DE875 pretty easy to set up to be honest. The input/outputs are pretty self explanatory, so it didn't take me too long to have all my equipment wired in and ready to go. This receiver comes with 27 'sound fields' to choose from, each with the option to change the equaliser settings. Bit of a waste of time if you ask me, you're probably only ever going to use 3 of them at the most. The manual doesn't help much either, unless you like to know which concert hall in Vienna the sound field has been modelled around. So I put my copy of Gladiator in, sat back and pressed play..... I'm not going to go over the top and say 'Wow, it blew my mind away', but it was pretty impressive and easily as good as what I would expect in a cinema environment (minus the sound of rustling popcorn and rowdy kids of course). I also love the added 'girlie' touch of the blue/purple light that comes on to signify dolby digital/dts especially as I've got a similar light on my DVD player. I bought this receiver mainly for its Home Cinema features, but also to breather life into my CD collection. It really kicks some ass, across even my diverse taste in music (Metallica, Fat Boy Slim, Moby, Robbie Williams). To address a couple of points that I have noticed on this site.. I haven't found any problems with the base, after I played around with the settings for a bit. I'll probably buy myself a sub soon though, just to complete the system and annoy my neighbours even more. I have the volume set between 20 to 30 most of the time and that is more than sufficient. The top setting is 50 for the receiver, but the Police will be knocking on your door long before you reach that.

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Sony STR-DE475 Sony STR-DB1070

DTS on DVD. Look and feel.

stereo 2 channel output.

Quite pleased with the look and feel. It sounds 'soft' when using CD player on 2 Channel the first time when I switched it on. However, on DVD using DTS etc (coxial), it sounds a lot better. You do need to turn up the volumn a bit in comparsion with other AVreceiver though to get a better output in terms of sound qualitiy. A bit disappointed with the areial reception on tuner. The remote works OK. Have not noticed any hiss. The bass sounds acceptable on my B&W DM33 speakers. On comparsion with my other systems - marazens 60010 OSE, Sony CDP 930 and mission 701 - this sony avreceiver is not as clear, sharp and focus as my other hifi setup. As I said at the beginning the sound is definitly 'soft' even compared with my old Technics (10 years old) AVreceiver which I am replacing.

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Technics AVReceiver; Marazen 60010 OSE

Looks good.

Better systems out. Ease of use a key factor...plan to spend many ours trying to figure all the sound fields out...with no help from the manual!!! Remote broke after the first week.

I wouldn't buy this receiver again. Very hard to set up...has many sound fields. Slight hum now. Look at Yamaha.

Virtual surround cinema studio ex & being ables to EQ large speakers to compensate reciever's shortfall.

You can get the unit to sound good but you need to be patient & do a LOT of tweaking (I recomend 1 hr on 1 hr off-don't lose perception)

Bought unit after price drop (from $599 CDN to $479 CDN) about three weeks ago. It is a short term replacement until I can save save up enough money to get something high end. It is replacing a Pioneer VSX-D906S I picked up when dvd's were just in test markets (8 cities US). To make a long story short-I built my own (large) speakers & subs in the 80's & we rated them better than the JBL monitors in the studio (minor) I worked at that time. I am running a Yamaha A-700 amp(another 80's item) for my subs. Obviously I'll be comparring this with the Pioneer. To be honest I am very happy with the Pioneer except for the fact that it doesn't contain inputs for DVD-Audio and no DTS processor. Since I'm now into dvd-audio I needed a system that would play this properly (as well a dts) & this is all I can afford at this time. I'm rating this using dvd-video & dvd-audio (since dvd-audio makes cd's sound like crap I don't feel I can give an honest review with them). First the bad news-straight unprocessed DD - I was very dissapointed with the sony. Either too little bass or just cardboardy sounding bass. The seperation & sonic qualities just weren't what I was used to (it sounded muddled) and I allways thought sony as too tinty. Now the good news-virtual surround cinema studio ex (c) surprised the hell out of me! All movies sounded better and some dvd-audio's (in DD or DTS mode) sounded incredible (Bjork & Doobie Bros)while others sounded 'different. With a little bit more tweeking (bass @ 99hz + 2, mids @ 4.8k + 1, tweeters @ 10k + 1 & subs at 3/4 full power @ 70hz - 3)I am getting very impressive sound on everything I play! Now please note the Yamaha sub amp has been on it's last legs for the last 10 years (one side volume has been erratic & the volume control has been replaced at least six times) & I've been trying to replace it with evrything but a Yamaha amp (including the pioneer) but friends, workmates & relatives have not been able to find anything that comes even close (it's like an on going joke). So overall I would recomend this reciever to anyone who wants to puchase something in this price range

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Pioneer VSX-D906S

Sony bloodline, lots of input/output compatibility, DSP modes, price.

Way underpowered, little bass, setting it up can be confusing.

I''ve had this receiver for about 2 weeks now and the big thing that bugs me about this thing is that the bass is almost non-existant! I have two brand new Cerwin Vega LS 12 monsters and still, there''s almost nothing until you turn the volume up over 30 (which I hear is over half way!). I wonder why the equalizer goes from -10db to only +6db? You definitely need a sub with this model. I primarily use this receiver for listening to music but I got the DD and DTS and all that because I like the DSP effects on the music. Since I don''t have surround speakers I can''t really comment on the digital sound but from what I hear it''s a lot better than stereo (louder and bassier). As a lot of other reviews say, the remote is a little confusing at first and it''s not compatible with my Citizen TV but IS compatible with cheaper and rarer brands for some reason. The inputs/outputs are nice. There''s enough there for pretty well anyone and anything (even a phono input for you retro people). I still haven''t caught on how to use the video out function. Apparently there''s no "on screen display" for this model even though the shabbier STR-DE575 apparently has it. The Sound Field Link is a good feature but can get frustrating because it makes EVERY sound field have unique settings that have to be looked at all the time to make sure they''re the same as the last time you used them. That''d normally be okay except there''s 27 of them! This, being my first receiver ever, is still a pretty good one (for home theatre). It''s not particularly good for pounding the tunes with big bass (as I thought it would be). If the bass is what you want, look elsewhere unless you''ve got an extra $500 to spend on a decent subwoofer.

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JVC, Yamaha, RCA.

Good sound, parametric EQ, universal remote, relatively expandable receiver.

Lack of (2) tape inputs, digital inputs not assignable, popping sound when switching inputs, cryptic manual, bad reviews on other websites.

It may be too early to post a review on this item, but I was hoping maybe to get some feedback as well. I had an old Sony STR-D311 go out last weekend, so suddenly, I was in the market for a new reciever. I wanted to see what I could get for around $200.00, because I got my Technics SA-DX950 for, like, $179.00, and was pretty happy with that in my den. Well, this was an open box buy with a manual for the STR-DE1075. But, most of the functions seemed the same, so I got it anyway but added the 3-year service agreement for $29.95. I immediately went online seeking reviews, etc. for this piece. I found the reviews posted here as well as reviews on www.hometheaterforum.com. The reviews here were generally positive, but, damn, those folks at hometheaterforum.com freakin'' hate this model. My initial reaction after plugging it all up last night is thus: You pretty much DO have to have the volume at 30 or so to have a nice loud sound level. Some levels in the 20''s are OK for TV broadcasts. I do not have a sub, but I haven''t really experienced any real lack of bass. I haven''t tried fooling around with the different frequencies yet. Nor have I tested the surround capabilities, primarily due to my lack of a center speaker at this time...plus I bought a coaxial cable last night...not the optical one I actually need...duh! Overall, my initial reaction is that I got a pretty good deal for $200.00. The sound is pretty clean and detailed. At least more so than the reciever it replaced. It is a bit difficult to set-up, and I do hear some popping when turning the input selection knob. It also lacks the inputs for those of us with a Mini-Disc recorder AND a cassette deck. I''ll give it some time and maybe post my findings then. For now I''ll give it 4 stars, since I only paid $200.00 for it, and I have yet to spend much time with it.

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Technics SA-DX950, Sony STR-D311, Sony STR-DE310

Lots of features

Terrible manual, cannot turn up the bass to 10 db.

I am extremely satisfied with this purchase, although it is my first reciever.

plenty of power, fit my budget

no onscreen display

i just have to add my two cents. i''ve had this amp since november, it was great right out of the box. i didn''t have a sub when i first bought it and it was a lacking a bit in the bass dept. not long after i purchased an acoustic research sub. i was blown away at how much i had been missing. i see where some people are saying that it lacks power and they have to turn it up to 30. ? i watch dvd''s on 20 and and if i put mine on 30, it''ll run you out the room. and as far as popping from the sub, i have no problem. of coarse i use only monster cables. cheap cables could be a problem, you get what you pay for. overall, i couldn''t be more happy.

Easy setup, fine performance with movie soundtracks, optical outputs, 4 and 8 ohm select switch

optical outputs are not assignable

Purchased to replace Sony STR-AV1020 (1990 vintage)pro-logic receiver which "died". Performance with DVD movies in 6.1 channel is awesome. We use this receiver with early 90''s Boston Acoustics T1030 towers (4 ohm), Sony center channel speaker and small Radio Shacks in the rear. The auto detect feature works just fine. I also noticed the need to turn volume near the 30 setting to get higher volume levels. This receiver does not get nearly as hot as our old 1020. To me, the Boston 1020''s prove that if you have the right front speakers, the base response will be fine. The "Pearl Harbor" attack scene shakes the floor, and this is no exaggeration! I''m less than pleased with the unit''s performance with music CD''s, however, particularly in the mid range. I seem to hear overtones and unwanted harmonics. However, this could also be a product of our listening room, which is "live" (hardwood floors, no wall-to-wall carpet.) Overall, if you are on a budget, which we were, and are not worried about audiophile "snob-appeal", this product should satisfy.

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Sony STR-AV1020

No switching between 4ohm and 8ohm in HK model.

Hello, I am live in HK. I brought this at HK$3480 for one month only. I feel the sound quality is so far so good. In HK, this model is made in Malysia and in gold color, but I think the black color is more attractive. In America, where is this model made from? Here is the URL of Sony in HK http://www.sony.com.hk/Electronics/consumer_p/hifi/index.htm Welcome for discussion. Thanks!

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1995 Sony TAV-790ESD