Technics SA-DA10N A/V Receivers

Technics SA-DA10N A/V Receivers 

DESCRIPTION

DD/DTS receiver

USER REVIEWS

Showing 51-60 of 73  
[Nov 28, 2001]
Emanuel Restaino
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Quite easy to setup. Everything is in order.

Weakness:

the universal remote is a little confusing.

Just in short.
I got mine yesterday and it seems that it is broken. There is no life on my eltax subwoofer. I've tried the subwoofer on other equipment and it works fine.
Everything was perfect, good sound, no noise. I will replace mine soon. I've talked to technics support and they were great! we tried many sollutions and I spoke to 2 different guys: the technician and a customer support specialist.
I hope I will get my sub going soon =)
Instructions was ok, DTS sound was great. Mine has 3 optical inputs.. seems that the american version has 2 inputs only.
The receiver is very well built, the video signals are separated from audio signals (on the other side of each other) ... I'm waiting now for my first dvd audio disc : Vivaldi in 24bit/96khz surround. I will use it with my soon-to-be-mine Pioneer DV-646A

Similar Products Used:

My first real a/v receiver

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
[Jan 25, 2002]
howard pearl
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

price

Weakness:

none

you cant find any thing better for under 500 $
remote wont work tv only problem
def tech bp6 mains
yamaha sub
bic 62clr center
advent amber ssound
this thing kicks butt
getting new mains that i can biwire

Similar Products Used:

sony-yamaha-dennon

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Dec 30, 2001]
Rich
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Stereo Bi-amp mode, fit and finish, Various Simulated Surround Modes

Weakness:

None at this price point..

I actually have the 2001 model (the SA-DA20N w/silver finish)

Paired with my Advent Graduates and Panasonic DVD-RV65 via optical input, Aaron Copeland's Appalachian Summer sounds stunning! These units are inventory writedowns, literally costing Panasonic more to manufacture than their price.

You cant buy a better receiver for twice the price (next year's models will be Panasonic branded and lower-end).

Similar Products Used:

Technics SE-A5000

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Oct 07, 2001]
Chris
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Very very clean sound. Bass, mid and treb all blended extremly well. Looks cool.

Weakness:

None as of yet

Ok, first off I'd like to share a bit of info to everyone who bought this receiver. It DOES NOT run hot! The noise filtering option uses a method that, no matter what volume, uses all availble current. Thus if you have that on even at a low volume you will be cooking eggs. Turn it off, it doesn't sound much worse and you can still use it in the summer.

Now that I got that over with, on to the amp itself. I haven't actually owned it. My bro was testing new receivers so he brought a half dozen home to play with. Out of them all I like the Technics the best, which is interesting because I never really regarded Technics as a company that was able of producing a good product. I didn't have cash at the time but now I do and I'm about to go pick one up.

I had it hooked up to Paradigm Monitor 7's, I don't have any surrounds, just stereo for music. At first I accidentally reversed the wires and figured "man this sounds crappy, figures for a Technics". Then I checked the wires and said oops and was promptly blown away. The quality is superb and it has a very nice sound. It keep that clarity all the way up to near clipping levels. The remote is adequate, once you have it set up you don't really need anything more than volume anyway. This thing has NO weakness as of yet, other than the volume knob seems to have more of a delay when using remote than most receivers. MIght just be my mind doing strange things though.

Anyway, if you're looking for a nice powerful amp for under $200, this is it.

Similar Products Used:

Marantz SR66, Marantz SR4000, Kenwood VR405, Denon AVR1100

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Oct 04, 2001]
Harlowe
Audiophile

Strength:

Great warm sound and for me an easy hookup. Took me from out of box to sitting down and listening no more then 30 minutes for all equipment Receiver, DVD, TV, PS2, Satellite and seven speakers to be hooked up.

Weakness:

None so far...the HEAT is natural for a high power amp.

I am running this receiver plus the top of the line Toshiba DVD player. Also running Boston Acoustic's T830 and HD7's all rewired with Kimber cable. Kimber cable speaker wire for speakers. All speakers have same length wire to them to minimize effect of less resitance of closer speakers to amp then to surrounds. This makes it more soncicaly balanced. Sub is the Audio source 15 with cabinet modifications to minimize the boomines ( I have none from it now) also changed power cord for sub to handle more juice. Also have power stablization on this system and the system is on seperate circut from power box. The sound is very sweet and warm I let the system warm up at least 30 minutes before play to allow circuts to settle down. I have played numerous styles of music and all have fared very well on this system. I will be please for quite awhile. Everyone complains of the heat but when you are running MOS_FET it will happen. For those of you that complain look at what you owned before all based on simple IC's that are short lived and can not handle the transients that occur in music. I did see some one say they had other equiupment above this unit. Please if you want that stuff to live and produce the best sound the hottest equipment should be from top (hottest) to the coolest (bottom) with some distance between equip to prevent possible RF cross talk with other equipment if your current equipment is not shielded well. Also remember if you have excess length of speaker wire DO NOT role them up in a coil shape as you will be procducing an induction coil which will destroy all your efforts. Allow the wire to lay with a random pattern. but I am enjoying this peice very much. Also as a side note for your speakers make sure that you have them set up to within a quarter inch in a mirror like fashion. You will be surprised at how much this effects the sound stage of a system. And for the people that say it doesn't have enough tone control you need to listen to the equipment in an all flat position on controls. Think of it this way. Music is a piece of art not for the eyes but for the ears. You would not think of taking the fine works of Monet and sayin "Well you know this would look better with more blues (highs) and reds (lows) and get out some paint to change the colors the artist intended you to see. Same with sound, you mess with the tone controls you change what the artist intended you to hear. it may take some time to retrain your ears but in the long run your experience will be MUCH more enjoyable.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer Elite, Nakamihi,Sun Amplifiers

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[May 04, 2001]
Wayne Hu
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Powerful 5ch output, independent memory for each input, high C/P

Weakness:

Too hot, Poor Remote Control, few DSP modes, lack of Coaxial SPDIF

I bought a SA-DA8N at Fry's last month with $250+tax, but I occasionally found that it dropped to $199+tax, and SA-DA10N became $288+tax. So I decided to return the DA8N and exchange it with a DA10N.

According to the specification, 10N's power rate is the same with 8N's. However, after I attached the wire and played CD discs such as Itzhak Perlman's violin songs and DVD discs like Gladiator, Mask of Zorro, T2, Matrix, and etc, I found 10N is more powerful than 8N. 10N's sound is louder and more clear than 8N's. Moreover, the loud level of 10N's volume button at 1/4 max is near the one of 8N's at 1/3 max. So it is sometimes diffcult to say that the performance of two units with the similar spec is the same.

Prior to 8N, I had a SONY AV Receiver with 80w per channel. However, even with 1/2 max volume at 5.1ch mode, the loud level of SONY DE-635 is not as powerful as the one of 8N with 1/3 max. So I don't have to mention 10N's performance.

One strength of 10N is its independent memory setting of each input. For example, when I listen to CD, I prefer 2ch stereo mode with digital input. When I watch TV, the input is 2ch stereo with analog. With DVD input, I use surround mode with digial input. The feature is quite useful when we have different settings with each input device.

This unit runs quite hot, even hotter than 8N. So I cannot put anything on top of it. Any one who interests in this unit should notice this point.

The designer of this remote control(RC) should study more from other vendor's. In other words, it sucks! Fortunately, my TV is Panasonic Tau. So this RC works quite well with it. It also works with my DVD changer Pioneer DV-C503 except some functions. Another pity of this RC is that it lacks of the CD player's control. So I still have to use the original RC of my CD player.

Either 8N's or 10N's DSP modes are not as many as SONY and Yamaha's. However, I do not like most of those sound fields because they make the sound heard quite strange. I only turn it on when I watch DVD or VCD movies. Fortunately, the surround mode of 10N performs no worse than SONY's Studio EX.B and Yamaha's Spectacle mode. The only pity is that 10N does not provide the frequency equalizer like SONY's, so I cannot enhance the mid range sound of my front speakers.

10N(also 8N) has three optical spdif inputs, but no coaxial spdif. This causes a problem when I want to output SB Live's sound to this receiver. One solution is to purchase a Coaxial-to-Optical converter. I have ordered one ($35) from the Sound Professional's web site. Actually, I prefer the optical wire solution although its price is higher than the copper wire. The reason is that my computer is a little far away from the receiver (about 5m), and there have already been too many electronic wires.

Technics SA-DA10N is indeed a very high C/P AV receiver, especially when it plays DTS sound of the movies. Other units with similar performance are probably more than 500 bucks. But it also has some shortcomings. If they are not your main concerns, I strongly recommend this unit for both its excellent sound performance and affordable price!

Similar Products Used:

Technics SA-DA8N

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
[May 09, 2001]
John
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Great sound quality, DTS, Dolby 5.1, optical inputs, 6 ohm speaker support, nice feature set, helps conserve energy with rolling blackouts in CA: you can cook a meal over the heat vent.

Weakness:

Remote control is a extremely stupid design, no coax digital inputs, have to turn on a room fan or air conditioner when not cooking over the heat vent.

The earlier reviews of this receiver are on target. This is a nice high quality unit and a fantastic deal at its current close-out prices, but it has some significant flaws.

I am hearing more detail and clarity with both DVDs (optical) and CDs (analog) than ever before. Some of the sounds simply disappeared with my previous receiver. The DTS decoding is great.

I would never have chosen a gold-colored receiver, except for the great price, but it has grown on me. It is a nice match with wood or earth tones, and a refreshing change from basic black. [It would also be a good choice if you have a gold front tooth.]

The remote control is simply a STUPID design. First, they put 1/2 the buttons behind a door and made the door awkward to open and uncomfortable to use when open. Second, they devoted a huge portion of the remote to DVD operation (which doesn't work at all with my Aiwa player), and placed some frequently used buttons (especially TV/Video) behind the door. Third, they did not include some front-panel functionality on the remote. Why not make the receiver remote work better with the receiver and leave full DVD support to the DVD remote?

I would also like coax digital inputs and better heat ducting/management. Both AM and FM reception is worse than my old receiver too.

In sum, I would certainly buy it again for the price I paid, maybe for substantially more.

Similar Products Used:

JVC RX-664V

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
[Jul 07, 2001]
Alvin Johnson
Audiophile

Strength:

Superb looks! Awesome sound! Close out price! Easy to set up and use! Good remote control!

Weakness:

Not One!

I purchased the Technics unit after selling my Outlaw 1050!
I have been a audio,and as of late a A/V enthusiast!
Yes, I am one of those people, always changing gear,hey, it is a hobby! Well, lately, in the last year or so I have been loosing the urge to constantly change!

I wanted home theater, however, listening to music is far and away more important to me! Do not get me wrong, when the urge hits to watch a movie, I do enjoy the dvd quality picture as well as the D.D and DTS surround sound! finding a receiver that was very good to excellent on the surround sound end of the equation was fairly easy.
Finding a receiver that was equally up to the task of producing music left me with two channel sound using an old Dynaco Matrix surround decoder! Mind you, I auditioned many surround units and found them to be lacking in the music department,to say the least!
I beta tested the Outlaw 1050, and have nothing but great things to say regarding that piece of equipment!
In fact the only two units I recommend to people, who, like me listen to a great deal of music, are the Technics SA-DA10N as well as the outlaw 1050!
I find the Technics to be a gorgeous unit that sound as good as many seperate amp and pre-amp combos that have passed through my listening room, as well as many integrated amps! The D.D and DTS perform as well as any that I have auditioned!
The remote is not a pronto, but does run the basic functions of my t.v as well as dvd, and vcr! All in all,the remote is ok.
The unit throws off a tremendous amount of heat do to the amp design and configuration!I am utilizing a small computer fan to cool the unit, which works well!
The SA-DA10N has enough inputs and outputs to satisfy most people! The gold plated binding posts and rca jacks are sturdy and corrosion resistant!
Two minor gripes!
One is the lack of a coaxial digital input,actually two would be nice! Two optical inputs does impose a number and choice limitation!
The other minor gripe is the fact that the binding posts are too far apart to use dual banana plugs!
Although there are still a number of people who listen to vinyl, it is limited, I find the inclusion of phono section
questionable? Anyway, most of the phono sections in receivers are lacking to begin with!
Internal build quality is very good, although not on par, or even close to the Outlaw 1050!
The manual is ok, and a little research on your part,will along with the manual yeild excellent results! Besides, when is the last time anyone has found a perfect manual when it comes to sophisticated electronics! You know, A/V products, computers ect!! No not the toaster!!
In summation, the Technics has rewarded me with many hours of excellent music as well as excellent D.D and DTS surround sound! With my speaker set up and cables (both interconnects as well as speaker cables)it is awesome!!

Similar Products Used:

Denon 3801. Outlaw 1050. Many other integrated amps as well as seperate amp and preamps through out the last seventeen (17) years!!!!!

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Mar 24, 2001]
Walter

Strength:

Clean sound, great bass, good tuner. Very quiet.

Weakness:

Complicated to set up (like every other AV receiver I know). Runs hot.

It is a very good receiver. It replaced 8 years old Sony. I originally considered Onkyo and Dennon with Yamaha being distant third. But after reading prior reviews (thanks) and checking the specs and... the looks (It's gotta the look, Yeah Baby), I decided to go with it. And I am not disappointed, especially given the price. It has a great tuner and quiet, powerful amplifier. I also purchased Technics DVD SA10 DVD Audio player (highly recommended) for a powerful combination. I am now looking for a good and affordable set of HT speakers with a sub (any suggestions?). If you are looking for a great receiver do not dissmiss this one just because it does not have the "right" name.

Similar Products Used:

Sony.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Apr 23, 2001]
Dave
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

A true audio performer, nice separation, Bi- wire capabilility, not bad on looks although gold isn't my favorite, pretty straight forward functions only took about 30 min. to figure the whole thing out and get it set up.

Weakness:

Mine was a defect, Runs very, very, very hot ( I had approx 4" of clearance above the unit with my turntable on the top shelf above and my tuntable lid was hot to the touch) maybe it does not run this hot when the speakers are single wired I didn't try.

Let me just say that my experiences with this receiver may not be the norm, as my unit was defective. It worked beautifully for about five hours. Sonically, it outperforms most other receivers I have heard, especially at the ridiculously low prices they can be found. I thought I was falling in love with this receiver when low and behold, two tracks into disc 5 on my CD changer the SA DA10 stopped producing sound all together. As it turns out the unit had cooked itself. It smelled of burnt electronics and gave me a blister on my finger when I touched the top to see how hot it was (yeah I know, real smart). So if you decide to get one of these don't put it near the drapes. Final Analysis: Assuming that this was a fluke, I would recommend this component. It's sound quality truly is first rate. Just keep in mind when you place it in your system that it is a bit tall and it is going to want plenty of headroom to keep cool.

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood VR309,

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
Showing 51-60 of 73  

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