*SA-DX1050 (share same manual with DX950)* Superior Clear & Rich Sound. No Heat Problem at all.

Only one Video Player Input. Cannot adjust Bass when in Surround Mode.

After months researching on net a DTS receiver to replace my dead Kenwood Prologic KR-V9010, at my budget I narrowed down to Kenwood VR-507 and this Technics SA-DX1050. I bought Kenwood HTB-504 at 10% sale for $480 tried it out satisfied but could not get Digital Audio, thought it's Kenwood problem. To verify I went get the Technics only to find problem was with my Pioneer DVD player.

Firstly compared the two by switching speaker wires, found Technics better. To easier and better compare I got a speaker switch box from Radio Shack and switched between the two with a couple of CDs of Vocals, Rocks and Instrumentals. Kenwood is not bad with Vocals but could not produce clearly many instruments. The vocal and instruments came alive with The Technics. As I have more than 8 working speakers from 3 old sound systems (all 3 have problems), all that's missing will be the Sub-woofer if I return the Kenwood, and I did.

Without the subwoofer on surround to play DVD movie the Technics bass is weak on my Tannoy speakers despite I set speakers to Large and turned off subwoofer. It does not allow me to set bass stronger except in Stereo. So without a subwoofer to get some subwoofer feel I have to set to Stereo adding the bass to the max. 10db but lost the surround effect. Adding a subwoofer will solve the problem.

I worried a lot on CD music quality on low to medium priced HT receivers, this Technics took away the worries, highly recommended for people who want both CD Music & DVD Movie qualities.

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Kenwood VR-507

The overheating problems with most all Technics receivers (as mentioned by someone else) is because the fan ONLY comes on when the volume is at a certain level. I have an older Technics receiver that ran hot (and in fact melted twice), until I disconnected the fan from the leads that were powering it and (don't laugh) hooked the fan to an old DC train track controller which is plugged into one of the AC outlets on the receiver. I can vary the speed of the fan this way and it stays on whenever the receiver is on. Now it doesn't even get warm after hours of being run hard. Another tip, I like to keep my Receiver on the top of the stack of components and put something under the feet of the receiver to gain a little more space underneath. This is to make sure it can get plenty of air flow through the vents in the top and bottom shrouds. Granted this is how you can live with one you already bought, BUT they should certainly fix the fan prob.

DD, DTS, 100 watts x 5, 3 optical inputs

heat, remote and no digital coax inputs

I purchased this product over a year ago and I wanted to give me opinion on it after all this time. I still have to admit that I am pleased with this product and that any short comings I may have experienced still are outweighed by the price and features you get.

The downsides, as mentioned by most on here, are issues with heat, the remote and for me the somewhat lack of bass. The heat issue I resolved by adding another fan to the back of the unit that powers on when the receiver powers on. With this fan in place, the receiver can run all day with no real issues. The remote, well the remote is what it is and I'm getting a universal remote anyways so it's not a problem anyways. The lack of bass could either be attributed to my old speakers (doubtful) or just the fact that I don't have a separate sub for those booming lows.

Great as this product is, I'm afraid that I will be getting rid of it for a newer product. I'm looking at the H/K AVR120 as it has some of the newer things that I'd like to have. Actually, the Pro-logic II is the only thing newer but I also now have need for digital coax inputs which the Technics doesn't have.

Again, great product but for me I've outgrown it now and need something just a little bit better without breaking my wallet.

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Technics SA-GX690

GLAD I FOUND THIS SITE...THESE RECEIVERS ARE JUNK!!!!

I am on my 3rd right now because the first 2 have overheated and crapped out. Im glad I got the 4 year warranty at BestBuy.

I am going to demand a different manufacturer next time.

DO NOT BUY A SA-DX940

Great

Just neads a S-Video Output

Its a really nice and affordable receiver.

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JVC & SONY

The thing is cheap....

Everything else

Alright, so all of you people that said that the overheating on this unit was not a problem may want to check your equipment. I accidently left this reciever on in my apartment while I was at work (8hrs), and it set a fire that burned up half of my apartment. The reciever was totally melted down (thanks to all the people who claimed that that type of heat was normal on DD receivers by the way) and I am looking at over $20,000 in damage. What a value. This receiver is crap, I suspected that I was getting crap when I bought it...but decided to keep it because of the good reviews it got on this web site.
Like I said, if you own this reciever....might want to put it on top of a fireproof blanket. Cheap people that own this crap beware!

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Yamaha (now that I had this problem)

Outstanding sound quality, both in simple stereo mode and in DTS/Dolby Digital.

Remote control buttons are hard to identify in the dark (most times while watching a movie). They should have different shapes.

I've been a big JVC fan for years but the MOS-FET technology converted me. The dealer had both models I was interested in plugged to the same speakers that I have at home (JBLs w/active sub) and switched between them.

The difference in dynamic range and sound quality is impressive. The other receiver (Kenwood, not sure about the model number but similarly priced) sounded ok at first but the second we flicked the speaker switch the music just came alive. Sounds that I had never heard from familiar CDs were now easily identifiable. Outstanding power range and one home, no matter how loud I raised the volume to, no distortion was discernable. Then I tried the DVD using the optical cable. WOW! I thought my old JVC was excellent but this is beyond anything I have ever heard! Anyone want a used 2 year old JVC receiver I have for sale? ...

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JVC RX-7010VBK

Power, Ease of use, Dynamic range

Heat

I posted a review in December shortly after getting this unit. I have helped several friends install DD systems they bought after hearing mine. These have been from entry level all the way up to a multi-$1000 systems (HK, Bose). There is very little difference once you get past the entry level systems. Even the HK-Bose didn't sound any better than mine that cost half as much.
I do have to disagree with David L.'s Hook-up recommendation. One of the biggest benefits of Dolby Digital is the center and surround channels are full range, the lowest bass up to the highest tone the human ear can hear. Since a small surround or bookshelf speaker can not reproduce the bass, the subwoofer takes over at whatever crossover point you specify. In other words by using the front speaker level inputs you are effectively throwing away up to 60% of you base. Get a decent powered sub, hook it up to the sub line output and set the crossover at or above the bottom range of your speakers.
Yes it runs hot, give it some breathing room, 3"to4" on the sides and in back & 6"to8" above, and don't worry about it.
I would recommend this unit to anyone.

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Old Technics, Yamaha w/outboard surround

clear and powerful sound

no coax digital input,no digital output, tape recording not possible from digital sources

After using my old Sony stereo for almost 10 years I decided to migrate to multichannel audio technology and started with the receiver. I have sellected this for its low prices the the reputation of Technics for audio devices. As compared to Sony it is very plain. It has neither lots of controls on it nor a big explanatory led display. You cannot see the frequency of the FM station at the same time as its preset memory number for example. It has also quite a few inputs the most critical may be the leck of coaxial digital input. You have to use optical one. The unit has 3 optical input which I found unnecessary insted the desinger could replace one optical with a coax. If you plan to connect you MD to this receiver the only choose is analog since the unit has not any digital output. As an electrical engineer I dont understand why this unit cannot provide preamp output for my tape deck when digital inputs are used. The heat is not a problem. But dont place it in a closed cabinet since designers made it so that fan starts after some volume level not at some heat level.It may be a mistake or not but proably they wanted to avaid fan noise in low volumes. And Technics web site....Is is terrible. These are the all bad thnigs I will say about it. But when it comes to sound quality this unit is great. If you want to discus with me feel free to send me en e-mail

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old generation Sony stereo amplifier.

Inexpensive for DD, DTS, 5X100

Overload problems, poor bass, bad remote

I bought this 1999 receiver Feb 2001 from Sears. It was a display but had never been operated. First one of the lights on the display by the speaker icons does not work..no big deal. The receiver has shutdown with the "overload" display several times in just a few days. This seems to happen only in DD and DTS Surround modes (so far). All of my speakers are 8 ohms and connected correctly. I have tried the low impedance setting without luck and have reset the DSP several times. I have also added a 12V fan from an old CPU power supply with a variable transformer plugged into the switched outlet. The unit never even gets warm now so it is not a heat issue. I emailed CS at Panasonic today. Is this the DTS module and fuse problem mentioned elsewhere? I hate to return it since I only paid $90.00 for it. Please email brazeal@1starnet.com with any assistance. Thanks.

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Sony, Kenwood