Everything about it!

None (except that the remote is more skinny than what I'm used to).

Awesome machine all the way around. I echo everything good said about this item. I understand why everyone praises Yamaha so much now that I own a Yamaha component. You don't need the 100 watts.

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SONY & Kenwood receivers . . . Plus a pile-of-trash JVC 6000BVK.

Power (for just 70-watts it is amazing), quality, price, name

None

The Yamaha HTR-5240 is the best receiver I have ever owned. This receiver has no trouble powering my DCM Speakers (DCM12A), which this is a set of speakers that have to have some real power to drive them. The 70-watt Yamaha doesn’t even struggle, the 100-watt Sony I had before want even compare to the Yamaha in neither power nor quality. This is because Yamaha uses high current amplifiers in all there receivers. This is usually only found in much more expensive receivers such as Harman Kardon and Onkyo. I can’t find anything about this receiver that I dislike (I even like the remote). I would suggest this one to any audio enthusiast.

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Sony STR-DE545
Technics SA-DX940
Aiwa AV-D55

70 watts-per-channel poer rating is VERY misleading, sleek, easy-to-use remote

normally, i wouldn't post a review here, as this page is full of more than enough positive feedback on this quality unit ... but i had to respond to the previous posting, simply so that it wasn't the first thing everyone sees ...

Gav, baby ... if you want more power per channel, BUY A UNIT W/ A HIGHER POWER RATING ... last time i checked, there were still a few on the market ... the 5240 I purchased kicks out more than enough to fill my mid-sized home theatre room, & on top of that, the sound it produces is extremely warm for a unit in this price range ...

as for the remote ... are you saying no "human consumer" in your home is smarter than the average team of monkeys? it took me ten minutes to set up & program the 5240 system & about a day to get used to it. ever try reading the manual?

For the rest of you who go on to read Gav's review, a tip: as far as Sony AV units go, STAY AWAY FROM THEM, in spite of what ole' Gav has to say ... i've owned one, & got rid of it after two months ... sound is dirty, distorted & tinny when compared to Yamaha HTR 5240, & the cinema DSP modes BLOW by comparison.

For all who are still shopping, this unit is a GREAT buy ... as for Gav, hey babe, get the "purist" stick out of your butt and shop around a little next time ... you paid five hundred bucks for something you could've gotten for three ... kinda' sez it all, yes?

Similar Products Used:

marantz, other yamaha

Sound, clarity, style and over all performance.

Remote has no light. Very hard to see at night.

So far so good. I have no complaints about the unit. Very pleased with my purchase. I love being able to listen to different types of music and being able to listen to it in different modes. My girlfriend loves the Enya CD in Concert Hall mode. I prefer " The Wall " Cd by Pink Floyd.

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Pioneer (non-digital).

Excellent and beefy amp stage, this puppy has power to burn that is completely unidicated with its 70watt spec. HT and stereo inputs and outputs are all there.

A tad bit pricy at $400.00 but I got mine on sale for $350.00 :) Definitely NOT entry level, a little bit more complex to set up than the super user friendly Pioneer type receivers.

Well I had to shell out the cash to get the extra juice offered by the Yamaha, but well worth it considering the next level up from this puppy is $500.00+.

I think this units biggest strength (and potential weakness depending on the user) overall is its non-entrylevelness(uh oh, made-up word) But being a computer geek and electronics hobbyist (read junkie) this is no problem for me.

To illustrate my point, the Pioneer receivers I checked out had a digital volume control that counted from -95db to 0db and that is simply as far as you can go. The Yamaha, on the other hand, has a good ol analog dial on it that your not supposed to (yes they tell you in the manual and on the website faq) turn past halfway. Why, might you ask (and apparantly many did, it's in the faq) are you given the other have of the dial? Well for geeks like me that will make sure their speakers can handle it and will bother to rig-up extra cooling fans, ventilation, voltage and temperature monitoring, we can, for lack of a better term "overclock" the amp to a certain extent to squeeze a little more value out of the bugger. Beginners run the risk, of course, of blowing-out all their speakers and burning out their amp all in one fell swoop!

So I think you see my point: This receiver is no way child and or idiot proof and I would NOT recommend having this receiver withing arms length of any toddler (oh boy do they like to twist them knobs!) Begginers may want the friendlier interface and safeguards provided by Pioneer/Kenwood level of receiver. But for us electro freaks and geeks, it's what the doctor ordered!

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Pioneer VSX 309 and 409; old Technics SA-EX300 pro-logic receiver.

More than rated power. Clean/Crisp. Solid.

Remote. Doesn't remember all settings for different modes.

I bought the RX-V496 for $400 and was told by the United Audio Centers salesman that the RX line has better internals than the HTR-5240 which you see at Best Buy and Sears (who will match online prices). An email from Yamaha said otherwise - they are the exact same models. United Audio credited me $50 to match the Best Buy price.

Anyway, I love the sound from the reciever in both stereo and surround modes. And, like everyone else, I don't (and shouldn't I just learned) push the volume past 11 oclock. (I have new Klipsch SB-2, SC-1, SS-1, and KSW-10; my room/wife don't allow floorstanding mains, but the SB-2 speakers are awesome - great bass. I regress.) But I feel like I'm in the middle of the action for movies and in front of the stage for stereo music. The music surround modes are good for some music. Technically, the distortion numbers are lower than comparably priced recievers (notably sony and kenwood).

The inputs are more than adequate for my system, but there isn't an optical input labelled for "CD." I don't run my video signals through the reciever - I don't see the point of buying $100+ for AV cables when the components can be connected directly with coaxial that I already have (I actually bought them, then realized they were unnecessary, and returned all these cables).

The remote is OK, and I've programmed it to control my audio components. I use the universal cable remote for video components since the Yamaha didn't have a code for the cable box. Control is somewhat intuitive, but not completely. I originally didn't like the slim profile, but it's OK.

One thing that it doesnt do is remember different setttings for different inputs. It does remember which listening mode you last had for each input (like dolby for cable/tv and effect off for cd), but it doesn't allow you to keep different detail settings (like bass through SW vs. through mains and SW).

I'm no adiophile, but I am extremely pleased with the sound and value from this receiver. I plan on having it for a long time. Yamaha seems to be "generous" with the power ratings and geared toward audiophiles, which makes me feel good.

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None

Clean Full Sound, Easy to set up.

No LED light on volume knob.

I first bought a sony stdr 545 for $50.00 bucks less and kept it for a few days till I decided to exchange it for the
Yamaha. I'm glad I did. The sound of the Yamaha blew the sony away. For the price, the amp produces a real nice clean
and powerfull sound. It sounds good with music as well as with movies. I use it with headphones mostly and it sounds
almost as good as my Adcom preamp. The romote is nice and runs all my equipment. For the price the price you can not get a nicer reciever.

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Denon, Technics.

Name, Power, Clarity, Impedence switch (I have 6 ohm and 8 ohm speakers in the setup)

Remote, Volume Control

First experience with a AV receiver. Very powerful. Just can't go above 5 on the volume dial. Remote is not the best I have seen in the market. It controls everything, but the layout could be a lot better. I can't believe that Yamaha couldnt show something other than 'VOLUME UP'/'VOLUME DN' when you increase/decrease volume! If not dB, at least a linear counter??? OR at least a light on the volume dial???

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None

Enough power compared with 100w rating other brand. easy set up and excellent sound.

Ya, also had hard time figuring out which side is to be pointed at the receiver even in the daytime. The other s-video-in/out is for VCR. Should be for other digital sources.

I thought it a little progress from Pro-logic to 5.1 mode. When played T2 in DTS mode, it belows in everywhere. I'm surprised to hear a 'real HT' all way.

No hiss. Very powerful. I can't volume it close to 12 since my whole basement soundes out. My son will run down to see what happens.

The automatic source match works wonderful.

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Sony De845, Pineer, etc.

the bomb diggity

spilled a brewski in it

This rocks. You'd love it. Even you, Raul. Too bad I spilled beer all over it during a jamfest at my crib. I'd get a new one but the same thing would happen. Peace out foos.