Tremendous amount of power! - I have only turned it up to half volume once.

Banana plugs just on Main spkrs. Wire can''t be really thick to plug into rear and center terminals.

The RX-V420 is an excellent reciever. Do not be fooled by its wattage. This is a high current amp, which means that it will go louder than most of those 500 watt recievers. Especially those kenwoods *cough* queer. I love my RX-V420 it features hundreds of sound modes, killer pro-logic, and excellent control over speaker levels. I would recomoned this amp to anyone who likes their music as it was meant to be heard. It also sounds great at DTS and DD.

Similar Products Used:

MX-J56 (JVC 240 watt reviever) Kenwood Reciever [(Who cares what the model # is they suck)(except the expensive ones with thx)]

Beautiful sound from two-speaker configuration.

Awkward remote.

Excellent audio quality for the price. I compared a selection of over 40 receiver models at a local store (chain), and chose model because it sounded best. The lower-end receivers varied wildly in hiss-level, spectral response, and distortion. However the upper-end receivers (close to $1000) sounded excellent, and very much like each other. The Denons and the Yamahas stood out as more consistently good among the models. I listened to each with strictly a 2-speaker configuration, and with equalization flat or defeated entirely. After comparing this model with the mid-tier of Denon receivers in stock (~$800), I noticed only a very slight difference in the mid-range. This Yamaha actually sounded slightly more full, noticed while listening to full-orchestral movements. I was surprised that this quality receiver was available for under $300, let alone that it comes with bells-and-whistles I haven''t yet tried. I can''t speak to the quality of the surround-sound features. When I got the unit home, I was not disappointed with how it sounded even with my relatively meager speakers in an apartment setting. The imaging both at the store and at home was/is broad and well-distributed. Again, the spectral response is fantastic, and the clarity wonderful. For well-produced music, I am not even tempted to play with the two-dial (bass and treble) equalizer, or the environment effects. I haven''t tried to setup rear speakers, so I can''t commend on the hiss reported in these reviews. I don''t detect any from the two main speakers, even at high-volume during quiet sections in classical music. My suspicion is that the problems others are having are from noise picked up by the longer speaker-leads to the rear-speakers, or simply bad connections at the receiver. The remote is a bit confusing. It has two sets of arrow keys, one of which appears near the center. I think I''ll put a glow-in-the-dark strip on one end to keep from getting confused about which end is up. The remote is narrow. I KNOW I will lose this one in the couch a few times. The remote works, though, and allows one to select the input device with a single button-click, instead of scrolling through a menu. I would like to be able to remotely control the volume with a finer adjustment.

good look,nice functions,power,dts,greate dd

remote,hiss

i have been using it for 2.5 months.
the remote is not so friendly,it is difficult to use it.
it has TONS of power.
greate programs for home cinema.
i recommend it.

i use the tannoy's MX Set.

Similar Products Used:

rx-v396,rx-v496

Price, DD&DTS, DSP, Digital inputs, delay, power and frequency responce calibration for each speaker

remote

so... i'v bean searching for product like this ~6-7 month.. i was thinking about RX496 becouse it had DTS not like 386 that had only DD but after yamaha created new RX420
that is actualy upgraded 396 version and has new look and feel, 32bit DSP procesor, lots of dsp programs, DTS, fron connection for easy connection of any game console or anything else.. it also has more power. i decided to go with this one.
and beleave me this unit made me happy :) i havent tryed out DVD decoding quality still thinking what DVD player to buy, but it realy plays GOOD my CD's. sound is clear, there is no any hiss or distortion. good thing is that u can ajust delays and power levels to all speakers separately so making them virtualy in another place that they actualy are.
you can also setup the size of your speakers thus not to send useles freq. to speakers, like if you have small rear speaker and large front you setup it for that configuration and it will cut off all freq that is les then 90Hz when sending to rear speaker and redirect it to the speakers that are selected as BASS speakers(this can be main speakers or/and subwoofer), you can also setup that you dont have any speaker like center or rear thus making it virtual (all channel will be redirected to other speakers that can reproduce it)
this unit has so many features... i'v used it for ~3 month
but havent figured them all out yet :)
and i never turnt it more then 12oclock becouse it realy has the power in it and sound is so loud that you might feel your self like sitting in front of concert speaker :)
i recomend this unit to anyone who want to have good clear power for not so crazy money....
oh and i use it in pair with my eltax hollywood mk2 (5 speaker set. large front speakers have 8" woofers).
only thing that is bad here it is remote.. it is slim and long with not too many buttons on it but 1/2 of them are useles becouse i dont use yamaha tape or cd player

DD, DTS and DSP (5 ch stereo)clear sound and powerfull.

remote control

It´s realy amazing. Clear and powerfull sound. You can setup size, delay and the volume of each speaker. I recommend it to anyone.

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha 795a, kenwood, marantz sr5000

DD/DTS, features, value

Hiss

Would be extremely happy with this Yamaha RXV420, but the hiss is killing me. I've tried multiple things like DVD's, CD's etc, am getting noticeable hiss at less than 1/3 volume, especially from the rear speakers. It's not the speakers I am sure as they are Paradigm mini monitors. Seems the last person on here had a hiss problem as well. I am now thinking of going with a Denon. E-mail me at bspahn@hotmail.com if you have any suggestions, if the hiss can go away somehow I would definitely keep this receiver.
I like the remote quite a bit actually, took no time to get used to and the sleek design is a plus.

Power, DTS, DD, A/B speaker selection, RDS

Bad hiss

Other equipment used with it were Marantz 4100 DVD, Celestion F2 floorstanders and NS-P220 sub-sat system.

The power on the system was great. I bought the floorstanders as the sub-sat was too tiny for music. This added great weight for the music.

The power of the sound was good although only 65W rating. The functionality was great for the price paid.

The major problem that I had was with hiss on the speakers. My wife and a friend both noticed it without prompting. Returned to dealer who compared it (on 2 occassions) with other 420's. Went into another dealer in case it was my system that was at fault (it was loud there too - the dealer admitted that it was bad).

Either there is a bad batch doing the rounds or the system is no good. I have changed it for a Marantz 5200. I don't need all the extras BUT the hiss spoilt the whole experience for the family. If the hiss was better I would have given this product a double 5*.

DTS, more ports than similarly priced on priced other brands

Hiss on rear speakers, No S-Video or Component Video

I'm pretty much a newbie to the home theatre/hi-fi scene, but even so, I definitly notice the hiss and find it a bit annoying. I only really notice it on the rear speakers though. It's definitely not a problem the actual speakers. I've swapped them around, and whatever I connected to the rear output ports has the hiss.

It would also be nice to have at least some S-Video plugs for the DVD and to the TV. But other than this, and for the price, it seemed like a pretty good deal. If I don't use the rear speakers, and just play music on the mains, I think it sounds very nice and clear.

Similar Products Used:

20 year old analog Yamaha amp

Price and sound quality.

Remote takes awhile to get used to, but once you do it's fine.

The sound !!! Crisp and precise. I've been looking at recievers for a few years now and they have really come down in price for what you get nowadays. I was looking at Marantz, Kenwood, and Yamaha. It came down to the Marantz and Yamaha, and I liked the Yamaha a bit more. For the price and quality of sound you get, this is a steal. CD's sound great with any type of music and the Cinema DSP are an added bonus. DTS and DD 5.1 sound fantastic on this unit. I am running an Enery center channel, Energy 8" sub and Yamaha for front and rears. One word sums this unit up....WOW !

Decent sound quality @ affordable price. Don't let the relatively low power specs throw you off, its got enough juice to rattle the living room!

Messy remote

Since I cant find RXV-520 in the list, I'll just add it here. After reading so many reviews here about the bad hiss (both the 420 and 520), I almost skipped this product. Well, after trying out the set, couldn't find any hiss even when i turned the vol up to 10 o'clock position. At this price, I couldnt find a better alternative. My advise to potential buyers, go out and LISTEN for yourself. Don't just rely on the reviews alone. It certain sounds more musical and packs more punch that the Sony, which supposedly has more power (on paper).

Similar Products Used:

Sony STR-DE535