great sound, great price

sub crossover, DSP modes

This review may seem like a gripe, but it's really not. All the things you expect from a receiver with the Yamaha name are there; great sound and clarity at all volume levels, easy to use and set-up, etc. What follows are mainly little quirks one should evaluate on one's own.

This is a great receiver; I'm constantly surprised by how clear all my music sounds, and startled by the surround effects in dvd movies. I took a great deal of music (~20 discs) into the store to listen to receivers and speakers, this one was the one that sounded the best for everything -- different kinds of rock: acoustic, metal, modern, classic; classical: symphonic, opera, string quartet; some jazz, old country, and other stuff that defies categorization.

The remote takes some getting used to; and I would prefer to have a customizable subwoofer crossover (factory set at 90Hz), and all the DSP modes is misleading. There are 6 repeated modes for Dolby Surround, DD, and DTS (effect on, effect enhanced, spectacle, sci-fi, adventure, and general). In addition, there are 5 more. 6x3 + 5 = 23. I was hoping to hear Paul Simon in a church and Bela Fleck in a jazz club. Instead, the 5 are stadium, rock concert, TV sports, mono movie, and disco. A minor complaint, regardless of the amount of text I've devoted to it.
I would like to be able to customize the front/rear comparative volume level a little better, my fronts tend to drown out the rears (although that's because they're so much bigger than the rears).

Setup is straightforward. Instead of buttons to select the source, there's a dial like in old TV sets. It's interesting; I haven't decided how I feel about it.

Speakers: Boston PV-600 sub, VR-20 fronts, VR-910 center, CR-6 rears
DVD/CD: Sony DVP-S330

5 stars value -- I listened to others at the stores, and this was definitely the best for the cash.
4 stars overall -- I really would like to customize the settings a bit more.

Clean sound and power that sounds like a lot more than 70wpc

Hard-to-read control markings. Remote could be better.

I've seen reviews on this site quoting prices between $200 and $500 which makes me wonder if there are some refurbished units out there. I also have to wonder why someone would pay $500 for a $450 list product. If you can't get at least 20% off any audio product "just say no" and walk away.

Enough about price.

I haven't read any "technical" reports, but this box has to be putting out more than 70wpc. I'm using Klipsch SB2s which are very efficient, but I rarely go past 9 o'clock on the volume control.

Those watts (however many there are) are also very clean watts. Distortion is inaudible to me at normal listening levels. I also haven't found any "hiss" regardless of volume level with no program material playing. Very impressive.

My major gripe (and this isn't exclusive to Yamaha) is that the control markings are just about invisible. Unless you memorize everything, it's back and forth to the manual to find what control does what. I know that my eyes aren't what they were 20 years ago, but this is becoming a problem for people a lot younger than I am.

The remote is nothing to brag about either. Too many buttons placed too close together. Again, this isn't strictly a Yamaha problem. I haven't found too many remotes I've enjoyed using.

Be that as it may, I'd recommend this receiver to anyone looking for a solid piece of equipment at a reasonable price.

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So-so Sony

Great Value for money, more than enough for 95% of us.

Would like more music style choices, such as vocals etc.

Wanted to set up a new surround sound system but did not want to go crazy spending a fortune. Found this receiver for $200 and tested it against receiver costing upwards to $1000. The differnces were hardly noticeable. It really works well. Originally thought that 70 watts per channel would not be enough, but it is plenty. Easily fills the room with great sound, not to mention most of the house. Would like a little more "transparent" sound but believe that is probably more of a function of speakers and their placement.

I like to read users comments on gear on this site and hope they are genuine and not employees of the different manufacturers writing great reviews of their own stuff. But it seems most of us are satified with our purchases. Leaving me to believe most of the gear out there is relatively good and sometimes we as consumers over-buy.

I should get off my soup-box now. This is a good solid product especially at the price I paid.

Similar Products Used:

Sony ES, Technics, NAD

Powerfull

At this price, what did you expect?

Hi again!

This is the second time I give a comment. I did gave a comment sometime early January 2001. This is my 4th month using the receiver.
I am pleased to recommend this product with all my heart. Reason : my wife loves it. She enjoyed watching Cupid (though not Jeremy Piven) in surround sound which is aired by our local TV station, TV3. The station broadcasts Nicam signals and later was converted by the Yamaha in Dolby Pro.Logic mode.
She even bought herself a few DVDs such as Pretty Woman, Runaway Bride, There's Something About Mary, Erin Brokovich, etc, etc,..... I never seen her so glued to the home theatre room before.
We used to have Sony AV Amplifer, the legendary TA-VA8ES (as a receiver, STR-GA8ES in the States) but she always complained that the sound from the Sony is too artificial, too sharp and sometime gives her the headache. She praised that the Yamaha produce pleasing, easy and natural sound.
I must agree to that. I recently received my Jaws DTS DVD which I ordered from www.lasersedge.com and fire it up. NATURAL indeed. I felt the shark really, really wants to bite my leg. Thanks to the sound conveyed by the Yamaha, I am there.
I have a growing titles of DTS DVDs especially movies from Spielberg-directed or -produced. I am now ordering Close Encounters Of The Third Kind in DTS and can't wait to hear UFOs swooping all around.
Just for your info, my set-up complementing the Yamaha :

Denon DVD-3000 DVD/VCD/CD player
Sony SLV-X822 PAL/VHS Nicam VCR
Philips FC 731 Double Cassette Deck Recorder
Polk Audio RT5 speakers (2 pairs - for front & rear)
Polk Audio CS250-S center speaker
Infinity BU 120 powered sub

For those of you still looking for a competitively priced receiver with the best reputation, performance and value, stop right here and get this Yamaha today.

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Sony TA-VA8ES (STR-GA8ES)

Amazingly Rich, Detailed and Musical sound

Will make you feel stupid for Paying so much more in the Past for such sound

Well, What a Surprise this Yamaha is proving to be. After my NAD decided to give up the ghost after only 4 years(granted, I listen to music just about every waking hour), I had to replace it quickly. I did not want to spend a lot figureing I would buy something cheap util the NAD was repaired. Read the reviews on this Yamaha here, Remembered it was on sale for $199.99 at SoundAdvice here in FL and 3 hours later I was listening to it. WOW! I don't know what kind of Alchemy Yamaha has devined to get such powerful, punchy detailed sound out of such a light small receiver. It actually sounds BETTER than the $800 NAD. More detailed, much better high end and more controlled bass all while offering more dynamics, Breath or punch. I'm truely amzed at it's performance. True, it is not quite as warm sounding as the NAD in the middle but with my old, warm Vandersteen 1B speakers, it turned out to be a great match up. All the above applies to 2 channel Stereo. So far, I have not really put it through the paces as far HT is concerned. My initial observation is that the dolby pro logic is not as good as the Analog version in my NAD coming out of my VCR but that the Dolby Digital is much better coming out of the DVD player.

If you like warm sound yet crave detailed highs, be sure to match this Yamaha with the the right speakers. Anyway, I really don't think there is anything out there for less than 1k that can even come close to this Yamaha. Pick one up while you can as it is being replaced soon with a newer model

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NAD-AV716, Top of line Harmon Kardan, B&K, Adcom, Old Heavy duty MosFet 70's Pioneer.

Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS. The sound is excellent on this receiver and no hissing comes out of the speakers at all.

Remote control

This product is excellent for the amount that it costs. It has a decent amount of inputs and outputs for the average person to utilize. When listening to Dolby Digital and DTS, the sound is excellent. Watching Gladiator in DTS is ubelievable and nothing compares to it. If you want a good receiver for a reasonable price, this receiver is for you.

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Infinity Speakers, Velodyne 10 inch Sub, 32 inch Sony Trinitron TV

Sound, quality, features, and simplicity in operation and controls. Nice remote.

No binding post for center and rear channel spkrs output (I would've paid for the extra $10!). Instead, it's a cheap clip type. But I guess it's ok once you settle on connections and system setup.

Great quality and sound. Easy to setup. Easy to operate. Simple front panel which looks good and neutral in the living room.

Has lots of great DSP modes (which I didn't really care for, but have grown to appreciate). I turn it off for music listening (paired with PSB Alpha's, it's just great sound coming out). DD movies sound awesome. You can simulate Pioneer's midnight mode by lowering the D-Range (compresses the sound without losing clarity on voice). Mono Movie DSP is great for watching older movies or those encoded in DD mono.

Lots of control and adjustment for center/bass/rear/dynamic range, delays, speaker size, etc.

Nice and slim remote (but I've since replaced it with RadioShack 15-1994 for better controls of all my A/V equipments -- I can still control *everything* in the RX-V496, including time/delay, center/etc, and even get to diagnostic mode).

Great sound. Dolby/DTS. Nice price.

Confusing remote. Automatically selects coax over optical input for digital, even if no signal is sent via coax. Lack of coax input for satellite/cable input. Can be confusing to operate at times for those who aren't really into stereo equipment.

If you're looking for a relatively inexpensive Dolby Digital/DTS receiver - this is a good start. Although I wish that it had some more functionality with it (see weaknesses), I generally am happy with it and would recommend it to others. Sound is excellent and would make just about all but the most discerning audiophile happy. Don't be concerned about the relatively low watts - it is very efficient and is more than enough for even the largest living rooms.

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Harman Kardon 100

all that you expect in rxv 496.....what can i say they already said everything.....

for me? none !

none

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there's none that i know if i'll base on its price and quality.... a good buy for those people who value there money.

Great over all sound, the various cinema EQ modes are awesome, highly configurable, FM/AM frequency strenght meter, learning remote, banana plug compatible for all speakers - the rear and center are clamps but allow for plugs to be inserted, great user manual

Poor input configurations: only 2 s-video inputs (dvd & vcr) where is the s-video for a satellite? Accordingly, poor digital input configuration: two optical (dvd & satellite), one coax BUT it's for dvd of which there is already an optical --- note NO optical in for CD. (some complain optical CD isn't attractive because of the loss of signal during the first 2 seconds on most units, but i would have liked to at least have the option to decide for myself)

First let me say that this unit performs fantastically. A very sweet unit that packs a nice punch. Others have said the bass doesn't deliver without a sub, but I beg to differ. The sound is a little bright, however you CAN compensate for this in various ways due to the extensive flexibily in the speaker setup. Once I spent the 30 mins getting things just right I was very pleased with the final sound. DVD playback was phenomenal, and i enjoyed the 8 or cinema sound settings to the fullest - even though they are minor differences, they allow you to tweak evermore.

Reluctantly, and I mean reluctantly, I ended up swapping this unit for a Sherwood RD7106. Roughly, these receivers deliver a comparable performance, however the Sherwood simply beats the Yamaha when it comes to inputs.

The Yamaha has a messy mix of s-video and digital inputs that left me wondering: 1.) Why not make these inputs assignable? and 2.) Why isn't there an s-video input for satellite, when there is a fixed optical satellite input-- esp. when 95% of satellite receivers don't even offer a digital output??? And if you are one of the lucky ones with a top of the line satellite receiver, aren't you going to want s-video? After a few attempts to wire around this poor design, I resigned: Wiring through the vcr svideo input means you loose the optical sound, and using the optical sound means you loose the s-video. There is, in fact, a way to get around this, but it in the end you loose the ability to input a satellite and vcr together.

Although the Sherwood RD7106 lacks the attractive styling and a few of the fine tuning abilities of the Yamaha, it delivers the very high quality sound that remains my focus throughout(with stronger bass and less brightness - though its only a slight difference). In the end, I simply couldn't live without the advanced input flexibility of the Sherwood - it packs 4 assignable s-video inputs (one on the face) and 4 assignable digial inputs (2 coax and 2 optical)
See my review of the RD7106 for a more insightful look.

By spending a larger chunk of $$$ I could have found a Yamaha with a more advanced input selection, but I wasn't ready to fork it over. Perhaps when I need something capable of 7.1 ?

Final note, I recently had the pleasure of using a Harman Kardon Av100 for a few days and really loved it. It however, fails GREATLY when it comes to s-video & digital inputs. If I had the $$ I might actually go to the higher end of this line, but would use caution due to the increasing reliability issues arrising since HK moved its operations to China...

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Sony str d565, Sherwood RD-7106, Harman Kardon 100