Fast decoder, reasonable stereo sound, pre-outputs, good remote control.

Rated at 70W but needs volume "cranked up" to perform well, digital inputs not assignable, subwoofer crossover point fixed.

I looked at various systems, including friends units costing significantly more than this one, but for the things I was looking for, features, decoder modes, power output,and overall sound quality, I found this unit to be the best compromise. It has pre-outputs(all channels) which very few receivers under $1000 have, which will allow upgrade with external power amps if needed. I have tried various modes but have not got pro-logic to work satisfactorily. Incidentally the surround speaker terminals will accept bare wire or banana terminals. One flaw is that while there are plenty of optical inputs, these are not assignable, forcing me to feed my CD player through one of the pre assigned optical inputs, which incidentally I recommed doing as the 24bit/96KHz converters are superior to anything you''ll get in a reasonable priced CD player. The amplifier stage offers reasonable performance, with slightly bright sounding highs ( used both Jamo and B&W 600 speakers - the B&W''s are better match).It''s Ok for stereo as long as you don''t except audiophile performance. Only other problem I have found is that the center channel appears to put out about 3 dB higher than the mains or surround speakers, which I have not found to be the case with another brand of AVR I use. Overall a good compromise, with potential to upgrade output stages. Unfortunately it lacks Pro-Logic II, which its replacement ( the RX-V620) also misses.

Similar Products Used:

Denon, Akai

Detailed, musical

Upper frequencies, remote

Out of the box you first note its weight (heavy) and solid build. Speaker connections are binding posts for the front speakers and spring clips for the surrounds and center. Very good instructions on setting the unit up.

This unit benefits from a break in period. Initially, the sound is overly thin and aggressive in the upper frequencies whether the input be the tuner, dvd, or cable box. Unfortunately this is a sonic signature as after a week of use as it continues to disappoint in the upper frequencies. The sound has soften somewhat but still overemphasises the treble and upper midrange. The lower midrange and upper base is taught and well controlled but also somewhat threadbare, perhaps contributing to the sense that there is too much upper frequency energy. Listener fatigue was a real problem for me. Don't combine this Yammy with bright speakers!

The remote is simply horrible. The device wheel combined with multi-functioned keys makes controlling the receiver a real chore.

After a week of use I gave up on the RX-V596 and traded it in for the Pioneer Elite TX33 which costs $150 more. The Elite does the upper frequencies right....it sounds like real music which never fatigues or hurts your ears.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer Elite TX-33
Older Onkyo Dolby Digital

Power, space, good stereo, natural sound

Remote, no loudness, no direct

Yamaha RX-V569RDS is a good heart of home audio-video system, is plenty of power with all speakers, many effects, sound is powerfull and delicate. But is no direct function (for audiophiles) and no loudness for silent listening. Overall this is a good receiver with natural sound (but not VERY good like a tube...)

Similar Products Used:

JVC, Harman-Kardon

Pleant of Inputs, Front S-Video in, Sound field, Yamaha brand name in receiver, bass management feature.

Maybe, but not really, the remote.

A good receiver at this price, solid built.

Neat sound. I using JBL SCS-125 set. Really would like to try on better speakers to see how it sounds like!

Great inputs. crisp clean sound. great price/value

seemed too crisp at first...just took a little speaker adjustment

This is the first receiver I bought since college(10+ years0
I looked aournd a lot before getting this one from Crazy Eddie for 359 plus 20 bucks shipping. At first I was taken aback by the crispness of the unit during loud movie passages on dvd. Now I am totally in love...I don't know if it was the moving of the speakers or me getting used to the clarity of the sound. Either way it is worth a listen if you are a H/T fan.

Similar Products Used:

aiwa, pioneer

Excellent power, plenty of inputs including s-video and 3 DD input channels,

Remote not significantly improved over the 595's, still no binding posts on rear/center channels.

I had been looking into getting a new receiver to replace a very old Pioneer that has outlived its usefulness. I spent some time looking at the Onkyo 575, other low end (low $)Pioneer Elite and decided that I wanted the 595a. I had heard from the store that I eventually bought the 596 from that it was coming out and that it would be a better machine so I waited. It was definitely worth the wait.

Improvements on last years model include s-video on all video channels, 100 watts x 5, and some extra movie soundfields. Otherwise it is pretty much the same. The power is more than sufficient, and in a 12x15 ft room, it is more than enough power. It handles both DTS and DD well, as tried through The Matrix, and The Eagles:Hell Freezes Over (the only DTS disc I have). The sound is incredibly clear and crisp, even through an old pair of DCM TimeFrames from 10 years ago.

The remote is passable at best. They colored it black this year, and addressed the problem of not being able to see what the little wheel is set to by putting a light behind it. The wheel is a crappy idea and they need to abandon it. Whoever put the 2 settings on the wheel that handle the tuner and amp on opposing sides of the dial wasn't too smart. It also can't seem to control my Sony 5 cd changer other than play and stop (no disc switching). I was also disappointed to see that with all of the extra jacks on this thing, they still went cheap with clips for the rear and center channels. Adding an extra digital input channel is a big plus though, as it sets a selector for cable/satellite now.

All in all, it is an excellent receiver with a lot of expandability and power, and simply outmatches anything in the price range. I got mine for $450 on a July 4th weekend sale, and it was hard to find since the other local stores had sold all of theirs.

Similar Products Used:

none

Power,clean design,more digtal inputs

remote is better than last years but stills falls short for the price,wish center and surrounds had speaker posts.doesnt have 5ch stereo.remote is still a flop

Yamaha has taken care of its customers this year 100 watts of clean power more dsp sound feilds ,fm tuner is better than last years.build quality is top notch.I owned last years model and this one is like buying rxv795a or better for the same price .I use mirage avs 500 speakers with a mirage frxs8 sub,excellent match great hometheater setup for around 1200.00 dollars.

Similar Products Used:

1997yamaha 590,1999yamaha rxv595a

Power/Price Combo

Havent found any yet

Well I felt I owed a comment after using this site for the last month in completing my home theatre with the RXV596. Wow! This amp has done wonders for my system. I using all Energy speakers: XL16 Fronts, XL15 suround, XLC2 center, 10" Subwoofer. This amp drives all of them perfectly. The whole house rocks when using the home theatre and the stereo sound is amazingly clear. I highly recomend this amp to anyone with similar speaker configuration.

Power/Price Combo

Havent found any yet

Well I felt I owed a comment after using this site for the last month in completing my home theatre with the RXV596. Wow! This amp has done wonders for my system. I using all Energy speakers: XL16 Fronts, XL15 suround, XLC2 center, 10" Subwoofer. This amp drives all of them perfectly. The whole house rocks when using the home theatre and the stereo sound is amazingly clear. I highly recomend this amp to anyone with similar speaker configuration.

FM, Surround setup, great sound.

Remote Control

Great Unit, THD .06 as compared to my old YAMAHA which was .015, but I cannot hear the difference. Old remote was 100% better.

DO NOT BUY FROM LET's GO DIGITAL

LET'S GO DIGITAL did not warn me in advance that they were not a authorized YAHAMA dealer and thus my receiver would not be covered under YAMAHA's warranty. I found this out because I called Let's Go Didital and said that there was no warranty info in the box. Customer Service said to call YAHAMA warranty to obtain a warranty and YAHAMA said that they would not because of LETS GO DIGTAL status as an unauthorized dealer. They went on to say that LETS GO DIGITAL deals in grey market products. I did not even receive the USA version of the product, but the General or Chinese product. It has a voltage setting and FM frequency selector on the rear panel that the USA version does not have. I ended up buying a 'MACK' extended warranty from Lets Go Digital for half the cost $39, but I think they should have given it to me for gratis. Who the hell knows if "MACK" is any good or not. At first I was going to return the Receiver, but I am a prior YAMAHA receiver owner and feel that even though it wasn't what I expected it is still YAMAHA and it will last the test of time. I only upgraded for DTS and DOLBY DIGITAL.

Similar Products Used:

YAHAMA RX-V870 only upgraded for DTS/DOBLY DIGITAL.