With the arrival of decent broadband speeds in our village we have moved towards network streaming boxes which typically use hdmi . To make life easier for the family I looked at replacing the trusty dspax 620 with a more modern amp with hdmi switching. First I tried a Sony (£350) - this lacked the base presence of the Yamaha. Secondly I bought a Marantz SR 5009 (rrp £750 ) . This is a good amp with great clarity but the venerable Yammy still holds its own in comparison. I have ended up using the Marantz in the TV room while the Yammy has returned back to the home cinema room thundering out its soundtracks through spdif. I totally agree with the recent reviews this has to be the best £149 I have ever spent on an AV product.

I'd like to support Thompson's review below. I bought my RX-V 620 in 2000, which served me well, until it was stolen in an housebreaking incident in 2009. The insurers replaced the RX V 620, with the then current RX V 767...also an excellent 7 channel, 95w AV system.
The RX V 620 was not designed to be a stereo system, but more for AV purposes. My son, who grew up playing the RX V620, still speaks fondly of this system some 14 years later (incidentally he owns an Onkyo TN-NR737, and makes comparisons)
So if ever you are in the market for a 2nd hand AV receiver unit.....and, lucky to find a 620...I suggest you buy it....remember it's an old unit so you won't get USB ports, wifi and other bells & whistles with this system.

This is a retro review for the dsp ax-620. I have owned one now for 12yrs. Although discontinued and technically obsolete this review is for anyone looking to purchase one on the used market.

Originally bought to provide surround sound it was placed on stereo duties while sorting out the speaker package. First driving a pair of Sony 176s speakers then a pair of Mission 782se. Honestly, it is so impressive as a stereo amp it never went under the t.v.

Put simply this is the best stereo amp I have heard.Over the years I have played with the idea of replacing it, auditioning analog/stereo amps from the usual suspects and each time it delivered the best sound through my speakers.

The positive descriptions from the reviews here are my experience. Its very clear sounding with a very low noise floor, it sounds powerful and delivers a stunningly wide and deep soundstage without distortion even at high volume - if your speakers can cope it will deliver.

The clarity is very good giving music genuine weight and timber, the definition and separation will surprise, compared with the analog amps I have auditioned to replace it with the AudioLab 8200a, Rotel ra-1520, Roksan Kt, Marantz Pearl lite (around £800ish amps) it really was a revalation suggesting these amps are over priced - don't get me wrong these amps sound loud initially and would impress in a short demo, but after around 9o'clock on the volume dial they start to distort or 'shout' - poorly attenuated. The Yamaha is loud without 'sounding' loud because of the lack of distortion.

Paired with a NAD c660 CDplayer and the Mission's the dsp ax-620 has provided me with years of genuinely great service. Considering it's cost at the time it has paid for itself in terms of use.

To add, I did go HT after years of doing without with a Yamaha ra-1020, funnily enough this does not do stereo as well. The ax-620 never did do HT.

So there it is, if you are after a cheap used stereo amp the Yamaha DSP ax-620 is a solid choice if your budget is small. It is a genuine classic amp and with digital inputs, coax and optical, it'll work well with today's digital device's .

I'm so impress with this product I had to share.

DTS and DD sound quality.

Stereo sound.

Of course, YAMAHA-620 was built to be excellent DTS and DD receiver and you can get it at comparatively low price. Quality of usual stereo will disappoint you without any doubt. No tight bass, no sound details i.e. there is no needs at all to compare it with good stereo amplifier - lost time. When I bought the unit in 2002 I thought that it would be good also for music but in short time stereo quality problem became final critical point for me and I already considered possibility to change my receiver for Yamaha 1000,1200 or other but I found much better solution (best of the best - I am sure) that I would like to talk about. It is BBE sonic maximazer 462 that is of professional audio restoration system at 200-300$US price level. I connect my CD "TEAK" with input of 462 units and ouput of the unit with "YAMAHA". IT IS ABSOLUTELY UNBELIEVABLE!!! Sound quality blew me away. For the ridiculas price - I got well-regulated rich natural volumetric sound with strong bass, clear middle and high frequencies. I am sure stereo sound of the same quality MIGHT be attained if you buy very expensive receiver(more 1500$ at least and I am not sure) My recommendation is the following: if you are owner of 620 and DTS,DD sound quality are acceptable for you and ,in turn, stereo quality do not meet your requirements at all - there is a cost effective solution I mentioned above. By the way, you can find a lot about the 42-patents BBE processors and ,in particularly, about Sonic Maximizer 462. I also connect my DVD throught RCA with 462 to listen stereo-recorded DVD disks with 5 channel stereo. As for stereo - AMAZING!!! Sometimes, it sounds much better than DD or DTS depending on quality od DVD disk itself.

Similar Products Used:

< 1500$ A/V receivers

low noise, excellent movie performance, build quality, inputs/outputs,

Speaker setup flexibility(as are all yamahas)

I bought this amp(DSP AX620, same model as RXV620 but no tuner) for my dad. I originally connected it to my B&W/Paradigm setup. I was a bit dissapointed with it at first, I thought the power was weak. But then I found out about digital volume control. You can do it all the way down to -20 and it will sound great. -24 is probably the optimal setting. 1 of the good things about this amp, is that it gives out very low noise. Only after -25 does it start giving out extra noise, so the sound will be crystal clear. For music I was a bit dissapointed it revealed more details then my RXV396 and sounded more natural/fuller but overall the RXV396 sounded better in music, it was more richer, lively. For movies its excellent,I have listened to a friend who has Sony STRDB940, and this sounds almost as good as his setup, even though he has a 12" sub and floorstanders. The sound in movies is deep, powerful and realistic. the channel seperation is brilliant and thanks to the low noise theres next to no distortion. Since this is an AV amp and people will most likely use it for movies, then I have to reccommend it to anyone except those with a large room. It easily fills a 9M(length) by 4M(width) room. However if you have something like 11M by 6M or bigger then get a more powerful amp. actually this amp is quite powerful despite what I thought initially. It's rated at 90W, but a test(by home cinema choice mag) shows that it reaches 68.7% @ 0.05% thd which is excellent. and max output at onset on clipping is 93W @ 2.7% thd. so overall its a powerful amp, compared to other manufacturers. One thing that I dont like is that its not as flexible in speaker setup such as sony is. When you have small satellites you need to increase the crossover but Yamaha provides only a 90HZ crossover or large setting. the NSp 220 sats go from 140-20K So in my dads setup from 90hz-140hz is not very clear, its present but not as clear/loud as it should be. You can say this is speakers fault, but since Yamaha makes sets like this, they should offer a more flexible crossover at least, preferable options would be speaker range from listening position and increasing volume of front L/R speakers. It has more then enough inputs/outputs, the setup is simple and build quality is first class. The remote is decent , easy to operate. The music is not bad, so I cant say its a negative because compared to other AV amps its around average. You have to increase the DTS LFE to +6 to match the DD but that aint no problem, its simple to do. Everything about this amp except speaker setup flexibility is excellent(even yamahas most expensive amps only provide a fixed crossover) so I have to give it 5 stars.

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha RXV396

Clean power DSP modes are awesome Virtual and Silent Cinema On Screen Display Digital ToP ArT Design Volume turns up an down in 0.5dB steps

As of today i still do not have any weaknesses for the receiver.

I am speaking for my cousin Joe W. that has this receiver here in Dallas Tx. First off this receiver is tha bomb!!! I love that it has the 5 channel stereo dsp mode and as well as the introduction of the silent and virtual cinema modes. let me tell you this, i tried the two modes and they both blew me away!!! especially the virtual cinema mode. i turned of the center and surround speakers to get it in that mode and the sound was awesome!!! i mean i literally had to make sure i turned off those speakers and actually sticking my head to the speakers, and see if they were playing. another thing i like about yamaha is the fact you can mix the famed DSP modes which they invented back in 1986 with the Dolby Digital & DTS and Dolby Pro Logic. This process is called Cinema DSP. (actually there are two or three modes the dsp mix in with pro logic.) and again i can hold this statement true about having crappy speakers hooked up to a yamaha receiver!! (ready my review for the rx-v2095 from yamaha) now as far as saying the receiver heats up well that's when you have a bunch of components stacked on top of it, of course it going to heat up. i myself has been selling this receivers for quite some time and i know for a fact, the yamaha's do not get as hot like sony or jvc or technics or any brand execpt for denon-which is a another awesome brand!! and last but not lease the silent cinema mode. this feature is great!!!!! you can use regular headphones and still be able to listen Dolby Digital & DTS through the headphones!!!!!!!! Is that cool or what?!?!?!

Similar Products Used:

pioneer vsx-d608

Yamaha name identification, DSP effects, dealer support, I/P & O/Ps

Front panel controls take some mastering,remote control, lack of pre-amp O/Ps

This model was touted as the Supertest winner competing against 7 other AV receivers in "What HI-FI". I found the amplifier very clean sounding,articulate and easily enough reserve power for my needs. Spoiled by listening in 5 channel and seldom resort to stereo anymore. Found front controls a tricky business and remote overclustered and too slim for my liking. Still rate it high, where it counts, sound quality

Similar Products Used:

Marantz surround receiver, Hafler DH200

powerful, sounds good.

nothing..

This A/V Reciever is kinda kool, specially the sound changes, DSP,DTS,DD & Prologic. all works fine in a good way. one thing i wanna mention is its remote. it kinda messey,some functions which are hard to know. but anyways... amp is awesome!!!

Natural sound for CD music lover, price, good for movies accordingly previous reviews

Light bass at lower sound volumes

Being owner of more then 400 CD I am fond of listening music mainly through headphones and I have top-class dynamic, open-type headphones being as Sennheiser HD-600. I decided to replace my old receiver SONY with 10-band equalizer (model 1992) and purchased Yamaha RX-V620. What can I say? After three months testing I have to state it is really wonderful receiver to listen CD music similar to more expensive RX-V800,1000. However, while listening cd recorded with light bass it is not worth to expect from this receiver something beyong horizon at low sound volume > -55Db. If you want to enjoy music quality of your cd take into account two things: first, your volume should be lower -50db or buy subwoofer and second, change your connection cable between CD and receiver, it would be great surprise for you to reveal another sound picture with strong middle frequencies range and reinforced bass. I bought comparatively cheap Monster Cable Interlink 200 ($40) and it was good choice for beginning.

Similar Products Used:

Yamaha RX-V800,RX-V1000

Sound

Overheats

I love this receiver, but can any body help me with this? Is there any particular reason why my Yamaha RX-V620 overheats even though every speaker connection is properly set? (Right impedance, etcetera). . Could this damage my receiver? How could I know how if the temperature is normal? Thank you.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo