not much

loudness, DSP, tuner,remote, sub output didnt work

Loudness:
---------
I have this RX-V795a hooked up to B&W 602 S2's
(for the front, currently I only have fronts
as I use this for music only).
I have to turn up the volume a lot of get
some decent sound. Some CD's have a higher
volume in which case it is so annoying.


The sounds quality is good with "effect off"
and I guess it depends more on the CD & CD player.
I used a $45 dollar monster interconnects,$85 audio quest
optical cables and the factory provided red-white
cable. Absolutely no difference. you need some untra
sensitive meter to record any difference. so dont
waste money on all those interconnects.

tuner
-----
lousy sound quality. only the voice of the
disc jockey is good evan that is not very sharp.


DSP
---
DSP is a POS. this sound is totally different
from the actual sound. there is so much distortion
in all of them. wonder why they put this POS.
try playing Patti Labels greates hits
album. try song 16 on all dsp's and with effect=off
and see the difference.

remote
------
it didnt work well with the Pioneer DVD player DV-333
(I am not sure if it is DV or DVP, but it is 333)
When I played the CD on this DVD player I wasnt able
to use the fast forward/rewind button. I could use
only the disp skip. Surprisingly the remote worked
well with my 4 year old Kenwood CD player DP-6080.

sub output
----------
I connected the Definitive technology prosub100.
I didnt get any sound. I checked all the options
like small/large main speakers etc. The sub worked
on my friends DENON AVR-3300.


In short RX-V795a is a POS for the
retail which is over $600. I got it for $489
and I feel it is still not worth the money
if you are looking for a dedicated music only
receiver. All those DSP are just plain useless.
who needs those unnatural sound. it sounds like
you are in a bathroom.

try the marantz SR5000. make sure you audition all
the DSP's on SR5000. I didnt check them. The marantz
sound wasnt all that great either even on regular
2 channel. dont blame by speakers. I have B&W 602 s2
which are probably one of the best bookshelf speakers
for that price ($570/pair). My CD player is also
a decent one. I also tried DENON DCM-370, marantz cc-3000.
They all sounded same as my kenwood DP-6080.

SR5000 and RX-V795a are probably not worth $600+ for
the kind of sound quaity they deliver and with all those
unnessasary features and NOT TO MENTION A CRAPPY REMOTE.

I regret for not buying a DENON receiver.
so go try them. even the AVR-1801 sounded good.

Similar Products Used:

Marantz SR500

Lots of power for all the channels

remote, but it does not bother me much

i would really reccommend this reciever for home cinema, and in stereo its good too. it is definetly a good buy for around 400-600$, depends where you buy it. if you live in an apartement, where you dont need very large speakers then go for it.

Similar Products Used:

pioneer prologic reciever (don't remember the type)

Looks. Decent power.

Bright/forward treble.

What can I say. I found out why people think that this is a good sounding reciever. The treble is emphasized giving the illusion of liveliness. The brightness is not due to lack of power, that's for sure. The benefit of focusing on the treble is that every musical detail is in your face. This can be fatiguing after a while. For the first time, I noticed that the treble on one of my mp3 was distorted due to poor recording process. The yamaha is the only reciever that brought this to my attention. The midrange needs more work. It is muffled at times. The bass is not as powerful as the Sony DB830.

What I found out in my listening to different reciever and amps is that so called accuracy is not always desirable. Many "accurate" recievers and amps turn out to be musically lifeless. They are bright, forward, and thin. The reason tube amps are so valued is because they produced certain amount of distortion, I think second order, that is pleasing to the human ear. I sometimes wonder how a listener can judge if a recording is accurate, if they never heard the original song? Hmmm.

Similar Products Used:

Sony DB830. Parasound HCA-1000 amp. Denon 1600. Technics.

Clean crisp sound, very accurate imaging and detail with video switching and a full array of five way binding posts.parametric adj. for dsp

Darn remote !!!

Picked up a Yamaha RXV-795a reciever 9 months ago and this unit just keeps on getting better and better the more I
listen to it.Did alot of research on recievers like the RXV-595a,RXV995 from Yamaha,and the Kenwood VR3090 before I
finally settled on the RXV-795a.I found the 595a sounded flat,the 995 could not justify the difference in price,and the VR3090 sounded smooth but with no buttom end in the bass department.With very accurate detailed highs with deep rich bass response this reciever is a no brainer and have recommened it to everybody.Working at a audio/video retail
store I had the advantage of properly demoing all kinds of recievers,but the RXV795a still always provided the best natural sound in a DD,DTS reciever for under $1000.00 Candian.With features life video switching,multiple digital sound feild processing,high quality 5 way binding posts for all speaker terminals,external decoder hook up for future referance for DVD audio,etc makes this power house from Yamaha be my main reciever in my home theatre for many years to come...unless I pick up a Yamaha RX-V1!!!!Hated the remote worked good but was to cumbersion to use that jog dial for input selections.CD audio sounds so clean that you would think with my Energy speakers that you were live.

Similar Products Used:

kenwood KRV9080, Sony STRDE415,teac.

Lots of options to mold the sound to your particular tastes

Would be nice to have more control over the front speaker volume in the same way you can manipulate the center and surround speaker volume. Also remote is hard to read.

My TV hookup is from an (AT&T) Satellite box to a Panasonic VCR via coax cable. Then I use an audio video combo RCA to the 795a and a VIdeo RCA connect to the TV from the 795a.

When the my new Pioneer DV-333 DVD player arrives (hopefully today or tomorrow) I will connect using the S-Video out from the Pioneer to the 795a and again the S-video Monitor out from the 795a to my TV. Luckily, my 27 inch RCA Home Theater TV, which is about 10 yrs, has an s-video connection. I'm already experiencing much improved picture and sound quality having eliminated the coax hookup to the TV from the VCR.

I got the 795a about a month ago to replace my old 2 channel YAMAHA Natural Sound RS-8. The old receiver has served me well for a long time but I wanted to set up Home Theater. I bought the receiver and a GEKKO SERVO-10 subwoofer (Canadian with servo control & a 100 watt amp) from a store in IOWA called Hawkeye Audio. Check out their website at >>

http://www.hawkeyeaudio.com/about.htm

Hawkeye website has an excellent section on HT setup. I have also purchased several speakers from Scott at this store, namely PARADIGM (also Canadian and really great speakers at an affordable price>>>see this website for some excellent photos and specs on these quality speakers.

http://www.paradigm.ca

I purchased used (but in perfect condition) PARADIGM Studio 20's on 35 inch black metal stands from Hawkeye for the front speakers and a PARADIGM LCR-450 center speaker (an older model>>compare to the Studio CC on the website) whose tweeters are a perfect match for the 20's. For rear surround speakers I am currently using my old KLIPSCH Heresy's which is probably overkill but they sound great with their broad range. I will add my PARADIGM Titans for surrounds mounted on the beams of my family room ceiling. I have a really great room for HT, very wide and very long with great acoustics.All the speakers are in excellent condition and were purchased way below the cost of new ones, sometimes as low as 1/2 price.

I bought all of my PARADIGM speakers on the Internet using AudioReview. Scott at Hawkeye places ads occasionally when he gets in some good used equipment, mostly PARADIGMS. After buying the Studio 20's from him, I have developed a very good business relationship with him. He advises me on HT setup, wiring, everything and offers me deals on Ht stuff that he knows will compliment my system.

The final part of my HT setup is in transit as we speak, a Pioneer DV-333 DVD player, which is the replacement for Pioneer's DVD-525. Got this player from technetdeals for the lowest price I could find on the net>>>$235 shipped!! Use YAHOO (electronics) shopping to find similar bargains.All reviews on these players are excellent for picture and sound quality, especially with the twin "LASER" hookup. Sorry, I couldn't resist putting the "LASER" in quotes. Too much Dr. Evil!!

I've never had a DVD player before, so I am getting excited. I bought The Matrix , Hell Freezes Over(EAGLES in DTS) and Steely Dan AJA DVD's to test it out. I can hardly wait!

I'm still getting used to the Remote on the 795a. Now that I can see the onscreen menus it's much easier after figuring out to switch my TV staion to 91. I still have not mastered all the remote functions yet. The sound is very clean and sounds wonderful, for movies it's better than being in a theatre, especially since you can take food breaks, etc>>

I am convinced that if you master the remote, you can mold the sound, whether it's music or movies, to sound exactly the way you want, which is not necessarily "accurate" since everyone has different conceptions of what sounds best.

A lot of reviews say that the DSP modes sound echoey or tinny>>>but these people probably haven't mastered all of the different settings that you can use to control this, such as room size, delay, etc.

My only criticism of the unit would be to allow for more control over the front speakers, mostly in the area of (separate) loudness controls like you have with the surround and center channels. I also agree with comments about the lettering on the remote. I have to push my glasses down my nose and stick the remote in my face to read it, especially the "DISP" and some of the yellow letters. Some kid with perfect vision must have designed it, not an old fogey like me!

All in all, I think it's a great receiver and I haven't learned even 1/2 of the neat things you can do with it yet or had a DVD player hooked up to it. When my new Pioneer DV-333 arrives I'm sure this will transport me to a new dimension of sound and movie enjoyment.

Who should buy it?? I am certainly not an expert, but after reading all of these reviews and using it myself, it looks like you don't have to spend a lot of money to get outstanding sound and video for your HT system. The 795a, I think would satisfy most audio enthusiasts and even audiophiles that can't afford a $2000 receiver.

PS: How much did I pay??? That's a secret>>>>

Similar Products Used:

this is my first Digital type receiver

Lots of In/Outputs, decent sound on DD, lots of features

horrible remote, died after 1.5Hr, Flat CD sound

I have bought it yesterday from Stereo Supplies for $1200 AUD. My decision was mainly based on positive reviews on this site. I needed to replace non DD Onkyo receiver (5 yo).
I was impressed with number of connections at the back, and excellent sound quality (DVD). But when I trued Enya CD, sound became very flat (compared to my old amp - sound source was optical output from brand new Onkyo DV c600 and from analog Onkyo CD player) and it could not even come close to my old-$700 amp, I must admit I did not have time to setup various setting (just setup the spear size) and went with factory defaults (for the rest).
Remote is another point I would like to make. Try to read
2mm high letter in bright yellow color on the bright silver background with not always perfect light. I could not from about 30cm, neither the dealer.
After watching Mummy (1hr) I have tried headphones (effect off to turn off surround speakers... - could it be a bit more intuitive ?), listened to CD for about
0.5hr and turned it off. This morning I could not turn it back on...
Disconnected everything (except power cord) from the back, no luck.
Took it back to dealer this morning and they were kind enough to refund my money, which I am going to spend on Onkyo TX-DS676 tonight.
I am not particularly fussy but above stuff left very bad feeling about yamaha.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo

Build quality, reliabililty, everything it pumps out

Remote is not designed for humans

My wife wanted a HT set up in our newly finished basement... Yes folks, the HT was my WIFE's wanting. What am I gonna say...NO? Yeah right. After much research into what I want in a receiver and what I can afford in a receiver, I narrow the list down to 3 units, the Sony DB 940, Denon 3300 and the Yamaha 795a. I ruled out the Onkyo model solely because of price (I found out later from a few audio geeks that the Yammy 795a was a better buy anyway)I venture into my local HT boutique and we begin the demo's. FYI, the demo's went through the Klipsch Micro Quintets, Tannoys and PSB speakers. The rest of this review acknowleges the overall sound coming out of each speaker brand.
The Sony sounded good, except I had just recently heard that they were having problems with their audio products. As much as I am a Sony fan of their video products, I will not risk a G note on something that, by consensus, is not reliable. Out with the Sony. The Denon 3300 sounded real nice. It had what I can only describe as a thin layer of air trapping the sound before it escapes through the speakers. Not a hiss or bright sound, but something that held the sound back a notch that gave you a warm feeling. My wife liked it. Then we put the same DVD "Eagles live concert" into the Yammy and 2 seconds later my Amex is in the sales reps hands. The sound was full and distinct throughout each of the speakers. The warm sound that was released through the Denon is now an "in your face" turn the s@#t up feeling you got from the Yammy. We both liked the Yammy and went with it.

Not to mention all the proper connections for now and later and you've got a receiver that will be the heart of your HT system for many years to come. Oh, one more thing, don't think that 85W/C is something to gawk at. This Yamaha cranks it out like it's 110 with no distortion.

My set up;
20x25 room
Sony 43" Videoscope
Yamaha 795a receiver
Sony DVP360 DVD
Sharp HI-FI VCR (mid quality)
Digital Cable box
Klipsch Quintet Speakers w KSW10 sub.
Monster and Audio link cables

Similar Products Used:

Sony, Denon, Onkyo, Techniques

Power, capacity, reputation

Display, remote

Over the past 18 months that I have been dabbling with the
purchase of home theatre equipment, I read a great deal regarding different systems, specs, interpretations and reviews. Much of this served to only add more confusion to the purchase decision, and I concluded that the few receivers in the same category all bear advantages. Since the receiver is the centre of the HT universe, it is imperative to make the right selection that suits your needs and tastes. Unquestionably, the Yamaha 795a is a unit that bears a superior degree of quality, performance, flexibility and reliability, and would be an ideal cornerstone of most home theatre set-ups.

I found that speaker systems interact differently with various receivers to produce differing sounds and tones, not to mention the ability to shape the sounds using the myriad of controls and dsp's available. In the end, it is imperative that the purchaser listen to the speakers with the receiver before they buy. Several have said the Yamaha 795a sounds "bright". This is if fact not a criticism, since "bright" actually mimics reality more than "warm"; it is merely a point of preference. Each has advantages in different situations, and I found the 795a can be adjusted to sound either with my speaker setup.

I found displays of most receivers to be somewhat difficult to read from any distance, and personally don't care for amber lights. Regardless, cosmetically the 795 offers a stylish front panel, and is easy to use.

Much is written about the remote. It is unnecessarily complicated, leading to confusion and frustration, and the print is exceedingly difficult to read in the best of light. If it were backlit, I would appreciate the controller a little more. At least it is sleek.

As a final note, ensure you use quality cable and the superior formats/connectors wherever possible, to get the most out of your serious investment.

Happy hunting.

Sound great, easy to use and configured
loudness

Remote his a bit annoying

it's my first a/v receiver that i bouth and i'm 100% satisfied it's easy to use the on screen menu make it a child's game to configured the sound his fantastic it's supported the dolby digital and dts what's his pretty good basically you cannot go wrong with yamaha

i find that the remote his a bit unfriendly the little wheel that we have to rool to change from tv, dvd, vcr, aux, etc etc can be a bit anoying when you want to change it when the ligth are closed

good sound

the part where it breaks

well... i didn't purchase it... and it wasn't even my receiver... but i was spinning at a little party at a hall near by... and instead of providing me with pro amps... they gave me this lil POS...

from previous experiences... Yamaha has lived up to their standards... and i'm sure it's only this one occassion... but as i got into the peak of the night... the damn thing overloaded... so i figured it was a break in the wire... checked the wire... no breaks... made sure the speakers load were matched right... nothing... turned it off... turned it back on... started again... 15 min later... it overloaded again... so i decided to just try and replace the wiring... did that... started again... and 10 min later... the amp just gave out...

i didnt mess with any of the bass settings... i kept it in stereo... and used JBL SVA-1600's... with monster cable wiring...

the problem was obviously the receiver... now i'm not criticizing Yamaha'a quality... because it's great!! but like intel... they should test everysingle product before it leaves the factory... to make sure that it's no different from the rest of the products...