Denon 2809ci vs 989 and Onk 806

Zamps

I'm looking to upgrade my receiver to 7.1. I done enough searches to make my head ache. Can someone explain the difference between the 2809ci and the 989. Looking at the spec sheet they look very similiar and the cost the same.

How would these receiver compare to the Onkyo 806? I was really leaning towards this one and was ready to order one but I guess I got the heat/blue dot jitters. But is it worth spending the extra $600 for the Denon?

Thanks.

skrol

The 989 and 2809ci are essentially the same. The 2809ci is geared for Custom Integration and has different remotes for multi-room. I believe the 989 has the same features but a single simpler remote.

Zamps

Thanks, the remotes was about the only difference I could find. Is the Denon worth the extra money over the Onkyo?

Murray1

Check out Nextag for Denon pricing. Saw it for $750ish new. Also a recent thread that talks about glitches in 806.

timlitton

Among the features that make the CI series especially suited for custom installers is Denon's "Secret Installer Modes", which lets installers lock out certain functions and disable the use of the IR remote so that customers do not accidentally re-configure key audio/video settings and parameters. A front-panel system set-up control option adds to the CI's utility for custom installation professionals. And for added convenience, a special Input Source Renaming function allows installers to re-name components in an integrated system (for example, instead of calling a connected component simply "DVD player," installers may re-name it "Denon DVD-2930CI").

I've found in the past that the CI also 3 room zones while the regular AVR has two, but that may have changed.

As far as prices, I've found ecost.com and dakmart.com to have the best prices around -for refurbs. They're both listed as authorized Denon dealers on Denon's website although I've heard some less than stellar reviews of dakmart over the years. Dakmart has the 2809CI for $715 and the AVR 989 for $699.

Zamps

Are there any issues with Denon receivers? In researching I haven't found anything on them. Unlike some issues with Onkyo.

cnh

Hi,

I don't know of any recurring issues with that series of Denon...I've owned an AVR 2807 for about 2 years and it's been bullet-proof...no issues of any kind...only caveat is Denons are more difficult to set-up than Onkyos.

I own receivers from both... the Onkyos are slightly warmer. The Denon a bit more neutral sounding.

If you're not worried about super-video upconversion. The Onkyo 805 is the superior receiver for audio...more power, higher current peaks, Burr Brown DACs and an internal architecture very very similar to the higher model 875/6. Runs hotter than Denons. Hard to find an 805 these days. But you can get the 876 for about the same price as the Denon AVR2809 new at www.jr.com The 876 doesn't have video issues and has superior processing to that Denon model.

cnh

Norm Apter

When I was researching AVRs a few months ago, I didn't find any issues and that, in part, influenced my final decision. Among others (Yamaha, HK), I had been strongly considering the Onkyo 805/806 but I read in several places -- including this very forum -- about heating/shutdown. If I recall correctly, it wasn't simply a case of not providing enough ventilation. Anyway, I went with the Denon 2808ci in January and have been very pleased with it.

The only negative thing that I read about was that setup is fairly complicated with Denons, but I don't think that this should be a deterrent.

Zamps

Thanks for everyone's input. The best price I've for the 2809 is $750 and $1000 for 876. I like to stay under $1000 and I think I'm leaning towards the 2809. Now it's time to smooth talk the wife. : )

Zamps

Currently my receiver is putting out 110W x 5 channels. Is there going to be a noticable difference if running 110W x 7 or 90W x 7 channels?

rallyshark

I'm definitely not an expert, but if you're going from the sony to the denon, I would guess there would only be benefit. I wouldn't worry too much. After all, all "watts" are not created equal:D

thsmith

Zamps wrote: »

Thanks for everyone's input. The best price I've for the 2809 is $750 and $1000 for 876. I like to stay under $1000 and I think I'm leaning towards the 2809. Now it's time to smooth talk the wife. : )

Spend a grand and get a new 3808. F/W upgradable and has some power. I called 6ave last week and it was 1019 with free shipping. They are an auth delaer too.

I bought my 2808 from them and had no issues. I wish I had waited a year for the 3808 price to come down.

Dawgfish

I own both the Denon 2809CI and the Onyo 806.

Sound is a personal thing, but I have to say hands down the Denon is superior in sound to the Onkyo in every fashion (music, tv, and home theater, but especially for music).

Cnh and I have differed on this, but I personally feel like the Denon has the warmer sound of the two. I'm not disagreeing with you CNH, I think it's more of one of those "ear of the beholder" or "YMMV" things. I find the Denon sounds warmer, with greater detail and music seperation. The 806 sounds great for tv and home theater, but it's sterile and overly digitized sounding to me for music.

The 806 does have some nice features. It's on screen display (OSD) is far superior to the Denons and it's a lot easier to setup. Some good deals can be found on the 806 also. It also has a lot of nagging little issues (blue spots on dark backgrounds, black less than black, heat issues, hand shake delays when running HD Master audio with Blue Rays) that I don't like.

All in all I'd have to say that the Denon to me is better built and sounds better. That really says it all. It takes a little more time to setup, but in the end it's woth it. It's also better suited as a preamp to the Onkyo (dual 12 volt trigger outs+ zone 2 and 3 trigger outs, the Onkyo only has a Zone 2 trigger out, 12volt AC receptaccle on rear of reciever which the Onkyo lacks and needs for adding an external fan due to it's heat issues.) To me it's worth the extra coin.

wutadumsn23

Dawgfish wrote: »

It also has a lot of nagging little issues (blue spots on dark backgrounds, black less than black, heat issues, hand shake delays when running HD Master audio with Blue Rays) that I don't like./QUOTE]

Man, I must have gotten lucky with my 806, all the bad things people say they have and I have never had one single issue with it.

cnh

Dawgfish wrote: »

I own both the Denon 2809CI and the Onyo 806.

Sound is a personal thing, but I have to say hands down the Denon is superior in sound to the Onkyo in every fashion (music, tv, and home theater, but especially for music).

Cnh and I have differed on this, but I personally feel like the Denon has the warmer sound of the two. I'm not disagreeing with you CNH, I think it's more of one of those "ear of the beholder" or "YMMV" things. I find the Denon sounds warmer, with greater detail and music seperation. The 806 sounds great for tv and home theater, but it's sterile and overly digitized sounding to me for music.

The 806 does have some nice features. It's on screen display (OSD) is far superior to the Denons and it's a lot easier to setup. Some good deals can be found on the 806 also. It also has a lot of nagging little issues (blue spots on dark backgrounds, black less than black, heat issues, hand shake delays when running HD Master audio with Blue Rays) that I don't like.

All in all I'd have to say that the Denon to me is better built and sounds better. That really says it all. It takes a little more time to setup, but in the end it's woth it. It's also better suited as a preamp to the Onkyo (dual 12 volt trigger outs+ zone 2 and 3 trigger outs, the Onkyo only has a Zone 2 trigger out, 12volt AC receptaccle on rear of reciever which the Onkyo lacks and needs for adding an external fan due to it's heat issues.) To me it's worth the extra coin.

Dawgfish,

I would agree with that assessment of Denon sound, especially greater detail and separation. And it is pretty subjective, but I'd like to add one thing here, the 805 is a different beast from the 806 on audio. And I would argue that the 805 is 'warmer' than the 806, images a bit better and is 'better' in two channel sound for music than the 806. Mostly because the 805 is pretty much an 875 without the video processing. I find the 805 a bit more musical than my Denon...and the Denon's slightly greater detail--verging on a bit bright on certain CDs even with the Alpha 24 plus processing?

I don't think I would have any problem saying that the Denon sounds as good or better than an 806.

Denon's are certainly a 'warm' sounding receiver along with Onkyo and Harman Kardon. With perhaps HK as the warmest?

And you can't fry an egg on a Denon like you can on an Onkyo even when it weighs 50 pounds and is huge--with fans? What is it with Onkyo and HEAT! And why do they put the video board on top of the HOTTEST part of the receiver--trying to kill the video processing early are we?

I love my Denon--think it will make a nice pre-amp for the new Adcom 555--I'm choosing to use the Denon this way precisely because of its clean, detailed sound. If someone asked me what receiver to buy and they hadn't done a lot of listening; I'd say 2800 or higher level Denon...because it has sound that would be acceptable to a wide variety of tastes--more than the Onkyo--which smooths out the highs but loses a little detail in the process.

cnh

Dawgfish

I hear you Cnh. Most folks seem to like the 805 much better for music than the 806. It's ashamed that Onkyo didn't keep the Burr Brown DACs and beefier amplifier/transformers of the 805 in the 806. I guess the theory is that they made the 805 so good that people weren't buying many 875s. The cost/benefit increase just wasn't that great going from the 805 or 875. If there weren't so many heat problems with the 805, I probably would have went for one of those. It looks like Onkyo is releasing the **7 series of recievers here soon. It will be interesting to see what they do with the 807. Maybe we'll all get lucky and they'll put the superior DACs and amp back it. I'm not holding my breath though.

Steve

Zamps

While I would have liked to pick up the 23/2809, I ended up getting the 1909 thru 6ave w/ their deal. I'm really excited about the Denon and can't wait until it arrives.

cnh

Lot of good reviews of that receiver. What Hi-Fi gave it best receiver in class for this last year! Beat out the Yamaha 663, Onkyo 606, and a number of others in that 500-600 dollar range.

Although Audio reviews are never neutral...they're not a bad thing.

Enjoy your new receiver. Come back if you have any problems setting that up. Denon's manuals are among the worst ever written. But they make good stuff.

cnh

Dawgfish

+1 on the 1909. I owned the 789 which is basically the same reciever and absolutely loved it! I would have kept it if it had preouts. I'm still thinking of buying one to put in the garage or something (or I may put this in the bedroom and relegate the 806 to garage stereo duty). I liked it that much. It was simply outstanding. I think you are going to enjoy this reciever. Tell us what you think after you've had a chance to set it up and listen for a while.

cnh

I've said this elsewhere. But my Denon AVR 2807 is making an absolutely fabulous pre-pro for my recently purchased Adcom 555 2 channel amp. Really happy with it's sound augmented by the Adcom which makes it a tad 'warmer'.

cnh

1GoodListener

The 2809ci is the best thing that ever happened to my Polks. The Audyssey MULTEQ XT with Dynamic EQ is fab, helped a great deal with my family rm/HT acoustically and has brought out the best in my sub and surrounds. Very nice DAC's, SQ is great on 5.1 and 2 ch. It's a big upgrade over the 1909/989.

woweu2006

i just bought a AVR-989 for $759.

woweu2006

BTW, denon AVR-989 is the same as 2809ci.

989 is for retail stores, such as fry's, best buy, etc.

While 2809ci is for online stores mostly.

that's what i read.

Dawgfish

Congrats on the 989 purchase. That's a good deal! I've been extremely happy with my 2809 for both music and movies. I've added some RTA-12bs for front main speakers with music, a Denon CD player, and Technics turntable and I have been more than pleased with it's abilities as a preamp for two channel music. I plan on getting a seperate two chanel preamp one day, but I've been very happy with the Denon so far.

Steve

Zamps

I had to adjust the budget a little and ended up getting a good deal on a 1909. Just like McD's, I'm lovin' it! This is my first Denon purchase and so far I'm very pleased.

cnh

Enjoy...that's a nice receiver! Denon definitely has it's own sound and a lot of people love it. I'm with Dawg on this one. Heck, I run one myself as you can see above...

cnh

WastelandWand'r

First off I have no experience whatsoever with Onkyo gear. With that out of the way, I have owned Denon since 1986 and the last purchase was 1998 when I picked up a AVR 3300. Yes 5.1 but the cats meow back then.
I have abused it since then and have only recently matured enough to stop with the 'gross displays of power'.
It has never had any issues.
It is 11 years old, and still going strong. I have a 555II but have not gone the, 'use it as a pre', since I tend to watch lots of movies with it and am waiting for a 5503 or something of that cloth to give the Denon a break pushing the front trio.
Glad to hear that someone else has joined the Denon family.

1GoodListener

The 989 is a beauty, equivalent in quality and very similar but there are a few extra features on the 2809ci, which therefore has a higher MSRP. Also, the 2809's remote is a nice touchscreen programmable jobbie capable of macros, a big improvement over the "2 sided" remote that comes with the 989and all lower models and which most people end up replacing with a Harmony.

For the best Denon threads, and a stickied 1st post which lists the differences of the 2 models, go here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1057392
Tell 'em SOM sent ya'.

blair6878

1GoodListener wrote: »

The 2809ci is the best thing that ever happened to my Polks. The Audyssey MULTEQ XT with Dynamic EQ is fab, helped a great deal with my family rm/HT acoustically and has brought out the best in my sub and surrounds. Very nice DAC's, SQ is great on 5.1 and 2 ch. It's a big upgrade over the 1909/989.

Does the 2809ci have Denon's 5-channel stereo mode?

Dawgfish

blair6878,

The 989/2809CI does have the multichannel stereo mode. It will play either 5 channel or 7 channel stereo depending on how many speakers you have. I often listen to music in the 7 channel stereo mode when I have company over and it sounds great. I still prefer 2 channel stereo for critical music listening, but the 7 channel stereo on my 2809 sounds great also (especailly since I'm running all towers except for center in my set-up).