Receiver: Sony or Denon?

Nex Virtus

Hello all, I'm new in these forums and decided to join based on my decision to begin my first ever home theater setup. I'm a college student with a passion for home theater and a tight budget. I'm going to start off with a humble stereo audio setup (I'm planning on purchasing two TSi 300's from Polk Audio) and need some help with the receiver.

I'm stuck between the Denon AVR1910 and the Sony STRDN1000. I would like a receiver such as these two that have the Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD decoders because of my recent addiction to Blu Ray. But in addition, I want a receiver that has great video upconverting and scaling. Also, because I'm a college student, this will be an investment for me and I'm hoping it will last me a long time until I can upgrade in the future.

So what I'm asking is for some opinions. What do you all think is the better brand for receivers? Sony or Denon? Which one will I be happiest with? Which one will last me the longest? Should I pick a different brand or model altogether? Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

cnh

WELCOME TO CLUB POLK!!

Of those two I'd go with the Denon...it's a better more powerful AVR...but the problem you have with either one is that neither has pre-outs...so I'd suggest looking at some others as well

Marantz 5004
Harman Kardon 254/354
Onkyo 706/707
Pioneer Elite 21

Listen to a few and see what 'you' LIKE!!

cnh

Nex Virtus

are the pre-outs really necessary? from what i understand the preouts allow me to hook up the receivers to an external amp...is this for additional power? or what purpose do the pre-outs serve exactly? why would i want them?

thanks for the quick reply

keeneyrm01

im in the same position as you, a college kid on a tight budget. A few months ago i bought a sony dh800, which is pretty much the same as the sony one u are looking at without the video upconversion. I paid 300 with a 5 year warranty and im really happy with it for that price. although i know i'll want to upgrade with an external amp as soon as i get more money but that would mean a new receiver too because of the lack of pre outs, so keep that in mind while you look. I've used 3 sony receivers and 1 harman kardon since i've gotten into this stuff and i can say that although sony has a bad rep for receivers they do make a good bang for the buck on budget models. The harman i used was a bottom end one for 250 bucks and for the same price the sony beats it out. If you're looking to spend a bit more though the harmans really have some nice models. The harman 254 is the lowest one with pre outs and a pretty powerful internal amp, has video upconversion, and the lossless decoders. You might want to price that out. I hear really good things about the denons too, but might be more money to get one you will be really happy with.

cnh

Nice post...above...!

Are pre-outs necessary? Well if you want to add power and upgrade in the future..YES! Also, you should think about RESALE value. It will be much easier to resell an AVR with pre-outs than not at a decent price.

If these are not your concerns...go for something in your price range...all the AVRs I list above are High Current AVRs...lower model Sonys are not.

If I were going to buy a LOWER model Sony I'd think about the new 1000....decent features and weight...!

cnh

Nex Virtus

Thanks to both of you for the advice!

so i think if i'm looking for a long lasting receiver, pre-outs are the way to go.

question: are pre-outs the same as pre-amps? if so, the Denon 1910 that i mentioned in the OP does have them.

cnh

PRE-outs allow you to use your AVR as a 'pre-amp' for another external (power) amp.

The Denon 1910 does not have them! Only the Denon 3310 has those in this series!

All of the AVRs I list above 'do' have them. Older model Denon AVR2808 and AVR2809 also have them if you can find them at a 'discounted' price they would be a 'good' buy.

cnh

keeneyrm01

No that denon model does not have pre-outs for using an external amp. In the specs information on the denon web site it will say "Pre-outs: yes subwoofer" or something like that. That means that it does have a pre out for an external amp but only for the sub channel, but thats how all receivers work. Be careful and look closely at what those specs things actually say, if you do decide to base your decision on something like having preouts. (not a lot of models do in the lower price range) Which makes that Harman Kardon 254 seem like a pretty good value. (i saw it for 400-500 on some web sites)

also keep in mind that all the companies use different measurements for wattage ratting. a 50 watt harman is like 110 in sony world or like 85 or 90 for denon.

wutadumsn23

+1 on the suggestion for pre-outs. As stated above, they are not a must have, but as for future proofing and resale value, they certainly do help. Running the 300's, they don't require a lot of power and any of the AVR's you mentioned will do a fine job of powering those 300's. Only problem is if you add a center and maybe some surrounds down the road, more power will help you get the most out of your system..Also, let's face it, you hang out here long enough and those 300's will be pulling surround duty and will be replaced by a pair of TSi 500's before you know it, and an external amp will really be a reality then, lol. Good luck and welcome to Club Polk.

-Jeff