Just bought an HK AVR-745 to replace a denon 3802 did I screw up?

Dannieboiz · November 2007

I jumped on an HK AVR-745 today since the price was at the right point. Little did I know it's only rated at 85wpc while my denon is 110wpc... I'm powering RTi10 and CSi5 in the fronts. I don't ever planning on to getting an external amp. I hope I did the right thing.

AsSiMiLaTeD · November 2007

I don't think it's really be better or worse, just different. It may be more up to date, I'm not sure, but new bells and whistles is all you'd be gaining.

Don't worry about the power ratings, HK stuf is rated conservatively, that 85 will be every bit as much as those 110 on the Denon.

I personally prefer the Denon, but that's subjective.

disneyjoe7 · November 2007

I doubt the Denon at 110w is more powerful then the HK, as HK is usually rated for what it will do and the others can be a bit over rated. So saying that I think it most likely a wash.

millerman 3732 · November 2007

Make sure you give that HK room to breath, those things heat up quick, at least mine does and I don't even use the internal amp.

shack · November 2007

May be a lateral move at best. I prefer Denon over HK...not a big fan of HK build quality...but you may like it better and can sell the Denon. If you find it's not an improvement or you like the old Denon better...you can always sell the HK.

Dannieboiz · November 2007

the only real way to test this is to hook this baby up..... But what about HDMI 1.1 on the HK? Do I care or get a HDMI 1.3? I do have a 1080p tv and my HTPC is 1080p capable.

I'll report back in a couple hours when I'm done setting things up

Early B. · November 2007

The HK will smoke that Denon...

shack · November 2007

Early B wrote:

The HK will smoke that Denon...

Or just smoke.....

rskarvan · November 2007

I've got the Denon 3801 and its just fine at 105 wpc. I can't see that a switch to HK will get you anything more. You would have been much better served by adding an external amp to your Denon 3802 to power your mains.

Dannieboiz · November 2007

I'm disappointed to say that the HK is a keeper!:D

To be honest, I don't hear that big of a difference. It's got HDMI and the EZEQ for calibration wins over the Denon.

engtaz · November 2007

Unless the HK has more bells and whistles, I think it was a step back.

danger boy · November 2007

it all comes down to which sounds better... at least to me it would.

Ron Temple · November 2007

It's the sound you're used to...I went from HK to Denon for about a month...then back to HK. It was fine for HT, but really sounded flat for music. Considering the price of the 745, I'd think you'd notice a difference and preference right away.

AndyGwis · November 2007

HK is awesome. Keep the 745. It's 85 is like 130 from Yamaha, Denon, and Onkyo based on my highly biased opinion.

I have two HKs and love them.

Dannieboiz · November 2007

There are two reasons why I'm really considering getting rid of the HK.

1st. No 1080P this is important for me since my HTPC is 1080p.

2nd. I can't force 5 channel stereo on all siginal. Only on certain signal and it's making me sick!

rskarvan · November 2007

1080p with Blue Ray is absolutely stunning.

AndyGwis · November 2007

well, if you are needing 1080p with the power and such of the HK, you're probably gonna have to pay quite a bit more. I think the new Elites might be 1080p output.

AndyGwis · November 2007

I guess I could see that for some Dolby material, it will only play one of the dolby processing formats. But, you should be able to listen to any music you like in 5-channel stereo by pressing a button or two.

Dannieboiz · November 2007

dolby digital is when 5 channel stereo doesn't. How do I disable auto detection?

I do have a Harmony 880 besides the 745 comes with what appears to be a Harmany 550.

If you can show me how to disable auto dectection and if I can somehow make 5 channel stereo work on all input signal I'll seriously consider keeping this puppy. I do like the look and even the sound.

Also to answer your remote question. It's not the HDMI (audio) that I care for. It's simplifying my system so others in the family can use it with little to no training. I've been trying to show my fiance how the 880 works for the longest time and still having trouble.

I have a few music DVD but most importantly use my HT as the music source for my Karaoke system that have it's old dedictated vocal speakers so 5 channel stereo is crucial in my setup.

Dannieboiz · November 2007

if I turned off the auto-poll and disconnect the analog would it still allow me to have 5c stereo?

BTW: I've email HK 2 days ago but still haven't got a response.

JoshParsons84 · November 2007

Hey Dannieboiz, what condition is your Denon in? I might be interested if it's still in good condition and the price is right? How much do you think you'd sell it for? I've been wanting to do away with my Onkyo 503 (either sell it,trade it,or use it for a bedroom system) and get a nice Denon but never had had the funds to upgrade yet and I might be able to if the price is in my range for the 3802.

Dannieboiz · November 2007

that's really annoying, the Denon will do 5 channel stereo regardless if it's analog or digital.

I tried to turn off auto poll but it still doesn't work. I hope there's a walk around for this cause I really don't feel like running another set of cables.

BIZILL · November 2007

i feel your pain dannieboy. dannieboy, dannieboy, danniboy...(chumbawumba)

but +2 as i cannot force my H/K7300 into 7.1 DD PLIIx mode!!!! it bugs me sooooo much i wanna get the onkyo 905.

Dannieboiz · November 2007

ok so it looks like it's an HK thing, hopefully I can find a decent deal on an AVR 3808

Dannieboiz · December 2007

here's the response received from HK.

Good morning and sorry for the delay. Unfortunately, since Dolby Digital
is a default standard surround format, there is no way to bypass the
format and switch to 5-channel stereo as long as you are using a digital
input for that source. 5-channel stereo is a analogue surround format
and you will need to either switch the output of the source to PCM from
Bitstream or connect a 2nd set of analogue cables to the receiver to a
different source input for analogue and then you can switch the surround
mode to 5-channel stereo.

Wonder why HK does this, Denon would let you do anything you want, its your ear, why force it. arghhh shame on them.

Anyone have thoughts on the Denon 2808ci or 3806?

disneyjoe7 · December 2007

My old Onk 898 would do this so I always had an optical input alone with 2 channel RCA audio input. Just switching source if an issue came up where sound wasn't right.

I lived so long with this problem I thought all AVR's did it, but I found out that my new PE 84tsi AVR had no problems with it so it's just feed optical from my problem source.

ND13 · December 2007

Congrats on the 745. I'd lay $$ on you being a happy camper, if I had any $$$ to bet.

But, in reality, they're the two best in their price points, by far...IMHO. I've owned both in the past and I prefer the HK now, and like the others said, the HK will have a great high current amp section, with a signature on the warm side.

Dannieboiz · December 2007

disneyjoe7 wrote: »

My old Onk 898 would do this so I always had an optical input alone with 2 channel RCA audio input. Just switching source if an issue came up where sound wasn't right.

I lived so long with this problem I thought all AVR's did it, but I found out that my new PE 84tsi AVR had no problems with it so it's just feed optical from my problem source.

How do you like your PE? The PE was a line that I was seriously considering.

JoshParsons84 · December 2007

I've got a question and I don't deem it necessary to start a thread over one question. What is a good AVR to put in place of my Onkyo 503 that has pre-outs but in the end will be used for a pre/pro?

Phier · June 2024

Hello,
I have hk avr 745 but it seems that hdmi output got broken, i am getting some blue stripes... Is it possible to keep avr for a sound and somehow to link it with some external device for hdmi out? Only?

Thanks

billbillw · June 2024

Phier wrote: »

Hello,
I have hk avr 745 but it seems that hdmi output got broken, i am getting some blue stripes... Is it possible to keep avr for a sound and somehow to link it with some external device for hdmi out? Only?

Thanks

Yes, run your HDMI outputs (from source devices) directly to the TV. Use separate digital coax or optical from the source to the HK AVR. If your sources do not have optical or digital coax, you might get by with running the digital audio out from the TV back to the AVR. There are obviously some limitations to this, and it also assumes your TV has enough HDMI inputs to handle all your sources, but I had an even older non-HDMI receiver in my living room setup like this for years and only recently replaced it.

If that doesn't work, well, its probably time to upgrade receivers. 15+ years has seen quite a bit of advancement to AVRs.

Just bought an HK AVR-745 to replace a denon 3802 did I screw up?

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