receivers

When we set up our first head-to-head listening tests with the latest crop of 2013 AV receivers, Yamaha's RX-V475 ($400 street) came out on top, besting Pioneer's VSX-823-K ($400) and even Denon's $600 AVR-E400.

But edging out its competitors in our subjective listening tests isn't quite enough to make the RX-V475 our top pick at the $400 price point. Differences in AV receiver sound quality tend to be subtle, and factors such as room acoustics and your choice of speakers have a much larger impact on the sound quality you'll hear.

Despite its advantage in … Read more

Even the most die-hard home theater buffs will admit that setting up an AV receiver can be a chore, and that goes double for those who don't know what they're doing. Denon's AVR-E400 ($600 street) is at the top of the company's midrange AV receiver line, for which the company has focused on ease of use in 2013. There are worthwhile improvements: an onscreen setup guide, a simpler remote, and push-in speaker connectors that are more convenient with bare speaker wire.

But in other ways, the AVR-E400 misses the mark. It's hard to truly herald … Read more

In my kitchen there's a big ol' Fluance speaker dock. It's great except for one thing: no Bluetooth. If I want to listen to music, I have to dock my iPhone. And if I want to change apps or playlists, I have to go over to the thing and interact (awkwardly) with the screen while it's docked.

That's why I've always been a fan of Bluetooth speakers, which let me kick back and enjoy my tunes while keeping my phone close at hand. Thankfully, now I can retrofit my Fluance.

For a limited time, and … Read more

Most car stereos that I've ever fiddled with have offered some sort of equalizer setting that lets the driver customize the sound to their liking, but fitting more than the basic treble, bass, and --occassionally-- midrange controls onto the cramped display of a single DIN receiver is a tricky endeavor. Alpine wants to make it easier for users of its new CDE-147BT receiver to access advanced graphic EQ controls by offloading the audio tuning interface to an Alpine TuneIt app for Android and iOS devices.

The app lets users create a profile for their vehicle and any other Alpine … Read more

One of the things that separates high-end audio from mass market gear is that it's built to last and perform at a high level for decades. I bought a 20-year-old, mint condition Audio Research SP-6C tube preamplifier 10 years ago. It looked great and sounded wonderful, but a few years later I sold it to my cousin, who was just starting to get into high-end audio.

Late last year, I bought a 30-year-old Krell KSA 50 stereo amplifier from one of my old customers. He loved the amp and listened to it all the time, but he needed money … Read more

AV receivers have a well-deserved reputation as giant, unsightly boxes, but over the last few years Marantz has shown that good sound can come in smaller packages.

The company refreshed its AV receiver line today adding two new slimline models, the NR1504 and NR1604. They're two new step-up models to last year's NR1403, which will continue to stay in the line.

Here's how I'd break down the most important features:

NR1504 ($500): 5.1 channels, six HDMI inputs (including one front-panel input), Audyssey MultEQ, networking via Ethernet, built-in AirPlay, networking, setup assistant NR1604 ($650) step-ups: 7.… Read more

AV receivers have a well-deserved reputation as giant, unsightly boxes, but over the last few years Marantz has shown that good sound can come in smaller packages.

The company refreshed its AV receiver line today adding two new slimline models, the NR1504 and NR1604. They're two new step-up models to last year's NR1403, which will continue to stay in the line.

Here's how I'd break down the most important features:

NR1504 ($500): 5.1 channels, six HDMI inputs (including one front-panel input), Audyssey MultEQ, networking via Ethernet, built-in AirPlay, networking, setup assistant NR1604 ($650) step-ups: 7.… Read more

There are a lot of reasons why sound bars are taking over home audio, but one of them is increasingly obvious: AV receivers are terrible.

I've reviewed a lot of them for CNET, and while receivers are fine for enthusiasts who know what they're doing, they're a frustrating experience for everyone else. Most technology gets better over time, but AV receivers seem frozen in amber, with giant chassis, thick inscrutable manuals, and onscreen interfaces that could only generously be called "standard-definition." They're embarrassingly backward compared with the rest of your home theater gear, yet … Read more

Onkyo's rightfully known as the king of AV receiver value and its new 2013 line looks worthy of that reputation.

The company announced its new AV receivers this morning, with the step-up TX-NR626 and TX-NR727 models getting two big new features for 2013: built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. All of the models are also packed with HDMI connectivity, with even the entry-level TX-NR525 offering six inputs.

Here's how I'd break down the most-important features:

TX-NR525 ($500): 5.2 channels, six HDMI inputs, Audyssey MultEQ, networking, unpowered second zone TX-NR626 ($600) step-ups: 7.2 channels, built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, … Read more