Limitations of Yamaha YHT 196 (1 Viewer)

Hi all...
First of all this is my first post and I am very new to digital AV world. I have very limited knowledge on this technology.
I have a Sony LED HDMI TV which has 4 HDMI inputs and 1 optical output, a Philips HDMI DVD Player with digital coaxial out and 1 HDMI out, 1 DTH with 1 HDMI out.
I am planning to buy Yamaha YHT 196 to improve the sound output and experience surround sound at home. I had taken a demo and satisfied with the sound quality.
Question:
Yamaha YHT 196 does not support Dolby True HD, DTS HD. How much difference can this make while watching HD video or Blu ray disk ?
Can this reciever decode all HDMI quality audio ?
Any other limitations this reciever has ?
Please excuse me if these questions are basics. I would appreciate if you can give your insight on this as this can help me make a decision on my buy.
Regards,
Arun Shankar

If your BD player decodes DTS/HD-MA and Dobly True HD...then the receiver doesn't have to be able to(been that way since HDMI 1.1)
There is no such thing as "HDMI quality audio".
For the record, most people can't tell the difference between a regular DTS and a DTS/HD sound track.

Thanks Sam for the response. Appreciate your help.

Regular DD and DTS can sound very good but TrueHD and Master Audio can sound even better. Some BR players allow you to switch between the different sound formats on the fly and in doing so I can clearly hear a difference. Whether it's enough of a difference to worry about it is up to each individual. But anyone seeking advice on a forum like this probably would be.
Edit: I should also point out the the differences I hear are mostly during concerts on BR. Music seems to bring out the best of the HD audio formats.
But in order to hear the differences more clearly you need capable equipment. The limitations of the YHT-196 isn't just in the receiver but also in the speakers ability to produce quality sound. That's a fine entry-level system but the speakers might also inhibit the ability to hear any difference between any formats. As Sam said, if your BR player decodes the HD signals then the Yamaha receiver will accept them (but it won't show TrueHD or DTS/MA on the display, it will show PCM) so give it a listen and see for yourself. You would need to go into the BR players HDMI setup menu and change the audio output from Auto (or Bitstream) to LPCM. Give us the make and model of the BR player if you have any problems or doubts.

Thanks Gene. My plan is to go with YHT 196 and when I have more budget replace my HD DVD player with a Blu ray player later that can support upgrades of DTS and Dolby. Does that make sense?

Hi, one dump question...What is the difference between Yamaha YHT196 and the home theater DZ340. Which one will have better sound and video quality?

The Sony has a built in dvd player but if any part of the system should fail you would have to replace the whole thing, including the speakers/subwoofer. These htib's aren't designed to work with other components.
The Yamaha has a real receiver which would work with most any dvd/bluray player and any speakers that are 6 or 8 ohms which is the majotity of those out there. It also has a subwoofer output so you could add a powered subwoofer (much better than a passive one) later on if you would like.
Regardless of the specifications, I think the Yamaha has the more powerful amplifier section. It comsumes 250 watts of power while the Sony only consumes 160. You can't get 1000 watts of total power from 160 used.
The Sony comes with the dvd player but offers virtually no upgradability or replacement of parts. The Yamaha doesn't come with a dvd player but you could easily add one (or a bluray player) and offer much better upgadability and you could replace the receiver, speakers or subwoofer with most anything else out there. It's hard to say which would sound better by reading the manuals but I would say the Yamaha.

Hi, Thanks a lot. I am going for Yamaha YHT 196. The offer price is Rs20,000/- and i thnk this is better price. Is there is any difference in video quality with Sony and a seperate player connected with Yahama?

It depends on which seperate player get. As you know, you get what you pay for. A BluRay player will have the very best picture but they are quite a bit more expensive than a regular dvd player. There can also be a small difference between the up-conversion quality of players that take a 480P signal and convert it to 1080P but in your price range they should all be about the same. And your display will do exactly the same thing anyway.
A good dvd or bluray player plus the Yamaha system should be better than the Sony system.
Rs20,000/- (??? ) I have no idea what that equates to!

Thanks Gene for your suggession...The cost is 362 USD. I have bought the Yamaha YHT-196 few mins back and in the process of connecting the same.

Ramanan...Congrats on your buy. Please post your review for YHT 196. I am planning mine this week

Hi, I have conncected my Philips DVD with YHT 196. The sound quality is excellent. Its amazing. I had Sony MHC888D but i havent heard the clarity like this. Its really good and worth for money.

hi guys, this one's to arun and venkataramanan. am new to this. i hav a samsung led tv 40,inch and a samsung bluray player. planning to buy a home theater especially yamaha. does the system u bought have all the speakers and woofer or is it just a a/v receiver. how is the sound quality and where in chennai did u buy them? thanx in advance for your help.

hi guys, this one's to arun and venkataramanan. am new to this. i hav a samsung led tv 40,inch and a samsung bluray player. planning to buy a home theater especially yamaha. does the system u bought have all the speakers and woofer or is it just a a/v receiver. how is the sound quality and where in chennai did u buy them? thanx in advance for your help.

Hi, this comes with AV receiver, 5 speakers and 1 sub woofer(passive). I bought it in Mumbai and the cost is INR 20,000/- (offer price), The original price is RS25000/-

Hey this is one is for both Arun & Venkata.. Guys can you give me a candid review on how the Yamaha YHT- 196 works? I plan to buy it in a couple of days, not that a negative review will stop me buying it coz I have already have it blocked with my dealer & first things first I am mighty impressed with it anyways.... Review please

Hi, Its really good. I had Sony DVD HI FI System and now YHT 196. The sound quality is really good when compared with sony. I like it very much.

Hi,
Greetings for the day....
Bought YHT-196 bundled with a Philips Blu-Ray Player BDP - 2600/94 two days back....
did not wait for the installation guy!!!
and installed it myself....
need the setup paired with Samsung plasma 43" 450 or Samsung LCD 32"---- still gotta decide!!!
I use my cable operator's STB (operator is CCN-DEN) in Delhi....
Please advise on how to get the best out of the whole setup!!!
Regards,

hi Lakshdeep, how much you paid for yht196, and lemme know from where you have purchased it. I havnt found the price change since jun-july (its for Rs 20000 in vijay sales in mumbai)

HI EVERY BODY ,TAKE MY REGARDS FIRST...I NEED ADVICE FROM U...I M CONFUSED ,WHEATHER TO BUY YHT 196 OR YHT 298. I HAVE BEEN SEEING FOR SONY HOMETHEATER SYSTEM BDV-N890W BUT BASS AND SOUND IS NOT UP TO THE MARK. NOW INTERESTED FOR ANY ONE OF THE 2 YHT. HERE IN OMAN PRICE DIFFERENCE IS 270USD BETWEEN YHT-196 AND YHT-298.IF I BUY SONY BLUE RAY BY 270USD AND YHT-196 THEN,IT WILL BE BETTER??? OR YHT -298 + BLUE RAY...BUT I WANT HIGH BASS AND CLEAR SOUND...500WATT RMS CAN VIBRATE MY ROOM 20FEET BY 20FEET ??? NO OTHER MODEL OF YAHMAHA IS AVAILABLE IN OMAN WITH SPEAKERS...WAITING FOR YOUR KIND COOPERATION FRIENDS....