Sony STR-DA4ES and DA7ES have arrived (1 Viewer)

[Chip E]

Seth,

Those three year cards are most likly because they shipped from Canada. All ES model gear carries a 5 year warranty in the US.


Keith said:

"As for the 'DA7ES, for $2300, it should come with a nice remote."


Keith,

I can't help but think of how my $4200.00 list priced 5803 came with a shitty remote. Lol.. The B&K 307 i used to have had a way better remote.

 

[Ted Ross]

Hey man, if you want to take that chance-knock yourself out. I sleep better at night knowing I bought from an authorized dealer-Ive heard too many stories of Sony not honoring the warranty on purchases from unauthorized internet dealers. I have several Sony warranty cards in my desk drawer-so i know whats on them(I called Sony to ask why I got a 3 year card on my DA5ES. They told me of the mixup, but when I gave him my info he mentioned that the place I bought from was an authorized ES dealer & that was good). Ive already run into this problem once with yamaha-I dont want go through that again :frowning:

 

[MartinV]

Hi Bob,

I purchased the new Sony STR-DA4ES from Sammans.com
this past Saturday (based on your praise for them on
the Home Theater Forum). Al took my order.

What concerns me is that the phone has been busy every
hour today and they haven't responded back to my email
request for a shipment tracking #. Is this how it
usually is at Sammans.com? Do they typically take
Monday's off?

Thanks.

 

[Seth_L]

Seth,

Those three year cards are most likly because they shipped from Canada. All ES model gear carries a 5 year warranty in the US.

Crutchfield even has a note on the DA5ES that it comes with a warranty card that incorrectly says the warranty is only 3 years long when it is really 5 years. So I don't think it's because the unit came from Canada.

Seth

 

[Seth_L]

Hey man, if you want to take that chance-knock yourself out. I sleep better at night knowing I bought from an authorized dealer-Ive heard too many stories of Sony not honoring the warranty on purchases from unauthorized internet dealers. I have several Sony warranty cards in my desk drawer-so i know whats on them(I called Sony to ask why I got a 3 year card on my DA5ES.

I've already bought one from a non-authorized dealer. It's not the end of the world. I'll be more than happy to have my lawyer slap Sony around with the Magnuson-Moss Act. I like to know that big corporations can't steamroll the consumer just because they feel like it.

Seth

 

[Bob Hickman]

Martin,

Every time I have called them, I have had them answer the phone. This thread has generated lots of hits, I wonder if they are getting overloaded with info calls. I have traded e-mails with Joe at sSammansm, he has always answered within one to three days. On their web site are their contact e-mails. They also answer the phone up till 8 or 9 pm ET. Try them again tomorrow. I called the day after my order, that was last thursday, they answered right away, and gave me the tracking number. I would not worry.

Bob

 

[Chip E]

"I'll be more than happy to have my lawyer slap Sony around with the Magnuson-Moss Act."
Good luck with that!

 

[Matt Jesty]

I THINK THAT ,LIKE MOST RETAIL BUISNESSES ,IF YOU GIVE THE MNFGRS TONS OF GRIEF, THEY'LL EVENTUALLY CAVE TO THE WARRANTY REPAIR...HOWEVER, this requires a few things ...
1st , don't dare take it to a local ES retailer to have the unit evaluated/ repaired, they may kick it down the back steps when they found out where you purchased it...
2nd, filing small claims court documents may seem like fun to you but not to me, not to mention that my time is WAY too valuble to waste....Not to mention I hate my system being down...
3rd , I don't care if you are a lawyer , or your wife or best friend is , it will wind up costing you more aggrevation than its worth....and whatever paybacks you will owe...
4th, most Es retailers would give a good customer a loaner to tide them over during the repair, like I said, I hate down-time.....

 

[Ted Ross]

I hate down-time

Same here

 

[MartinV]

Finally got my tracking # from Sammans.com

Looks like I'll be getting the new Sony DA4ES this Monday.

 

[Brett Miles]

Ok Bob, it's Wed. Did UPS deliver as scheduled? Let's hear some initial reports and see some pics if possible!

 

[KeithH]

Did anyone get their new ES receivers? What's the verdict?
All,
I was away on business for a few days and was hoping that Crutchfield would have some information on the new ES receivers up on its web site today, but there's nothing. What I find odd is that before I left, Crutchfield's web site said there were 57 A/V receivers listed. This afternoon, it said there were 60 listed. I immediately was hopeful that some new ES models were up, but the list looks the same as before. I see no new models up from any manufacturer. :frowning:

 

[Bob Hickman]

Hi Guys,

Sorry no report yesterday, but hey i was busy.... Even took the rest of the week off from work.

UPS came right on time. 3pm. By 8pm i was ready for my first movie. Wife and i watched True Lies. Sounds I never heard before came out. I had all 7 speakers set up, sounded great to me. I cannot wait till I get out of this Condo, so I can play at refference level.

OK, first impressions - I like it. I am happy. I would not have paid list price. The deal from Sammans is the only way to go if you want the 7es.

1. Not much difference between the 7es and the 4es. The remote seems pretty cool, but it will take some time to firgure out. As for an update on the specs:
There really does not seem to be any difference between the 4 and 7. other then the extra 10 watts. The Power Output and total harmonic distortion less than .05%. The differences i posted earlier sum it up pretty good.

Weight on both units is aprox 21KG, which is what a little over 46 pounds. Seems heavier to me.

430 X 174 X 465 mm, including projecting parts and controls. So thats about 7"H, 18"D, 17"W. Just fits in my cabinet.

The manual sucks, and is the same for both the 4 and the 7, with notes when there is a difference.

So, if you all want some specife spec, let me know and I will look it up. It looks pretty much like the 5es as far as i can tell. I will try to get some pics up later in the week.

Sammons shipped it double boxed, and factory sealed.

A few words on the warrenty. It states clearly the 5 year warrenty, with only a dated receipt required for service. There is NO clause as to where it had to be purchased, so I am not concerned on that account, if it ever needs service.

I have to agree with other posts on the 5es. There are tons of settings, and only a few examples in the manual as to how to set it up. It took me about 45 minutes with my level meter and the new remote to figure out how to adjust each speaker. My wife was ready to shoot me at that point.

It does have two extra tests called phase noise, and phase audio to allow you more precise adjustments. All sorts of settings on speaker placement. Sill working on thoses.

I am happy with the movie modes, and the music modes. But there is no way I am going to do any a/b testing anyway.

I have tested out the multi room modes, and found out that only the analog inputs can be sent to the other rooms. So I had to hook my analog outputs from my CD player to the tape input. Then I routed the tape to the third room.

You can reassign and rename all the imputs.

By the way, if you are interested, I have what I think are pretty good speakers, but they are over 9 years old. I have the tower DBX's Soundfield VI's for my fronts. You all remember "DAC", sure miss that guy. They have 15"passive subwoofers, so i do not have a seperate powered sub. My center is the DBX Soundfield 3X2 Plus Satellite System. I have the two satellite speakers sitting on top of my Mitsubish TV, with the passive sub under the TV stand.

Well, back to testing out some movies. Let me know if you have specific ??'s. My surronds are Costco Pioneer Towers, and my rears are some brand of book shelfs, that I have since replaced the guts with some pretty nice speakers. I am sure there are lots of you cringing now, but hey, they sound great to me. Someday I am going to borrow my brothers $20,000 speaker setup and see what I am missing. (Humm, maybe that is not such a good idea)

Time to play with the cross-over settings, and wall settings.

Bob

 

[Greg Haynes]

Bob,
Great Review But the thing that bothers me now is why is the 'DA7ES $800 more if everything is the same but the power ratings and remote. I was shocked to read that the 4ES & 7ES weigh the same!!! I was expecting the 7ES to have a much better build quality especially at its price. Can anyone else figure out the reason for the $800 difference?

 

[KeithH]

Greg,

That's exactly what I was wondering after reading Bob's review. What gives?


Bob,

Given the difference in price between the 'DA4ES and 'DA7ES, wouldn't you at all consider going with the 'DA4ES instead? I am not criticizing you, but what justifies the extra $800 or so for the 'DA7ES?

 

[Craig_Kg]

The manual could be wrong - not a first for Sony. It does seem a lot to pay for a 2 way remote.
Any chance you could stick the 7ES on a set of scales for us Bob ?

 

[tom richard]

Bob

Does the 7ES has all channel stereo mode? According to the manual, does the 4ES has pre outs to all channels(7.1)?

 

[Greg Schwabacher]

There's got to be more of a difference between the 4ES and 7ES. Just gotta be. Of course, if it's only the remote, I can sure save a lot of money by going with the 4ES. Of course, I was hoping for a 777ES-level product, but I guess the jury is still out.

I'm glad to hear that the 7ES is only slightly larger than my 50ES. At least one or the other of them (4 or 7) will fit in my cabinet.

I can't wait to see the pictures, Bob!!

 

[Greg Haynes]

I agree Greg that there has to be more of a difference between the two. But you know from previous year models Sony always had two models being exactly the same but with one having a better remote. I know this was always true with their CD MegaChangers. Maybe this could be the same.

 

[Greg Schwabacher]

But you know from previous year models Sony always had two models being exactly the same but with one having a better remote.

Very good point. I saved a good bit of money by getting a 'CX333ES megachanger over the 'CX555ES, and those two were identical except for the remote. The same goes for the 'V444ES and 'V555ES receivers. Heck, I'm a Pronto user...if Sony bundles a remote with the '7ES that's actually better than my Pronto, I'd LOVE to see it!