Sony vs Denon (1 Viewer)

[Kelvin F]

Hello All,
I`m new to this forum and home theater in general. I`m at a dilemma of sorts. I have a sony db-840 that i`ve owned for about a year it`s been a great receiver but it got fried the other day while i was at work, by my guess, a power surge. At any rate i have to replace this unit and i`m not too sure what to replace it with since the db series has been discontinued. I was wondering if the denon 1802 would be a good replacment. I know i would lose a little in wattage but how does the sound quality compare? Any input would be greatly appreciated. THANKS!

 

[MatthewJ S]

strdb1070 is a new model...
but denon avr2802 is very good

 

[John Geelan]

Denon receivers are renown for sound quality.
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[ReggieW]

This one is a "no-brainer." Get the Denon. I am the proud owner of a 1802 and can tell you that there is no shortage of power, ESPECIALLY in comparison to the Sony. If you ever require more juice, the 1802 has pre-amp capability. Sony is a company who pretty much lists most of their stock standard receivers at 100 wpc, but tests have shown them to be MUCH less than this. I had always wondered why 70 watt Outlaws, Hk's, and Denon's always sounded better than 100wpc Sony's. The 1802 can be had for about $350.00 online and if you require 6.1 DTS-ES, the 2802 can be had for around $550.00. The only think I dislike about the Denon is the remote - It's god awful, and they don't improve until you get the 3802 model or higher. Alas, my votes for the 1802 or 2802.
Reg

 

[Scott Quick]

Hm... lemmethink. DENON.
I've got the 2700 - granted its out of date, but I love it. I'm sure you'd be happy with either the 1802 or the 2802. Both will blow away the "quality" of your Sony - no offense. Good luck in your searches.
Scott

 

[Jon_R]

As the owner of a Denon 1601 I must say that it can't be much better than a high end DB series Sony. Sure, Denon is renown for their sound quality, but the DE series of Sony is the low end, not the DB. And the 1602/1802 is low end Denon, good stuff but still, thats the facts.
Don't be so quick to judge based only on brand. Sure, Sony DE series have flaws, namingly hiss, but the DB series are fine receivers.
My vote is for the Denon however.
Hell, I have the AVR-681, the lower spec model of the 1601, and I love it. The remote is bad, the interface is less than ideal, but the sound (the important part) is wondeful!
Good Luck,
Jon

 

[Adrian Hansen]

lets hold the phone on knocking sony here....the db series is based on sonys es architecture, which vastly improves the sound over any of the lowly de's. i own a STDA333ES and it is incredible...only 80 watts but it sure is consistent with almost no distortion even at higher volumes....
now onto another thing...this whole thing about wattage...low end gear cranks up the wattage to make up for poor construction (parts, schema, etc.) which increase the noise level in a system. well made amps will have ample shielding, higher quality output transistors and such, and a smarter, more efficient structure. yes, you see sonys and technics receivers out there for 199 that give you "100" watts, but these are usually measured at 1k, not full bandwidth like the denon.you wont know what youre getting at any other frequency. even power across all freqs is the way to hear more detail and such. the sony db series is measured fully also.
dude, in conclusion, it depends on a couple of things:
1) if you have inefficient speakers, (89db roughly), definitely go with the sony, as it is a little gutsier. more efficient speakers should be matched with the denon.
2) if you love music and have at least the basic five speaker set up, you will love the five channel stereo option on the denon. it is a far far better thing they do, than stupid dsp.
also, a piece of advice, if you dont want to worry about warranty issues with the denon, dont buy it online, get it from a local store. denon does not sell new product to web based dealers, i believe. the reps told me this about three years ago, and i doubt theyve changed. what you see online is probably grey market or reconditioned (broken already) gear. most denon dealers in the real world (which i am one), not the ether are able to work on the price with you if its an issue. believe me he/she will be happy youre not coming in for the
100 WATTS! ONLY 100 DOLLARS! pioneer junk-in-a-box.
DENON---its all the japanese you need to know.

 

[John Garcia]

Between Denon and the DE or DB series Sony's, I would definitely go with Denon. When you move to the ES line, then things get a little closer. The ES line sounds MUCH MUCH better than the lower lines, though I would likely still go with a Denon. (Denon may be Japanese, but they use Made in the USA DSPs...)
I listened to many receivers, including the Denon 3802, and I went with a Marantz SR-6200. I would highly recommend listening to the SR-4200 and -5200. They are great receivers for the price.
[edit]It all comes down to your ears, so the best thing to do is to listen to a variety of products, and choose the one YOU like.
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ITRCA ** Link Removed (sorry, car guy)
[Edited last by John Garcia on November 14, 2001 at 10:40 AM]

 

[BryanZ]

I'd go for the Denon here. The preamp capability of it puts it over the Onkyo TX-DS595. May even want to look at a used Outlaw 1050 (if you can find it and DPL II isn't that important to you).

 

[ReggieW]

I did not mean to knock on Sony here, I am only speaking from my OWN personal experience as the previous owner of one; to clarify any misunderstandings, the Sony ES line is nice, and is probably the only receiver in their AVR series which I would consider at this point (eventhough I would prefer a Denon 4802 or Onkyo 898 in this price range). The consensus generally seems to be that for the money spent on a upper line Sony DB receiver, that a similarly priced Kenwood would be a bit better from what I've gleamed from listening experience and the opinions of others on this board. I like many of SONY's products (their SACD players are great), but feel that they run behind other manufactuer's in the receiver department - just my imho. However, I would recommend giving all of the units mentioned here a test spin, to see which sound suits you personally.
Reg

 

[Kelvin F]

Hey Guys,
Thanks for your input on this matter,it is really appreciated. I had a change of luck today. I was discussing my situation with one of my friends at work today and another coworker overheard the conversation. As it turned out he had a DB-840 that he was willing to sell me for $300. This receiver is in mint condition,i went to his house and checked it out. He`s transfering in a couple of months and he doesn`t want the extra luggage. I`m bringing him the money tomorrow. Again guys,THANKS!

 

[Mark Gurney]

Kelvin, not to rain on your parade, but I think $300 for the 840 is too much. With it being an older model and what you can get for a little more, I would negotiate that price down or buy a new Denon.

 

[ReggieW]

Kelvin,
Mark has a point. You could've purchased any below for well under $300.00:
Denon 1602 (the Denon 1802 for $100.00 more)
Onkyo 494 (The Onkyo 595 for $100.00 more)
Kenwood VR-507 (The VR-509 for a little more)
........and several others new with warranties.
Reg

 

[Brian O]

If music is more important than HT to you, look at HK. The HK 510 or 520 I think is their latest model.
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[Chuck Kent]

Kelvin: Congrats on the 840. I still wanted to pass along my thoughts on the brands you and others mentioned.
I have owned (or still own) a Sony DB830, Denon AVR-3300, Denon AVR-3802 and a Kenwood VR-509. (They were not used in the same system.)
I like them all. For each one's price point, they are great values. If I had to rank them though, the Denon would be first, then the Sony, followed by the Kenwood. The Sony is closer to the Denon than the Kenwood is to the Sony.
The DB series Sony is a very well built and equiped machine. I would not hesitate in buying another Sony.
Unfortunately, Sony's DE series has dug such a hole for the name that many don't realize how much better the DB's are...
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[KeithH]

Denon makes great receivers, no question about it. However, I bought a Sony STR-V444ES in September 2000 over Denon receivers and others for the following reasons:
* Sound quality: Many knock Sony ES receivers for sound quality, but I am very pleased with the 'V444ES, especially considering it is not a megabuck receiver.
* Value: Sony ES products are available at significant discounts from authorized dealers. While the 'V444ES retailed for $1000, I bought it new-in-box for $640.
* Build quality: The 'V444ES is built at least well as any $1000 receiver available last year.
* Adjustable crossover: The 'V444ES allows you to adjust the crossover frequencies separately for the front left and right pair, center channel, and rear left and right pair in 10 Hz increments. Few receivers allow you to adjust the crossover frequencies at all, let alone with the flexibility of the Sony ES models.
* Excellent remote control: Some have complained about the Sony two-way LCD remotes, but I feel they are intuitive.
* Five-year warranty in the US: None of the other major receiver manufacturers (Denon, Marantz, Onkyo/Integra, Pioneer/Pioneer Elite, Kenwood, JVC, Outlaw, Yamaha, Harman/Kardon, etc.) offer a five-year warranty in the US. Hopefully I will never need the warranty, but it's nice to know I am covered for five years. Sony ES products sold in Canada come with a three-year warranty, which is still good coverage.
In looking at Sony receivers, one must be able to divorce the DB and ES models from the DE series. The DE models are junk. I owned the Sony STR-DB930 before the 'V444ES, and the 'DB930 was an excellent receiver at its price point. Obviously, if one can afford an ES model, I would say get one, as they are much better than the DB units. Still, the DB receivers are a good value.
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[Edited last by KeithH on November 15, 2001 at 06:48 AM]

 

[John Garcia]

I agree with KeithH - The sound quality is just fine on the ES line. I was quite impressed with them. For my taste, the Marantz has the cleanest sound for music, which is why I chose it over Denon. I would have no problem owning an ES unit at all.
I also agree that Sony has some of the better remotes out there. The remote was the one thing that I HATED with the Marantz, so I ended up buying another remote (which I probably would have done anyway).

 

[CalvinC]

I have the Sony 333ES and I'm really happy with it. As far as the Outlaw blowing away any Sony 100 wpc, thats bull. I had the Outlaw and Sony at home doing side by side comparisons trying to decide which one to buy. I thought the Outlaw was a little better for movies but for music I thought the Sony blew away the Outlaw. I prefer the music side to be stronger. As far as Dennon goes I have no experience with.

 

[Kelvin F]

Thanks again guys for your replies. By the way, what features does the DB series share with the ES series? Just curious.

 

[KeithH]

Mark said:

I have no experience with the sony ES line but if the 10Hz increments adjustable crossovers is true then its awsome.

It is true, and yes, it is awesome.
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