Top AV Receivers for 2021 (1 Viewer)

[Sam Posten]

Right, I'm the crazy one, wanting to use 3 devices while you gu

I think most will - the specific issue that troubles Sam is that most consumer grade receivers generally only have one input that supports HDMI 2.1, while the rest support HDMI 2.0. Most people aren’t using multiple high end devices simultaneously so it’s often not an issue for the general public. So if you get a PS5, shouldn’t be a problem. If you had a PS5, XboxX and gaming PC, used them all at 8K with high frame rate and HDR and surround audio and wanted them all hooked up at the same time without swapping them when you want to use them, then you’d have the issue.

Apple TV says hi. That's 4 if you count PCs.

 

[Edwin-S]

I think inputs and.outputs on new receivers should support the latest HDMI spec. It is not so much whether one needs it. It is more that the capability is there if a person buys new players or gaming equipment that supports it. In my case, I generally buy both the PS5 and the XBOX systems, so I would need at least two ports that can support 2.1. Three would be better for future expansion. I doubt I would ever need 8K support as I have spent enough on TV sets for the foreseeable future; however, I still would want that support available just from the standpoint of being a tech geek.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

Don't really know why some new AVRs (NVM prepros) don't more fully support HDMI 2.1, but usually, there are simply plenty of tradeoffs to be made w/ each new piece of AV gear. And presumably, that might just be one of them right now.

Given how there are often IMHO more pressing issues to address than whether a new AVR (that comes out annually) has 3-plus HDMI 2.1 ports (right now), well, those of us who are not big gamers won't be concerned about that instead of something else...

Clearly, the manufacturers can't and don't please everyone w/ each iteration of such, so it is what it is... and hopefully, they'll get significantly more "right" (w/out undesirable setbacks) w/ each iteration. But at least some of these things still come down to target market segments -- plenty enough consumers just won't need or care much about full support of HDMI 2.1 for foreseeable future... just as plenty don't care about certain audiophile qualities...

Me? I recently bought a few-year-old prepro that still costs more on the used market than any of the new AVRs Martin just listed at MSRP, and it's even missing the entire amp section of those AVRs, NVM no support for HDMI 2.1 at all and probably much less of certain other bells and whistles...

Personally, I'd care a fair bit more about more robust support/implementations for HDMI 2.0 than adding 2.1 (just to bump up the data rate capability) as we all know HDMI connectivity, switching, etc aren't always exactly perfectly great in actual practice...

And many of us simply have different priorities is all...

_Man_

 

[Sam Posten]

Lotta excuses being made for leading electronics firms. Brand loyalty is a hell of a drug, they don’t love you back

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

LOL, Sam. There are always "lotta excuses being made for leading" whatever firms. Just as long as they don't matter to you, then they're only other people whining over nothing, LOL...

_Man_

 

[Robert Crawford]

Lotta excuses being made for leading electronics firms. Brand loyalty is a hell of a drug, they don’t love you back

I must remember that the next time I read one of your pro-Apple posts.

 

[JohnRice]

There are multiple forces at play right now. First, hdmi 2.1 still seems to be a little half baked. Second, there are global chip shortages of all varieties. I don't know if that second one plays in to it, but odds are good. Availability of receivers and preamps is bad, to say the least. The units which have come out are glitchy across the board. If you want up-to-the-second tech, you just have to write off 2020 and 2021.

 

[Edwin-S]

The HDMI spec and its implementation has been half-baked as a whole.

 

[Sam Posten]

I must remember that the next time I read one of your pro-Apple posts.

zing. Although I’m sure the story people have built up in their heads is that I’m a pro Apple fanatic the truth is that I am wide eyed about the tools I use. Apple happens to be the least worst of them but I have PCs, Linux boxes and Android too. My list of issues with Apple is legion and many of them can’t be discussed here due to P&R. Of the issues that aren’t in that category are their resistance to right to repair, focus on strict market segments that leads to premium costs, and their unwillingness to make iOS multiuser to name just a few.

none of those are anywhere near the disaster that 2020 era receivers have been. I have 4 receivers that will need eventual upgrade and I only upgraded one of my fleet to try to get the signature feature, VRR, working and they f’ed that up.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

@Sam Posten, Big Corporate giveth... and Big Corporate taketh away...

_Man_

 

[Dave Upton]

@ManW_TheUncool - it sounds like the AVM70 is a step down in audio quality and stability from the 60 in almost every way unfortunately. I am hoping a year or so of firmware updates will help with that, but not holding my breath.

I'm also holding off until HDMI 2.1 is solid, or 2.2 comes out, because it's important my next processor supports VRR and high frame rate content for gaming.

 

[John Dirk]

I'm also holding off until HDMI 2.1 is solid, or 2.2 comes out, because it's important my next processor supports VRR and high frame rate content for gaming.

If I were buying today it would be the Emotiva XMC-2 but I'm very happy I don't need to buy anything just yet. It's HDMI 2.0B but I'm fine with that.

 

[Josh Dial]

@ManW_TheUncool - it sounds like the AVM70 is a step down in audio quality and stability from the 60 in almost every way unfortunately. I am hoping a year or so of firmware updates will help with that, but not holding my breath.

I'm also holding off until HDMI 2.1 is solid, or 2.2 comes out, because it's important my next processor supports VRR and high frame rate content for gaming.

For what it's worth, when I was auditioning the MRX 1140 I had the opportunity to do a blind A/B comparison against the 1120. I don't proclaim to have the finest ears in the city, but I could not tell the difference. The A/B switch was happening fast enough that I think I would have been able to tell if there was a difference (but, again, I'm no audiophile).

Speakers were some Martin Logan setup (didn't ask about the model numbers, but they were some electrostatic models (except for the subs, which I think were from Paradigm).

I listened to movies in 7.2.4 (Atomic Blonde, Fury Road, and Joker), and some music in 2.0 (some Dire Straits, and some Blue Rodeo [a Canadian band--chosen by myself because I'm intimately familiar with the albums]).

I listened for about an hour.

I'm not sure how the 1120-->1140 compares to the AVM60-->70, but I wanted to pass on my experience nonetheless.

 

[Dave Upton]

If I were buying today it would be the Emotiva XMC-2 but I'm very happy I don't need to buy anything just yet. It's HDMI 2.0B but I'm fine with that.

I'll never buy an Emotiva processor. They've proven they can't put out a fully baked unit unfortunately. As much as I wanted the XMC and RMC to be amazing, it's clear that there are multiple better options on the market at the same price point now.

 

[John Dirk]

I'll never buy an Emotiva processor. They've proven they can't put out a fully baked unit unfortunately. As much as I wanted the XMC and RMC to be amazing, it's clear that there are multiple better options on the market at the same price point now.

I'm aware of the Monoprice HTP-1 and the Anthem AVM70. Are there others? Again, I am not actually in the market as the consensus seems to be to wait it out a year or so and I have no immediate need.

 

[ManW_TheUncool]

@ManW_TheUncool - it sounds like the AVM70 is a step down in audio quality and stability from the 60 in almost every way unfortunately. I am hoping a year or so of firmware updates will help with that, but not holding my breath.

I'm also holding off until HDMI 2.1 is solid, or 2.2 comes out, because it's important my next processor supports VRR and high frame rate content for gaming.

Really? Certainly did not expect that. Very disappointing if true NVM the bugs that seem to inflict most every new prepro release nowadays though I understand better was expected from a select few like Anthem.

Guess I should be that much more glad I have no need for HDMI 2.1 and simply went w/ a used AVM-60 at a good price pretty much as soon as the new prepros and AVRs were announced (along w/ various others across the market)...

_Man_

 

[Dave Upton]

I'm aware of the Monoprice HTP-1 and the Anthem AVM70. Are there others? Again, I am not actually in the market as the consensus seems to be to wait it out a year or so and I have no immediate need.

There are a few. I'm not advocating to buy now by any means, but there are certainly better choices than emotiva. Namely the NAD M17 (used), Arcam AV40, and AudioControl M5 (used)

 

[DavidJ]

One deal I know of these days is the Marantz SR7013 on closeout at ListenUp in Colorado. They're a reputable dealer who's been around for decades. $600 off for a new unit might suit your purposes if it's in your price range, which it sounds like it definitely is.

Thanks for the suggestion, John. That’s quite a nice and capable receiver at a nice discount. I’ll be taking a deeper look at it.

 

[JohnRice]

Thanks for the suggestion, John. That’s quite a nice and capable receiver at a nice discount. I’ll be taking a deeper look at it.

It's a very nice unit, and there just aren't any deals out there. I'm surprised this one is still available.

 

[Josh Dial]

I have an update on my Anthem MRX-1140 for anyone who is interested.

While I haven't had any issue with ARC Genesis or the receiver in general, I updated the firmware this past weekend and re-ran ARC Genesis. I spent the entire weekend educating myself about tweaking the curves, and I experimented with settings like cross-overs and with varying the amount of toe-in for my fronts (including some asymmetrical toe-in to account for a wall and open space).

I also took some advice from a poster in an Anthem facebook group and "force adjusted" the volume of the sweep during ARC Genesis. Basically, the system defaults to running the sweep at the receiver's "default on volume" of -35. The result is that trim levels tend to be a bit higher than expected because that -35 volume is not 75 dB. So what I did was run the ARC "quick measure" utility in the software, and, using the supplied mic at position 1 (prime listening position), measured the volume of my speakers at volume -35. I think focused on only the speaker with the lowest dB at volume -35, and increased the volume until it reported 75 dB in the software. This ended up being -30.5 for me. I then ran ARC Genesis and made sure the sweeps were running at -30.5. To do this I logged into the receiver via the web interface (not via the remote and OSD), and manually changed the volume from -35 to -30.5. Then I ran the sweeps. For each change in mic position (I ran five), I double checked that the volume was at -30.5.

I don't want to say the difference was night and day or anything, but even though I was completely satisfied with the previous settings my new settings were even better. The front sound stage is now very expansive and I find it almost impossible to localize sounds to a particular speaker. My surrounds are also harder to localize, and my rears have slightly better presence. My four height channels are also more expansive. The Atmos and DTS-X I listened to all had a bit more oomph (obviously this is highly dependant on the actual soundtracks themselves, but there was a noticeable uptick between my old and new settings on the same tracks I revisited). Bass was a tad tighter (though I still have a peak that I need to fix--I think I can fix it with a slight movement in position and some minor acoustic treatment).

I continue to be impressed with the receiver, and I have not encountered any bugs to speak of (unless you count the sweeps defaulting to run at below 75 dB to be a bug). I do, however, think the receiver requires some "user attention". To get the best sound you may need to tweak curves and other settings. I think using the "advanced mode" in ARC Genesis is a requirement to get top performance. This isn't a plug and play piece of equipment.

I'm adding an MCA-325 amp in the coming days (hopefully this weekend) to support my front soundstage.