Now I've read some of the opinions here on the Denon AVR 2803 and 3803, and many of them have me worried. Especially Hawk's posts. I currently own a NAD T760 and have been really happy with it, except it's pretty pathetic surround management options, very slight hiss and no sub-out in stereo.
However the center channel now drops out intermittently, so I want to replace it. I like the NAD sound, but I also like the features, reliability, low noise and many adjustment options of the Denon, so I thought about getting the AVR-2803 and then using a NAD 216THX or C270 power amp to drive the front speakers, thus getting the best of both worlds.
However I now see people claiming that even surround mode sounds better on the T753 and that the DACs and DSPs are better? I was under the impression that the Denon DACs and DSPs were better, but the power stage was not.
On the other hand it sounds like the T753 still has plenty of bugs. Have they been solved in newer revisions?
I am of course going to do some listening tests of my own, but would still appreciate any input.
The DSP on the Denon is able to compute more mathematical instructions then the DSP installed on the T753. Infact, the DSP within the T753 is not able to decode DTS96/24, which would need 2 Cirrus Dsps to work out the intructioin set in real time. But, A Receiver is not made only of a DSP, and the reciepe to produce a good receiver requires more than a high performance DSP. As you might be aware of, the most expensive part of a receiver is the Power Supply (transformer)! NAD knows that the Cirrus DSP installed on the current range of AV's is able to cater for most of the current major formats, even DPL2x. (no upgrade have been mentioned for the T753 as its not installed with a RS232 Port)
The current power supply installed on the T753, is able to drive low ohmage speakers even going down to 2 ohms at peaks. Plus the Design/chassy/software is all based on the T762, which was a very highly regarded receiver.
What I would do is to try and balance what are your priorities, both receivers will surely give a great home cinema experience, plus the NAD will out shine the Denon on stereo material. Try to audition both receivers within the same setup and let your ears help you in deciding! Just remember one thing, that NAD is very conservative when rating power for its receivers.
Hi, the first post is mine, it was an error that I posted it anonymously
Thanks for your insights Robert. I actually didn't know that the transformer was the most expensive part. I guess I would have to use a NAD power amp for all channels with the Denon to get the sound I'm looking for. Using a power amp for just the front speakers would probably give too much of a difference between the center and fronts.
I'm waiting anxiously for Easter to end so I can go test the receivers in the Hifi shop.
If I do decide on the T753, I'm probably going to spring for an extended 5 year warranty, as I don't have much confidence in the reliability of the NAD receivers. :/
Within my setup I have had a T750, a T751, and a t762. All gave a great service, and none of them had any hardware faults. My current receiver is a T762 which for NAD standards, its a big step from the older versions! My T762 is installed with Firmware 1.18 Revision C and its great, easy to use, extreemely flexible and it have a large amount of connections at the back!
Well I just see a lot of complains about humming, hiss, fan noise etc and now my own T760 had a channel go dead. On the other hand I see same amount of complains regarding Marantz and Harman Kardon, so I guess bugs are not seldom among surround receivers. The thing that bothers me the most is the problem with my T760. I don't want to have a broken receiver 3-4 years after I bought it and it's out of warranty.
Fortunately I can sell this one to a friend of mine who doesn't mind, as he'll never use the center channel.
