Please help... Pioneer Elite VSX74 or Denon AVR3806 ?
P or D
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I am not sure which to get. Can someone with knowledge of receivers please give me some advice. The pioneer is tempting due to its 140W per channel rating in comparison to Denon with 120W per channel. Is the processor etc. better in one than the other giving noticable sound quality difference? When I crank the volume, will the Pioneer be able to give more? Please help, I am not that knowledgable about this and want to get the most for my money ( like everyone else). Thanks, Rich.
Those power ratings are meaning less, not only that but even if they both put out exactly what they said going from 120W to 140W, is only going to give you like .3DB's or something really small like that.
What are your main concerns and what do you need the receiver to have?
P or D
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I think they are close to the same in what you can do with them. Im looking for a great sound with both DVD's and CD's. I currently own a Pioneer 914 and am hoping that the quality due to the price increase will be noticable. As far as compairing them, I have not had them side by side and with the same speakers as I have. I like the Pioneer 914 and am not sure if the extra money will get me a better sound with the same speakers I own. I didnt know that it was that small of a difference between 120W and 140W. The unit I have now is 110W. I guess as far as that goes I wont notice a difference or should I?
You will notice a difference in how your speakers sound between the two receivers.
If you like the sound you have, stick with the pioneer and go with the elite model.
I went from Sony to Yamaha to Pioneer Elite. Im going to stick with this one unless I get the new Panasonic xr-55 receiver
P or D
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Thank you. I was getting confused with all the talk about the different processors and so on, but my initial feeling was to stay with the Pioneer. Then when Denon was brought up to me it made me think. If you have experience with a few other receivers and are happy with the Pioneer, it makes me feel better about choosing that one. Thank you very much all of you for your help.
The power differential between both receivers should be the least of your concerns. If you have a Denon dvd player with d-link (3rd generation) then get the Denon. If you have a Pioneer dvd player with i-link (or another dvd player with i-link) I'd get the Pioneer. Since the Denon 3806 doesn't have i-link (firewire) it won't take advantage of dvd players with i-link. I-link dvd players attached by a single i-link cable to an i-link receiver will play all major formats digitally (cd, dvd-v, dvd-a, sacd, etc.) And it will play the surround formats. Similarly the Denon d-link 3rd generation dvd players will do the same with Denon receivers with d-link 3rd generation. If you want to connect your IPOD and computer to play music through your system the Pioneer gets the nod. It has i-link and USB connections. They both have XM radio capability--if you pay for the XM radio antenna connection and the annual fees for playing XM.
The Pioneer has a fine auto speaker calibration system, while the Denon has a more sophisticated Audyssey MultEQxt algorithmic system for creating more exacting time, phase, and frequency response in more than one sweet spot. The Denon has HDMI, but does not upconvert-it just switches. I think the Pioneer HDMI both switches and transcodes S-Video and component video to the HDMI output (not upconverts). The Pioneer 59avi dvd player upconverts through HDMI. The Pioneer 74txi is THX Select2 while the Denon isn't. That may be important to some.
I think the Yamaha 2600 (THX Select2) is the least expensive receiver that actually upconverts HDMI. It doesn't have i-link however. The Yammy 4600 does.
It all depends
P or D
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I dont have either pioneer or denon dvd. But I do like the option of firewire when I change that. It sounds to me that the only difference is the hook up capabilities more than a sound difference, is that true?
The hook up capabilities, the ease of use (along with ease of use of remote)--but definitely the quality of sound from your speakers with the interaction of your room is where the rubber really meets the road. The Pioneer 74txi will help balance what speakers you have (or ones you may get), along with having sophisticated digital hook-ups if you ever get dvd, HDTV, and other components equipped to use them. The Denon (even though it doesn't have i-link) probably has the edge with using the Audyssey system in balancing the phase, timing, and frequency response of your speakers--although the 74txi should do a better job than most other receivers.
But neither of these receivers will turn water into wine. The best speakers (preferably 6-8 ohms--why tax your amplification needlessly) will do more for your listening pleasure than any electronics. The acoustic balancing systems in the 74txi and the Audyssey system in the Denon avr 3806 will get the best sound out of your listening environment. But great speakers and great receivers or separates won't turn a poor broadcast or recording into a great performance of Handel's Messiah or Vivaldi's Gloria performed at Carnegie Hall.
P or D
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If the decision was yours, which would you choose? I have Polk Monitor 70s for my main speakers. I would love to get speakers with unlimited funds, but in the real world I cant. If you were to choose a receiver ( not just the two I mentioned , but in that price and quality and wattage range or better) what would you choose and what affordable speakers would you pair them up with?
P not D
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If the decision was mine I'd go Pioneer over Denon any day. I am just not a fan of Denon at all. I've had great experiences with Pioneer equipment, mainly their receivers and Dvd/Cd players. I just don't like that with Denon you pretty much have to break a grand to even get their good stuff. H/K, Pioneer, and Onkyo all have excellent offerings in the sub 1k range.
P or D
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I like the P not D, clever. Like I said earlier, I have a lesser Pioneer model now and think it sounds great. I dont know enough about electronics other than the sound to decide. I know that the sound is important, but so is quality and diversity. I have not had them side by side yet so I do not know which one sounds better yet. I was looking for some guidence from more experienced people than myself. So far Ive got alot of good input and I do appreciate it. I was leaning towards Pioneer only because that is all I know at this point. That may change when I listen to them both.
P or D- up to u
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Well, I shouldn't say "get this over that". It's really up to you. I mean they're both good receivers I just am not fond of the Denon sound. I won't even mention quality because that's a non issue, if one sounds terrible to your ears it won't matter if it's built a bit better than the other. Just use common sense, alot of people over look the most simple things, like... how it sounds to you! I made that mistake before, I heard a product was good from others, bought it, hated it. You seem to like Pioneer's sound so you may lean Pioneer. Just take your time, and really hear what each has to offer sound wise. Go into the store with the "sound in your head" of what you want. You'd be surprised how well your brain can match the sounds in your head to what you're really hearing. For me, Denon does not match that sound, H/K does, exactly. Good luck with it!
The Yamaha RX-V2600 will have it all. You won't need i-Link since it will have HDMI 1.2 which sends dvd-a and sacd through. Yamaha is a very musical receiver (keep in mind Yamaha equipment is in a lot of recording studios -- you won't see Denon in a recording studio). The 2600 will have pretty much all the features for now and the near future -- including THX -- which the Denon does not have.
I am trying to decide between Denon 3806, Yamaha and Pioneer Elite as well. I have Denon now, but about 5 years old, and looking for something with good room correction. In a head to head comparison I read the Pioneer came in ahead of Yamaha in this respect (can't remember the models tested). They had to manually adjust the Yamaha, as it was out by quite a bit. Denon didn't have room correction when the comparison was done, so it wasn't rated.
I had Yamaha before the Denon. The seemed Denon was very lean, clinical sounding compared to yamaha, missing bass grunt and control. I eventually bought Marantz monoblocks to power the main speakers, and was much happier (but also went from 85W to 200W). Inefficient ribbon speakers...they needed the extra power.
I also had some problems with the Denon getting very hot - even with it only powering the rears and centre. Also on screen menu stopped working. Took it in and got it repaired but was out of warranty, so cost me about $200.
Can anybody comment on the room correction on the Yamaha vs. the other two? If it was as good, I think I would go back to Yamaha.