Sure, when it comes to A/V receivers, the $4,000 flagships get most of the attention in our fantasy lives, and the $399 loss-leaders get most of the play in the Sunday-paper circulars. But the fact of the matter is, out where the silicon hits the road it’s the $1,000 to $2,000 price category that sees most of the action from people shopping for serious home theater. Why? Probably because this is the range where the law of diminishing returns kicks in, beyond which you must spend greater and greater sums to purchase smaller and smaller increments of significant improvement in audio and video quality.
So what, exactly, do receiver makers need to play in this league today? To find out, we whistled up three current designs from three well-respected and experienced companies: Harman Kardon, JVC, and Onkyo. But even without so much as cracking a carton (or a manual), here’s what I knew I’d find: Plenty of power, of course—at least 100 watts per channel from a five-, six-, or seven-channel amplifier section that’s ready to rock—and plenty of surround options. Dolby Digital EX and DTS-ES 6.1-channel decoding are givens, but a number of proprietary surround modes are sure to be onboard as well. Of course, there’ll also be a full roster of “extras” like a multicomponent full-system remote control, component-video inputs, and facilities for sending music to a second room—see our features table on page 39 for details.
But this is America, and if you want to play here you need one more thing: an angle. Harman Kardon’s AVR 7200 ($2,000) has an automatic level-setting system with a wireless microphone in the remote. The JVC RX-DP9V ($1,100) has a way cool, motor-driven door/control panel that magically floats up and down at the touch of a button. And Onkyo’s TX-NR900 ($1,500) has an Ethernet port as well as Internet-radio and home-networking capabilities built in. All right! But wait a minute—let’s keep our eyes on the ball here and note that, flashy features aside, each of these receivers has a lot to offer.
JVC RX-DP9V
You can’t help but notice the JVC RX-DP9V’s automated, motor-driven door/control panel. On power up, it glides silently down an inch, revealing a row of tiny source-selection keys. Press the adjacent Door Down button on the fixed front panel, and it glides down further to reveal the more seldom-used controls hidden deeper within. Normally, I reserve a special measure of scorn for this sort of gee-gaw, but JVC’s sliding panel is so sexy and restrained that it melted even my icy heart. When the panel’s all the way up it gives the receiver a strikingly Spartan, knob-only look.
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Along with the irresistible door, you also get a very competent, powerful, THX Select-certified A/V receiver. It is a little stingy on digital inputs, and it lacks amplifiers for one or two back surround speakers in a 6.1-channel setup, but it more than holds its own for a receiver with an $1,100 price tag.
In fact, the RX-DP9V performed admirably well on straight stereo and Dolby Digital/DTS programs alike. Its reproduction was very clean, defined, and controlled, creating tight, accurate sound, and there was ample multichannel power for anything I played. For instance, the JVC sounded effortless and airy across the very broad palette of Bela Fleck and the Flecktones’ Live at the Quick DVD—a Dolby Digital soundtrack. Cuts like the ’Tones’ refraction of Copland’s “Hoedown” (from Billy the Kid) had impressive breadth and dynamics.
Movie surround sound was equally fine. I heard no surprises from the JVC’s Dolby Digital EX and DTS-ES decoding, whether auditioned “straight” or using either system’s THX Cinema or THX Surround EX variants, on any of my usual audio-check scenes. The results were reliably dynamic and clean every time.
The RX-DP9V’s facilities for surround playback from two-channel sources are sparse by today’s standards. The popular Dolby Pro Logic II (DPL II) and DTS Neo:6 modes for creating 5.1-channel sound from stereo or Dolby Surround-encoded programs are not offered in the mix. Instead, you get original-flavor Pro Logic. On the other hand, you get ten digital signal processing (DSP) surround modes of the Large Hall, Dance Club variety, including a couple with Pro Logic channel-steering.
All of these DSP modes blend reverberation processing into the front channels, which I usually consider anything but an improvement. In most cases, though, the JVC’s processing was natural and restrained enough that I could enjoy it. The pick of these modes, for my money, is the engagingly subtle and natural-sounding Recital Hall, which was cohesive and believable even on exposed solo-piano recordings, like Keith Jarrett playing Bach (ECM). While I missed Pro Logic II—my gold standard for multichannel playback of TV programs, movies, and music that aren’t already 5.1/6.1-channel-encoded—it has no bearing on the RX-DP9V’s Dolby Digital/DTS performance, which was uniformly excellent.
Turning to the often-neglected tuner section, the JVC’s weak-signal FM reception seemed slightly less than par for today’s receivers (which are mediocre enough), but sound quality with medium-strong or better signals was excellent. AM reception was distinctly better than average—the RX-DP9V tuned in several times as many stations as a run-of-the-mill receiver.
I liked the overall simplicity of JVC’s ergonomic design. The receiver’s big remote took some getting used to, mainly because when you select an input using the handset’s top tier of keys, you also set the remote’s cursor and transport keys to operate that component. This is the simplest way of doing things, and probably the least confusing, but it makes it difficult to control another source without changing inputs. On the other hand, this arrangement also means that the handset keeps basic source-component controls (like play/pause and search) and all of the primary receiver controls active simultaneously so you don’t have to toggle between operating modes—a reasonable compromise. To return the handset to total receiver control, simply press the Sound key.
The handset is generally well laid out and spacious, and the clear graphics help make up for the lack of backlighting or key illumination. Note also that this is a preprogrammed-only remote: it has no learning capabilities and a modest library of codes—just ten brands for DVD players, for example.
The RX-DP9V’s list of “extras” leads with a menu-adjusted three-band (bass-midrange-treble) equalizer you can set independently (±6 dB) for front, center, surround, and back surround channels. Since each band’s center frequency can be selected over a roughly two-octave range, JVC calls it a “parametric” EQ—not quite accurate, because a true parametric EQ includes a variable bandwidth, or “Q,” control.
Also onboard is JVC’s A/V CompuLink integrated-remote system. Nearly all brands have an equivalent intercomponent system, but the RX-DP9V also features JVC’s Text-CompuLink, which lets you display track, album, and disc info on your TV and use it to search your library for discs and tracks. (Of course, this feature works only with MiniDiscs and newer CDs that include text.) The system requires a compatible JVC disc player/changer, which I didn’t have on hand for this audition. But I’ve used it in previous incarnations and can tell you it’s a pretty cool and easy way to catalog and access your music.
The most important “extra” of any receiver, of course, is performance, and in this regard the JVC delivered the goods. Its basic Dolby Digital/DTS playback was outstandingly clean and dynamic, as evidenced by the well-produced soundtrack from the movie Bandits. I watched the DVD straight through shortly after setting up the RX-DP9V and forgot about my “official business” within minutes. Performance good enough that you notice only the movie and not the equipment is precisely what you want from home theater gear, and that’s what I got here. JVC may have left out back surround speaker power and Pro Logic II to hit this price, but it has applied the savings wisely to power and quality and a thoughtful design.
Onkyo TX-NR900
Onkyo was among the first of the big brands to introduce Internet-audio capabilities in the shape of more or less traditional audio components, so it’s not too surprising that it’s also the first to bow an A/V receiver with Internet-radio and home-network capabilities. But the TX-NR900 is a very well-equipped conventional A/V receiver as well, with seven channels of power and the full rotation of Dolby Digital EX/DTS-ES modes, THX Select status, and more.
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It certainly looks conventional enough, with an attractive front panel that conceals secondary controls behind a drop-down door, which also conceals the TX-NR900’s front-panel A/V input. The receiver’s rear panel is well equipped with digital inputs and outputs and, of course, an Ethernet (RJ-45) port for home networking. Among its seven-channel speaker outputs, the back surround pair can be reconfigured to power a pair of speakers in a second room.
The Onkyo’s setup and calibration went smoothly. But there’s a good deal more to tweak here than on many A/V receivers, even leaving aside for the moment the receiver’s network abilities. Digital audio inputs and component-video routings are freely assignable, and the multichannel analog audio input, typically employed for a DVD-Audio or multichannel SACD player, can be assigned to any source.
The TX-NR900 has the full range of surround modes for multichannel and stereo sources, including both 5.1- and 6.1-channel versions of Dolby Digital EX and DTS-ES, each with THX variants, plus Dolby Pro Logic II and DTS Neo:6, each with its full range of user-adjustable parameters. (There’s also a Mono mode for optimizing old movies, complete with an Academy Filter option that compensates for overly bright sound.)
Six ambience-generation modes—labeled Orchestra, TV Logic, and so on—run about the average range of naturalness and effectiveness, and as always, are highly dependent on the program material. User adjustments for each mode are limited to Low/Mid/High options for reverb level and time delay and provide the welcome ability to defeat reverb and delay processing for signals directed to the front channels.
Moments after I hit the play button on my DVD player, it became apparent that the TX-NR900 could deliver a very high level of performance. The shotgun blast in the opening sequence of the exasperatingly goofy Bandits made me jump but good—that’s the whole point of a wide dynamic range—and the picture’s uniformly clean and crisp Dolby Digital soundtrack sounded, well, uniformly clean and crisp.
The Onkyo had ample power for anything I asked, including serious multichannel music listening such as a Silverline DVD-Audio disc of the ultra-late-Romantic Richard Strauss tone poem Ein Heldenleben, recorded with five full-range channels. The sound with stereo sources and DPL II processing was consistently excellent, too, and I appreciated having access to DPL II’s Panorama and Center Width controls to adjust the overall front image and the width of the center image (some DPL II-equipped receivers do not include these controls).
I began my network adventures with the TX-NR900’s Internet-radio feature, using my home network’s Ethernet router and cable-modem broadband service. This worked transparently: I connected an RJ-45 cable between the receiver and the router and hit the remote’s NET A key. I was able to navigate the onscreen menu to troll for stations by Genre, Location, or Language without having to endure any elaborate setup routine.
Onkyo’s Internet-radio features are served by the XiVA-Net database and tuning features, but everything works invisibly behind the scenes. For example, the Classic Rock genre yielded a list of about a dozen subgenres, each with several stations from which to choose. (Despite different call labels, however, multiple stations turned out to deliver the same streams—go figure.) Around half the time, the station I wanted would fail to connect, which is about average in my Internet-radio experience. Unfortunately, even just to try the next station on a list, Onkyo makes you go back to the top of the station-searching menu structure, a trip that can take a full minute or more while the unit awaits Internet responses. But you can preset Net-radio stations you like.
Most stations yielded Windows Media Audio (WMA) streams at 20 kilobits per second (kbps), which is fine if your idea of musical enjoyment is listening down a length of 4-foot pipe with a skillet of bacon frying somewhere off in the distance. (Okay, I’m exaggerating—a little.) However, I did find several stations, one Scandinavian classical and a couple of jazz, that sounded dramatically better thanks to higher-bandwidth streams: 128 kbps MP3 and 64 kbps WMA. These offered a wide range of music, with quality good enough for genuine listening pleasure.
I heard a lengthy piece of small-combo jazz featuring a sax player who may or may not have been Jan Garbarek (sounded like him to me) and a fascinating post-minimalist string-quartet movement I liked a lot. Both sounded good enough that any audio flaws were trumped by my musical interest. The TX-NR900’s onscreen display puts up Title, Program, and Artist lines for Internet-radio text streams, along with data rate, but except for data rate these were almost always blank.
The TX-NR900 can also stream audio files (MP3, WMA, and WAV formats) from your PC if that’s also connected to your network. You have to first download Net-Tune software from Onkyo’s U.S. Web site (after registering) and configure it as directed. Theoretically, this gets you set up to browse files on your network and play them over your “big” audio system via the TX-NR900. Theoretically. Me, I failed in several attempts. My Pentium-III Windows 98SE machine apparently lacked a required .dll file, and I’m not enough of a Wintel geek to figure it out. (Alas, there’s no Macintosh client, so far, for the Net-Tune feature.)
Nevertheless, I can see the value in the concept. The Net-Tune software supports various library-storage routines, allowing you to use your PC as a compressed-audio file server. With 60-gigabyte hard drives going for near pennies these days, you could easily drop an extra one into your PC and assemble a 10,000-song music-base (assuming you had the time and patience to rip all those tracks).
Of course, the TX-NR900 does “regular” radio, too. FM performance was about average with weak signals, but on stronger ones the audio quality was very good. AM reception was average, which is to say not very good.
I give the Onkyo a solid B on the ease-of-use front. The supplied remote control earns high marks on function. It’s both preprogrammed and learning capable, it can control up to seven components, it has separate keys for selecting inputs and component commands, and there’s a sensible division of keys between surround decoding and extra DSP modes, with direct-access buttons for the most important modes. You can illuminate all of the keys by pressing the Light key, but the labeling is small.
To be sure, Onkyo’s TX-NR900 is an A/V receiver with a difference. But the way I see it, the Internet-audio feature is pure gravy. This receiver’s solid—in fact, excellent—performance easily justifies its value even without it.
Harman Kardon AVR 7200
Unless you count its EZSet automatic level-setting function, Harman Kardon’s new AVR 7200 is the only one of our three receivers without an obvious gimmick—er, unique feature. But come to think of it, maybe the AVR 7200’s angle is that it delivers flagship-class size, power, and versatility without a battleship price.
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The AVR 7200 is far from ill-equipped, offering seven-channel power, full-bore Dolby Digital EX/DTS-ES decoding and DPL II/DTS Neo:6 processing, plus Harman’s highly regarded Logic7 processing (developed by its Lexicon subsidiary) and MP3 decoding. More significant, perhaps, to audio wonks, the AVR 7200 has one of the most adaptable bass-management systems I’ve seen. Not only can you dial in separate crossover frequencies for the front L/R, center, and surround channels, but if you set the crossover to Independent mode rather than Global, you can tune a different array of crossover settings for each input—very handy for fussy audiophiles who demand “purist” settings for music but also want the real home theater deal for movies and videos.
Setting up a receiver this configurable is no trivial matter, but the AVR 7200’s clear menu system and complete and detailed manual was a big help. The EZSet system employs a calibrated wireless microphone built into the remote control to balance channel levels. Unfortunately, I had a hard time getting it to work correctly. You can calibrate manually, too, but I found that calibration using the receiver-generated test noise disagreed with that derived using calibrated noise from the Sound & Vision Home Theater Tune-Up DVD by 3 dB or so at the surround channels. I stuck with our test disc—a known quantity.
Features aside, this A/V receiver delivers impressive performance, leaving little for other, considerably higher-priced models to bring to the table in this respect. Power was never an issue with even the most dynamic material. The Bandits DVD held little enough audio challenge for the AVR 7200, whose Dolby Digital playback was unfailingly theater-quality. Nor did a quick sampling of known-toughie scenes from DVD movies like The Phantom Menace and Tomorrow Never Dies turn up anything to break a sweat even with my moderately low-sensitivity speakers.
Pro Logic II 5.1-channel playback was equally excellent. Harman Kardon offers an interesting alternative with Logic7, which performs similar processing on stereo and matrix-encoded material but delivers 6.1-channel playback (assuming that you have a suitable setup). The differences are subtle but distinct. With excellent natural-acoustic stereo recordings, Logic7 Music gave superb results. And I suspect I’d use Logic7 Cinema in my 6.1-channel system for most stereo or matrix-encoded two-channel films, too. A bit surprisingly for a receiver that’s otherwise so customizable, the AVR 7200 does not provide access to any user-adjustable parameters for Logic7 or Pro Logic II.
I should mention that DTS Neo:6 processing is also available, as well as three ambience-generation modes and Harman Kardon’s VMAx virtual surround mode, which you can call up in Near or Far versions depending on your seating distance from the pair of stereo speakers. I found VMAx to deliver some of the most convincing surround effects I’ve heard from just two speakers—and it can also be used for headphone listening.
A few other AVR 7200 features deserve your attention. You can configure the receiver to perform whatever bass management you specify at setup time, not only on incoming multichannel or stereo digital audio signals but also on multichannel analog audio signals (DVD-Audio or SACD) as well as stereo analog audio, making it one of a relatively few A/V receivers that can do so. Of course, this management is performed in the digital domain, so regardless of the “native” resolution of the source, the analog signal is reconverted to digital via the AVR 7200’s all-96-kHz/24-bit signal paths.
Next, the AVR 7200 includes HK’s nifty front-panel connections, including both coaxial and optical digital audio inputs—but all of these can all be changed (via a menu) to outputs, which is a real boon if you want to dub to and from, say, a laptop computer or a DV camcorder. Along with multiroom outputs via both conventional line- and speaker-level jacks, the AVR 7200 is also one of the few receivers to provide an A-BUS output, an RJ-45 network-style connector that supplies line-level audio and control signals along a single CAT-5 cable.
Harman Kardon supplies the AVR 7200 with a spiffy new full-system remote control. It’s well equipped, comprehensive in its functions, and has a small, two-line LCD to show the current component-mode and command, plus full lighting that shows off the sleek, modern design. It looks great—but ergonomically speaking I wasn’t crazy about it. The graphics are small and hard to read (they’re better when lit in the dark, though), button spacing is tight, and the similarity of the almost-flush volume/channel and cursor-control rockers can be confusing. Back on the plus side, the remote’s library of preprogrammed codes is fairly broad, and setting them is easy thanks to self-prompting brand and code lists, which are displayed on the LCD. (Harman Kardon also provides a handy Zone 2 remote for a second room.)
The ergonomic shortcomings of its main remote are about my only complaint regarding what is a very fine A/V receiver. Powerful, clean, capable, and complete, the Harman Kardon AVR 7200 should easily satisfy the expectations of even very demanding home theater fans.
This is an impressive trio, especially when you consider that that each of these companies offers at least one “better” A/V model, with more features, more power, more size—and a higher price. These three receivers don’t make those flagships literally redundant, but they reinforce my belief that most of the time the “top-of-the-line” stuff can safely be reserved for those whose dedication to A/V “perfection” trumps all fiscal concerns.
Each receiver combines generous power, accurate surround decoding, and a usable human interface in distinctly different ways. Their performance quality was amply evident both at the test bench and on the couch in my studio, watching movies and listening to music. Harman Kardon’s AVR 7200 justifies its price with superior input/output facilities, a powerfully flexible suite of second-room features, and the truly superb, all-purpose Logic7 surround mode, while JVC offers that rare combo of sexiness and simplicity in its RX-DP9V. Onkyo’s entry is one of the only shows in town for anyone who’d like to have Internet radio and PC audio on tap through a traditional home theater component, but it doesn’t stint on the basics, either. There’s something for just about everybody here, and plenty for lots of somebodies.