Denon AVR 2309

[Pistol Pete1]

Just found the Denon AVR 2309 for £430 delivered.....£600 RRP(I think)

Anyone got this amp......is it any good, as I can't find any reviews on it?

Would it be a sensible/worthwhile upgrade from Onkyo 606? (It would be partnered with the Q Acoustics 1010i 5.1 (1030i as front speakers), Marantz CD63 KI Signature and Sony BDP-S350 blu ray player.)

 

[grdunn123]

I listened to it, the Sony2400 and the Onkyo 806 and you know I went for the Onkyo.....the Denon was bland and uninspiring with both music and movies, kind of a 'jack of all trades'. Had the Onk for over a week now and have invested in a Tacima mains conditioner. I upgraded from a Sony 1200 amp and the difference is immence soundwise.

You will notice a difference between the Denon and your Onk but it may not be one that you like.Perceived sound quality is completely subjective and you may end up liking the Denon......go and listen I guess and make your own mind up. Difficult though unless you can audition it directly against your onk using the same source and speakers.

 

[Pistol Pete1]

The sony 2400 was the other on my list...how did that sound compared with the Denon?

Was keen on 806, but then heard about the 'blue dot' syndome!!

Where did you audition that had all three amps? I realise it's going to be the only way to decide if the upgrade is really worth it...........

 

[grdunn123]

At a dealer in Birmingham where I was working. The Onk 'blue dot' has been massively overhyped but has affected a few units.

The Sony wasn't much of an improvement sonically over the 1200ES that I owned. I think most of the extra money went on the HDMI socketry and the Dolby TrueHD etc.The Denon was just too civilized.....that's about the best i could say about it. It had to be cranked up more to get similar kind of excitement with movies. I don't think many people buy these kind of receivers for their musical capabilities, buy a cheap decent stereo amp and use it for your music.

The Onk was just head and shoulders above the other 2, remember that it does have an RRP of £800 so you would expect it to ( Yeah, i know there are discounts to be had but they will disappear as the Euro and Yen strengthen, look at the £100 increase on the Onk's price at Richersounds in the last week)

Big sound, Loads of connectivity, THX! etc etc.... was a no brainer for me.

What's wrong with you 606 that you need to upgrade?

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Was the dealer in Birmingham Superfi (green sign above store)?

Great for movies, not the best for music playback - can be harsh in treble, muddled in mid range on complex tracks (And I don't have room for a stereo amp, which is how I used to have it set up.)

Nor does the 606 have pre outs, otherwise I would have reconnected my old Marantz PM6010 KI Signature back up (could possibly find room for that only)

I find it interesting that at another forun site, everyone seems to slate the 606, and prefer the denon 1909 or Sony 2400. If you keep reading these things, you wonder what your missing!! (Clare says it's the quickest way to madness, and I thinks she's right!!)

Maybe it's just time to not read/visit forums anymore.....

 

[Hems]

I think it sounds good with Dynamic EQ turned on. EDITED BY MODS - HOUSE RULES

 

[Hems]

Actually is there going to be a What HiFi review of this?

 

[Clare Newsome]

Yep - we finally (after much asking) got hold of a test sample recently - review is in our March issue, which hits shops this week (snow delays permitting).

 

[Hems]

oops and sorry

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Hi Clare,

Is the denon reviewed as a single item, or as a group test?

Is it the kind of upgrade you were thinking of in terms of a bigger leap quality wise?

 

[Clare Newsome]

it's in a group test of Home Cinema set-ups. And no, it's still in the same ballpark,

 

[Pistol Pete1]

What other amps are in the test then?

In same ballpark--what you after? Blood?

We talking £800 plus, then?

 

[Clare Newsome]

It's a one-make home cinema systems test, where we also got to mix and match Blu-ray players and AV amps/receivers from budget to high-end, to see what difference the combos made.

And yes, sorry, but in this case you're not going to get a massive improvement from a strong list-price £400 amp to a decent £500 AV amp. Move up to the next level and you'll be cooking, however (and that includes receivers that were once pricier but have fallen back into that price band)

 

[grdunn123]

I'm pretty sure that the Onkyo 806 falls in to this category....

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Which category grdunn123?

Is the 806 am decent upgrade, or are we looking at the 876, Clare?

Thought all Onkyo's were seen as below par on 2 channel playback, though?

 

[Clare Newsome]

The Onkyos certainly share the same characteristics across the range, though the higher up the range you go, the better their stereo performance gets - the 806 or 876 should be more musical than your 606 for example, though not as convincing with CDs as some similar-priced rivals, in our opinion.

I'd strongly suggest an audition, with you taking movies and music along

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Will do Clare.

Thanks for your help, advise and time.