Denon AVR3310 or Yamaha RXV1065??

[admin_exported]

Hi guys,

I've been looking at upgrading my whole home cinema set up. I'm no expert but I have been doing a bit of research and to cut a long story short I've narrowed my choice down to 2 packages. Both have the same speakers and are evenly priced and come with the above amps.

I'm leaning towards the Yamaha but like I said I'm not up to date with this sort of thing at the moment

Could anybody please advise me before I go and blow around £700 on the wrong amp?!

At present I am using a Cambridge Audio Azur 640R V2 (think its that one) Although I am happy with the sound of this I need a new amp with all of the HDMI connectivity to hook up my 40 inch Samsung LCD, PS3 and Sky HD. I also intend to add a separate Blu-Ray player when I have an amp that'll hook up to it.

Thank you anyone that can offer me any help or advice

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Welcome to the forum Daveee,

Are you sure you have the correct model numbers, as you have mentioned two receivers in the title that are about £400 apart in price?

The Denon AVR 3310 is over £1000, and the Yam RXV1065 is around £650........

You sure you didn't mean the Denon AVR2310 at £700-£800 each?

Whichever one you meant, the Denon gets my vote, any day!!!

BTW, what are the speakers in the package?

 

[Anonymous]

You can also consider the yam 1900!

 

[Anonymous]

Hi people thanks for your responses so far

Pistol Pete I did mean the Denon 2310 and not the 3310. I wasn't sure if these forums allow advertising of sites or posting of links to products. I was looking at the new package deals at Hi-Spek which seem excellent value for money at the moment. I want these speakers with either of the 2 mentioned receivers:

http://www.hispek.com/P/Yamaha-Home-RXV1065-Receiver-Kef-AV50-Cinema-Package-Deal(RXV1065AV50PACK).aspx

Like I said both are the same price so its a tough decision. Do you know if these have the auto set up with a mic? I wouldn't have a clue where to start trying to tweak the settings manually

Also another thing I need is ipod compatibility which I know the Yamaha has via a separate dock/cable. This ipod compatibility is my only selling point to my girlfriend to justify buying it!

Would I be correct in thinking a PS3, Sky HD, Blu Ray Player and TV would all link up to the receiver via 4 HDMI's with one going into the TV? I ask because my TV only has one HDMI in. (until I have chosen between a new Bravia or a double the price Kuro which is a totally different debate all together!)

Cheers for your help

 

[Andrew Everard]

Daveee:Would I be correct in thinking a PS3, Sky HD, Blu Ray Player and TV would all link up to the receiver via 4 HDMI's with one going into the TV? I ask because my TV only has one HDMI in. (until I have chosen between a new Bravia or a double the price Kuro which is a totally different debate all together!)

Yes, correct, although you'll also need an optical digital connection from the Sky box to the receiver for surround sound.

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Hi Daveee,

I didn't hear the Yamaha RXV1065, when I auditioned the Denon AVR2310, even though the shop had them available. They are the same price, and the shop assistant suggested that the Yamaha, in his opinion was only as good as the Denon 1910.

Was it sales talk?...I don't know, but judging by the reviews the lower Yamaha models have had, I imagine he was correct. (I'm happy with Denon, anyway - and the 1910 and 2310 are UK tuned, which suggests to me that they will be better -like the Yamaha 863SE was last year)

Both come with set up microphones, although I used mine to set up speakers distances, sizes and crossovers (then tweaked a few I thought were incorrect), but then switched off the MultEQ and Dynamic EQ, as the amp sounds much better without it all on.

Hope that helps....

 

[Anonymous]

The 1065 only as good as the Denon 1910??
Hmm,sounds strange!

 

[Pistol Pete1]

Yes, possibly, Lazarus,

but.......

The Yamaha RXV765 only got 4 stars in the group review that was won by the Denon AVR1910 (5 star), so maybe going up to the 1065 'builds across' that performance gap?

Anyone from What hifi? know if this is true

 

[Anonymous]

would like to know this too!

 

[Anonymous]

Somebody???

 

[d4v3pum4]

I presume that this is an online purchase? If so, you're only going to hear what other people think of these amps and not your own. I would highly recommend a demo. Both amps will sound fine with the Kefs but they do have slightly different characteristics. Yamaha would be categorised as being more 'natural' and the Denon 'warm'. However, this 'pigeon holing' can change from year to year and to be honest the performance of amps up to £1k are pretty similar so it really does come down to personal preference. Some of the lesser spec'd (cheaper) Yamahas have had some serious weight loss, no doubt caused by the use of cheaper components. One noticeable negative change on the cheaper Yamahas was the use of spring clips used instead of proper speaker binding posts. If they skimp on the things you can see, you can only wonder what they've done inside. Do a search for some technical reviews. There is also the whole HDMI/Digital audio assignment fiasco', similar to Sony from last year whereby the amp won't let you use a digital audio cable if you're connecting via HDMI as it prioritises HDMI audio, so in the case of Sky+HD you only get stereo. I don't know if it is the case with the mid-level Yamahas or not. The new Denons have been well received and the build and sound quality have been remarked upon very highly. So far, there have been no negative comments, unless someone can correct me.

If you can't demo, I would perhaps wait for a selection of reviews and do some more online research so that you can canvass more opinion. I have owned both Yamaha and Denon and have enjoyed both.

BTW, I don't think you can buy the "wrong amp" but maybe the wrong amp for you. Only a demo will tell you that by using your own ears and getting hands on. Yamaha can be easier to setup, Denon are more complicated but there are good guides around such as Batpig's one.

 

[MUSICRAFT]

d4v3pum4:

There is also the whole HDMI/Digital audio assignment fiasco', similar to Sony from last year whereby the amp won't let you use a digital audio cable if you're connecting via HDMI as it prioritises HDMI audio, so in the case of Sky+HD you only get stereo. I don't know if it is the case with the mid-level Yamahas or not.

Hi d4v3pum4

There is now a firmware update availabe on Yamaha's UK website for the RX-V465, RX-V565 and RX-V765.

Thanks

Rick @ Musicraft