2011 $2000 A/V Receiver Comparison Guide

[admin]

You asked for it, and now you have it. The new AVENTAGE RX-A3010 from Yamaha has got a lot of people asking, "How does it stack up?" Well, we'll tell you. We took the top offerings in the $2000 price point from Denon (AVR-4311CI) and Onkyo (TX-NR3008) and weighed them up. While we didn't really find any of them lacking, we're sure you have an opinion on them.

Discuss "2011 $2000 A/V Receiver Comparison Guide " here. Read the article.

 

[Cruise Missile]

Your assumption that the Denon 4311ci does HDMI pass through is correct.

I've never used it to actually watch anything but it has let me know my projector was still on a couple of times after powering down the receiver.

Love the way the you let 'em know to get their own houses in order before expecting you to. Good stuff. At this price point it's silly that you can't get solid info about the receivers, as 2k is one heck of an investment to make blindly.

 

[scott911]

I too liked the notice to manufacturers.

audioholic should consider maintaining a feature's index like alot of photo sites have. i.e let me sort by recievers with Pre-outs, within this price bracket... and a couple other attributes.

That would be awsome - alot of work, but the ad reenue from the increased traffic might make it worthwhile - especially if the tool starts to become well known...

 

[Sugarbear]

Good article. Point to note: According to Amazon, the Denon 4311 is available at its original MSRP (which is interesting given its age) but the Onkyo 3008 is available at just over $1,300.

That >$700 difference changes the value proposition quite a bit. You could afford to get that second sub that you should have at this price point anyway (right, Tom?)

I made a similar observation on the ~$600 AVR comparison, but the the Onkyo model up from the 3008 - the 5008 - has the same street price as the Denon.

Is there a professional, editorial or other reason why current street prices aren't included in these kind of reviews? Just wondering...

 

[Cruise Missile]

You can find all three receivers priced well below msrp.

The street price is constantly plunging which would require a ton of research and constant updates to every review.

 

[smurphy522]

Of the 3 only the Denon sports A/D conversion for the 2nd and 3rd zone outputs. However the Yamaha has digital out for the 4th zone.

That may be important to many in this price/feature category. I can confirm that having to run additional analog cables (for those sources that have them) is
not all that bad but labeling and getting them figured out is a pain for my second zone.

Does anyone know if the YPAO does subwoofer calibration? There is very little information, even from Yamaha on this technology.

 

[Sugarbear]

You can find all three receivers priced well below msrp.

The street price is constantly plunging which would require a ton of research and constant updates to every review.

We certainly wouldn't expect a constantly updated street price, but "Street Price as at July 27, 2011" is the kind of thing I'm talking about.

We'd all understand that things change over time.

 

[cpp]

With new receivers coming out all over the place you wonder if a true "driven wattage" column is warranted. NAD, Cambridge, Rotel, Anthem all come to mind with true driven wattage numbers instead of marketing figures but I guess it depends on if you looking for whiz bang features or clean audio power, but of course availability to most people require travel.

 

[Cruise Missile]

I think the reason they don't relay street pricing info. relates directly back to advertising.

If I manufactured and sold a product I would be hesitant to advertise with anyone who stripped the margins.

The profit margin needs to be there to entice retailers and dealers to sell my products. Without it there is no reason for them to carry it as they won't see a profit. The more places I can place my product the more I'll sell.

Now a savy shopper knows that some outlets run a tight ship with very low to no overhead cost. This allows them to price their items near the bottom of the profit margin and still make money. This often comes at the expense of the manufacturers warranty, return policy, and/or any sort of support after the sell.

Audioholics makes money from ads. I bet it's safe to assume they'd like to see that income stream continue to grow so they do their part to ensure the eco-system they survive in remains intact.

 

[smurphy522]

With new receivers coming out all over the place you wonder if a true "driven wattage" column is warranted. NAD, Cambridge, Rotel, Anthem all come to mind with true driven wattage numbers instead of marketing figures but I guess it depends on if you looking for whiz bang features or clean audio power, but of course availability to most people require travel.

In a similar response I would also point out the published pwr ratings:

The Yamaha is 150W 2 ch driven.

The Onkyo is 140W 2 ch driven.

Only the Denon rates its amp section 140 W with all channels driven (at least the wording of the spec. leads one to believe so). However I find in further study the power consumption rating given does not add up to support an "all channels driven scenario". Even if 7 of the available 9 channels were driven it would consume a minimum 980 W (assuming 100% efficiency - which also is highly unlikely).

Also note the power consumption at full rated output (120 V models):
Yamaha: 490W
Onkyo: 1060W
Denon: 780W

Data obtained from the product manuals.

 

[timoteo]

Im not sure how Denon calibrates the sub outputs but the Yamaha sets a Parametric EQ curve to each of the subs. This is on top of Distance, Trim, Crossover etc. I have been very happy with YPAO. IMHO it does just as good of a job as Audessey.

 

[jonnythan]

In a similar response I would also point out the published pwr ratings:

The Yamaha is 150W 2 ch driven.

The Onkyo is 140W 2 ch driven.

Only the Denon rates its amp section 140 W with all channels driven (at least the wording of the spec. leads one to believe so). However I find in further study the power consumption rating given does not add up to support an "all channels driven scenario". Even if 7 of the available 9 channels were driven it would consume a minimum 980 W (assuming 100% efficiency - which also is highly unlikely).

Also note the power consumption at full rated output (120 V models):
Yamaha: 490W
Onkyo: 1060W
Denon: 780W

Data obtained from the product manuals.

Isn't that fascinating. The Yamaha says 490w right on the back of the unit.

 

[3db]

You asked for it, and now you have it. The new AVENTAGE RX-A3010 from Yamaha has got a lot of people asking, "How does it stack up?" Well, we'll tell you. We took the top offerings in the $2000 price point from Denon (AVR-4311CI) and Onkyo (TX-NR3008) and weighed them up. While we didn't really find any of them lacking, we're sure you have an opinion on them.

Discuss "2011 $2000 A/V Receiver Comparison Guide " here. Read the article.

In a similar response I would also point out the published pwr ratings:

The Yamaha is 150W 2 ch driven.

The Onkyo is 140W 2 ch driven.

Only the Denon rates its amp section 140 W with all channels driven (at least the wording of the spec. leads one to believe so). However I find in further study the power consumption rating given does not add up to support an "all channels driven scenario". Even if 7 of the available 9 channels were driven it would consume a minimum 980 W (assuming 100% efficiency - which also is highly unlikely).

Also note the power consumption at full rated output (120 V models):
Yamaha: 490W
Onkyo: 1060W
Denon: 780W

Data obtained from the product manuals.

The full rated power output specs are also meaningless because we don't know how many channels are being used while deriving this figure. The full rated power consumption based on the two channels is already 300 Watts for the Yammy which sitting is at a 61% of its capacity..based on 490..... It doesn't make sense if you knwo what I mean.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Don't ask us why we didn't include X on our feature list or why we have feature Y listed incorrectly. We got our information the same way your consumers do - from your website. If you let your marketing drones run your website without any oversight, it isn't our fault that you have incorrect information. You want corrections? Correct your website and then point us to the corrections. That way, not only do we have the correct specs, so do you. Why almost none of you think HDMI Standby Pass-through is important enough to list on your spec sheets baffles us probably as much as it baffles you.

Just for this -> Tom, I owe you a beer, If you ever in NYC let me know !

 

[jonnythan]

The full rated power output specs are also meaningless because we don't know how many channels are being used while deriving this figure. The full rated power consumption based on the two channels is already 300 Watts for the Yammy which sitting is at a 61% of its capacity..based on 490..... It doesn't make sense if you knwo what I mean.

Aren't they required to put the maximum power consumption of the device on the back of the unit?

 

[3db]

Aren't they required to put the maximum power consumption of the device on the back of the unit?

It doesn't add up unless there is an error in their manual.

From the owner's manual of RX-V1800

GENERAL
• Power Supply
[U.S.A. and Canada models] ............................. AC 120 V, 60 Hz
[General and Asia models]
....................................... AC 110/120/220/230–240 V, 50/60 Hz
[China model] .................................................... AC 220 V, 50 Hz
[Korea model] .................................................... AC 220 V, 60 Hz
[Australia model] ............................................... AC 240 V, 50 Hz
[U.K. and Europe models] ................................. AC 230 V, 50 Hz
• Power Consumption
[U.S.A. and Canada models] ................................. 500 W/630 VA
[Other models] .................................................................... 500 W
• Standby Power Consumption
[U.S.A. and Canada models] .................................... 0.1 W or less
[General model] (AC 240 V, 50 Hz) ....................... 0.33 W or less
[Other models] .......................................................... 0.1 W or less
• Maximum Power Consumption [General model only]
6ch, 10% THD .................................................................. 1100 W

 

[gene]

Only the Denon rates its amp section 140 W with all channels driven (at least the wording of the spec. leads one to believe so). However I find in further study the power consumption rating given does not add up to support an "all channels driven scenario". Even if 7 of the available 9 channels were driven it would consume a minimum 980 W (assuming 100% efficiency - which also is highly unlikely).

Also note the power consumption at full rated output (120 V models):
Yamaha: 490W
Onkyo: 1060W
Denon: 780W

wow alot of misinformation here. I suggest reading this article to help clear some things up:

The All Channels Driven Test

 

[gene]

Aren't they required to put the maximum power consumption of the device on the back of the unit?

No typically 1CH driven and the others at 1/8th driven. If the power rating on the back of the receiver doesn't say "Max power" than its NOT a Max power rating.

 

[jonnythan]

wow alot of misinformation here. I suggest reading this article to help clear some things up:

The All Channels Driven Test

Can you explain what the power consumption label on the back of a receiver indicates? Is it not the maximum power that the device can use?

 

[templemaners]

I agree with using the MSRP vs. the street price. Too much variation from dealer to dealer to make listing a street price super useful, although, as it's been mentioned, I've seen the 3008 go for a lot less than the A3000/A3010 and the 4311.

One thing that turned me off from getting a 3008 (aside from the Onkyo QC horror stories) was the 12v triggers are not assignable AND are only for Zone 2 & 3. Which is weird, since the Integra equivalent does have assignable 12v triggers. Nice to see Onkyo skimping on that feature while making room for 4 video game DSP's

I also find it amusing that the Denon is "long in the tooth" even though a.) the 3008 is about as old as the 4311 and b.) the 4311 isn't even close to the oldest model in their receiver line up (see: 4810 and 5308 ).