Yamaha RX V681 a worthy upgrade from Denon AVR X1200W?

[Pogre]

I currently have the Denon, but the Best Buy down the street from my house is closing down and they have one of the Yamahas open box for $389. Is that a worthy upgrade from the Denon? Or should I just pass?

It looks like it has a little bit more of everything, including power. Did I read it right that it has 7 outputs for RCA?

 

[lovinthehd]

I think Yamaha has more models of avrs with a full set of pre-outs but hopefully it's 8 instead of 7
Never tried a Yamaha myself. I don't see a model 689, tho. You mean 679? Or?

 

[Pogre]

Oops. 681. I fixed the title. This one.

*Edit: Found it at AC4L for 399. So I guess that's not as awesome as I thought it might be.

 

[j_garcia]

No. 25W more is something you will almost not even hear. YPAO is not as good as Audessey AFAIK.

 

[Pogre]

No. 25W more is something you will almost not even hear. YPAO is not as good as Audessey AFAIK.

I edited in a link I for the same unit at AC4L only 10 dollars more. I posted this on my phone from the store. Just got home and did a little more digging. I agree. It's not worth it for 20w more, and if Audyssey is considered better (as is the general consensus) I'm just gonna stick with what I have.

 

[lovinthehd]

Thanks for the fix. It seems it'd be more a lateral move at this point. Maybe if you really like one of the features...but I don't see a full set of pre-outs, just 2 for subs.

 

[Pogre]

Thanks for the fix. It seems it'd be more a lateral move at this point. Maybe if you really like one of the features...but I don't see a full set of pre-outs, just 2 for subs.

Yeah, I saw that too. A full set of preouts is one goal. I'd also like Audyssey XT32, but had read YPAO does a pretty decent job too. Guess not as good as Audyssey though.

 

[j_garcia]

I think you'd be better served by saving and stepping up a level or two. Will be worth it, especially with the Ultras. Though preouts would be nice, none of the other tradeoffs seem worth the effort.

 

[Pogre]

That's the master plan. I can wait a year or 2 until some of the models with the features I want come down in price. I'd love a top of the line unit (who wouldn't?), but I think one or 2 steps down would be more realistic on my budget. As long as I'm upgrading to at least XT32 and some substantial power. 140w at 8ohms/2 channel I think would be pretty noticeable. I sit pretty far from my speakers and I like it loud sometimes. I rarely push it this far, but it does start to sound strained close to 0 db. I won't be listening at those levels outside of movies normally though, but it's nice to have the power if I want it.

 

[Pogre]

Another consideration I had, considering this receiver does have most of what I want, is getting an amp and hooking it up to the zone 2 preouts. I'm not sure if I understand it correctly though. it looks like there's an "all zone stereo" mode that would allow this? If I'm wrong on that, then zone 2 operates completely independent of the main and that sounds like it wouldn't work as a preout for an amp? Okay, I'm confused... Help!

I figure if I'm getting a dsp and measurement mic XT would be sufficient?

Is there a way I would assign inputs that would make it work with the receiver powering the center and surrounds while the amp powers the main speakers? For my X1200.

 

[lovinthehd]

Another consideration I had, considering this receiver does have most of what I want, is getting an amp and hooking it up to the zone 2 preouts. I'm not sure if I understand it correctly though. it looks like there's an "all zone stereo" mode that would allow this? If I'm wrong on that, then zone 2 operates completely independent of the main and that sounds like it wouldn't work as a preout for an amp? Okay, I'm confused... Help!

I figure if I'm getting a dsp and measurement mic XT would be sufficient?

Is there a way I would assign inputs that would make it work with the receiver powering the center and surrounds while the amp powers the main speakers? For my X1200.

No on the zone 2 thing in general as a way to use a power amp. Does your zone 2 allow simultaneous output as main for your 5.1 source? I'd stick to waiting for the XT32 goal. Is that money just burning a hole in your pocket so bad you can't save for a bit and get something that meets all the goals?

 

[PENG]

I think you'd be better served by saving and stepping up a level or two. Will be worth it, especially with the Ultras. Though preouts would be nice, none of the other tradeoffs seem worth the effort.

The RX-V681 preouts are for the subwoofers only. The RX-V781 has a full set of preouts. Even then, remember Gene review on the higher end RX-A860 and found it's preouts are on the low side so I assume the RX-V series may even be worse. So I agree the OP'd better served by saving up for a higher model, such as the RX-A1060 or Denon AVR-X3300W. Anything less than those, may as well keep the X1200W.

 

[j_garcia]

I would definitely be after one with full preouts, whether or not you use them. 1200 also did not have full preouts IIRC, so lateral move.

 

[Pogre]

No on the zone 2 thing in general as a way to use a power amp. Does your zone 2 allow simultaneous output as main for your 5.1 source? I'd stick to waiting for the XT32 goal. Is that money just burning a hole in your pocket so bad you can't save for a bit and get something that meets all the goals?

Ha ha. No, not burning a hole. I'm gathering information right now. I'm not getting one any time soon, but I have questions I need answered before I can even make an informed decision. In another 8 months or a year something might dip into my price range, but I'm realizing I don't know entirely what to look for. When I got this one I assumed the zone 2 preouts would work if I decided to add an amp down the road.

It does have an all zone stereo mode that sounds like it might work? I have serious doubts. I'm more curious than anything at this point.

*Edit: Yeah, I think at best that might work for stereo (doubtful), but not surround sound.

 

[lovinthehd]

Ha ha. No, not burning a hole. I'm gathering information right now. I'm not getting one any time soon, but I have questions I need answered before I can even make an informed decision. In another 8 months or a year something might dip into my price range, but I'm realizing I don't know entirely what to look for. When I got this one I assumed the zone 2 preouts would work if I decided to add an amp down the road.

It does have an all zone stereo mode that sounds like it might work? I have serious doubts. I'm more curious than anything at this point.

*Edit: Yeah, I think at best that might work for stereo (doubtful), but not surround sound.

Yes, you could set it up with a switch to be some sort of 2.0 setup I suppose but then your subs wouldn't be used. Due to DRM it's hard to use a zone equally with all inputs, some avrs are better than others. Even if it did all channel stereo, that's IMO not a good way to enjoy your setup....good for parties maybe.

 

[Pogre]

Yes, you could set it up with a switch to be some sort of 2.0 setup I suppose but then your subs wouldn't be used. Due to DRM it's hard to use a zone equally with all inputs, some avrs are better than others. Even if it did all channel stereo, that's IMO not a good way to enjoy your setup....good for parties maybe.

Agreed. I just got a little excited over a receiver I knew very little about. That's why I posted this thread. If it was a smoking deal on a great amp I might have pulled the trigger. Comments from you guys and a little more research tells me to let it go.

The amp questions were more curiosity than a serious consideration. I still have some learning to do before I pull the trigger on anything any time soon. I've never shopped for a super amp before.