Denon AVC-A1H, special request for Gene to review and bench test this new beast!

Would you like to see the new Denon flaghsip AVR reviewed and measured by Gene, Audioholics?


  • Total voters
    46
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
We have only 11 votes for the A1H review. I hope that can still make it a little easier for Denon to send Matthew Poe one for review/tests.;)
 
S

snakeeyes

Audioholic Ninja
I voted to review it as it has a ton of channels and the HDMI looks to be worked out.

I would feel the same if it was a processor only though.
 
D

dlaloum

Full Audioholic
In days of yore... the top of the line AVR's had that sort of power available, Denon 5800, Onkyo TX-SR876, Integra DTR 70.4....

My Onkyo and Integra AVR's were capable of 165W @ 8ohm stereo RMS....

It is nice to see the comeback of this kind of Beast... it is sad that it is at a substantially higher pricepoint than those previous generations. (is it circa double?!)
 
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
In days of yore... the top of the line AVR's had that sort of power available, Denon 5800, Onkyo TX-SR876, Integra DTR 70.4....

My Onkyo and Integra AVR's were capable of 165W @ 8ohm stereo RMS....

It is nice to see the comeback of this kind of Beast... it is sad that it is at a substantially higher pricepoint than those previous generations. (is it circa double?!)
I remember those fantastic bench test results (S&V's) very well. The best value (at least based on $/watt, ampere, volt) of AVRs that offered that kind of "power" is the TX-SR805, it virtually matched the output of the 875, 875, and the 905, 906 Integra versions. Note: Only the almost 10 lbs lighter Denon's AVR-4308 can match or beat those but S&V published different numbers on the bench test results of the Denon, one lower than the other and only the one with the higher numbers could match or beat some of those high output Onkyo's.

It was reported to run hot, but that's not an issue for responsible/sensible owners.
 
D

dlaloum

Full Audioholic
It was reported to run hot, but that's not an issue for responsible/sensible owners.
My TX-SR876 burnt out its HDMI board - a combination of running hot, and under spec capacitors - if it happened under warranty (and for a limited period thereafter) Onkyo replaced it gratis.... otherwise you had to pay for it....
In my case, I could purchase a "refurbished " / open box Integra 70.4 for only a slight premium over the cost of the replacement HDMI board (which was quoted to me at AU$900 at the time... the Integra cost me around AU$1350).

The amps in the Integra seemed to be well nigh identical to the TX-SR876... ran great until the DSP board fried itself... well out of warranty, and a couple of years after the free replacement program for that board expired.
Apparently the TI manufactured DSP chip, was prone to twisting if it got too hot on a regular basis - once that happens, the ball grid array connecting it to the circuit board goes flakey.... and the DSP eventually dies.

So heat + manufacturing faults (in both cases!) result in limited lifetime. I had both AVR's sitting in completely open space, with nothing above or to the sides... at one point I had a fan unit on top sucking air through the SR876, but measurements showed that the fans were raising the noise levels (EM interference with the HDMI board I assume) - so I went "no fan".

Both AVR's ran seriously HOT... at the rear of the top panel (on top of the HDMI / Graphics chips) it was hot enough that you could not comfortably put your hand there.... - so the chips under that area must have been running very hot indeed!!

I never noted any serious heat from the power amp circuit area, and the large heatsinks attached to that - even though I was running my low impedance speakers... so the power amp needed to work.
Monitoring of the temperature via the onboard display, also showed no temperature issues (seems like all that this monitored was the power amp circuits.... cos the temperature of the top panel was definitely higher than the temperature the sensors reported!!!)

So yes they ran very hot indeed - and it was down to the digital processing circuits - for the earlier models the Graphics procesors, and for the later ones the DSP / Sound processor.

I have been searching for a replacement DSP board (for the DTR 70.4) for some years - found one in Canada, but the vendor refused to deal with an overseas customer.... with the changes in ownership of Onkyo/Integra and the new supply chain/support chain, I have asked locally again, for whether that circuit board is still available, and what it would cost.

The 70.4 runs Audyssey XT32 - and supports Audyssey PRO.... so IF I can find a replacement DSP board AND an Audyssey PRO kit.... then it could be a very worthwhile repair... and I suspect it would give my 1 year old Integra DRX 3.4 more than a run for its money. (If I can find the necessary board and PRO kit, then I will get it running again, and strip it down so I can fit heatsinks on both DSP and HDMI boards, I suspect that most of the heat issues can be resolved that way...)

Reality is it is just taking up space at the moment, and has been for 2 years.... and it will most likely end up as landfill sadly.

To summarise - yes these ran very very hot - and as a result their lifetime was (is! for remaining survivors) limited. But yes - these were beasts - and sounded very good.

And please note - that heat was not a "responsible/sensible" owner issue .... even following all of Onkyo/Integra's advice with regards to air space etc... heat related failures were the bane of these models.

Ultimately that series, was replaced by the Pioneer Class-D chassis based models, after Onkyo purchased Pioneer... thereafter there were no longer heat related issues reported.

Getting back on topic - the Denon AVC-A1H may be of interest in a few years time when refurb models or lightly used ones start becoming available...

Look forward to an in depth review with measurements! (including 2ohm power out ?)
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
My TX-SR876 burnt out its HDMI board - a combination of running hot, and under spec capacitors - if it happened under warranty (and for a limited period thereafter) Onkyo replaced it gratis.... otherwise you had to pay for it....
In my case, I could purchase a "refurbished " / open box Integra 70.4 for only a slight premium over the cost of the replacement HDMI board (which was quoted to me at AU$900 at the time... the Integra cost me around AU$1350).

The amps in the Integra seemed to be well nigh identical to the TX-SR876... ran great until the DSP board fried itself... well out of warranty, and a couple of years after the free replacement program for that board expired.
Apparently the TI manufactured DSP chip, was prone to twisting if it got too hot on a regular basis - once that happens, the ball grid array connecting it to the circuit board goes flakey.... and the DSP eventually dies.

So heat + manufacturing faults (in both cases!) result in limited lifetime. I had both AVR's sitting in completely open space, with nothing above or to the sides... at one point I had a fan unit on top sucking air through the SR876, but measurements showed that the fans were raising the noise levels (EM interference with the HDMI board I assume) - so I went "no fan".

Both AVR's ran seriously HOT... at the rear of the top panel (on top of the HDMI / Graphics chips) it was hot enough that you could not comfortably put your hand there.... - so the chips under that area must have been running very hot indeed!!

I never noted any serious heat from the power amp circuit area, and the large heatsinks attached to that - even though I was running my low impedance speakers... so the power amp needed to work.
Monitoring of the temperature via the onboard display, also showed no temperature issues (seems like all that this monitored was the power amp circuits.... cos the temperature of the top panel was definitely higher than the temperature the sensors reported!!!)

So yes they ran very hot indeed - and it was down to the digital processing circuits - for the earlier models the Graphics procesors, and for the later ones the DSP / Sound processor.

I have been searching for a replacement DSP board (for the DTR 70.4) for some years - found one in Canada, but the vendor refused to deal with an overseas customer.... with the changes in ownership of Onkyo/Integra and the new supply chain/support chain, I have asked locally again, for whether that circuit board is still available, and what it would cost.

The 70.4 runs Audyssey XT32 - and supports Audyssey PRO.... so IF I can find a replacement DSP board AND an Audyssey PRO kit.... then it could be a very worthwhile repair... and I suspect it would give my 1 year old Integra DRX 3.4 more than a run for its money. (If I can find the necessary board and PRO kit, then I will get it running again, and strip it down so I can fit heatsinks on both DSP and HDMI boards, I suspect that most of the heat issues can be resolved that way...)

Reality is it is just taking up space at the moment, and has been for 2 years.... and it will most likely end up as landfill sadly.

To summarise - yes these ran very very hot - and as a result their lifetime was (is! for remaining survivors) limited. But yes - these were beasts - and sounded very good.

And please note - that heat was not a "responsible/sensible" owner issue .... even following all of Onkyo/Integra's advice with regards to air space etc... heat related failures were the bane of these models.

Ultimately that series, was replaced by the Pioneer Class-D chassis based models, after Onkyo purchased Pioneer... thereafter there were no longer heat related issues reported.

Getting back on topic - the Denon AVC-A1H may be of interest in a few years time when refurb models or lightly used ones start becoming available...

Look forward to an in depth review with measurements! (including 2ohm power out ?)
Keep in mind the hot part of that range of Onkyo (have one) was the hdmi/network board particularly.
 
D

dlaloum

Full Audioholic
Keep in mind the hot part of that range of Onkyo (have one) was the hdmi/network board particularly.
On the later models (including my Integra) the DSP board had problems too... still hoping to get that fixed
 
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
My TX-SR876 burnt out its HDMI board - a combination of running hot, and under spec capacitors - if it happened under warranty (and for a limited period thereafter) Onkyo replaced it gratis.... otherwise you had to pay for it....
In my case, I could purchase a "refurbished " / open box Integra 70.4 for only a slight premium over the cost of the replacement HDMI board (which was quoted to me at AU$900 at the time... the Integra cost me around AU$1350).

The amps in the Integra seemed to be well nigh identical to the TX-SR876... ran great until the DSP board fried itself... well out of warranty, and a couple of years after the free replacement program for that board expired.
Apparently the TI manufactured DSP chip, was prone to twisting if it got too hot on a regular basis - once that happens, the ball grid array connecting it to the circuit board goes flakey.... and the DSP eventually dies.

So heat + manufacturing faults (in both cases!) result in limited lifetime. I had both AVR's sitting in completely open space, with nothing above or to the sides... at one point I had a fan unit on top sucking air through the SR876, but measurements showed that the fans were raising the noise levels (EM interference with the HDMI board I assume) - so I went "no fan".

Both AVR's ran seriously HOT... at the rear of the top panel (on top of the HDMI / Graphics chips) it was hot enough that you could not comfortably put your hand there.... - so the chips under that area must have been running very hot indeed!!

I never noted any serious heat from the power amp circuit area, and the large heatsinks attached to that - even though I was running my low impedance speakers... so the power amp needed to work.
Monitoring of the temperature via the onboard display, also showed no temperature issues (seems like all that this monitored was the power amp circuits.... cos the temperature of the top panel was definitely higher than the temperature the sensors reported!!!)

So yes they ran very hot indeed - and it was down to the digital processing circuits - for the earlier models the Graphics procesors, and for the later ones the DSP / Sound processor.

I have been searching for a replacement DSP board (for the DTR 70.4) for some years - found one in Canada, but the vendor refused to deal with an overseas customer.... with the changes in ownership of Onkyo/Integra and the new supply chain/support chain, I have asked locally again, for whether that circuit board is still available, and what it would cost.

The 70.4 runs Audyssey XT32 - and supports Audyssey PRO.... so IF I can find a replacement DSP board AND an Audyssey PRO kit.... then it could be a very worthwhile repair... and I suspect it would give my 1 year old Integra DRX 3.4 more than a run for its money. (If I can find the necessary board and PRO kit, then I will get it running again, and strip it down so I can fit heatsinks on both DSP and HDMI boards, I suspect that most of the heat issues can be resolved that way...)

Reality is it is just taking up space at the moment, and has been for 2 years.... and it will most likely end up as landfill sadly.

To summarise - yes these ran very very hot - and as a result their lifetime was (is! for remaining survivors) limited. But yes - these were beasts - and sounded very good.

And please note - that heat was not a "responsible/sensible" owner issue .... even following all of Onkyo/Integra's advice with regards to air space etc... heat related failures were the bane of these models.

Ultimately that series, was replaced by the Pioneer Class-D chassis based models, after Onkyo purchased Pioneer... thereafter there were no longer heat related issues reported.

Getting back on topic - the Denon AVC-A1H may be of interest in a few years time when refurb models or lightly used ones start becoming available...

Look forward to an in depth review with measurements! (including 2ohm power out ?)
If I remember right, some people also cited one of the reasons for those 800 series Onkyo AVR to run hot or warmer than usual was the fact that it used to video processor that was known for top notch upscaling quality. If I remember right, it was something call HQV?, D+M later used Reon's to replace the average quality Farojda, that could compete with the HQV but could run less hot. I have one BDP (a Samsung iirc) that has the HQV processor and that one does run warmer than my other BDPs.
 
Last edited:
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
Getting back on topic - the Denon AVC-A1H may be of interest in a few years time when refurb models or lightly used ones start becoming available...

Look forward to an in depth review with measurements! (including 2ohm power out ?)
For sure, if the A1H ever drops below $4K, or below $4.5 K if the full blown Dirac Live DLBC licence is included it would be tough to beat even if used in preamp mode only.

In some way, it is arguably better equipped than some real AV Preamp/processor such as the Anthem AVM70, even the AVM90, in that it has a pair of balanced inputs, that would attract die hard external DAC that has balanced outputs.
 
D

dlaloum

Full Audioholic
If I remember right, some people also cited one of the reasons for those 800 series Onkyo AVR to run hot or warmer than usual was the fact that it used to video processor that was known for top notch upscaling quality. If I remember right, it was something call HQV?, D+M later used Reon's to replace the average quality Farojda, that could compete with the HQV but could run less hot. I have one BDP (a Samsung iirc) that has the HQV processor and that one does run warmer than my other BDPs.
Yes that was the source of the heat in the 876... the GPU sat on the HDMI board, and tended to then cook the nearby caps.
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
Onkyo 1010/3010/5010, Integra DTR 70.4 ... and I believe some of the models just before and just after... circa 2013?
I think that's just part of the general 2009-12 generation, included many other models including mine. I've seen different descriptions, pretty sure I adopted the Onkyo version but lots of functions on a board too.
 
William Lemmerhirt

William Lemmerhirt

Audioholic Overlord
If I remember right, some people also cited one of the reasons for those 800 series Onkyo AVR to run hot or warmer than usual was the fact that it used to video processor that was known for top notch upscaling quality. If I remember right, it was something call HQV?, D+M later used Reon's to replace the average quality Farojda, that could compete with the HQV but could run less hot. I have one BDP (a Samsung iirc) that has the HQV processor and that one does run warmer than my other BDPs.
Quoting this, and your post 46. Was interesting that you noted the 805. That was an absolute beast, almost legendary lol. I had an 808, that imo didn’t run hot at all, and not nearly as hot as my Marantz 6012(although eco mode and attached to my Yamaha amp makes it moot)or even more so my pioneer, but it did have a board failure. They fixed it no problem.
That 808 imo, was the last of the ol beast AVR’s, at least from Onkyo. One of the reasons I bought it was the THX certification, but more so the bench tests which supported the certification.
 
D

dlaloum

Full Audioholic
I keep hoping that the long awaited Onkyo RZ70/90, will be a return to the "beasts" of yore.... but more likely it will be an evolution of the Pioneer based chassis used in the RZ1100/LX704/904.... although their specs of 215W@6ohm, should indicate 165W@8ohm (LX904 with same V out... assuming limitation is related to power rails and current) - the RZ1100 is (was) specced at 140W@8ohm

So it well may be that the Onkyo/Integra/Pioneer Class-D chassis, are on a par with those beasts of old
 
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
One thing worth noting is that the Marantz SR8015 (only those fitted with the original AKM DAC chip), Denon AVR-X8500H and the AVC-A110 have proved to AVR "haters" (don't mean it literally) such as our very @TLS Guy who would likely quietly admit, that jamming a ton of power amps in one box can acheive audio performance that matches that of "separates".

One just have to switch to the objective camp for 20 minutes to read through the measurements of the Marantz SR8015 (Gene's Audioholics.com) and the AVR-X8500H (ASR) and understand there aren't many (if fact I cannot even recall 1 or 2) separate preamps that can output 4 Vrms while maintaining THD+N or less than 0.03% to 0.0007 (yes, 4th decimal place) from near 0 V to well over 3 Vrms, 0.004% at 20 kHz,imd level that matches many of the external dacs tested, very clean FFT, 110 dB DR, near perfect linearity, and so on...

On the internal power amp side, one can reference to the chart below that show multichannel driven test results that, again match many external real power amps:

Denon AVC-A110 (Test) (audiovision.de)
For the avr internal amp example, I used the AVC-A110 because it has a slightly larger power supply than the AVR-X8500H, the outputs are slightly higher accordingly, so the newest AVC-A1H can reasonably be expected to do even better yet, considering that the power transformer has gain more than 7 lbs, and block capacitors gain 50% capacity. In the way Audiovision.de measures, I would expect the A1H to breakthrough the 200 W mark, 4 Ohms, with 5 channel driven. We have not seen that kind of 5, 7 channel driven into 4 ohm outputs since Harmon Kardon's monster class HK7000 series.

The 277 W 4 ohm 2 channel driven output is nothing remarkable, but look at the 7 channel driven 4 Ohm results, 148 W!, and the 5 channel driven 4 Ohm's 198 W make it a somewhat real peer competitor with the popular heavy weight Monolith 7X200 Watts class AB amp, if not, I belive the A1H will in fact be able to give those Monolith amp a run for their money. Though as an AVR, such so call 4 ohm capability are not without caveat, no AVRs can really sustain that kind of output level into 4 ohm speakers, while it does generally mean that for real world usage, such AVRs can drive probably most popular 4 ohm speakers such as Revel's and KEF's. Just don't try that with the big B&W diamonds (I know @AcuDefTechGuy said he had done so, though he didn't mention distance and spl he listened at..) unless you don't listen loud and don't sit from more than 4 meters.

In terms of long term reliability, the jury is still out, but it likely will remain out for a long time because people, even owners of the beast class AVRs tend to upgrade every 3 to 8 years (my educated guess).

Not trying to make much of a point here, just food for thought, for the open minded AVR haters, TLSGuy not included;)!

1676209305811.png
 
D

Danzilla31

Audioholic Spartan
One thing worth noting is that the Marantz SR8015 (only those fitted with the original AKM DAC chip), Denon AVR-X8500H and the AVC-A110 have proved to AVR "haters" (don't mean it literally) such as our very @TLS Guy who would likely quietly admit, that jamming a ton of power amps in one box can acheive audio performance that matches that of "separates".

One just have to switch to the objective camp for 20 minutes to read through the measurements of the Marantz SR8015 (Gene's Audioholics.com) and the AVR-X8500H (ASR) and understand there aren't many (if fact I cannot even recall 1 or 2) separate preamps that can output 4 Vrms while maintaining THD+N or less than 0.03% to 0.0007 (yes, 4th decimal place) from near 0 V to well over 3 Vrms, 0.004% at 20 kHz,imd level that matches many of the external dacs tested, very clean FFT, 110 dB DR, near perfect linearity, and so on...

On the internal power amp side, one can reference to the chart below that show multichannel driven test results that, again match many external real power amps:

Denon AVC-A110 (Test) (audiovision.de)
For the avr internal amp example, I used the AVC-A110 because it has a slightly larger power supply than the AVR-X8500H, the outputs are slightly higher accordingly, so the newest AVC-A1H can reasonably be expected to do even better yet, considering that the power transformer has gain more than 7 lbs, and block capacitors gain 50% capacity. In the way Audiovision.de measures, I would expect the A1H to breakthrough the 200 W mark, 4 Ohms, with 5 channel driven. We have not seen that kind of 5, 7 channel driven into 4 ohm outputs since Harmon Kardon's monster class HK7000 series.

The 277 W 4 ohm 2 channel driven output is nothing remarkable, but look at the 7 channel driven 4 Ohm results, 148 W!, and the 5 channel driven 4 Ohm's 198 W make it a somewhat real peer competitor with the popular heavy weight Monolith 7X200 Watts class AB amp, if not, I belive the A1H will in fact be able to give those Monolith amp a run for their money. Though as an AVR, such so call 4 ohm capability are not without caveat, no AVRs can really sustain that kind of output level into 4 ohm speakers, while it does generally mean that for real world usage, such AVRs can drive probably most popular 4 ohm speakers such as Revel's and KEF's. Just don't try that with the big B&W diamonds (I know @AcuDefTechGuy said he had done so, though he didn't mention distance and spl he listened at..) unless you don't listen loud and don't sit from more than 4 meters.

In terms of long term reliability, the jury is still out, but it likely will remain out for a long time because people, even owners of the beast class AVRs tend to upgrade every 3 to 8 years (my educated guess).

Not trying to make much of a point here, just food for thought, for the open minded AVR haters, TLSGuy not included;)!

View attachment 60300
With those kind of numbers you could let the A1H drive the front 3 or base 5 then just buy an amp to drive the rears and heights. Wouldn't need to be something super pricey or robust since the rears and heights don't need as much power to drive
 
P

PENG

Audioholic Slumlord
One thing worth noting is that the Marantz SR8015 (only those fitted with the original AKM DAC chip), Denon AVR-X8500H and the AVC-A110 have proved to AVR "haters" (don't mean it literally) such as our very @TLS Guy who would likely quietly admit, that jamming a ton of power amps in one box can acheive audio performance that matches that of "separates".

One just have to switch to the objective camp for 20 minutes to read through the measurements of the Marantz SR8015 (Gene's Audioholics.com) and the AVR-X8500H (ASR) and understand there aren't many (if fact I cannot even recall 1 or 2) separate preamps that can output 4 Vrms while maintaining THD+N or less than 0.03% to 0.0007 (yes, 4th decimal place) from near 0 V to well over 3 Vrms, 0.004% at 20 kHz,imd level that matches many of the external dacs tested, very clean FFT, 110 dB DR, near perfect linearity, and so on...

On the internal power amp side, one can reference to the chart below that show multichannel driven test results that, again match many external real power amps:

Denon AVC-A110 (Test) (audiovision.de)
For the avr internal amp example, I used the AVC-A110 because it has a slightly larger power supply than the AVR-X8500H, the outputs are slightly higher accordingly, so the newest AVC-A1H can reasonably be expected to do even better yet, considering that the power transformer has gain more than 7 lbs, and block capacitors gain 50% capacity. In the way Audiovision.de measures, I would expect the A1H to breakthrough the 200 W mark, 4 Ohms, with 5 channel driven. We have not seen that kind of 5, 7 channel driven into 4 ohm outputs since Harmon Kardon's monster class HK7000 series.

The 277 W 4 ohm 2 channel driven output is nothing remarkable, but look at the 7 channel driven 4 Ohm results, 148 W!, and the 5 channel driven 4 Ohm's 198 W make it a somewhat real peer competitor with the popular heavy weight Monolith 7X200 Watts class AB amp, if not, I belive the A1H will in fact be able to give those Monolith amp a run for their money. Though as an AVR, such so call 4 ohm capability are not without caveat, no AVRs can really sustain that kind of output level into 4 ohm speakers, while it does generally mean that for real world usage, such AVRs can drive probably most popular 4 ohm speakers such as Revel's and KEF's. Just don't try that with the big B&W diamonds (I know @AcuDefTechGuy said he had done so, though he didn't mention distance and spl he listened at..) unless you don't listen loud and don't sit from more than 4 meters.

In terms of long term reliability, the jury is still out, but it likely will remain out for a long time because people, even owners of the beast class AVRs tend to upgrade every 3 to 8 years (my educated guess).

Not trying to make much of a point here, just food for thought, for the open minded AVR haters, TLSGuy not included;)!

View attachment 60300
With those kind of numbers you could let the A1H drive the front 3 or base 5 then just buy an amp to drive the rears and heights. Wouldn't need to be something super pricey or robust since the rears and heights don't need as much power to drive
If I spent $6K on an AVR, that's what I would do, and will use external DAC, or high quality streamer to take advanatge of the balanced inputs for stereo, otherwise may as way get the AV10.

Very rare to have balanced inputs on AVRs or even AVPs, you won't find them on the Anthem AVM90 prepro that costs a lot more.
 
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