Sony STR-DN1040 Reviewed: The $600 AVR That Could

[admin]

I think Sony has finally done it...It being, make a receiver I can whole heatedly recommend.

Sure the, STR-DN1040 isn't perfect, but if you read the review you will see it gets most things right.

It's likely the feature king in this category, and although they cut back on the power supple capacitors, I still thought it sounded great.

Read our full Sony STR-DN1040 AV Receiver Review

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

sorry rain on anyone's parade, but this "This is by far the best Sony receiver I have used in years." doesn't say much
Again, without bench testing for amp I will take provided 100/wpc @ 2ch 20-20 with grain of salt.
Same for questionable "likely the feature king" with worse than useless auto room correction.

Imho Sony has a long way to go before it catches up and I would really try to shake the 500-600 AVR market, they should bring multichannel pre-outs - that would go a longer way from me than all these fancy features like 4K upscaling....

 

[Cliff_is]

sorry rain on anyone's parade, but this "This is by far the best Sony receiver I have used in years." doesn't say much
Again, without bench testing for amp I will take provided 100/wpc @ 2ch 20-20 with grain of salt.
Same for questionable "likely the feature king" with worse than useless auto room correction.

Imho Sony has a long way to go before it catches up and I would really try to shake the 500-600 AVR market, they should bring multichannel pre-outs - that would go a longer way from me than all these fancy features like 4K upscaling....

"best" doesn't just mean power.

Compare it to any other AVR for $600 and it's pretty loaded down and actually works well. The GUI, inputs, and feature set is far beyond what most companies have at this price point.

It's hard to find pre-outs on receivers for $1k now, let alone $600. But there are plenty of $1k receivers w/o WiFi, Bluetooth, AirPlay, or a nice user interface.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I don't mind Sony AVR (unlike most Audiophiles) since even their $200 AVR has good measured power output (2Ch, 5Ch driven) compared to some $1,000 AVR. If only the Sony 1040 had Audyssey XT32.

HTM AVR Power Output @ 1% THD 2CH 8 ohms/ 2CH 4 ohms/ 5CH 8 ohms

$1000 Anthem 300: 116.3/165.9/83.4
$1000 Sherwood 977: 145.1/209.9/109.2
$500 HK 1700: 108.9/196.3/39.5
$900 Denon 2313: 152.1/192.5/90.8
$580 Denon 1913: 117.7/151.1/81.7
$550 Yamaha 573: 111.4/126.2/24.9
$500 Sony 1030: 134.7/167.7/90.4
$450 Yamaha 473: 96.5/143.2/Protection Mode
$450 Pioneer VSX42: 118.2/157.8/79.9
$350 Denon 1612: 118.5/141.5/79.8
$330 Pioneer 821: 110.3/150.7/78.1
$230 Sony 520: 141.7/160.6/81.3

 

[Cliff_is]

I don't mind Sony AVR (unlike most Audiophiles) since even their $200 AVR has good measured power output (2Ch, 5Ch driven) compared to some $1,000 AVR. If only the Sony 1040 had Audyssey XT32.

HTM AVR Power Output @ 1% THD 2CH 8 ohms/ 2CH 4 ohms/ 5CH 8 ohms

$1000 Anthem 300: 116.3/165.9/83.4
$1000 Sherwood 977: 145.1/209.9/109.2
$500 HK 1700: 108.9/196.3/39.5
$900 Denon 2313: 152.1/192.5/90.8
$580 Denon 1913: 117.7/151.1/81.7
$550 Yamaha 573: 111.4/126.2/24.9
$500 Sony 1030: 134.7/167.7/90.4
$450 Yamaha 473: 96.5/143.2/Protection Mode
$450 Pioneer VSX42: 118.2/157.8/79.9
$350 Denon 1612: 118.5/141.5/79.8
$330 Pioneer 821: 110.3/150.7/78.1
$230 Sony 520: 141.7/160.6/81.3

Great info.

Don't get me wrong, we would LOVE to get measurements on every AVR that we review, but it's not possible with our schedules and resources.

But don't worry about subwoofers and amps, you know that all of those reviews come with a full compliment of measurements.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

But don't worry about subwoofers and amps, you know that all of those reviews come with a full compliment of measurements.

Like this one,Onkyo M-5010 Stereo Amplifier Preview | Audioholics

Oh, "Sorry", my bad - this is not "Review" but a "Preview" which has been accidentally placed in Reviews section..

You are here:Home→AV Reviews→Audio Amplifiers→ Onkyo M-5010 Stereo Amplifier Preview

ughh on this long standing and annoying issue

quoting your phrase re: "best" is not directly related to my dig with lack of power measurements. It's a separate topic. Without some background information regarding your experience, for me it's same as regarding my first Onkyo avr - This is by far the best Onkyo receiver I have used in years. - You see where I'm getting at?

Don't get me wrong, we would LOVE to get measurements on every AVR that we review, but it's not possible with our schedules and resources.

I am glad you are agree with me on this and I do understand bench testing amp performance takes specialized equipment which most lack.

As for schedules, I would rather wait another month or two and see reviews with amp measurements, rather than rushed version of extended "preview" spiced with subjective observations...

It's hard to find pre-outs on receivers for $1k now, let alone $600. But there are plenty of $1k receivers w/o WiFi, Bluetooth, AirPlay, or a nice user interface.

Judging based on inflated MSRP, very true, but with little shopping around one can easy find avr with plenty of power (110wpc/2ch 20-20), Network streaming, 4k support , flac, Audyssey MultEQ XT and Pre-Outs - all for $500 (new)
http://www.amazon.com/Onkyo-TX-NR709-7-2-Channel-Network-Receiver/dp/B004V8KWQO/

p.s:
ATGT - yes, it definitely looks like the 520 is "a little avr that could". I just wish I say same for rest of Sony avrs lineup.

 

[gene]

I am glad you are agree with me on this and I do understand bench testing amp performance takes specialized equipment which most lack.

As for schedules, I would rather wait another month or two and see reviews with amp measurements, rather than rushed version of extended "preview" spiced with subjective observations...

That's fine if you can wait but we have 1 million monthly readers that enjoy reading our reviews now even if they don't all have measurements. To quote the wise Spock "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few...or in this case, the one."

 

[Scot rider]

20% off?

The review starts by stating the amp is $500, but it appears that the price on Amazon anyway is $599 as stated in the header to the article. So I was curious is it available for $500 and if so where? Or was the writer just off 20%?

 

[Cliff_is]

The review starts by stating the amp is $500, but it appears that the price on Amazon anyway is $599 as stated in the header to the article. So I was curious is it available for $500 and if so where? Or was the writer just off 20%?

The STR-DN1030 mentioned in the intro has an MSRP of $500.

This year they bumped up the price to $599 for the STR-DN1040.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

That's fine if you can wait but we have 1 million monthly readers that enjoy reading our reviews now even if they don't all have measurements. To quote the wise Spock "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few...or in this case, the one."

I'm sorry Gene,
You are right. Since it's only me and no one else on AH is interested to see this avr to be power tested - I take take all of my remarks back.



btw:
Speaking of resources, I think I have already mentioned this - I (and many others) would more than gladly support this site/forum if I could get more in-depth reviews like this one:
Outlaw Audio RR2150 Measurements & Analysis | Audioholics
vs
Sherbourn SR-8100 Slim AV Receiver Review | Audioholics

The latter to me is more of the showcase than a review

 

[precession]

input please

hi all, how does this sony compare to pioneer elite vsx-70?? I just purchased the pioneer yesterday, as I'd been lead to believe the sony doesn't have independently powered second zone (but rather requires additional power source). The vsx-70 is extremely new, and is thus a little lacking in intensive reviews. I'd appreciate any thoughts. thanks!

 

[Cliff_is]

hi all, how does this sony compare to pioneer elite vsx-70?? I just purchased the pioneer yesterday, as I'd been lead to believe the sony doesn't have independently powered second zone (but rather requires additional power source). The vsx-70 is extremely new, and is thus a little lacking in intensive reviews. I'd appreciate any thoughts. thanks!

I cover the second zone capabilities of the STR-DN1040 very thoroughly in the review, that should answer any questions you have about that particular feature.

The lack of a powered zone 2 only matters if you want zone 2 capabilities.

I'm sure the VSX-70 is a fine receiver, the question is what features are important to you.

 

[precession]

input please

I cover the second zone capabilities of the STR-DN1040 very thoroughly in the review, that should answer any questions you have about that particular feature.

The lack of a powered zone 2 only matters if you want zone 2 capabilities.

I'm sure the VSX-70 is a fine receiver, the question is what features are important to you.

Thanks, that's helpful; I'm frankly in a little over my head--I recently moved into a new home, in which the previous owner, a bona fide audiophile, had personally installed high-fi speakers (2 front, 2 rear, 1 center) in the main living area (zone 1, I believe), as well as throughout all the bedrooms, hallways, and bathrooms (zone 2). The speaker manufacturer was unfamiliar to me--a high end european maker for whom he consulted, but in short he indicated that it's highly unlikely I'd be replacing them with something superior unless I was prepared to pay very handsomely. With that in mind, I picked up the vsx-70, which I believe is the newest addition to the "elite" line up, occupying a lower tier for that product line ($600-700). I believe it has independently powered second zone, but quite honestly I'm unclear as to how a 7.1 system with which 2 channels can be assigned to a second zone differs from a "true" second zone--I'm trying to avoid the purchase of a secondary amp to drive a second zone, which I understood to be the case with the sony. The vsx seems to have a very nice profile of add-ons, but I'm such a dilettante, and know only enough to get myself into trouble. The advice of the experts on this thread is thus very much appreciated.
sincerely,

 

[Cliff_is]

Thanks, that's helpful; I'm frankly in a little over my head--I recently moved into a new home, in which the previous owner, a bona fide audiophile, had personally installed high-fi speakers (2 front, 2 rear, 1 center) in the main living area (zone 1, I believe), as well as throughout all the bedrooms, hallways, and bathrooms (zone 2). The speaker manufacturer was unfamiliar to me--a high end european maker for whom he consulted, but in short he indicated that it's highly unlikely I'd be replacing them with something superior unless I was prepared to pay very handsomely. With that in mind, I picked up the vsx-70, which I believe is the newest addition to the "elite" line up, occupying a lower tier for that product line ($600-700). I believe it has independently powered second zone, but quite honestly I'm unclear as to how a 7.1 system with which 2 channels can be assigned to a second zone differs from a "true" second zone--I'm trying to avoid the purchase of a secondary amp to drive a second zone, which I understood to be the case with the sony. The vsx seems to have a very nice profile of add-ons, but I'm such a dilettante, and know only enough to get myself into trouble. The advice of the experts on this thread is thus very much appreciated.
sincerely,

There are many different ways to control and power a system like yours, but running everything off of zone 2 is not the right way. Zone 2 speaker outputs are only made for a single pair of speakers, you can use a speaker selector to hook up more, but it's not necessarily the best solution. The easiest and cheapest option would be a receiver with a powered zone 2 plus a speaker selector. A separate amp is a better option, but I still wouldn't recommend the Sony if you are doing anything for zone 2. I don't have much experience with the new Pioneer receivers, but the Denon have good multi-zone capabilities. Also, Yamaha is typically solid with multi-zone support.

If you want to get a lot of good advice, it's best to start a new thread. But first, find out as much about your setup as possible (exact number of speakers, brand/model, if there are volume controls in the other rooms), figure out a budget and what you want out of the system (just radio is zone 2, independent control in each room, the ability to control the system with your phone, etc...) and include all of that info in the new thread.

 

[precession]

Thanks sincerely, Cliff. I'll try to gather some further details; off hand, I know the zone 2 spaces of the home have independent on/off and volume panels on the walls, for control of the zone 2 speakers in the respective rooms. Those spaces also have an rca jack in the walls, for connecting hardware in those rooms, such as tv/dvd, allowing those devices to play through the speakers in the zone 2 rooms. the zone two system is driven by a power source and configuration from a company called "russaudio" . I don't recall the speakers--perhaps something like pure audio. My goals would generally be integrated, zone 2-wide broadcast of music and other content (games/news) selected in zone 1, as well as independently driven home theatre in the zone 2 rooms...although if they're driven at that level by RCA, would that be a very weak, weakest link? Thanks so much for your help.

 

[slayer]

str dn 1040 question

hi im new in the forum im gona planing buy a str dn 1040 but i have a speaker from dj converted to put with bannana plug in receiver i have 7 speaker ..why dj speaker because i found is cheapper beause are big and ogly ..but good sound quality ..vs home speaker good but the beauty of the speaker cost.jiji...anyway the speaker are 400wat peak and 200rms..the str dn 1040 can push and hold this speaker ...thank..plisss or what do u recomend

 

[Irvrobinson]

I'm sorry Gene,
You are right. Since it's only me and no one else on AH is interested to see this avr to be power tested - I take take all of my remarks back.

It's not just you. It would be interesting to see a poll of how many of those 1M readers (who choose to respond) find measurements to be the deciding quality factor of a review.

 

[gene]

It's not just you. It would be interesting to see a poll of how many of those 1M readers (who choose to respond) find measurements to be the deciding quality factor of a review.

I wish I could find someone local and trainable to do amplifier measurements for us. With my time being more limited daily, this has become increasingly more challenging. I just hired a new marketing person to help free up my time, fingers crossed, so I can head this up again.

 

[Irvrobinson]

I wish I could find someone local and trainable to do amplifier measurements for us. With my time being more limited daily, this has become increasingly more challenging. I just hired a new marketing person to help free up my time, fingers crossed, so I can head this up again.

If I were local I'd volunteer. Unfortunately I'm far from it.

 

[Adam]

I wish I could find someone local and trainable to do amplifier measurements for us.

Too bad for you and Yvette that Dave isn't trainable.



Seriously, though, I'd be willing to help - but are these the tests that require that multi-thousand dollar machine?