Denon Avr-2106 or Yamaha RX-V659

[jamesmriley2003]

Which would you choose? The denon is a refurb. and the yamaha is a brand new unit. Thanks for your help.

 

[Kai]

http://usa.denon.com/ProductDetails/554.asp

http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/productdetail.html?CNTID=200506&CTID=5000300

I have the 659 and was torn between it and the 2106 when shopping for the receiver. I found the Denon to be a bit more powerful than the Yamaha at the same db levels, great salesman...we played around back and forth with both for over an hour with a wide variety of my fav cd's, but not enough to warrant blowing my budget and pissing off my wife for the extra $200.

The primary features are generally similar, see specs on above links, with each having some the other brand does not. I did like the Burr-Brown Bit DAC's for all channels because of their recognition for quality.

It has been 4 months since buying the 659 and I am quite satisfied with its' power, features and performance. No upgraditis hehehe. It has all the power I can use and then some. The set up system is good but not great, setting my front speakers to large and setting my sub at too low a level but the spl meter remedied that error. Otherwise I am satisfied with the rest of the set up settings...eq, speaker distance...

I play around with the varied sound fields here and there and find them to be enjoyable and different enough to warrant going through all the effort to push buttons on the remote...oh the effort, oh the toil hehehe...There are enough to get some very different sounds but not so many that it is ridiculous.

I suppose in the end it depends on how they sound to your ears with your listening material and budget.
Many here espouse refurbs and used equiptment however I do not. For my money I want it out of the box new and unhandled with, hopefully, no history of problems in its' past.

Good luck and keep us informed.

 

[Leprkon]

I can't give you a direct comparison, but if the model lines run true:

Denon 1705, without room EQ, banished the Yamaha 757 from the bedroom HT to the computer room.

At the same basic volume, the Denon just seems to have more prescence. The 1705 doesn't have any pre-outs to hook into the primary amp, or it would have been given a shot at the RX-V2500 in the main room.

 

[tomd51]

Hi James;
I'm currently using a refurbished Denon AVR-886 (2106 in silver) in my secondary HT setup I picked up a couple of months ago from uBid. While I do not have any direct comparision with the RX-V659, I am also using an RX-V2500 in my main HT setup, which is obviously a better unit than the 659.

For the money, feature set and performance, the 2106 is tough to beat. This is an excellent performing receiver with plenty of features and ample power for most listening areas under 3,000 cu. ft. Once you apply the discount the refurb units have, it's very hard to beat... legally...

I think you'd be happy with either unit, so whichever one you can get for less would likely be the better solution... -TD

 

[jamesmriley2003]

I went with the Denon, so I'll write up some sort of review when it arrives, thanks for all of your help.

 

[billy p]

good choice

I was looking at the 2106 but got a super deal on the 3805. You won't be disappointed it's there best selling unit for a reason.

 

[Bluesmoke]

I was looking at the 2106 but got a super deal on the 3805. You won't be disappointed it's there best selling unit for a reason.

Would you mind stating where you got such a deal? I'm looking for a 3805 in Canada.