Denon AVR-4308ci vs. AVR-4310ci

[pbrown]

Hi all,

I've been lurking for a while. I thought I would say hi and introduce myself. I'm an AV enthusiast like all of you. I used to work for a Yamaha electronics distributor way back.

Anyway. I'm in the market for a new receiver. I'm not one to replace my receiver often so want something nice. My existing unit is about eight year old and is a Denon AVR-4800. This used to be their top of the line and was the first THX Ultra receiver on the market. It has been great but I want tome of the new gadgets that are available today. Things like HDMI switching and networking capabilities.

I've been thinking about the AVR-4308ci to replace my old 4800. Then I saw that the AVR-4310 was out and started to look at that. Then I noticed that the specs on the newer 4310 seems pretty watered down.

4308
140W
WiFi
42Lbs
7 digital inputs
Faroudja DCDi Video Processing

4310
130W
no WiFi (I don't need this but...)
35Lbs (did the power supply get the ax?)
6 digital inputs
no Faroudja DCDi Video Processing (do I care? should I care?)

What are your thoughts? Maybe I should buy the 4308 before they are all gone.


--Patrick Brown

 

[PENG]

I've been thinking about the AVR-4308ci to replace my old 4800. Then I saw that the AVR-4310 was out and started to look at that. Then I noticed that the specs on the newer 4310 seems pretty watered down.

4310
130W
no WiFi (I don't need this but...)
35Lbs (did the power supply get the ax?)
6 digital inputs
no Faroudja DCDi Video Processing (do I care? should I care?)

The 4310 has the ABT VRS processing that is better than the Faroudja in the 4308.

What are your thoughts? Maybe I should buy the 4308 before they are all gone.

I have seen the 4308 going for as low as around $1500 but it is now back to the $1750 to $1999. You may want to wait until it goes lower, or just go for the 3808 for a $1200 or less. In my opiniion, the 3808 is a better deal but it does not come with wi-fi, advanced AL24, and may be a couple more minor features.

Would you not consider the Onkyo TX-NR906? It seems to offer more, for less.

http://www1.shopping.com/xPO-Onkyo-TX-NR906

 

[Adam]

From what I've read on this forum (including the post linked here), the 4310 is the replacement for the 3808...not for the 4308. Confusing numbering, for sure, but it helps to explain the apparent reduction in features.

 

[MatthewB.]

I have the 3808 and Loooooove it, but it only has four HDMI inputs. I also have a 4802 and an Onkyo 805 for comparisons sake, and you can't go wrong with a 3808 or upgrade to the 4308

 

[pbrown]

From what I've read on this forum, the 4310 is the replacement for the 3808...not for the 4308. Confusing numbering, for sure, but it helps to explain the apparent reduction in features.

That makes more sense from what I've been reading and also that the Denon product page displays the 4308 ABOVE the 4310.

I wonder when the 4810 will ship. I may wait for that although the 4310 will probably work just fine in my system.

 

[pbrown]

Would you not consider the Onkyo TX-NR906? It seems to offer more, for less.

That 906 seems like a nice unit. I did have an Onkyo receiver for a while. That was right after I sold my Yamaha separates. My old Onkyo had a problem in multi-channel mode. It would just click and then go silent. I would power cycle it and it would be fine for a while. I never had that problem with stereo content. I've been a bit gun-shy of their receivers since then.

I do have an Onkyo universal six disk changer. That has been great but will be gone soon since it doesn't have HDMI out or do Blu-Ray.

 

[AVRat]

The 4810 will supposedly ship in October. It is now available on their website. I have also been thinking of replacing my 5800 with the 4810. There are definitely some good options these days. Unfortunately, it makes the decision making difficult.