JVC RXD702B Can it deliver the goods?

[Nick250]

I got the spring one-call catalog in the mail this morning and as I was flipping through it there on page 16 were two JVC receivers:

RXD702B 150 watts X 7, Advanced Digital Processor Price $799

RXD402B Same thing is seems with 110 X 7 Price $499.

I understand that they are digital receivers not analog, but where is the fly in the ointment? IF the RXD702B can deliver the goods it seems like a compelling value. Thoughts?

Nick

EDIT: here is a link and it's on sale for $599 for the moment.

http://www.onecall.com/ProductDetails.aspx?sHist=12-125&menu=true&Sort=lowBrand&Page=-1&id=28565

 

[JVC]

I've not heard one of these yet. I've seen them at the JVC site, and in a magazine or two. So, I don't have any real experience with them. But, knowing how JVC is, I wouldn't hesitate to buy one of these, if I was looking for another receiver.

My experiences with JVC tells me the quality is very good. JVC has always been the best bang for the buck, so it doesn't surprise me at all, that these would be a great value. I think JVC is one of the rare cases, where you get MORE than what you pay for.
Good luck with whatever you decide on.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I got the spring one-call catalog in the mail this morning and as I was flipping through it there on page 16 were two JVC receivers:

RXD702B 150 watts X 7, Advanced Digital Processor Price $799

RXD402B Same thing is seems with 110 X 7 Price $499.

I understand that they are digital receivers not analog, but where is the fly in the ointment? IF the RXD702B can deliver the goods it seems like a compelling value. Thoughts?

Nick

EDIT: here is a link and it's on sale for $599 for the moment.

http://www.onecall.com/ProductDetails.aspx?sHist=12-125&menu=true&Sort=lowBrand&Page=-1&id=28565

Did you check out the expanded specs?
Stereo:150W @.8%, into 6 ohm, 20-20k
multi ch. same but at 1khz

Depending on your need for power to the speaker.
These are the new generation of switching amps, class D.

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

A rating of .8% thd and 6 ohms is a bit off the mark. If you are serious about this unit, try and get the mfg. to give you specs at .05% thd and 8 ohms. Those specs are typical for HTIB's, not high end AVR's. Nothing against JVC, but I'd be skeptical. Also note these new, smaller class D units tend to be a bit more sibilant than class a/b units, so it may be a good idea to test drive one at a local BB or CC.

 

[Nick250]

Thanks for the feed back guys. Absent any positive feedback (i.e. good experience from someone who owns one) I am less inclined to consider this receiver since there are enough variables in sound without adding what at this point is still something of an unknown.

Regards, Nick

 

[patnshan]

Poor is what I've heard......

I'd love to find a good, cheap HDMI receiver. It seems they are not around yet.

I just read some user reviews on that yesterday, can't remember where. (Google is your friend). I kept hearing about poor reliability, getting three bad units in a row, and running WAAAAAY hot. One guy said he couldn't even touch it when it was running halfway.
I would stay away. I think I saw them on one of those user review sites. The only professional review is CNET (yeah right). They gave it editor's choice, but complained about a lot to get that, IMHO.

Pat

 

[jcPanny]

Receiver options

For $500 you could buy a refurbished Yamaha RX-V2500. It should have plenty of power and features to hold you over for a while. Connect one HDMI source directly to the TV and use component for the rest. You can add an HDMI switch or upgrade to an HDMI receiver in a couple years when v1.3 is out and HDMI devices are actually compatible.

 

[Nick250]

I am kind of leaning towards a Denon 3806 or 2807 at this point. I have not seen the 2807 at the stores around here yet (Boston area).

 

[jpm]

A 702B owner

I've had a 702B since Nov. and have experienced both the good and bad.
Starting with the downside -- JVC service is horrible. It took me two months and many, many phone calls and emails to get a defective unit replaced. It had to be replaced because no local authorized JVC repair center could do the work.

Now that I've gotten a new unit and had it for some months, though, I will say both audio and video performance is quite good, at least for my purposes. I am not an audiophile, but do listen to a great deal of 2-ch. music. My video use is a 50/50 mix of DVDs and HD cable.
Audio -- what I would consider it a natural sound with great presence for acoustic instruments and vocals. For reference, I replaced a 6-yr-old mid-level Yamaha AVR, and have found the JVC to be an improvement. It's connected to Axiom TM 22s in the front, QS4s in the rear, a Cambridge center speaker and a 12 in. Infinity model I can't remember the number of. Like I said, nothing fancy.
Video -- two HDMI inputs, one out. Great convenience and, for me at least, they work well connected to a cable box and Sony HDMI DVD player. On SD analog channels, the receiver "upconverts" 420i to 420p with a Faradouja (spelling?) chip, and it makes a very large improvement for those channels (which were awful).
Misc. This second unit does not run exceptionally hot. I tend to dislike digital sound processing, but the new Dolby and DTS Neo options are interesting. I haven't hooked up two more speakers for 7.1.

Oh yes, the wireless USB recevier is really a toy and not useful, and the manual is even more useless.

 

[baudilus]

Thinking of Getting a 402

Thanks for the info jpm!

I am thinking of getting a 402 for my "casual" system, not really a home theatre. I won't be using any speaker outputs at all from the receiver, I need it more for the video switching / upconversion capabilities. It will be in a rack in a closet, most likely with fans pulling in air from the front (either directly above or below the receiver) and exhausting it from the top. In your opinion, is the heat generated from driving the speakers, as I would assume? Since you have two speakers not connected, is there an option to just turn off the power amp / speakers, either per speaker or for all speakers? The heat is my main concern, seeing as how the closet will be closed most of the time.

 

[jpm]

Thanks for the info jpm!

In your opinion, is the heat generated from driving the speakers, as I would assume? Since you have two speakers not connected, is there an option to just turn off the power amp / speakers, either per speaker or for all speakers? The heat is my main concern, seeing as how the closet will be closed most of the time.

The set up allows you to specify which speakers need to be driven. In my case, for example, I've turned off the two rear surrounds. I'm not sure how that impacts the power amplification section. I also just don't know if what heat I experience is tied to driving the speakers. I will say, though, that the second unit runs no hotter than any other receiver or amp I've owned over the years, and I often run it for hours at fairly high volumes.

Just to be clear on the video switching -- it does allow you to input componsite, S and component for HDMI output, but there is no real upconversion as I understand it. It will deinterlace 480i to 480p like a progressive DVD player, but not output 720p 0r 1080i if the input is 480. If you're intending to use the HDMI input, it seems to work almost always with DVD players but many, if not most, trying to hook a cable box up via HDMI have incompatibility problems. However, I think you'll find that with any of the current HDMI switching receivers.

 

[Tom Weaver]

I've had this receiver for a year now and I love it! Best surround sound I've ever had. Plenty of clean power with no distortion, that 0.8%THD spec is misleading. The user manual is horrible, but that true for most JVC electronics. The HDMI switching is nice, but if you use that, the Toslink output is disabled, thus my cordless headphone unit gets no audio signal. So I'm back to using component switching for the video, and Toslink optical for audio and all is well. Warning: Even though I have 9" air space above, and lots of air space on both sides and rear, I cooked the unit during the Grammys. Actually, it ran fine all during the show, but wouldn't power up the next day. $190 later and a new power transformer and I'm back in business. Going to put big feet on the bottom so it gets more air circulation underneath. Maybe a fan too. I feed SDPIF output from the computer into the amp and listen to my MP3's on the main stereo, and that is sweet! Tried the wireless, but the transmitter thingy interfered with other USB devices, so I ditched it.