Why is Sony rarely discussed?

[no. 5]

S&V test bench results for Sony STR-DA5200ES (MSRP $1,999), and Onkyo TX-SR605 (MSRP $599):

Output at clipping into 8 Ohms:
one channel driven
Sony - 169 Watts
Onkyo - 144 Watts

five channels driven
Sony - 66 Watts
Onkyo - 85 Watts

 

[Joe Schmoe]

I have been very happy with my Sony DVD player, and their TVs are great. The last time I tried one of their receivers, however, I found it to be underpowered (in the sense that it was rated at 100 watts/ch but ran out of steam well before the 50 watt/ch Onkyo that I replaced it with.)

 

[alexsound]

Been following the threads here for about a month. Like many other posting on this site, I've narrowed my shortlist of receivers to:

Denon 3808CI
Pioneer VSx94
Yamaha RXV3800

Why is there so little discussion about Sony? The STR-DA5300ES seems to have as good a set of features as any of the above. Are there problems with this model?

Sony's focus these days is more on the video side of audio/video.
I have noticed some of the forum members have Sony displays, but not much else. Most of what they (Sony) have come out with in the last few years hasn't been very competive on the audio side, at least in what would be considered "high end". On the audio side of things, they are "mid-fi" at best, even with the ES line. Where they are big on the audio side is in the HTIB market and "lifestyle" systems, which most of the forum members here don't seem to really get into. Also, they are big into the video and digital camera markets and let's not forget they are also very big into the video game markets with the PS3 and PS2. You DO see quite a few posts here on the
PS3, and also Blu-Ray, but not much else.

As far as the newer line of ES receivers, they do seem to be better than last years models, at least in features, but at the price points they are at, to say the competion (Yamaha, Denon, Onkyo, Pioneer) is very, VERY fierce, is a HUGE understatement.

 

[Seth=L]

S&V test bench results for Sony STR-DA5200ES (MSRP $1,999), and Onkyo TX-SR605 (MSRP $599):

Output at clipping into 8 Ohms:
one channel driven
Sony - 169 Watts
Onkyo - 144 Watts

five channels driven
Sony - 66 Watts
Onkyo - 85 Watts

A perfect example of why Sony is not discussed on this forum. They are way overrated.

 

[Reorx]

Fun conversation.
I backed things up with links. So it's not just my opinion.

1. Trust. I don't trust Sony or any of their products.

a. This took forever to clean up at work, and home. Which I got to clean up on over 400 pc's. CD rootkit
b. This only affected a few people at my work. Which I got to clean up. USB Key rootkit
c. 4 co-workers have this problem with their new Sony TV's ( I did warn them before they bought them. Sony costumer service pretty much told them tough luck. Sony Clouds on TV's
d. I've had to work on a few of these, before I got a clue and started turning people away by referring them to someone else. Sony Computers

2. Personal Experience with their Speaker and Receiver products.

The only positive experiences I've had with Sony is the PS2, and the PS3.

 

[cbraver]

a. This took forever to clean up at work, and home. Which I got to clean up on over 400 pc's. CD rootkit

That CD rootkit was horrible. What ever happened with the lawsuits that stemmed from that? That was truely criminal. If an individual were found to have spread rootkits similar to this around, he or she would probably go to jail. When Microsoft lists your CD's as spyware, it really makes you stop and think what you are buying hahaha.

I run Linux though, so, I never really was effected by any of that garbage.

 

[Reorx]

What ever happened with the lawsuits that stemmed from that?

At the bottom of the wiki page there was kinda a summery of some of the lawsuits that happened by various states, and countries. There are also a ton of links.

I was kinda curious about the Sony video projectors...but because of the reasons in the other posts, I wont ever buy it.

 

[j_garcia]

I've had Sony TVs for years and have never had a single issue with any of them. I have had a few CD and DVD players and all have been very reliable. I owned a few receivers from them and I was never impressed with any of them which is why I do not recommend them.

 

[ZoFo]

Good Displays

I have a 4 year old CRT rear-projection Sony that's been tweaked & ISF calibrated and it's a better picture then my 1080p Samsung LCD and I have had no problems with it and it's been used and turned on/off multiple times every single day since purchased.
Both sets will be calibrated again in January so will see if that makes a difference but I have never had an issue with the quality of this set. I still think Sony makes a great display, but I would not buy an AVR or anything else from them.

 

[PENG]

So far I have had no problem whatsoever with Sony walkman, cassette recorders, TV, DVD player and receivers. I traded my DA4ES for an AVR3805 and found little difference in sound quality. The Sony 4ES was almost 4 kg heavier and the bass management feature was superior. The Denon does have a lower noise floor, and its power supply transformer is much quieter than that of the Sony.

I don't doubt that many people despise Sony receivers, but I am not sure if people tend to exaggerate their bad experience somewhat

 

[gus6464]

I don't like the little ticks I hear occasionally from the surround processor. It sounds like quantization errors. It's distracting and a common problem with this unit. It bothers me enough that I'm going to replace the receiver soon. It won't be an Onkyo to be sure.

Also I hear that the new 605/705/805/875/905 run super hot.

 

[Seth=L]

Also I hear that the new 605/705/805/875/905 run super hot.

This is not as big of a concern as they let on. The TX-SR605 and TX-SR705 don't run very hot anyway.

 

[Gimpy Ric]

I like my Sony Blu ray, although slow to boot, she's a fine player. My 400 disk changer is hard as heck to use though.

 

[Seth=L]

I like my Sony Blu ray, although slow to boot, she's a fine player. My 400 disk changer is hard as heck to use though.

PS3 boots faster.

 

[croseiv]

My first CD player was a Sony. It lasted for about 4 years. It was a decent player SQ wise. I tried two Sony receivers once (about 15 yrs ago-not ES). I bought one and hooked it up in my system, it didn't work. It wouldn't power on. I tried a second unit of the same model, and had the same thing happen. Two bad receivers in a row. So I bought a Pioneer (I think it was a VSX-501), and it worked beautifully for 7 years or so until I upgraded to an Onkyo Tx-SR600 (superseded by my current Pioneer VSX-1015TX). Some people don't like Pioneer either, but it has served me well, as has Onkyo. I'm just a little leery of the Sony receivers, but they make some good cameras and TVs etc.