AV Receiver Reviews

Then there are the instructions on configuring the new EX and ES rear channel. You're all excited about listening to this new channel and you want to make sure it's on. When you get to the "Setting the Surround Back Channel" section of Setup, you're told to select SB CH Auto Flag Detect. When you do, you have a choice of Off or On. You might think you want On, but the instructions recommend that you set it to Off: "When set to On, the operation for software for which no identification signals are recorded is set." Got it? No? Denon continues: "This function only works with software on which a special identification signal is recorded. This software is scheduled to go on sale in the future. This is a function for automatically playing in the 6.1-channel mode using the surround back speakers if the software is recorded in THX Surround EX or DTS-ES or in the normal 5.1-channel mode without using the surround back speakers when the software is not recorded in THX Surround EX or DTS-ES." Got it now? I don't.

I could provide additional examples, but the bottom line is that I give the operating instructions for the AVR-5800 and the Integra DTR-9.1, the last receiver I reviewed, the same grade: F. The only exception was the speaker-placement tutorial near the back of the manual; it was well-written and enlightening.

Ah! But the Sound . . . !
In my review of the Integra DTR-9.1, I wrote: "I drove a number of speaker systems with the DTR-9.1 and found its sound to be comparable to the other premium receivers I've auditioned, including the Denon AVR-5700 and the Yamaha RX-V1. . . the Denon and Yamaha weren't still around [however], so I couldn't do a direct comparison. "

This time I did have the Integra on hand, as I'd just finished reviewing it. I listened carefully to the Integra, replaced it with the AVR-5800, and listened again immediately to the same source material: 2-channel 24/96 DVD-Audio discs and various surround-encoded DTS and DD 5.1 movies and DTS music discs. It was clear that Denon had again raised the sonic bar. Cold out of the box, the 5800 had a lusher, more delicate midrange, a more harmonically rich, sweet, and detailed top end, and more overall bloom and sense of 3-dimensional physical space from 2-channel sources. Over time, the sound only improved. The Denon delivered a bigger, better-focused sonic picture from 2-channel and surround-sound material, and may have been somewhat more dynamic, but the Integra was no slouch in those departments either. I wasn't prepared for such an obvious overall difference, but there it was.

The Integra was very, very good sonically, and provided superb sound in 2-channel and surround modes, but the AVR-5800 simply sounded better to my ears in all modes. I won't assign a percentage of how much better, but it was noticeable. The Integra sounded like a high-end audio product, the Denon even more so. The delicacy and resolution of low-level, high-frequency detail was absolutely superb, and when I went back and forth between the first-class analog output of the Ayre D-1 DVD player and the digital input of the Denon, I heard less of a difference than I did doing the same comparison through the Integra. The Denon's D/A section in Direct Pure mode was somewhat cleaner and better resolved.

Between the Integra and Denon I noticed no dramatic spatial differences in image positioning with DTS or Dolby Digital 5.1 or EX/ES matrix material, but the one ES discrete movie I watched, the laughably awful The Haunting, was very effective. (When I reviewed the Integra, the ES discrete computer source upgrade was not yet available.) I had four identical Sonus Faber Wall speakers set up in the rear, two to the sides and two behind, and ES discrete created a wonderful sense of envelopment, as op-

posed to mere left/right imaging. Matrixed ES/EX can also be effective, but if what I heard on The Haunting is indicative of what the new format is capable of, it's a worthwhile improvement. (Never thought I'd write that.) There's a scene where doors are slamming all around, and at one point a distant door-slam from the rear was so convincingly focused and placed within a 3-dimensional environment that I jumped. I didn't have the same reaction watching the same scene when matrix-decoded by the Integra. I'm sold on ES discrete (as well as matrixed ES and EX), but I've yet to convince my wife to allow me to permanently place two more speakers in the living room.

Denon provides eight DSP-based surround modes (Widescreen, Super Stadium, Rock Arena, Jazz Club, Classic Concert, Mono Movie, Matrix, and 5CH/7CH), and though I'm usually no fan of such things, I felt duty-bound to try them. Within each mode you can adjust a variety of parameters, including room size, level, delay time, and tone, though all of these are not available for every mode. The only one I found useful was Widescreen, which used all four surround speakers to help create the sensation of being in a big movie theater ringed by surround speakers, though the Yamaha RX-V1 with two front effects speakers performed this trick even more convincingly.

DTS Neo:6 surround provides 6.1 channels of full-frequency sound from 2-channel analog or digital sources, with Music and Movie subsettings. In Music, the front left and right signals bypass the decoder so there is no quality loss. Both of these surround formats were pleasant; being a purist, however, I prefer to listen to 2-channel music as 2-channel music. Same with films: If they're mono, I listen in mono; if they're in stereo, stereo. You might find that these formats enhance your listening pleasure; they were certainly more subtle than most DSP-driven spatial "enhancers."

Conclusion
Once again, Denon has produced the best-sounding A/V receiver I have ever heard. The AVR-5800 is state-of-the-art sonically and in terms of the surround modes and features offered. It worked flawlessly during the audition period and provided high-end audio in both 2-channel and multichannel modes. The designers' attention to sonic details, such as the analog pass-through, will clearly pay off for those who demand the purest musical signal, despite the unit's complexity. During the last few weeks of the audition I drove a 7-speaker Sonus Faber assemblage, plus a REL subwoofer with the Denon, and found myself listening to just plain music with the video off, even though I've got a much more expensive 2-channel system downstairs. That's saying a great deal.

Is the AVR-5800 "Without question the finest A/V receiver ever created"? I can't answer that. But it is beautifully built and finished, has a high-end "feel," and offers everything you could ever want in an A/V receiver and probably more. It is the most advanced A/V receiver I've reviewed, no question about it.

But before you buy any product this expensive and complex, you should do your own research. Reading reviews should be only part of the decision-making process. Ergonomic satisfaction is critical to the enjoyment of a complex piece of equipment like an A/V receiver, so before you buy one you'd better get its remotes in hand and try them, the operating system, and the onscreen display. Despite its superlative sound, I didn't find the AVR-5800 easy or pleasant to use—especially compared to the Integra DTR-9.1. If I were in the market for a premium A/V receiver to use mainly for watching movies, I'd opt for the Integra DTR-9.1. While it didn't sound quite as good as the Denon, the DTR-9.1 was more than good enough, and was much easier and more pleasant to use. But if I was using the system for my main music listening and I was listening critically, I'd have to think twice. Because my decisions are usually sound-driven, I'd choose the Denon, but it would not be a clearcut choice. The best-sounding A/V receiver should also be the easiest and most fun to use.