AV Receiver Reviews

The Sony does not upconvert HDMI (digital) inputs. With them, it performs switching only—what you feed it at the input is what you get at the output. The only tests that are relevant on our Digital line, therefore, are Video Clipping and Resolution, and those it passed easily (1080p in/1080p out).

The STR-DN1020 restricts most component inputs to a maximum component output resolution of 480p (576p in some overseas markets) on copy-protected program material (virtually all consumer source material is copy protected). Even copy-protected 720p and 1080i material is downconverted to 480p/576p at the A/V receiver’s component outputs.

The Sony will upconvert a component input to a higher-resolution HDMI output, although as shown in the Component-to-HDMI line on the chart, it doesn’t do this task very well. This does not mean it will be unsatisfactory with ordinary program material but does mean that you might find other components in your system, such as your disc player or video display, better suited to performing upconversion with minimum artifacts.

(The Analog Video Clipping and Resolution tests shown here were performed with a 1080i input. We perform these tests from discs with the appropriate material, and Blu-ray players will not output component at resolutions higher than 1080i. In fact, newer disc players will not output higher than standard-definition resolution. They even downconvert HD discs to SD. Next year’s disc players, and other sources as well, will eliminate component video outputs altogether.)—TJN