Yamaha HTR-5890 vs Denon 3806

[jc_ufl]

I was looking at both of these receivers and was wondering what the big difference is between the two receivers (besides several hundred dollars)?

They both seem to give you the same WTC and the same options. Would there be a sound difference between these two receivers?

[Rob1956]

I would direct you to the June issue of Sound & Vision magazine. They compare Yamaha, Denon and Onkyo receivers. I don't know if the models are the Y and D you are considering, but it's a good insight into the build and voicing quality of them. But more to the point, I would encourage you to audition them at a good audio/home theater "salon". A place where they let you do such things.

[IRAWB]

Yes there will be a big difference between the sound of the receivers, as they are from quite different stables and the companies have quite differing ideas about sound.

The Yamaha is, to me, quite bright in the treble, and loose in the bass. I think this is appealing to many as they believe that makes it an exciting sound.

The Denon is quite dry and straight, a more accurate if self effacing design. Not as immediately exciting but verry easy too listen to over a long period.

I personally prefer the sound of the Denon but you should go to a good dealer and have a demo, and decide which is right for you.

If you like one over the other, great. I think good advice s to get the matching DVD player, then you will truly have that particular brand sound.

[Woochifer]

That Denon is their top midlevel model, whereas the Yamaha is the entry point for their midlevel lineup. The sound quality between the two receivers will probably be close, and depend a lot on the types of speakers that you hook up to it. The Denon probably uses a higher capacity power supply, but whether or not it makes a difference with the sound quality is up to you to decide.

In general, I've found that comparably priced receivers produce roughly similar sound quality, and any differences are subtle -- certainly a lot less obvious than the differences that you hear between speakers. With a low efficiency and/or low impedance speaker, differences in the power supply will be more audible, but with most conventional speakers that present a typical load, the differences won't be huge.

If you're interested in a more comparable comparison for the Yamaha, look at the Denon AVR-2807, which has the same list price. The HTR-5890 is the same thing as the RX-V1600. The comparable Yamaha model for the Denon AVR-3806 is the RX-V2600. Between the two, I would say that the Denons have the more current feature set because they were introduced more recently. However, because those Yamaha models have been out since October, you can probably negotiate a better deal with them.

[jc_ufl]

Thanks for the advice guys! I purchased SV Sound's SBS-01 5.1 system a little while ago and I am choosing between the two receivers to power them. I usually only watch movies and the SBS-01 with the PB-10 ISD sub is amazing. Great system for a 1 BR apartment and will hold me over until I get a house and then can upgrade to the next level.

I think I am going to buy the Denon 3806 and see how it sounds with the speaker set. The shop has a return policy if I don't like it.

[paul_pci]

Thanks for the advice guys! I purchased SV Sound's SBS-01 5.1 system a little while ago and I am choosing between the two receivers to power them. I usually only watch movies and the SBS-01 with the PB-10 ISD sub is amazing. Great system for a 1 BR apartment and will hold me over until I get a house and then can upgrade to the next level.

I think I am going to buy the Denon 3806 and see how it sounds with the speaker set. The shop has a return policy if I don't like it.

It's your money, but the Denon 3806 might be overkill. You could do just was well, for your purposes, with a less expensive receiver such as Denon 2106 or Yamaha RX-V 659. My comment is mostly about money, and if you're not on a tight budget, by all means, get the 3806, it's just that perceivable differences between that model and slightly less expensive ones is typically negligible.

[SciHobo]

Do you guys have any idea how well the HDMI Switching works on these receivers like the Denon 3806 and 2807? I've heard that they have a lot of trouble upping some cable box signals to HDMI and that it just plain doesn't work yet. I'm considering waiting still if this is true or not. I was hoping these would kill off that problem...