Customer Reviews

Denon AVR-2311CI 7.1 Channel A/V Surround Sound Receiver

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Right after the warranty expired on my Onkyo TX-SR606 the HDMI ports starting acting flaky. After some research I found that this receiver did have some issues with the HDMI processing board. Instead of sending it off for service, I decided to get a new AV receiver and started the process of narrowing my choices down. As you know since you're reading this, the task can be daunting to say the least. You can read dozens of favorable reviews on certain receivers and then read a few bad ones and you're off in search of the next "perfect" receiver. Also, at this point in the year we are just months away from the 2011 models so then you wonder what you're going to miss out on if you don't wait. I decided to not concentrate on every single specification but on what is most important for any av receiver: SOUND!!! Next I wanted iPod connectivity and finally reliability since my other receiver lasted a little over two years. The problem with choosing a receiver based on its sound quality is that this subjective and can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people. I listen to a lot of music and well as enjoying Blue Ray movies for their clarity and digital sound so I wanted a receiver that could handle both well. As I was researching the thing that kept cropping up about the Denon receivers was their excellent sound. I still use my 15 year old Denon receiver on the back porch and have always liked their products so Denon was definitely at the top of my list. I narrowed it down to the Pioneer VSX-1120-K and the Denon AVR-2311CI. The deciding factors in choosing the Denon were the reviews that kept saying how good this receiver processes both the digital video audio as well as music, the USB port for direct iPod connectivity and the 3 year warranty vs. the 1 year on the Pioneer (the Pioneer was a slight bit less expensive but by the time you purchased a 3 year warranty the prices were about the same.) I have had the Denon now for one week and I couldn't be more pleased! It worked flawlessly right out of the box and the Audyssey set up was accomplished without even cracking open the manual (one flaw of the receiver is the plastic cover that covers the front inputs for a digital video camera and the Audyssey mic. You press in on it expecting it to open like a hinged door. Instead it pops completely out). I have Mirage M490 bookshelves as my fronts and a Polk RM85 surround system (using 5.1 with no rear since almost no Blue Ray HD audio processes 7.1 channel), a Polk PSW110 powered subwoofer and a Panasonic DMP-BD55 Blueray. My TV is a Samsung LN52A630. The first Blueray disk I tested was The Lord of the RIngs The Fellowship of the Rings and I must say I was blown away!!!! My Onkyo sounded good but the overall sound quality of the Denon was unmistakable!! I was hearing things I had not heard before and the surround separation was superb. When I plugged in my iPod I was disappointed in the sound so I know I had some adjusting to do so I grabbed the manual. Some reviews of this receiver indicated that you had to be a true Audiophile to accomplish some of the more nuanced features of the receiver and this is true to an extent. If I had not had previous experience with my Onkyo some of the setting would have been difficult. The manual assumes a lot in my opinion but in many respects it is very thorough which is a good thing. Believe it or not, the most complicated task was getting the remote set up for it to control all my other components. The only component I couldn't get it to control was my PS3. Other than that, I now have only one remote (it easily set up to control my Disk Network DVR)!!! The remote could use some updating as the buttons are small and not intuitive in many cases (e.g. you press the "Standard" button to switch between the different Dolby Digital outputs). One plus on the remote are the three Quick Select buttons that you can easily set up to access your TV, Cable/Sat and Dock with the touch of a button. There are separate surround modes for video and music output which, when set up, makes the music come alive!! In the music mode, you can adjust the surround depth "forwards and backward" the sound coming from the center out towards the fronts left and right to give a more full sound for music. There are also treble and bass adjustments under "Tone". Once I got this set up the music from the iPod was exceptional!!!! The Graphical User Interface is very good and easy to use. When the iPod is attached, you can navigate all the menus on the iPod on TV screen using the remote. Other functions such as switching from surround video to music are easily accomplished. Video upscaling to 1080 is excellent as well. The display on the receiver gives you all the information you need.

Overall I couldn't be any happier with this receiver and the sound it is producing and its overall look and performance. I highly recommend!

From the initial Power-Up to now the receiver has worked flawlessly. It replaced a Denon AVR-3806 because it has 3D capabilities and many more HDMI inputs available. We recently got a Panasonic VT25 HDTV set which has these features so we needed a *newer* Receiver. I was going to order the Pioneer VSX-32 but saw too many problems (power-down probs) on the Oppo-93 Forum. One thing the Denon has (which works very well, I might add) is the HD radio tuner. We're in the Washington, D.C. area and can receive many of them. Very nice and at no extra cost. All-in-all, a very good purchase.

This is my third Denon receiver. I switched from a highly rated THX Ultra Certified JVC flagship receiver that was a more expensive unit to this one because I wanted HDMI. The sound for movies is very good. Denon is known for that smooth sound which is not high pitched. Music sounds great too but I have good speakers, front speakers are Boston Acoustics VR 960, which is really the key to good sound. I also have an OPPO DV-980H universal player for music and it is an excellent player for all audio sources. Automatic speaker set up was a bit of a problem with this receiver. I tried the Audyssey which is the automatic speaker set up device but it didn't work properly. It could be because my speakers have built in sub woofers. Anyway, I set up the speakers manually and it was easy if you've done this before and I'm very satisfied with the sound. I adjusted each speaker individually from the setup menu. I called Denon three times for some questions and got through right away, the customer service is excellent and they helped make the set up process quicker. The receiver has a 3 year warranty, which is rare for electronics. Overall I'd rate this very high for movies and surround sound, and a solid performer for music. It has 6 HDMI in and one HDMI out which really makes set up easy. I paid $600 at Best Buy purchased as an open box item. They said that people have returned some of these receivers because they had trouble setting it up and that may have been Audyssey problems. Set up outside of Audyssey was not difficult, considering the fact that all of these receivers have a certain degree of difficultly setting up. The key is that you can call Denon and they have very good customer service reps who are U.S. based, they do not outsource customer support. If you need a basic setup guide, the manual is confusing, just search on batpig Denon and this guy has a nice cheat sheet for easy Denon setup, good website.

AVR-2311CI was replacement for my 10 year old Kenwood AVR. I compared this unit to Onkyo 708 and Pioneer 1120 and all of them would be a good choice and less expensive, but what really decided for me was the music output on Denon's was excellent. Also, it offered 3 year warranty and Pioneer offers only 1 year.

Since my HDMI input on 5 yr. old Samsung has gone kaput, I can't truly make a fair evaluation of its highly acclaimed video processor but with component hook up it does a very admirable job. GUI works even with component hookup, which is not possible with Onkyo, must use HDMI out to TV and I think its true of all other brand names.

The HD radio sounds so much better than normal FM radio without even hooking up to outside antennae. Playing CD on my Sony Changer using digital toslink cable makes it sound amazingly better than ever before.

Setup was slightly difficult because of my TV's HDMI problem and it's a complex product and requires reading manual unless you are very tech savvy or Denon user. Denon's CS was very good in helping me out!

I did get a great deal at Electronic Expo, an authorized Denon web retailer. It was shipped very fast in well packaged box.

If 3D and USB is not a must than last year's models 2310/3310 or 890/990 are available at a very reduced price but make sure they are authorized Denon seller or warranty may not be honored.

I have been a happy owner of a Denon AVR-2805 for 7 years, but with the advances of room correction and HDMI, it was time to upgrade. I looked at similar Pioneer and Onkyo models at the advice of trade magazine reviews, but after weighing my options and getting CNET's opinion (and mine) that Denon's sound quality was a step up on the competition, I went with my gut and the Denon. At first I was going to buy the AVR-891 due to the fact that outside the RS-232C, Trigger out, and USB ports, IT IS THE EXACT SAME RECEIVER for $100 less (retail), but Amazon had a deal that made the 2311CI cheaper than the 891. I am actually glad I got the 2311. I don't network to a server or other rooms, but to my surprise, the USB port on the front is great! I can just plug my MP3 player or a thumb drive in the front, use the TV's GUI to navigate, and with the uncompression codexes in the receiver, my MP3s sound great. I may just retire my CD player. This receiver also has HD radio which is nice. Now to the meat and potatoes. First off, Denon's improved GUI, while not "pretty", is a vast improvement over previous years. I had no HDMI pass through/compatibility issues with my Panasonic plasma or Sharp BluRay. The remote, while missing backlighting, is functional, if not a little crowded. Now to the Audyssey Auto Setup. In short its great. My surround is sweeping and even and my bass is tight. (Just make sure to set all your speakers to small, despite how big your front speakers are or what the auto setup says. Even the Audyssey website suggests this) The best is the Dynamic EQ. It does a great job of correcting the treble and bass when I'm just watching TV at a lower level. Now I'm reminded I have a sub all the time, not just when I'm hitting 80db on movie night. Lastly the Dynamic Volume set at "Day" does a nice job of evening out the levels of TV shows and commercials. I don't find myself jumping for the volume when a commercial comes on. Once again, I am very happy with my choice of staying with Denon. If you check the Denon website and make sure you get an authorized online retailer, there are great deals to be had on this model. And with the CI designation, you get a three year warranty instead of the standard one.

I am very excided about our new Home Theater Multi-Source/Multi-Zone Receiver. The sounds and picture comes out great. The price was unbeatable also. I would recommend this unit to everyone the is serious about their home theater system. Thanks Amazon.com. Richard O.

I had a Denon AVR-588 that I got for free from a friend years ago. It worked, but sound with my Sony SS-B3000 Bookshelf Speakers with 8-Inch Woofer (Pair, Black) was sullen and lifeless; I thought it was the speakers, so I replaced them with Polk Audio TSi200 Bookshelf Speakers (Pair, Black). Sound got only marginally better. I thought the Polks were a dud too. I then tried the Onkyo TX-NR509 5.1 Channel Network A/V Receiver; no difference with sound quality, so I returned it. Then I found this Denon AVR-2311CI 7.2 Channel A/V Home Theater Multi-Source/Multi-Zone Receiver with HDMI 1.4a Supporting 1080p and 3D (Black) used on Amazon for sale at half of the original retail price when it came out last year. I said "sure," but wasn't expecting much (I got disgusted with the whole hi-fi thing two years ago, when I went shopping for a stereo with a rich friend; of all the systems we listened to, with prices ranging from $10K to $500K, there were only two that were impressive; the others were dismal or mediocre at best, especially for the price).

Once I replaced the AVR-588 with this one, connected to my TSi-200 Polks, I noticed an improvement. The sound was alive. Nothing earth-shattering, mind you, but the system had finally the semblance of "presence" and life.

Good receiver, especially for 50% off retail price. Note: it does not have network capability (I don't care) or Audissey XT ("only" MultEQ, which is fine with me), or THX certification (who cares?). It's way more musical than my previous Denon 588 and Onkyo 509.

Recommended. I got it "used like new" from Amazon warehouse deals with free shipping. I got all my audio stuff from them. Looks brand new, shipped in original box. Sounds good for 30% to 50% off.

starting from scratch I purchased the Denon as part of a surround system. starting with a Samsung SMART TV, 2 JBL speakers, sub woofer. center speaker and r-speakers on order.

PROS: good looking and good quality.
great sound, good HD FM
CONS: i am NOT an audio engineer, but have had my share of surround systems. The Denon is very technical. the initial
hookup was easy enough but the programming was very difficult for me. The manual was large, with terms i was not
familiar with. The remote had a lot of buttons, with lots of choices, (yikes) called the seller and got lots of
help, but we were unable to get the 2channel stereo to work correctly. Also no pass thru., receiver had to be on
all the time. I have returned it (thanks Amazon) will try to get something more user friendly. It may have been
ok with full surround setup, but it did not like the temporary 2ch. setup, even tho it was one of the options.
Don

This receiver is amazing. I had zero problems setting it up and configuring it. The automatic setup with Audyssey worked extremely well. I was impressed that you could pick multiple listening positions so it could calculate the best sound for all of your listening spots. This is different from a few years ago when there was truly one 'sweet spot' that you had tuned in. Major kudos on that.

My favorite feature so far is being able to plug in any iPod (via USB) and start playing any song or playlist. It has a great on-screen display that shows you what is playing and where you are in the iPod directory tree. I haven't had time to dig deeper but an on-screen visualizer would really be great. It's not a necessary feature but it would at least show something on the screen instead of blacking it out after a period of inactivity (prevents burn-in which I do appreciate).

The sound quality is amazing, I have 5.1 surround with Aperion Audio speakers (aperionaudio.com). I'm not struggling to hear sounds, and I don't hear any distortion. This thing can be pushed to the limit and keep going. I'm sure my neighbors hate me at this point. :) I love that I can upgrade to 7.1 if I really want to.

HDMI 1.4 is a plus as it works flawlessly with my Samsung C9000. When I plugged in the Bluray player everything was already setup for me. Once I switched to the input, it even turned on the TV for me (I hadn't setup anything to do that automatically).

I'm extremely happy with my purchase. Denon makes some excellent receivers. Honestly, the difference between this model and one level above it is negligible unless you're going to have multiple zones or monitors (I have neither). This receiver is a must for anyone who is looking for something to either upgrade an aging receiver or wants a decent 5.1/7.1 setup.

Every year they come out with better models and they keep getting cheaper. I had a 2106 and paid $200 less for this one (AVR 2311) which has numerous new features, with plenty of HDMI cables, great on screen display and great sound. The only thing I am disappointed with is that all the pre-set sounds pretty much blow and the manual settings are difficult to navigate to. It would be nice if they had a quick screen to get to all the adjustable stuff so I can easily tweak everything in one spot. Instead, it is ridiculously convoluted and the instructions cater to britney spears listening clowns that want an easy setting like "pop" or "rock" which would be great if they didn't all sound like total ass. Denon needs to remember that it makes receivers, not defense system control panels, so why not have a nice screen right up front that allows you to adjust the equalizer, delay, effects and fade without having to navigate through 2 hours of total ridiculousness. Once you spend many hours tweaking the settings though, it sounds pretty damn sweet. If you want something to sound great right out of the box, don't get denon, but if you want something that will eventually sound good with a lot of blood sweat and tears, get this.