Customer Reviews

Denon AVR-989 805-Watt 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver

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

 

 

In terms of performance this isn't a bad receiver. If you can ever get it set-up properly. I've owned several av receivers and know enough about hi-fi equipment to have built my own amp and speakers. But trying to get this product to perform to its potential has been a hugely frustrating process, and the owner's manual is zero help. As with so many manuals these days, it's written by techy geeks for techy geeks. Want to get a disc offering several sound options to reproduce them accurately on your system? Good luck. By trial and error you'll eventually find out what works for you, but be prepared to spend hours flicking through on-screen menus and trying to decipher the manual. Using the Audyssey automatic setup is straightforward enough but if you want to tweek its settings, manual setup is a nightmare. Worst of all, the receiver refuses to remember the set-up you gave it for each sound option even when you tell it to do so, and reverts back to some long-forgotten configuration. So you spend the first few minutes of each session adjusting your settings for the 1,000th time. Also very frustrating is its habit of losing your settings if you switch inputs. If you're watching a dvd, pause it to check out the latest score in some televised game, and come back to your disc, you've lost all your speaker volume and balance settings. If your speaker configuratin isn't 7:1, for instance if you're running the basic three across the front, a subwoofer and two rear, getting the receiver to give you optimal sound is not easy because there are no clear instructions, on screen or in the manual, to guide you.
Visits to Denon's website are no help whatsoever and they don't seem to want you to contact them by email. All in all, Denon seem to have no idea of who their customers are and no wish to try to help them. This is my first and last Denon product. Technical capability isn't worth much if it doesn't translate to customer satisfaction.

Excellent receiver with all the functions that you need for 5.1 or 7.1 system. Only problem is that the remote and the manual is very confusing and poorly documented. I get around this by buying Harmony One universal remote. This is my second Denon (my previous one was avr-888) and I have been happy with the quality of the sound and the video.

I was always looking at the Denon 3808ci receiver but jumped on this when Amazon lowered its price. A big fan of things made in Japan for their excellent craftsmanship, Denon was on the top of my list since it was from Japan. The receiver is very well made with excellent set of features. Paired with Polk RTI-8 speakers for the front and still my old Bose cubes for the surrounds and back (which I plan on replacing soon) and a Polk powered 12 inch sub woofer PSW 505 to form my 7.1 system, it sounds just amazing especially with Blu-ray sources. I am yet to exploer may features especially the zone 2 feature. I will update this review when I do so. This replaces an old Sony 5.1 receiver and the difference is night and day and the heat generated is also lower compared to my Sony and I have heard several others say that it run much cooler when compared to an Onkyo. I am extremely pleased with this buy and would certainly recommend it.

Upgraded from Onkyo 605, and the difference is day and night. If you are looking for 7.1 receiver, get it will not dispoint you.

First off, I don't have this specific Denon but a similar Denon model. I also purchased one for my daughter. I noted the first reviewer of this particular product was extremely pleased with it in his application of 7.1 sound in his home theater system. Yes, they are great for that, and I'm not surprised he is pleased. Unfortunately, such a review doesn't properly describe the features/functions of this product series. I had to find out for myself.

7.1 sound is not "native mode" for any material, DVD or TV broadcasting, you are likely to receive. It's an algorithm that successfully attempts to improve on 5.1 programming (which is the de facto standard). In the same manner, a 5.1 system can also attempt to improve programming that is actually native mode stereo, or at least to convert it to "surround sound," even though it is produced in two-channel stereo mode. The Denon products allow the user to run in 5.1 true reproduction, 5.1 interpolated (stereo converted into "surround sound"), 7.1 interpolated (5.1 converted into 7 channel) and/or true stereo mode. The reason that may be important is that most of us have a lot of stereo CDs, recorded before multi channel sound became so commonly available. Those don't faithfully reproduce into 5.1 sound (you may personally think 5.1 improves on stereo imput). The advantage is that this product series (with a proper speaker configuration) can perform well with discrete multi channel sound or 2 channel stereo programming. It therefore has the flexibility to accurately reproduce your program material whatever its actual audio recording mode is. I'm not personally aware of many other products that are made for this purpose, at least at this price point.

This Denon 805 Watt receiver can only be described as awesome. We are using it for a home theater room and have it connected to a 7 channel speaker system with two sub woofers. The sound is phenominal. Would highly recommend it.