Sony STR-DH500 5.1-Channel A/V Receiver (Black)

by Sony

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 17 x 12.8 x 6.2 inches ; 16.4 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 21 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
• ASIN: B001TOZTCA
• Item model number: STR-DH500
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #27,805 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)

Product Description

The STR-DH500 5.1-channel A/V receiver delivers an HD experience. This new 1080p A/V receiver features HDMI pass-through and 1080/24p capability thus making it compatible with the latest HD sources (i.e. Blu-ray Disc Players, and the PlayStation 3). The STR-DH500 HD connectivity doesn't stop there. It features 5 HD inputs thus providing ample connection options at an inexpensive price. Finally, the STR-DH500 has a digital media port input which expands the flexibility to playback music from various audio sources (i.e. iPod, Walkman digital player, Bluetooth device or PC) with one of the various accessories (sold separately).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

170 of 174 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good value, but be forewarned, July 11, 2009

By 

C. Wilcomb (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sony STR-DH500 5.1-Channel A/V Receiver (Black) (Electronics)

Overall, this receiver is a good value for the money, but don't assume anything. Many of the features you'd expect from an A/V receiver are cobbled together in this unit. For example - the HDMI inputs only support pass-through, meaning that they'll pass the signal on to your TV or projector, but if you want audio through your 5.1 speakers, you'll have to connect the audio to the receiver separately. The receiver WILL NOT pull the audio signal from the HDMI feed, even though the cable carries it. Similarly, if you connect analog sources (component or RCA) to the receiver, the receiver WILL NOT output them through the HDMI out. You'll have to run an analog output from your receiver to your TV or projector to carry signal from those sources. I'm still happy with this unit; it's just not as seamless a solution as I expect from a home theater receiver, and many of the features I took for granted when I looked at all the inputs turned out to be false assumptions.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This Sony Receiver is good value!, June 17, 2009

By 

Larry Xie, CA USA - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Sony STR-DH500 5.1-Channel A/V Receiver (Black) (Electronics)

I am reasonably happy with this receiver. But I do have a few minor complaints. It was not clear to me (not specifically mentioned in the menu) that one cannot use the Video "out" to drive the TV Video input and I found that I have to use the Video Monitor out to connect to my LCD TV. So, it cost me some time to play with it. It is unfortunate that my DVD happens to only have a optical digital audio out while the digital audio in for the DVD in this Sony unit can only accept standard RCA jack type digital inputs. Otherwise, it works pretty well overall.

24 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not everything works, October 29, 2009

By 

Jacob A. Mcfarland (Va) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Sony STR-DH500 5.1-Channel A/V Receiver (Black) (Electronics)

I bought this item and received it very quickly from amazon. When i first hooked it up i found that it would not pass through the HDMI input from my Phillips dvd player or pass through RCA video. I talked to Sony customer support for two hours and they said it was defective. So, amazon sent me another which arrived quickly. This one will pass the RCA video through but still will not pass HDMI through for my DVD player. I'm sure Sony is trying to make you have to buy a Sony DVD player.
Good Stuff
- Cheap
- Everything else works fine

Bad Stuff
- HDMI will not work
- Sound quality is not so good
- Connections on back are not well organized