Yamaha RX-397 AM/FM Stereo Receiver
Even though if one were to look at the current offerings from most manufacturers you would be forgiven for thinking that almost everyone in the world was listening to all their recordings in 7.1 surround sound you an I know that this simply is not the case. As far as I know 99.99% of my CD and mp3 collection is still distinctly stereo. My old vinyl hasn’t suddenly upgraded itself to 7.1 surround while I was away on holiday and neither has my turntable. With this in mind may I present you with a short review of what is currently popularly seen as one of the best low end AM/FM Stereo Receivers on the market today, the nicely specified and well priced Yamaha RX-397.
Appearance and Build
Yamaha RX-397 is quite unassuming and would be almost “old school” in appearance if not for the slightly over zealously marked up bass, treble, balance and “loudness” knobs (More on that last knob later). The large volume knob has a nice easy drift to it and feels solid. Most of the other knobs are of decent quality and the bean and channel select buttons give a reasonably satisfying click when changing stations. The rears jacks and plugs are all solid and very usable, especially the “screw in” style speaker terminals. All in all the Yamaha RX-397s build quality is very good for a unit in this price range and it does look the part.
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Specifications & Sound
As you would expect in a budget model like the Yamaha RX-397 this unit doesn’t have some of the balls and whistles you might expect from a higher end model (No multi zone functionality for example) but what it does have is a solid set of features and an extremely good sound quality. The unit boasts a decent 50 watts per channel (to be honest it actually sounds a lot louder than 50w being more comparable to75w amps). The quality of the circuity is extremely good for the price the sound is clear, has a very nice middle and top end, with an extremely low noise floor for the price. The tone and balance controls are more than adequate for most home use and the addition of a “loudness” control which is essentially a mid range trim may be useful to some. Extra additions include a “pure direct” button which bypasses the Yamaha RX-397s tone and gain circuits improving headroom and the overall percieved “air” the system produces.
Conclusions
If you are in the market for a simple stereo receiver for a mid sized room at home I challenge you to find anything this good for this kind of price. Quite frankly the quality of this unit makes me expect to pay at least $100 – $150 more. If you are looking for something in the $200 – $300 price range you cannot go wrong with the Yamaha RX-397.
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Manufacturers Specifications
- RMS Output Power 2x 50 Watts
- Pure Direct Switch
- Super Audio CD/DVD Audio Ready w/Extended Frequency Response
- THD [0.04%]
- Linear Damping Factor (Speaker A) 150
- Continuously Variable Loudness Control
- Motor-driven Remote Controllable Master Volume Control
- 40-Station Preset Tuning
- IR Ports
- Low-Impedance Power Supply
- Remote Control Input/Output Terminals
- Tape Monitor Switch
- 5 Audio Input Terminals with Phono Input Terminal
- Front Panel Headphone Jack
- Impedance Selector (8 ohms/4ohms)
- Product Dimensions (W x H x D) / Weight (lbs.) 17-1/8” x 5-3/4” x 12-1/8” / 14.1
- Shipping Dimensions (W x H x D) / Weight (lbs.) 21″ x 9″ x 14-1/2″ / 17.4
Tags: RX-397, Stereo Receiver, Yamaha Posted in: HiFi Receivers 
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Denon AVR1610 5.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver Review
The Denon AVR1610 5.1-Channel Home Theater Receiver is an interesting idea. Take a lot of the technologies and ideas form Denons higher end flagship models (The Denon AVR1910
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Amongst the big bonuses with this model are the extremely clear and powerful sound with a host of features you would not normally expect at this price level, the audyssey auto setup and multi EQ function, excellent HDMI upscaling and a build quality that belies is meagre pricing. This is an all round winner and highly recommended for those in the market for a sub $400 home theater receiver.
Standout Features
- 5-channel equal power, discrete amplifier. With 75 watts RMS per channel
- Ability to wire “B” speakers, in parallel to main speakers, for listening to the same audio source in another room.
- Audyssey: Auto setup and MultiEQ function, helping to improve your rooms sound.
- Dynamic Volume: Dynamic Volume – Resulting in less annoyingly loud commercials and clearer sound all round
- Multiple Surround Surround Modes with a by source memory.
- Direct Playback: In this mode, this audio signal bypass the tone adjustment circuitry for higher quality sound.
- Auto Lip Sync (Audio Delay): audio signal manually delay to match the video signal (0-200ms.)
- AM/FM Tuner: Preset 8 AM/FM per bank with 7 banks for a total of 56 AM/FM presets.
- Analog-to-HDMI Up-Conversion: Analog video input signals get converted to digital video signal and transmitted to the HDMI output port.
- On-Screen Menu: The Denon receiver features an on-screen menuing system
- Personal Memory Plus: For each input, the receiver memorizes its various settings for parameters.
Manufacturers Details
- 75 watts x 5 into 8 ohms (20-20,000 Hz) at 0.08% THD
- Dolby® TrueHD, DTS-HD™ Master Audio, Dolby® Digital Plus, DTS-HD™ High Resolution Audio, Dolby® Digital EX, DTS-ES™, Pro Logic® IIz, and DTS Neo:6 decoding
- Audyssey Laboratories’ MultEQ® six-point auto setup and room calibration system (microphone included)
- iPod® integration (requires optional Denon ASD-11R or ASD-3N)
- Compressed Audio Restorer for better sound with compressed music sources like MP3 files
- Audyssey Dynamic Volume mode to keep listening levels steady
- high-current, low-impedance amp design
- 192kHz/24-bit digital-to-analog converters for all channels
- multibrand remote
- 17-1/8″W x 5-13/16″H x 16-1/4″D
- warranty: 2 years
System Connections
- 1080p-compatible HDMI digital audio/video switching (3 in, 1 out)
- analog-to-HDMI video conversion (480i to 480p only)
- HDMI version 1.3a with support for 1080p, Deep Color, and x.v.Color
- component video switching (2 in, 1 out)
- digital audio inputs: 2 optical, 2 coaxial
- 3 audio/video inputs, including:1 front-panel input with composite video & 3 rear-panel inputs (all include composite, 1 includes S-video)
- 3 audio-only inputs
- 2 sets of main speaker outputs
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Tags: Denon, Denon AVR1610, Home Theater Receiver Posted in: AV Recievers No Comments
Ultrasone HFI-780 S-Logic Professional Headphones Review
I’m traditionally a day to day user of the rather excellent Sennheiser HD-280 Pro
At first appearances the Ultrasone HFI-780s look rather nice with a rugged looking head and solid brushed chrome ear pieces, they are a fully foldable model and so can be made quite compact for storage but not quite small enough to put in your pockets. I dont think you can really get away with wearing these cans outside, but they are quite comfortable for long periods of time connected to a hi fi or computer, though they did occasionally make my ears sweat a bit. They have a solid and professional feel and certainly give you the impression that they are in the game for the long haul. If the internal components are as rugged as the headphones themselves then they should last a careful user many many years.
The HFI-780s have several Ultrasone developed technologies such as S-Logic Plus, ULE and safer hearing. Lets dig deeper into each of these in turn. The S-Logic Plus functionality according to the Ultrasone website “S-Logic™ Plus is the newest advancement in the S-Logic™ Natural Surround System…. The acoustically redesigned ear-cups of these new models and their tonal fine-tuning result in a most neutral sound impression with more vivid perception of voices and instruments.”
Now to you and me that might sound like an unmitigated load of marketing spiel but to be honest I really do believe that I could perceive a far greater width of soundstage and and almost 3 dimensional surround experience on some passages of music. I also found that HFI-780s added a lot to my spacial awareness when playing Far Cry 2 and Left 4 Dead. So a good result as regards their claimed surround enhancements.
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ULE, Ultrasone explain is a system to shield the wearer from the inevitable magnetic and other radiation that occurs in the headphones due to the operation of the headphone coils. They claim a reduction of up to 98% of the relevant radiation. Up to this point I’ll admit I’ve never thought of it as being a problem, all I can say is my head didn’t feel like it was being irradiated when I was using these cans 
The 780s also claim they give the user a safer hearing experience by using superior components to allow a reduction of sound pressure on the ears by up to 40% at a set perceived listening volume. I certainly felt that these phones lived to that claim having excellent long session comfort. I definitely experienced a very low amount of ear fatigue during extended sessions with the Ultrasone headphones.
As regards general sound qualities of the HFI-780 headphones. They are what you would expect from a set of pro headphones in this price range. Excellent overall dynamics and audio frequency range (an exceptional 10-26,000Hz). I found the highs on these phones particularly crisp and very clear but again without actually being hard on the ears. This is no mean feat. The bottom end is very well defined and have quite a kick. Boom lovers will find these headphones more than a match for anything they care to throw at them. Needless to say I am very impressed with the sonic characteristics of these cans. I cant off the top of my head think of a better pair for anywhere near this price.
Manufacturers Specifications
- S-Logic™ Natural Surround Sound Plus
- Dynamic principle
- Frequency range 10-26.000 Hz
- Impedance 35 Ohm
- Sound pressure level 96 dB
- Reduced field emissions in accordance with ULE (=Ultra Low Emission) standard
- Driver 40 mm gold-plated
- Weight 285 g (without cord)
- Straight cord (length ca 3m)
- 3,5/6,3 mm screwable gold-plated plug
- Come with Transportation bag, Demo CD, Instruction manual
- Spare parts are available on a long term basis
- RRP: $279.00 (Check Current Pricing on Amazon
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Tags: Headphones, Ultrasone HFI-780 Posted in: Headphones One Comment
Hi Fi Jargon Buster – Audio Power, RMS power, watts RMS, Peak Power
Audio power is the electrical power transferred from an audio amplifier to a loudspeaker, measured in watts. The power delivered to the speaker and the speakers sensitivity is what determines the actual audio power level delivered by the speaker. The amount of electrical energy that a system (Amplifier & Speakers combined) can convert to to actual sonic energy is seen as one of the more important manufacturers specifications as regards audio equipment statistics on would think that with this in mind there would be one single well defined and understood ratings system. But due to the differing needs of audio professionals and of audio companies marketing this is unfortunately not the case.
RMS vs PMPO (or Peak Power)
RMS Power refers to Root-Means-Square power. To get a rough figure for RMS power, you can multiply the Peak Power Rating x 0.6 EG: if an amplifier is rated at 100 watts peak power, the approximate RMS power would be 60 watts. The RMS rating is a measure of continuous power in watts and the higher the RMS power means the device is either able to provide or accept the specified power over a significant length of time.
Some manufacturers use the more impressive PEAK POWER ratings in their specifications. Using Peak Power (PMPO) ratings when assessing a music product is a bad idea as Peak Power does not reflect a a systems capabilities in normal use. PMPO is a measure of the maximum power that can be handled for a very short period of time. Speakers and amplifiers should always be compared via the RMS power ratings as these are far more reliable and far more likely to have a genuine impact on the sonic results you get..
If you have a system with a speaker that an RMS rating of 100 watts and the amp is similarly rated at 100 watts RMS, the speaker and amp should theoretically be perfectly matched and so result in an ideal performance from both products.
Real World Power and loudness
Perceived “loudness” varies logarithmically with output power a change in output power produces a much smaller change in perceived loudness. This is not to say that bigger speakers can produce more sound with less power but instead that larger speakers can generally take and output more initial power and thus need less amplification to produce the same perceived power output level. This is one reason why the speakers in a system are so important to overall sound quality. The best measure of a systems power is maximum loudness before clipping, in decibels (dB).
Remember as a rule of thumb: more speaker+less amp. = same “loudness” + less distortion
Dodgy Industry Practices to be Aware of
It is not unknown for some manufacturers quote maximum power at a higher than acceptable Total harmonic Distortion level (Usually < 1%) E.G. like 10%, making their equipment appear to be far more powerful than it actually is at audio levels where sound quality is not compromised.
Remember Peak Power (PMPO) figures are hugely exaggerated compared with the “RMS” values used by professionals. It also shows that there is little consistency in how much the figures are exaggerated making them almost totally meaningless.
Tags: Audio Power, RMS, RMS Power, Watts RMS Posted in: HiFi Jargon Buster No Comments
Marantz SR4003 Surround Receiver Review
Its been a while since we looked at something in the mid range of AV 7.1 capable receivers, the Marantz SR4003 receiver landed with us a while back and we’ve finally got around to giving it a good thorough workout. The SR4003 is very well specified on paper with 7 discretely powered channels all running 80 Watts of power with 192KHz/24-bit DACs. The unit boasts Dolby Digital EX, DTS ES 7.1, Pro Logic II and Circle Surround 7.1.
Initial room setup of the DT ProCinema 1000 7.1 speaker system we were using was actually made quite easy with the Marantz Room Acoustic Calibration (MRAC) that is built into the SR4003. Using a clever system of test signals and acoustic modelling algorithms, MRAC analyses your room (In this case an L shaped upstairs second sitting room) and determines your speaker setup. We found it produced a pleasing overall setup with pretty much zero user tweaking in our less than optimal room.
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In terms of inputs and output features the SR4003 is very well kitted out boasting 3 (repeat capable) HMDI ins and 3 separate Component ins. 5 S-Video and composite ins, audio wise the system has 3 digital optical ins and a couple of coax ins. The system has pretty much an input or output for whatever configuration you are likely to need, including a large group of front panel plug and play style inputs (S-Video/Video/Analog L&R/Digital Optical) for any temporary components you would like to run through your system.
The sound quality of the SR4003 is very pleasing and the marantz is what could be described as a very capable unit in this price range. The manufacturers specs state that the system is capable of less than 0.08 THD and we felt that this does seem to be accurate.
As regards signal purity we were expecting the ProCinema 1000s to show up a little hollowness in the mids and perhaps a little too much artificial boosting of the low end signal but to be honest this was so little in evidence that unless you are an audiophile who will be using the unit to primarily watch classical concerts or listen to your Satie CDs
Apparently the SR4003 uses a separate circuit for audio and video signals thus minimizing any interference from video signals. This is a great idea that I hope more manufacturers will add to their mid range receivers. Power wise we found the unit more than capable of powering the speakers to the point where it is uncomfortable to be in the room and the neighbours will likely complain. Even at these kinds of volume levels no audible distortion was evident.
Finally the unit comes with a well designed backlit remote that is capable of learning most of your TV remote outputs so after a bit of tweaking the TV remote can happily get chucked in a drawer. All in all the Marantz SR4003 receiver is a very capable great sounding and extremely good value for money package, highly recommended.
Click for full size image
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Basic Product Specifications
- 80 watts x 7 into 8 ohms (20-20,000 Hz) at 0.08% THD
- Dolby® Digital EX, DTS-ES, Pro Logic® IIx, DTS Neo:6, and SRS Circle Surround II decoding
- RAC (Marantz Room Acoustic Calibration) auto setup system (microphone included)
- iPod® integration (requires optional Marantz IS201)
- HDCD decoding for compatible CDs
- H: 6.3 inches W: 17.3 inches D: 15.3 inches
- Weight: 25.6 pounds
- RRP: $549.99 (Check Current Pricing on Amazon
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Detailed Product Specifications
- Number of Channels 7 ch Amp. / 7.1 ch Processing
- THX: No
- DTS: ES/96/24/Discrete&Matrix6.1/Neo:6
- Dolby: Digital EX/Pro Logic IIx/Vertual Speaker/Headphone
- DSD: (SA-CD)/NEURAL - / -
- SRS: Circle Surround II
- HDCD Decoder: Yes
- Discrete Amplification all 7 channels
- Power Transformer EI
- D/A Conversion 192kHz/24-Bit
- Digital Signal Processing Cirrus Logic 32-Bit
- Video Off (Pure Direct): Yes
- Source Direct: Yes
- Variable X-over: Yes
- Display Off: Yes
- Video Up-conversion: S-Video to Component
- Auto Calibration by MIC M.R.A.C. (Marantz Room Accoustic Caliblation)
- AM/FM tuner AM/FM x1
- Bass management: Yes
- HDMI In: 3
- Component In: 3
- S-Video In: 5 (incl. Front)
- Composite In: 5 (incl. Front)
- HDMI Out: 1
- Component Out: 1
- S-Video Out: 2 (incl. Monitor Out)
- Composite Out: 2 (incl. Monitor Out)Analog L&R In 8 (incl. Front & AUX2 (L&R of 7.1 ch In))
- Analog L&R Out: 3
- Digital Optical In: 3 (incl. Front)
- Digital Coaxial In: 2
- Digital Optical Out: 1
- Digital Coaxial Out 0
- Pre-Amplifier Out: 7.1 ch
- Multi-Channel In: 7.1 ch
- Speaker A/B Surround Speaker “B”
- D-Bus Remote (RC-5) In/Out
- Flasher In/IR Receiver In/Emitter out 1/0/0
- Front Panel A/V Inputs S-Video/Video/Analog L&R/Digital Optical
- Headphone Outs: 1
- AC Outlets (Switched/Unswitched): 1/0
- Power Output: (8 Ohm) 80W x7 (20Hz – 20kHz)
- S/N Ratio: 105dB
- Freq. Response (Analog In); 8Hz – 100kHz (+/- 3 dB)
- Freq. Response (Dig In): 8Hz – 45kHz (+/- 3 dB)
- Frequency Range: 87.5 – 108.0MHz
- S/N Ratio (Mono/Stereo): 75/70
- Tuner Frequency Range: 520 – 1710kHz
- Tuner S/N Ratio: 50dB
- Video Freq. Response (Component): 5MHz – 80MHz (-1 dB)
- Video Freq. Response (Composit, S-Video): 5MHz – 8MHz (-1 dB)
- Video Signal to Noise: 60dB
Tags: Marantz, Marantz SR4003, Surround Receiver Posted in: AV Recievers, Home Theater No Comments
