Older "AV" receivers with digital inputs... worth getting for audio?

[Aspen]

The CCA dac is quite good. I wouldn't be so sure that the dac in a 1990's or 2000's AVR would be a noticeable improvement. Perhaps the AVR's dac would be better than the one in your TV, but maybe not either.

Make sure the old AVR has enough digital inputs, some may only have one or two depending on how old they are.

 

[blhagstrom]

I get piles of retired AVR. Recycler connection.
Never got into the home theater thing due to all the endless features, formats, etcetera.
Now, I get to play with all manner of stuff and there are some neat stuff about them.

Probably due to my source, most of the large fancy powerful ones are toast.
A lot of the HDMI are messed up. There are known issues with overheating HDMI chips and I know of one bad power supply design.

They smaller, older units without HDMI, with digital RCA and optical seem to be a sweet spot.
Nearly all of them work fine.
I trust the simpler ones more just from a tech standpoint. Less parts means less that can break.

They are dirt cheap. I manage to flip them, I think to people replacing their dead ones.
Its cheaper to buy a working one and ship it than to try and get one repaired.

I have some higher end stuff rigged up to use as a home theater. For DVD, it is worth having something half assed. You can use vintage stereo but stuff does work better with 5.1. It doesn't need to be fancy. I've used all manner of junk and its good. I don't take it serious at all and recommend not getting all serious and worried. Just grab some cheap used working stuff and play with it. Consider the AVR consumable, use it, replace it if/when it dies or you find another.

I have posted to BT at times, lists of things, but interest is about zero and stuff comes and goes too much to try and maintain accurate lists. If you don't see interesting things local to you, check BT.

 

[hnash53]

The CCA dac is quite good. I wouldn't be so sure that the dac in a 1990's or 2000's AVR would be a noticeable improvement.

I've also read that the DAC in the CCA is "quite good," as you say. Then, elsewhere on AK I read that the CCA DAC is sub par. Hard to know what the truth is. If I had to guess the "truth," I would agree with you.

 

[4-2-7]

From what I gather is your really looking for options to try out for a DAC, and the need for something like a digital hub. This hub can centralize your digital components and be a source selector for them, then be played though your main system that you already have.

What I did after trying a few things like AVRs Bluetooth, and with limited rack space for CDP, Computers and my TV is on another wall. I also don't have room for surround sound nor do I like it. So I didn't need a AVR, processor and amp, and I have a great DAC in the rack.

The record store had a Marantz AV Pre Tuner AV9000, so at a price of around $30, but listed new @ $900. She sure is pretty and has the Gyro tuning wheel, but also had a bunch of optical and coaxial inputs/outputs.



The left side is all your digital inputs and out puts...No HDMI or USB,



They come in silver and black, brushed Aluminum face and nobs, a well made unit.

 

[superdog]

Well, I might suggest the old Denon 'flag ship' from 1986 AVR3000. Though it has most of the 'bells and whistles' it mainly shines in the non-surround (5.1) due to it having over kill of 110wpc to the front and center while the surrounds were a 35w. Was a very nice sounding piece in "bypass" mode for dedicated 2 channel listening. This was my first venture into HT if I'm not mistaken. I don't believe there's even a mic or room set up.... Nice receiver that can be had for nothing on the used. Also can be used as a nice preamp should you wish to expand into dedicated amps or monoblock amplification at a later date.

Some specs:
Power output: 110 watts per channel into 8Ω (stereo)
Surround output: 110W (front), 110W (center), 35W (rear)
Frequency response: 5Hz to 150kHz
Total harmonic distortion: 0.03%
Input sensitivity: 2.5mV (MM), 150mV (line)
Signal to noise ratio: 76dB (MM), 92dB (line)
Output: 150mV (line), 1V (Pre out)
Speaker load impedance: 6Ω to 16Ω
Video Connections: composite, SVHS
Dimensions: 434 x 184 x 421mm
Weight: 35 lbs. net
If 110w isn't enough for you I might suggest the model that replaced the 3000 was the AVR5800 if I'm not mistaken...

I am not sure if this may be too old for the op but I had one of these and it really does well in 2 channel.I had to make some hard downsizing choices or else it would still be with me.

 

[Hak Foo]

The big drawback with the AVRs is that, being relatively new and full of irrelevant-for-stereo stuff, they're going to be far more complex. A lot more one-off chips, a lot more surface-mount parts, and a lot more "scavenge a similar unit for parts." Some of them are "lose the remote and you can't do vital configuration stuff" too.

I went through a few of them... a Pioneer VSX-D509S (started emitting static and going into protection), a Sony STR-DA555ES (died without ceremony suddenly), and a STR-DE635 (gave away to co-workers, ran a little hot). All were circa 2000, which makes me wonder if they were victims of the Capacitor Plague, but at the time I was not in a position to diagnose 'em much.

 

[Bodyblue]

Our 4 year old Sony STRDH 520 HT amp actually sounds pretty good when used as a stereo (with sub) unit. I have a DVD player hooked up to it under the "TV" input and when I go to that input the Sony automatically goes to the 2.1 setting when I switch to it. I originally got the DVD player because the Playstation 3 did not play older DVDs very well. So now I use the DVD mainly for CD playback and use the PS3 for BluRay. The Sony stuff can be a pain to set up but when done, I like how it knows what sound field to use for each input. I am using 23 year old Bose 201s for the front mains (yes yes I know Bose blah blah blah) but since we live in a small condo they are perfect for home theater with their still very good soundstage. And when using them with the sub handling the base, they are a pretty good 2.1 combo.

I am listening to Chris Botti's "December" right now on the Sony in 2.1 while my wife naps on the couch with the dogs. Clear highs from his trumpet with wide soundstage and the sub (Sony 60W 10") filling out the bottom end without being boomy.....perfect for a small space.

 

[jsixis]

I really enjoy my Yamaha RX V992 for stereo, it has pre outs so you can add a more powerful amp or processing. It is rated at 105 watts stereo and the specs are low enough no one's ears will hear the "noise" You can find them on criagslist and other places for about 100 bucks.
I just ordered a new yamaha TSR 7810 and the RX gets to go to the garage, hopefully it will last another 24 years.

 

[hnash53]

Well, I picked up two older AVRs... a Pioneer VSX D498 and a Yamaha RX V540. And they sound really good compared to my Sanyo DCX3300KA quad/4 channel unit. Very crisp sounding and clear... but the 4-channel sound it puts out still beats Dolby ProLogic 1 & 2.

But the programming for the AVRs is a PITA. I'm not new to multi-channel, but I have always found them to be difficult to set up... and even when I think I've got everything set, I still have doubts that I indeed have it configured correctly. That is such a turn-off for me.

I've recapped most of my Sanyo... power supply board and the two output boards were completely recapped along with most other caps of moderate size everywhere in the unit. Sounds great... but just not quite as nice as these two AVRs when listening to 2-channel stereo.

Wish I could get the quad performance from the Sanyo and the snappy crisp sound of the AVRs together....

 

[SiliconTi]

I use a Denon AVR-3803 that has nice Burr-Brown DACs in it. Sounds great fed via optical in.


Should be able to buy one for a song.

Specs:

https://usa.denon.com/us/product/hometheater/receivers/avr3803

 

[jdmccall]

The complexity issue is a concern, but the solution is to just keep playing with it. Not until you go blind, but until you know your way around the menu's and set-up options. I've had my old Pioneer Elite receiver for 13 years and still consult the manual on occasion. Yes, I'm that dumb, or, yes, it's that complicated, or, yes, it's that unintuitive...take your pick.

Shoot, even if I was putting together a new stereo system, I'd still consider building it around an A/V receiver. Catch a good close-out and it's hard to beat the value.

 

[whoaru99]

Well, I picked up two older AVRs... a Pioneer VSX D498 and a Yamaha RX V540. And they sound really good compared to my Sanyo DCX3300KA quad/4 channel unit. Very crisp sounding and clear... but the 4-channel sound it puts out still beats Dolby ProLogic 1 & 2.

But the programming for the AVRs is a PITA. I'm not new to multi-channel, but I have always found them to be difficult to set up... and even when I think I've got everything set, I still have doubts that I indeed have it configured correctly. That is such a turn-off for me.

I've recapped most of my Sanyo... power supply board and the two output boards were completely recapped along with most other caps of moderate size everywhere in the unit. Sounds great... but just not quite as nice as these two AVRs when listening to 2-channel stereo.

Wish I could get the quad performance from the Sanyo and the snappy crisp sound of the AVRs together....

Don't know quad, but if it's a dedicated format then only it's own decoding scheme may do it properly.

That said, several parameters of DPLII music mode are adjustable so maybe you can get a little closer, anyway.

For PRO LOGIC II Music:

PANORAMA
Function:
Extends the front stereo image to include the surround speakers for a wraparound effect.
Choices:
OFF/ON, initial setting is OFF.

DIMENSION
Function:
Gradually adjusts the soundfield either towards the front or towards the rear.
Control range: –3 (towards the rear) to +3 (towards the front), initial setting is STD (standard).

CT WIDTH (Center width)
Function:
Adjusts the center image from all three front speakers to varying degrees. A larger value adjusts the center image towards the main left and right speakers.
Control range: 0 (center channel sound is output only from center speaker) to 7 (center channel sound is output only from main left and right speakers), initial setting is 3.

 

[gbroot]

I've had Denon, Marantz, and Yamaha AVR's. All pre HDMI. The Yamaha RX-V2092 is a beast weighing in at around 45-50 lbs. It has a very hefty power supply and discreet output transistors. It offers several optical inputs and a couple of coax inputs. In my opinion many AVR's weakness is a lack of bass to the mains even with sub turned off. The 2092 puts out exceptional bass even with the sub turned off making it my preference of the three I have heard.

 

[RickeyM]

I have the Chromecast Audio device that has an optical OUT. Since I stream all my music, I'm looking to get as good sound quality that I can, and some of the AV receivers come with optical inputs.

Thanks for your input... pun intended!!

Something you might want to look into is a glass fiber Toslink cable. The glass fiber Toslink's have a higher bandwidth than the plastic fiber Toslink's and I have found that they sound better than ordinary optical cables. Do a search on eBay for "glass Toslink" and you'll find them. They even cost less than so called "Audiophile" optical cables.

 

[Raynald]

I have a couple of Yamaha RX-V1 I use in audio only systems. Great sounding receivers with very good DACs. Pre HDMI, can be found cheap along with their near twin the RX-Z1.