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The 'cure' for receiver feature glut: Stereo receivers

Judging by the Comments responding to my recent "Do receivers have too many features?" blog post, a lot of folks think today's receivers are overstuffed with gizmos. Now sure, if you crave a full complement of the latest doodads--streaming Rhapsody-Napster-Pandora-Flickr, USB inputs, iPhone certification, Audyssey MultEQ XT Auto Calibration, Wi-Fi, Windows Vista, DLNA, HD Radio, Internet Radio, multiroom-multizone connectivity, Ethernet and RS-232C ports, or Bluetooth Wireless Audio Transmission Capability--rush out and buy a home theater receiver. Enjoy reading the 120-page operating manual and exploring layer after layer of setup options. Good times!

But if the goal is to simply enjoy music and a movie every now and then, do yourself a favor and consider a stereo receiver, or if you don't care about radio, an integrated amplifier (an integrated amp is essentially a receiver without a radio). Another plus for stereo home theater converts, they'll never have to deal with convoluted speaker setup menus, or risk an out-of-balance sound mix. Stereo is nearly impossible to get wrong.

A lot of people think stereo receivers are old hat and they "have to" buy a surround receiver. Wrong! And as I pointed out in the blog post the other day, home theater receiver features aren't "free"; manufacturers pay very significant licensing fees and royalties to the companies that developed those features. To bring a receiver in on budget, engineers and product planners make cost-saving decisions to cut back on other aspects of the design. The audio circuitry is probably the first to take a hit.

With stereo receivers the engineering budget is directed to the audio side and Denon, Marantz, NAD, Onkyo, Sony and Yamaha all make stereo receivers. Apparently, there's still a market for stereo components, and now that more and more folks are getting into LPs, most new stereo receivers have turntable inputs. … Read more

Do receivers have too many features?

Do you remember when you bought stereo receivers based on their power and connectivity? The entry-level models were low in power and had just a few inputs. As you moved up in the line, they got more power, more ports, and an extra feature or two. The top models looked cooler than the entry-level ones, with a more high-end design flair and they hid their lesser-used controls under a flip-down panel. If someone bought a more expensive model, it's because they wanted better sound quality.

Home-theater receivers followed the same course, except the higher end models had more speaker … Read more

Crave giveaway of the week with Dolby Volume: Harman AVR 3600 AV receiver

In case you missed last week's giveaway, Dolby is sponsoring the Crave Giveaway of the Week, and serving up some sweet home theater prizes. Last week we had the Harman AVR 2600 AV receiver. This week, Dolby's doing you one better with the step-up Harman AVR 3600 with Dolby Volume.

Here's what Dolby has to say about the AVR 3600: "The 7.1-channel AVR 3600 includes a direct connection for charging and playback of iPhone and iPod devices. Advanced Dolby Digital Plus and Dolby TrueHD decoding complement the built-in Dolby Volume signal processing and 80 watts-per-channel audio performance." (See full specs on Harman's Web site).

Normally, the AVR 3600 would cost about $960, but you have the chance to get it gratis.

So, how do you try to win this Harman AV receiver? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, there's no need to register again. Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated. Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified. The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) Harman AVR 3600 AV receiver. Approximate retail value is $960. If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen. Entries can be submitted until Monday, June 14 at noon EDT.

… Read more

Crave giveaway of the week: Harman Kardon AVR 2600 AV receiver

So, we're excited to announce that for the next four weeks Dolby will be sponsoring the Crave Giveaway of the Week, serving up some sweet home-theater prizes, including this week's Harman Kardon AVR 2600 AV receiver.

Here's what Dolby has to say about the AVR 2600: "This sophisticated 7.1- channel AV receiver includes four HDMI inputs and seven 65-watt channels of 65 watts per channel Dolby Home Theater audio performance. In addition to Dolby Volume, the AVR 2600 includes advanced Dolby Digital Plus and Dolby TrueHD decoding." (See full specs at Dolby's Web site).

Normally, the AVR 2600 would cost about $670, but you have the chance to get it gratis.

So, how do you try to win this Harman Kardon AV receiver? Let me enumerate the basic rules. Please read them carefully; there will be a test.

Register as a CNET user. Go to the top of this page and hit the "Join CNET" link to start the registration process. If you're already registered, there's no need to register again. Leave a comment below. You can leave whatever comment you want. If it's funny or insightful it won't help you win, but we're trying to have fun here, so anything entertaining is appreciated. Leave only one comment. You may enter this specific giveaway only once. If you enter more than one comment, you will be automatically disqualified. The winner will be chosen randomly. The winner will receive (1) Harman Kardon AVR 2600 AV receiver. Approximate retail value is $670. If you are chosen, you will be notified via e-mail. Winners must respond within three days of the end of the contest. If you do not respond within that period, another winner will be chosen. Entries can be submitted until Monday, June 7 at noon EST.

… Read more