Thanks for that kind feedback. I enjoyed making this series. I do this as a hobby and it produces some supplementary income to justify spending money on equipment. I am learning with you as I go and having fun with the discovery process. -Jon
Patiently waiting for new models from Yamaha since it's been a while. Im still running the 2080 with no complaints. Love seeing their sound quality at the top of the group.
You are unlikely to see anything new from Yamaha for quite sometime. There is a 2 yr old video on Audioholics where Gene sits down with Yamaha and speaks of the new line. He talks about the new line being ready and capable technology wise for the next 10yrs. I take that to mean they don’t plan anything for a while.
Thank you sooooo very much John for your deeply dissected analysis’ of all items you review. Your platform provides the best indirect guide to soundly(all puns) deciding based on features available
Good one John! ❤ Differences between most electronic gear for digital audio reproduction (if not broken implementations, like PS Audio and similar nonsense faux engineering) is a solved problem and transparent (for 99,9% of buyers, even trained listeners), given you don't have edge case hard to drive speakers, long run of a noisy cable situation etc. That's why I like your channel and episodes with deep dives in usability, the small differences on features, warranty, startup times, compatibility and extendability etc. Much more important for most of us to understand that sort of things than "0.01% difference at non-hearable 17kHz.."
That's nonsense. I have had 3 of these AVRs in my room using exactly the same speakers which are standard Q series Kefs and they all sounded different. Even the marantz cinema 40 over the 30. I've also had the rz50 and I can confirm at least for those 3 I would place them where John has them. If you think John is just splitting hairs with the sound quality he's not.
I think you comments from both of you make sense from your perspectives. I wish I had better speakers, like the Kefs so I could hear more details and more clearly position each model. Glad that I am still generally on track. -Jon
@@ripewave My kefs aren't the fancy ones. One day I want to get all R6 meta across the fronts but will have to wait. Speakers will make a difference but I think just the main point is they do sound different. I wouldn't be surprised if the order was different with different speakers even if I roughly hear what you hear.
Hi John, really enjoy your in-depth analysis. Great work! Wondering if you could help. Im planning a new system for a dedicated room (HT and stereo audio listening). Already have KEF 205/2 and Musical Fidelity M6is to use with the fronts (HT bypass when using for HT) and Im not sure if I should go for the Onkyo RZ-70 (to handle center and surrounds/atmos) or go to separates, using Marantz 7706 + MM8077 for the same purpose. Do you think there will be a great difference for movies? based on your videos, it seems RZ-70 processing and other dedicated processors are in the same category (RMC1, AV41, AVM70). I'd spend twice the price at least for the separates options and I'd like to understand if Im getting what I pay for. I have a small/medium room (12 x 14 ft), so "power" is not my main concern. Thanks so much!!!
You may be better with the Onkyo RZ-70 as it includes Dirac Live. That better calibration tool may do more for your sound enhancement then separates. Furthermore, you can always add external amplifiers to the RZ-70 which will provide a separate like experience. -Jon
Yes - in comparison with other receivers with fans I felt these had medium noise associated. The Anthem AVM 70 8K was the loudest. They were not audible with music or movie playing accept in soft passages. -Jon
Depending on volume level. RZ70 has 4 fans. Two big for cooling power amps and two small on the HDMI board. When you power ON AVR, only one small fan is spinning on lowest rpm, all the time. It is not audible for most people from 3m in quiet environment. It's about +-15-17db very silent noise. It's not possible hear anything, if volume on AVR is turned on, even on low listening level. Of course, if you ear is 10cm above AVR, you can hear fan. But it's not obvious usage. It's not true, that volume above 60% turns on next fans, or make AVR noisy immediately, as you see in video. But fan(s) can rotate faster, depending on temperature. And temperature depends on listening levels, when you go above 60%. When crank up volume to high levels, for long time, big fans will turn on and HDMI fan is rotating on medium rpm. Yes, at this situation, it's audible, but only when you mute or stop audio :) If you volume level is exact 60% and above (absolute), then AVR switch to full power mode and this will increase also temperature. When the temperature rises, fans can turn on. It's only about temperature. But if you listening levels is below 60%, or speaker impedance is set to 4 ohms, power is limited and it means, that other fans probably never spin up. When your volume is
Hi Jon, thank you again for your video. Based on your chart, it appears that RZ70 has a better sound quality, more amplified channels than Cinema 40. And it’s less expensive (not to mention the included Dirac)… About the only advantage the Cinema 40 has is that it looks better. Does it make sense to get Cinema 40 at all? What are your thoughts on this? Thanks
I'm also thinking about buying the RZ70 or Marantz Cinema 40. Where I live, they cost almost the same. My feeling is that the Marant has a better GUI and has a more polished user experience and has less quirks. The Onkyo, on the other hand, feels more solid, it is bigger and weighs more, almost 7kg more than the Marantz, that must be positive for the sound quality! These are just my own thoughts and I haven't tested them side by side. Which one did you choose in the end? Thanks.
I am confused, so I guess I will just compare one Onkyo and one Integra, then keep the one I like. FWIW, I think that using AVRs for music in stereo is a great idea when one also wants to hear dialogue better with an AVR's voice zoom feature --like we get with the Integra/Onkyo "vocal" button. It helps tremendously. I don't even need a center channel speaker because of the vocal boost! So here I am using an Integra AVR as a stereo unit but with TWO MAJOR FEATURES I cannot find on integrated stereo receivers: voice boost for movies/TV and a 15-band custom user graphic EQ! I am not getting pounded with bass and midrange like I did with the Cambridge Audio AXR100 and Integra's "sound" seems a bit scooped IMO, but I can ADD the mids and bass! And yet... I wonder whether some of these midrange frequencies are filtered out by engineers to create a "cleaner" sound and whether, on the other hand, the Cambridge AXR100's aural brutality is caused by distortion. Too many integrated stereo amps are disappointing just due to their standard/"house," unalterable EQ profiles.
I just got a great deal on the RZ70...$1,899! I'm thinking of using an external amp for the LCR channels...buckeye purifi or hypex ncx500. Do you think this will greatly add to the sound experience? If so, do you prefer the purifi or the hypex ncx500? Oh yeah, it will be driving swans diva 6.1 fronts and center. Your response would be greatly appreciated by this new subscriber. Skip McCain
I think you got real lucky on the price. May have been an error in your favor. I have not heard those class D amp modules to provide an opinion. I understand both are excellent and I am very curious. I have to date gone with traditional class AB/H amplifiers. However, now there Class D has evolved to overcome its limitations, it may surpass the sound quality of a well designed class AB amp and still have the lower weight and heat. I suspect that either will drive a Swans Diva 6.1 well (I recall those have a nominal impedance of 8 ohm). -Jon
I felt that these flagship models from Integra, Pioneer and Onkyo sounded better then the Marantz Cinema 40 and Denon AVR-X4800H regardless of the mode or calibration method. -Jon
Hello, thank you again for tour Crest work. St thé end, thé important thing IS , taking Into account all thèse receivers, which one or Inès do you préfère when listening. If you dont Care about prices, only when listening, could you place from thé first to thé worst‽ And in a second term, if WE tale intro account prices, could you too give préférences ( from one Brand to another)
The sound comparison chart I provided in the video has the models in order of sound quality preference independent of price. I haven't ordered based on price, but I believe the Onkyo TX-RZ50 would come out on top. -Jon
I find it interesting that Andrew Robinson in his reviews of the RZ70 and the LX805 found such a big different in their sound qualities. I wonder if he got a bad unit from Pioneer or if they really tuned the amplifier stages that differently.
Andrew Robinson mentioned he ran Dirac and didn't touch/tweak the results of the Pioneer 805 which the results can be off from the receivers sound signature or not ideal. I have the Integra 8.4 and it's very good sounding but I had to tweak the Dirac results to my liking.
His channel is a regular subjective "golden ear" one, so he must find these differences to seem to provide some sort of "value".. Differences between most electronic gear for digital audio reproduction (if not broken implementations, like PS Audio and similar nonsense faux engineering) is a solved problem and transparent (for 99,9% of buyers, even trained listeners), given you don't have edge case hard to drive speakers, long run of a noisy cable situation etc. Moving your head or a couple of furniture in your room has more impact than any AVR that's not obviously broken. Splitting hairs. That's why I like John's episodes and deep dives in usability, the small differences on features and extendability etc. Much more important for most of us.
I work hard to ensure that I am calibrating each unit in the same manner. If you are not consistent in your approach, and if you cannot quickly compare A/B/C between models, it becomes very hard to know which is truly better. I do like Andrew's channel, but we don't always align - but that is okay. It is good to have a variety of reviewers out there to get the full picture. -Jon
I'd just ignore him. Jon here is doing God's work. Andrew Robinson just gives no information at all unlike Jon. Plus, he always says RZ50 is best while that is plagued by issues. And dude says Soundbars are good. IRL, even a 3.1 setup, will blow the garbage soundbars.
hi mate, im not sure if youve tested the rx a6a but would the sound comparison table be the same as the a8a?, im looking at replacing a rxa 3080 and i have my sights set on a drx 8.4 or a tx rz70 or a a6a or a8a , i dont need any more than 9 channels but these are the 4 i like, what would you pick for hifi and home theater?, cheers mate
@@ripewave cheers mate--- i still cant decide on what new reciever to get-- i have a yammy rxa 3080--- its working fine, i may just get a seperate power amplifier, as i dont think the a6a would be much different than the 3080--- has the same dacs etc, im just after a bit more punch, thanks for reply
From a sound quality perspective you could say that. After that you select based on the features you want and the style you prefer. For example, I still like my Emotiva RMC-1 despite not having all the features and having a few issues. I just feel comfortable using it. -Jon
Hello, Thank you again for your videos. In my previous messages I have an Onkyo rz50. THE rz70 has a better dac and the Auro 3d. However, we are finding more and more used Marantz Cinema 40s. What interests me in this Marantz (same for the Cinema 50), is the possibility of having the Auro 3D, Sony 360 and the update for Dirac, certainly the update is paid but we find the cinema 40 at 1800€ used in Europe (I paid 960€ for the Onkyo rz50). What do you think of this change? I don't know if we reach the level of a Yamaha A8A or Emotiva. what is a rz50 calibrated in dirac worth in thx cinema compared to the marantz cinema 50 calibrated in dirac or with the 360 or auro 3d option? Onkyo rz50 thx cinema vs marantz cinema 40 dirac onkyo rz50 vs marantz cinema 40 360 degrees Onkyo rz50 versus marantz cienma 40 Auro 3d One question I have is if dirac calibration is taken into account when using Auro 3D, 360degrees.
I really appreciate the donation. Sorry for the delay, the holidays etc. have me behind. Let me know if there is any content you would like to see me produce. Glad you are here. -Jon
