New 4K AVR to replace 10 year-old Yamaha Aventage.

Personally I would go for something with Dirac or at the very least ARC genesis room correction so that will probably put you in the 2K range and Arcam/Anthem unless you go for one of the new Denon’s(Though unless buying the high end Denon Dirac will be additional cost and available at a later date).

I think room correction is the most important feature unless you have a heavily treated cinema room!
That was the way I was thinking. Identify the best room correction system and then shortlist those AVRs that meet that criteria. With the Yamaha still using YPAO the alternatives should be a lot better. I’m in no immediate hurry and would want to read some reviews before committing.
 
That’s a good strategy, some reading material in the meantime:





with Arcam, it’s better to buy the previous range (AVR10/20/30) as they are now heavily discounted and ask the dealer to install the hdmi 2.1 upgrade for £500 as that is the only thing that changed between the AVR20 and AVR21 for example.

the JBL has been succeeded by the sdr-38 and like the previous Arcam range can be upgraded to hdmi 2.1 for same cost so you may find it discounted enough to consider.

the best part is the research!
 
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Having read the review of Dirac sound correction and the review of the Arcam AVR21 that is looking like a potential purchase. Dirac looks to be the way to go. It should provide a big improvement over YPAO.

With just 7 channels of amplification (same as the Anthem 740) that suits me more than 11+ with Denon. Paying for something I’d never use.

I’m not discounting the Anthem 740. Just need to read some more reviews to see if the same strengths are made with different reviewers. Ditto with disadvantages.

Agreed, research is fun. 👍
 
Having read the review of Dirac sound correction and the review of the Arcam AVR21 that is looking like a potential purchase. Dirac looks to be the way to go. It should provide a big improvement over YPAO.

With just 7 channels of amplification (same as the Anthem 740) that suits me more than 11+ with Denon. Paying for something I’d never use.

I’m not discounting the Anthem 740. Just need to read some more reviews to see if the same strengths are made with different reviewers. Ditto with disadvantages.

Agreed, research is fun. 👍

I think the downside of the Anthem is the hdmi2.1 upgrade is only available in the US at the moment, is additional cost, and on the Anthem thread there are quite a few software issues.

the only potential gotcha with the arcam is how nicely the hdmi will play with your tv. It’s mostly fine but some older tv’s can have handshake issues.
 
I think the downside of the Anthem is the hdmi2.1 upgrade is only available in the US at the moment, is additional cost, and on the Anthem thread there are quite a few software issues.

the only potential gotcha with the arcam is how nicely the hdmi will play with your tv. It’s mostly fine but some older tv’s can have handshake issues.
HDMI 2.1 doesn’t interest me as it will never be used for playing games and 8K TV is fantasy world. Software issues is more of a concern.

I would hope a 6 year-old quality TV would not present any issues. Reading through the very long Bild7 topic I can’t find any discussion about ARC problems. That’s another reason why I would want RS to do the install. They have the experience to sort these things out.
 
8K TV is fantasy world.
But will it be in 10 years' time? I would have thought that with your buying history (keeping the avr for a long time) that future-proofing wherever possible would be a good idea.
 
But will it be in 10 years' time? I would have thought that with your buying history (keeping the avr for a long time) that future-proofing wherever possible would be a good idea.
I don’t believe we’ll ever see 8K in broadcasting or streaming programmes. The size of screen required plus the distance you need to sit to get the benefit is critical.

Look at 4K in the last six years. The price of 4K disks hasn’t dropped much and imagine the premium for 8K even assuming the source material is good enough for 8K. One film that is is Lawrence of Arabia because it was shot on 70mm back in 1960. How many directors shoot in that now?

If you’re a gamer it’s probable. But I don’t game. I have a flight sim program and 4K on a 32” monitor is fine for that.

In any case I’ll be in my 80s by then so it’s doubtful I’d see the benefit anyway.
 
If you are also thinking of replacing your 5.1 speakers @RayP there's always these:

 
I’m afraid health issues continue to plague me but as my brain is still working I’ve been reading the forum gathering info. The subject of a fan issue and Anthem’s response in this topic is a little concerning. I really wouldn’t expect a quality unit like that to have such a problem given how easy it is to resolve.

That leaves the Arcam AVR21 and now that it’s received a very favourable review, the Denon AVC-X3800H.

Whilst the Denon doesn’t currently have DIRAC it should arrive early 2023 but in any case Audyssey seems to do a decent job far exceeding YPAO on my Yamaha.

Even if DIRAC costs a few hundred quid it still works out cheaper than the Arcam with it already provided. The only downside I can see is paying for 9 channels of amplification when I will only use 3 (5 possibly should I add Atmos).

Given my Naim XS3 will be driving the front pair it appears the Denon will have plenty of grunt for the remaining 3.

Is the quality of the pre-amp stage something to consider here? Arcam better than Denon? Or is it not really an issue given the AVR would only be used for home cinema?

The Denon definitely appeals. Thoughts?
 
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@ashenfie , I considered Arcam but reliability was a worry for me. I see Denon have just announced a new 8K range of AVRs. I’ll have a read through those although it’s probably a bit early for reviews.

If I like Apple’s programmes I’ll consider the Apple box. Do you just plug it into the HDMI on the AVR?
Thats correct.I have also programmed to Apple Remote to control the sound
 
Thats correct.I have also programmed to Apple Remote to control the sound
After having a couple of months viewing AppleTV I’m not taking up the subscription. Having cleared that up any thoughts on the Denon vs Arcam?
 
After having a couple of months viewing AppleTV I’m not taking up the subscription. Having cleared that up any thoughts on the Denon vs Arcam?
Hard call right now as not seen an any reviews of Dirac on the Denons, version 1 might have issues. Still deal the Denon stereo performance maybe the weakest point.
 
Hard call right now as not seen an any reviews of Dirac on the Denons, version 1 might have issues. Still deal the Denon stereo performance maybe the weakest point.
Not knowing anything about DIRAC I’ll leave it to those who do.

Stereo performance is irrelevant. Music stored on NAS (FLAC) is played via a Bluesound Node 2i (2020 version) into my Naim XS3. The Denon is exclusively for home cinema / Sky watching.
 
Not knowing anything about DIRAC I’ll leave it to those who do.

Stereo performance is irrelevant. Music stored on NAS (FLAC) is played via a Bluesound Node 2i (2020 version) into my Naim XS3. The Denon is exclusively for home cinema / Sky watching.
Makes sense. To get good bass thu Dirac is a great option. You could get a dealer to set this up for you as it requires knowledge over and above just running the basic calibration.
 
Makes sense. To get good bass thu Dirac is a great option. You could get a dealer to set this up for you as it requires knowledge over and above just running the basic calibration.
That’s the plan. RS in all probability. I used to be fine setting up an AVR but with the increased complexity of room correction I’m sure they’ll have far more experience than me. I’m technically minded so sure I’ll be able to understand the procedure.

I’m looking around Feb as that’s the quietest time of the year and maybe by then DIRAC will be available. But Audyssey is still a great improvement over the somewhat dire YPAO.

Looking at the Awards section the Denon is classed as Best Value midrange whereas the Arcam is top range. But that could be judging them on stereo music which is irrelevant for me.
 
Hi Ray. Just to say that I found this thread and your other posts helpful to read.

I've just upgraded from an older LG HD only 55" 930 EV to a 65" 4k C2 with HDMI 2.1 and eARC. So now need to upgrade from an Arcam AV888 with 1.3 HDMI.

A newer Arcam (2.0b is fine for me) or the Denon X3800 is where I am now at as well...
 
Gents, I’m now giving serious thought to adding 2 Atmos speakers. Separate topic opened here. Finally considering Atmos - 2 options available.
If you are going for Atmos then consider getting four and doing it right. A convincing three dimensional audio bubble is much more convincing than a top front heavy three dimensional audio wedge. Also if you are going Atmos then don't bother with reflectors. Up above or stick with quality planar surround. Mushy overhead is a detracting feature, not a gain.
 
@Captain Ron , with my sofa hard against the back wall that would appear to rule out 4 Atmos speakers. They need to be slightly behind the MLP which isn’t possible.

I’m 35 pages into the Dolby Atmos topic and quite a few people seem happy with a 5.1.2 which practically is all I can squeeze into my lounge.

I’ve shortlisted these Kefs. Thoughts? Maybe continue the discussion on my other topic?
 

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