New Arcam AVR's

In the market for a new AV receiver.... got so excited that Arcam have new products out as I have been wanting something with Dirac since a demo a few years ago. Oh how my excitement has come crashing down reading through some of this thread. :(

Hopefully a baseline can be established once the 1.0 software is released.

On the plus side, the performance is getting better with each new firmware release... :cool:
 
If I understand everything correctly, Dirac will only become available once 1.0 is released?
 
That's the plan Stan..
 
Arcam have 'the Empire 2 Suite on the Ground Floor' at the Bristol HiFi show next week and they will be demo'ing the new 16 channels AV gear into JBL speakers. The blurb says they will have a 7.4.4 setup so they're using the extra channels for the subs. Not sure if they can achieve that if they do not have Dirac loaded onto the amps so will be interesting to see / hear, fingers crossed...
 
In the market for a new AV receiver.... got so excited that Arcam have new products out as I have been wanting something with Dirac since a demo a few years ago. Oh how my excitement has come crashing down reading through some of this thread. :(
Mine works absolutely fine just waiting for Dirac.
 
Good to hear it works, I was tempted to buy one this weekend but I won't take the risk until Dirac is actually released.
 
In the market for a new AV receiver.... got so excited that Arcam have new products out as I have been wanting something with Dirac since a demo a few years ago. Oh how my excitement has come crashing down reading through some of this thread. :(

I'm sure it will be all great soon, watch this space.
 
In the market for a new AV receiver.... got so excited that Arcam have new products out as I have been wanting something with Dirac since a demo a few years ago. Oh how my excitement has come crashing down reading through some of this thread. :(
To be honest i really wouldn't worry too much about the negative comments typically that is what happens on forums, rarely do you see people posting when they are happy with a product, but generally people experiencing problems and looking for help IMHO.

It is true that Arcam haven't done themselves any favours by releasing a product to market that wasn't ready for release, however, they seem to be getting through firmware updates to fix the problems/bugs that exist. They are very close to V1xx software/firmware release which should hopefully address most issues.

Having said all that, if it was me, and i am considering going for an AV40 to replace my AV860, i'd still wait a couple of months to see how things pan out with the release software/firmware before i jumped in, will also give time for some proper reviews to appear and see what the competition brings to market too.
 
Just the sort of thinking that will do Arcam a lot of harm. Quite right though so so sad Arcam have really got things so wrong with the HDA launch promise much delivery little. Still I guess it is a good lesson on how not to launch a new line. Well it is a good lesson if others take note of it - bet they don't
 
I can cope with bugs, been into home cinema for long enough to know that it happens and most of the time it can be resolved, or work arounds found. Also forums can distort the nature of products. My main disappointment is launching without a flagship features like DIRAC.
 
I can cope with bugs, been into home cinema for long enough to know that it happens and most of the time it can be resolved, or work arounds found. Also forums can distort the nature of products. My main disappointment is launching without a flagship features like DIRAC.
I think this is a Dirac thing and also the same problem exists for Emotiva. I think they are at the mercy of the Dirac guys doing whatever they need to do. Problem is the Emotiva RMC-1 was released over a year ago and is still saying 'coming soon' I think...
 
"I can cope with bugs, been into home cinema for long enough to know that it happens"

I am sure that is so, the problem is for as long as users take that view things will not really get any better.

An AVR, Washing Machine or fridge to name but 3 items, they are all consumer goods and should all work right OOTB I can imagine SWMBO saying "I can cope with bugs" if her new Washing Machine had bugs - no chance it would be sent back pronto. I know an AVR is more complex but the principal is the same, working as it should OOTB or back it goes
 
I think this is a Dirac thing and also the same problem exists for Emotiva. I think they are at the mercy of the Dirac guys doing whatever they need to do. Problem is the Emotiva RMC-1 was released over a year ago and is still saying 'coming soon' I think...
I think there is an element of "Blame" that can be laid at the doors of not just Arcam here!

My understanding is that Arcam have had the Dirac software for a couple of weeks now, however, there are some issues with it .....now whether that is a direct result of the software provided, or, how Arcam implemented/integrated some of the features with their hardware remains to be seen, but rest assured,it is being worked on as a matter of urgency.

I am pretty sure that both Arcam and Dirac want the Bristol show to have a release ready and fully functioning product available to promote .....
 
"I am pretty sure that both Arcam and Dirac want the Bristol show to have a release ready and fully functioning product available to promote"

Not sure how that works, Arcam were very happy to send dealers kit that did not work fully for "demo" to customers before xmas. The non working kit was for demo only not for sale. Arcam have never said how a dealer was supposed to demo no working product. as for Dirac at the moment v2.4 and 2.41 still have programme close errors for a number of users. If only a real tech writer would go to the show and ask real questions to both Arcam and Dirac we might get some real info. No chance of that too many freebies to think about loosing
 
"I can cope with bugs, been into home cinema for long enough to know that it happens"

I am sure that is so, the problem is for as long as users take that view things will not really get any better.

An AVR, Washing Machine or fridge to name but 3 items, they are all consumer goods and should all work right OOTB I can imagine SWMBO saying "I can cope with bugs" if her new Washing Machine had bugs - no chance it would be sent back pronto. I know an AVR is more complex but the principal is the same, working as it should OOTB or back it goes

I think any AV equipment is a "Very different thing" compared to other "White Goods"
There are numerous third party manufacturers involved, countless licensing issues from yet more third party companies, not to mention trying to stay one step ahead of the competition especially when it involves hardware specifications that hasn't yet been fully ratified that you are trying to implement/include.

Personally i have never had any AV equipment, or other high specced tech item that has worked 100% straight out of the box and never required firmware/OTA/Updates.

I even have a Miele washing machine and coffee machine that both require online updates! :laugh:
 
Thankfully UK law does not allow for high specced tech item to be any different to any other goods sold to domestic users. the goods have to work if they do not they can and should be sent back for refund
 
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I'm not sure much blame can be laid on Dirac, Arcam would have needed a unit that actually works before Dirac could work with it, and as far as I can tell that has only been since the last update, what two weeks.
 
Arcam should never have released the product until Dirac was ready, it’s a key feature of the product. It doesn’t even mention as far as I can see on the Arcam site it isn’t ready.

Unfortunately modern day products all seem to need OTA updates so I am more relaxed about that. I even have to do firmware upgrades on the electronic shifting of bicycles!
 
I even have to do firmware upgrades on the electronic shifting of bicycles!
I have and love Di2, but I thought you didn't generally 'have to', but you could if you wanted to, i.e. in order to get extra features rather than to make it function as it was sold and described as...
 
Arcam should never have released the product until Dirac was ready, it’s a key feature of the product. It doesn’t even mention as far as I can see on the Arcam site it isn’t ready.

spot on, sums it all up very well
 
I bet dirac and 1.0 firmware will be released a night before the Bristol show.... they cannot reveal it with no dirac enabled, the company will just look stupid and there will be too many questions asked?
 
I'm amendment it will have Dirac on it in some shape or form, either Prod or some special in house Beta, if not some heads will roll...............
 
I'm amendment it will have Dirac on it in some shape or form, either Prod or some special in house Beta, if not some heads will roll...............
Id love to think so but I recall the 2018 show...
(1) Emotiva show up with the RMC-1 with no Dirac
(2) Arcam showed up in the white heat of the bass management debacle and tell everyone who asks (which was everyone) that its a non-issue
No scruples and a belief they can get away with it.
And frankly they can bc we still buy their kit - even me bc NAD aside - they are the only game in town for Dirac AVRS at a price and NAD have their own issues and are not fighting in the 16ch space etc
 
Id love to think so but I recall the 2018 show...
(1) Emotiva show up with the RMC-1 with no Dirac
(2) Arcam showed up in the white heat of the bass management debacle and tell everyone who asks (which was everyone) that its a non-issue
No scruples and a belief they can get away with it.
And frankly they can bc we still buy their kit - even me bc NAD aside - they are the only game in town for Dirac AVRS at a price and NAD have their own issues and are not fighting in the 16ch space etc

If 16 channels is not a requirement (I’m running a 7.1.4 setup with no space to add more channels) how would you compare NAD vs Arcam?

I am not fussed about the Arcam delays -They are showing very steady progress in addressing bugs, so indicators are pointing to 1 (maybe 2 conservatively) months to a solid product - rather than years (Emotiva). Which puts their timeline at being similar or still ahead of the competitors.
 

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