Replaced 2 yr old Yammy 471 with Denon-X1000

[slash1814]

Hi Folks,

So after listening to my Yammy-471 for approx. less than 2 years, I let it go and got a new Denon A-X1000.

Back in 2012 (early) I had auditioned Denon, Onkyo and Pioneer AVRs and based upon the theory of elimination I got Yamaha 471 without audition . As we all know Yamaha are very clean amps, but I was missing the Denon punch, though I eliminated for not being so musical.

Now this new line up of X-Series 500, 1000,2000,4000 etc. do not have the same sound signatures as that of old denon, this series has leaned towards brighter side, without losing the traditional punch.
So I started the auditon of Yamaha 371 Vs Denon X-500. The later won in all departments when ran on almost similar settings.

I grilled these AVRs with Transformers 2 (Bluray) (Opening Scene) that has a mix of Thunderous explosions, clink-clank shatter and background score with heavy (pitch wise) vocals from Ironhide and Optimus prime. Denon had Oomph..

For Music I had U2 (Rattle and Hum) DVD , as expected Yammy was bit (..just a bit) clean and open, but with Denon you could feel the bass driven in "Angel of Harlem and Desire" songs off course with detailed highs (no complaints)

Above tests were conducted with Tannoy sfs 5.1, Its Sub surprised me

I tried X-2000 as well with same material plus CARS Blu-ray also. I did not notice significant sound difference, however, its 7.1 and I ran it on 5.1.

This was run on Tannoy V2 & then on V4 , Velodyne sub (which was surprisingly a disappointment...I wonder why)

I'll try to add more details on this review...Thanks for reading..

Regards
Slash...

 

[slash1814]

Update 18th March 14 :: I had run Audyssey as per the instructions. Post running checks for 3 points (sitting positions), I got the results.

Distances :: Were very accurate for all the 6 units
Levels :: Trimmed down to negative, Fronts (-5), Surr (-6.4 & -8 as left one is far by 4 feets), center (-6), Sub (-8, was put on 50% volume). Now initially I thought that with negative levels I have to crank the volume...which is not the case I can hear everything loud and clear...precisely..balanced. The only tweak I did was to crank Sub volume to +3.
Dynamic EQ :: On
Dynamic Volume :: Best results on medium setting.

These settings provided excellent sound for DD and DTS (including lossless True HD & MA).

Now comes the Stereo performance :: It is bright and tends to get a bit harsh with Audyssey settings, therefore, We have to go for "Manual Equalization (EQ)", to attenuate the highs. I am still working over the stereo part..will update later.

Network Set-Up :: I used my LAN cable (Ethernet) extended till AVR and set up was a breeze, AVR detected all parameters automatically. Airplay or Tune-In radio was streaming perfectly, with album art.

Overall Impressions as far as Surround Sound is concerned are that this AVR is excellent and delivers very clean and punchy output. I am not disappointed to upgrade from my Yammy-471

 

[jain1980]

It would be interesting to see how the new Denon compares with Yamaha V475 or V373.

 

[slash1814]

I had 471 and i have demoed denon with 375. I guess overall Denon is better, only issue is its edgy stereo performance.plus its not reading my usb.

 

[[email protected]]

Hi, Congratulations on your purchase. Can you please PM me the price of Denon X1000. I am thinking of getting Denon and can buy from bangalore if the price is lower compared to Pune.

 

[Bharadwaj Bunga]

Congrats on your new acquisition buddy. Please share the price you paid for X1000 and the dealer name.

 

[dramitpc]

Congrats on your purchase.
I have also purchased X1000 from AVXcellence Pune last week.
Enjoy

 

[slash1814]

For all the FMs purchasing new X- series. Audyssey did not give me the best sound.
I have carried out 8 point caliberation very diligently...the result was good but not excellent. However, Audyssey Flat Eq. can work for Music DVDs. For movies I recomment the following settings below:

Distances :: As prescribed by Audyssey

Levels :: All 5 speakers set to "Zero", Sub may be run 2 notches hot, center may go up to 3 (denon renders dialogues better than my old yamaha)

Dynamic EQ :: OFF (always

Dynamic Volume :: OFF

Bass := 6; Treble := 0 to 6 (i like bright sound, so I put it as 6)

Equalizer := Manual (default flat curves)

And you are ON...

Regards
Slash

 

[slash1814]

Its a shame that some of the HT vendors of repute, do not know intricacies of an AVR like equalizer options, that lead the customers in selecting wrong AVR. I bet 95% of these stores have never run through all the options and settings. Always go prepared before buying an AVR. Go through the manual (pdf, download one) and prioritize what settings you wanna try during the demo.

Take Blurays like transformers (few scenes) that can put demoed system into full 5.1 channel sound mode, where you have background score, explosions, dialogues etc in single clip. Take a concert DVD to test musicality of the AVR (if option is present swith between DTS & Dolby sound). Play with manual equalizer, majority of AVRs allow each channel to be set individually.

~Slash

 

[BLASTO]

Now this new line up of X-Series 500, 1000,2000,4000 etc. do not have the same sound signatures as that of old denon, this series has leaned towards brighter side, without losing the traditional punch.

What you have mentioned is even the same sound signature of the earlier denons too. Anyone who owns Yamaha describes any denon as bright and punchy. Even side by side comparisons will yield the same results for even the older denons.

 

[jkarthik]

What you have mentioned is even the same sound signature of the earlier denons too. Anyone who owns Yamaha describes any denon as bright and punchy. Even side by side comparisons will yield the same results for even the older denons.

Yes Blasto. You are absolutely correct.

 

[slash1814]

What you have mentioned is even the same sound signature of the earlier denons too. Anyone who owns Yamaha describes any denon as bright and punchy. Even side by side comparisons will yield the same results for even the older denons.

Even I feel the same, 3 yrs. back I rejected denon (1612) just because I could not fiddle with the manual Eq. option, or the vendor did not know how to, to be precise. While I was impressed with the punch it delivered. Raising 2 to 3 notches of 8KHz, 16KHz would have delivered the sparkle that I was looking for.