Sherwood RVD-6095 RDS

...like the value of the Sherwood RVD 6095RDS. If you are just starting out in the world of home cinema, or if you are on a budget and looking to replace an ageing amp, then Sherwood are a brand you should consider.

Richer Sounds are tied up with Sherwood to such an extent that you will find it difficult to obtain Sherwood products from any other UK supplier. That is not to say they are an ‘Own Brand’ product, far from it. ...
...than a year old the Sherwood RVD 6095RDS is largely future-proof in that it caters for most audio technology available now or on the horiaon. The only initiative it doesn’t directly cater for is the Dolby THX 6 channel technology which has been seen on a small number of recent DVDs. However, with DTS still establishing itself in the UK DVD market and most audio DVDs relying on Dolby 5.1 you will still have plenty to enjoy in the coming months.
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I cannot think of another Audio/Video Receiver that offers anything like the value of the Sherwood RVD 6095RDS. If you are just starting out in the world of home cinema, or if you are on a budget and looking to replace an ageing amp, then Sherwood are a brand you should consider.

Richer Sounds are tied up with Sherwood to such an extent that you will find it difficult to obtain Sherwood products from any other UK supplier. That is not to say they are an ‘Own Brand’ product, far from it. Sherwood have been in this game for some time and sell products across America, Canada and Australia. They are known to build good quality items with features not otherwise found in the budget arena. They are well reviewed on the Internet and What Hi-Fi magazine has never given one of their A/V amps less than 4 out of 5 stars.

The 6095RDS was launched at the end of 1999 with an RRP of £349.99. It was fundamentally the same amp as the incredibly successful 6090 but with an added DTS sound option for DVD users. When it came through to Richer Sounds in numbers the price soon dropped to £249 and it started to sell bucket loads.
I bought mine at that price and I have used it almost every day in the fourteen months that have followed. I have an Akai VS-J717EK-N Nicam VCR and Samsung 709 DVD player running through it. The Samsung doubles as the audio CD player in the main room of the house. The room itself is quite large, about 24 foot by 12 foot, and needs a lot of sound to fill it. The 6095RDS drives a pair of JPW ML710i’s (6 Ohm, 80 Watts) at the front, a Gale Centre 10 in the middle and a pair of Wharfedale Diamond 7.1 Pro’s (8 Ohm, 100 Watts) at the rear. The fronts are connected with Qudos Silver Anniversary cable and the rears with Cambridge Audio Linea 3. The resultant sound is superb for the money invested in it.

The unit itself is very solidly built and measures 44cm x 12.5cm x 33cm which makes it just a little wider than many video and DVD units but it should still squeeze into most TV/Audio display cabinets. The 6095RDS is compatable with the ‘One For All’ brand of replacement remotes but the remote control supplied is very nice. With that said, it has so many buttons it appears you could fly the Space Shuttle with it. Indeed, the 6095RDS has so many features that it comes with a 25 page manual written in small type!
The receiver has both a FM tuner and AM tuner, RDS search functions and 30 pre-sets. Reception is particularly good even with only the most basic UHF ariel.
The amplifier delivers 65 Watts to each of the five channels. The sub-woofer is a pre-amp only connection. The front of the unit has connections for video picture and stereo sound (mainly for camcorder connection) and the headphone out socket. The rear of the unit has pre-outs for front, rear and sub-woofer/centre. It has a direct 6 channel input matrix and will also receive digital inputs from either coaxial or optical inputs making it real easy to get the best from your CD or DVD player. The output terminals for the front, rear and centre speakers are basic but sturdy binding poles. This is my only area of criticism as there is no facility here for bi-wiring which is a real shame.
The controls at the front of the unit are easy to use and allow for a very detailed speaker set-up or one of the 3 pre-programmed DPS settings. Switching between stereo, Dolby 5.1 and DTS output is all done at the touch of a button as is the selection between sources. The unit is Digilink ready.

Despite being more than a year old the Sherwood RVD 6095RDS is largely future-proof in that it caters for most audio technology available now or on the horiaon. The only initiative it doesn’t directly cater for is the Dolby THX 6 channel technology which has been seen on a small number of recent DVDs. However, with DTS still establishing itself in the UK DVD market and most audio DVDs relying on Dolby 5.1 you will still have plenty to enjoy in the coming months.

I love it, and so do What Hi-Fi. They gave the sister unit (6090) five out of five stars and made it an award winner in it’s group. With prices as low as £199 you can’t go wrong.

Further Reading:
Check out my opinion on Richer Sounds
Find reviews on the competition: Sony STRDB930 and Yamaha DSPA5 

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