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Member since:24.10.2003
Reviews:6
I have started to carry out trying to turn my front room into a ‘home cinema’ (loosely described).
The aim was to connect the TV to the DVD to the Video to the Sky and to the Mini disk player, so that the sound from each of these units is played through the amplifier and speakers creating a home entertainment system to produce a better sound quality. So what I required was an amplifier with at least 5 inputs.
The package I bought was the Yamaha RX-V396RDS. I bought this package from a High street retailer for £299.99 approximately 2 Years ago, when this type of amplifier was relatively new to the market. Now I have seen this package for less than £200.
This is the first stand alone amplifier that I have bought for my ‘home cinema’ experience, previous to this I was using my old hi-fi with it’s 4 speakers as
surround sound, the difference heard was unbelievable.
Included
The package comes in one large box (approximately…), on opening this box you find there are two smaller boxes inside one for the speakers and one for the amplifier.
The amplifier box includes: Amplifier (AV receiver) Remote control (inc. batteries) Owner’s manual (about the size of ‘War and Peace’) Connection guide
The speaker box includes: Main - 2 x 60W Centre - 1 x 60W Rear - 2 x 60W Sub Woofer (base speaker) Speaker wire for all speakers Owner’s manual
This unit is about twice the thickness of a DVD player so it takes up quite a bit of room (sizes WxHxD: 435x151x391mm and weighing 10kg(22lbs)).
Specification
The list of specifications for this unit is far too long to list, this will include everything from the speaker impedance through to dynamic power. The manual lists the full range; here are a few
The set up for this unit is very complex and requires a lot of time and patience to set up, if you are not competent at simple electrical wiring and following wiring diagrams then assistance is essential. Not only is there the running the cables/wire to where you want it there is also the termination of the wires into the speakers/amplifier. The manual does give very good advice and tips for when setting this up but a bit of background information is required. No phono, Coaxial or Optical leads are supplied with this package so make sure you know fully what is required before setting up. For the sound quality it is better to use the Coaxial/Optical leads where possible. The ariel supplied with the package for AM/FM is very poor, You can tee into your TV ariel for a better signal.
For audio this unit has 6 phono plug inputs; Aux., CD, Tape/MD (IN/OUT), DVD/LD, Sat/D TV, VCR (IN/OUT). It can also receive digital signals with 1 x Coaxial (for DVD/LD) and 2 Optical (DVD/LD or Sat/D TV). It can be used as a hub for video signals with phono plug for 3 x inputs and 2 x out puts. I have not used the signal but instead stuck with SCART leads for video, I believe this to give a better picture quality.
It has the option of adding a second set of main speakers, which can be turned on/off whenever you want. This is useful if you would like the sound on different rooms, by adding extra speakers you can have the same sound throughout your house then turn them off when you are finished (these additional speakers are not supplied).
Ease of Use
This is not a bad unit to operate once you have had a bit of a play, the basic functions are easy to find and use both from the remote or the large dials on the front of the unit. It can be tuned to your front room no matter what the shape by adjusting the speaker volumes during a test mode which can be very handy depending on the location of your speakers.
Summary
The overall experience of the amplifier is very good this is a huge step up from the hi-fi connected to the TV, the total surround sound when watching such movies as ‘Saving Private Ryan’ is incredible it immerses you into the picture. Even just using this as part of a music centre gives an excellent quality sound better than most hi-fi’s, the preset sound programs allow the music to sound as if in a Hall, Rock Concert or even a Disco. There are newer and better packages on the market now, but for a front room sound system this is a good choice
The main down side to this unit is it’s sheer size, being more than twice the size of your standard DVD player this takes up a lot of space especially with the more modern TV stands of today. There is also the problem of an another remote control to go with the collection.
This system is good for a front room to give you a fantastic sound to all of you entertainment, I have had no problems with it over the last 2 years and has served me well. There are now more modern systems on the market for relatively the same price, so it may be wise to shop around to find a more up to date system.
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