SONY STR-DE897/S A/V Receiver for Home Theater - SILVER

Rating:
Summary: Very good receiver for the money
Review: About 14 years ago I bought a Sony receiver for about 6-0-0 bucks, no small amount back then. It had all kinds of options, and aside from a few small problems, the receiver continues to work fine. However, I had to tradeup to a new receiver because the old one just didn't have enough inputs to deal with electronic life today (cable TV box, TiVo, Xbox, XM radio, DVD, VCR) So, I bought the STR-DE897 for 4-0-0 bucks. I certainly got a better deal 14 years later -- the DE897 has all the inputs I need and it has the capability of just about any kind of speaker setup.

I like that the DE897 has different sound field setups, which makes it versatile for various speaker setups or sound sources. However, I still haven't figured out exactly how to use all of the sound field setups. I managed to setup the system to use the Sony 7.1 speaker system and it just remains on that setting, which is fine.

The only significant complaint I have with the DE897 is that Sony must have changed to a new set of remote control codes with the newer receiver models. None of the Sony remotes you can buy off the shelf have a code that will work with this Sony receiver. While I can probably use the "learning" feature of the off-the-shelf Sony remotes -- I shouldn't have to do something like that between two Sony products. Nothing in the receiver's documentation makes you aware that your old Sony remotes just won't operate the receiver. Of course, the receiver's remote will operate my other (older) Sony devices.

The sound the receiver produces is very good and clear. I am not a perfectionist audiophile, so whatever failings this receiver has, I can't hear them. I just like to have good, solid sound delivered to my 7.1 surround speakers and the DE897 delivers.