Av Receiver Replacement

[Gdgray]

Looking for Av Replacement in $500-600 range to replace Sony 1040. I originally bought Sony after reading CNET review. It appears to be issue with HDMI board. Periodically does not recognize connection.

 

currently have HDMI connected from Samsung TV to receiver. Kilpsch mains  and center connected to receiver as well. Oppo 105d connected to receiver and cable box.

Use primarily for home theater, will be added speakers for 5.1. Also for listening to CDs.

 

any suggestions are appreciated.

[Dave Garrett]

Does the connection drop after the components have all been powered up and running for a while, or does it not sometimes fail to recognize the connection when the receiver is initially powered up? Sometimes AV receivers can be sensitive to the order in which components are powered up, and the HDMI handshake can fail if that order is deviated from. I usually have my TV already powered up, then I power up the source component (Oppo 95, Roku, or cable box), then wait a bit before powering up the receiver last. 

I have a several-years-old Onkyo AV receiver and have been very happy with it. I haven't kept up with the newer models, but Onkyo had some fairly well-documented issues with HDMI board failures in units manufactured between 2009-2012 and wound up repairing a lot of affected units even though they were long out of warranty. I assume their QC processes related to HDMI boards have gotten better since then.  

[Kevin Bresnahan]

It's been a long while since I've shopped AV receivers. Lately, I've been a fan of Marantz, but most of their models are more than $500-600. At your price point, it might be tough. I would take a look at Onkyo or maybe Yamaha. Seems like Best Buy has several in your range.

[Gdgray]

It fails to connect when powering up. It did it periodically over past few years. I have upgraded HDMI cables and that seemed to fix issue. But after a year or so it started again. I have been able to power down in the past and restart devices but that no longer works. Seems to be a known handshake issue with the Sony. So I thought I would replace it.

Just recently started getting into vinyl again after the wife bought me a turntabIe, the result of years of threatening to bring out my old vinyl.I have  separate listening room  with NAD 356 amp with elac speakers. Would like to keep them separate.

 

Thanks for suggestions, I was looking at  Onkyo receivers, sounds like the right direction.

 

 

[Gdgray]

Crutchfield recommendation is Onkyo TX-RZ810@$599. $700 savings

sometimes I don’t trust them , I get the feeling they are pushing it because it’s end of life or an unstated product issue.

[Scott Dolan]

I second the Onkyo and Yamaha suggestion, and would also throw Denon into the mix. For the money they are all pretty similar in options and performance. Marantz may be slightly better, but very slightly, IMO. 

Eiether way, you’ll definitely end up with a super nice AVR in that price range. 

[Gdgray]

Thanks, haven’t purchased yet, getting close.Waiting for some paypal stuff to clear. Recently started buying vinyl again, a whole new addiction.

Looking  at all the ones you mentioned.

thanks again

[Dave Garrett]

On 3/5/2018 at 6:03 PM, Gdgray said:

Crutchfield recommendation is Onkyo TX-RZ810@$599. $700 savings

sometimes I don’t trust them , I get the feeling they are pushing it because it’s end of life or an unstated product issue.

FWIW, I got my Onkyo TX-NR818 from Crutchfield. That model had been discontinued already, and supplies had dried up everywhere. Mine was a B-stock unit that was the last one they had in inventory. I took a chance on it as that particular model had some specific features I wanted that had been phased out in the model that replaced it. I did wind up getting a 4-year SquareTrade warranty for it as well, but never had to use it. Most extended warranties are garbage, but SquareTrade is worth a look if you think you might need something more than the standard one-year manufacturer warranty on an electronic component. 

[Kevin Bresnahan]

6 hours ago, Dave Garrett said:

FWIW, I got my Onkyo TX-NR818 from Crutchfield. That model had been discontinued already, and supplies had dried up everywhere. Mine was a B-stock unit that was the last one they had in inventory. I took a chance on it as that particular model had some specific features I wanted that had been phased out in the model that replaced it. I did wind up getting a 4-year SquareTrade warranty for it as well, but never had to use it. Most extended warranties are garbage, but SquareTrade is worth a look if you think you might need something more than the standard one-year manufacturer warranty on an electronic component. 

Unless Square Trade has changed and offers a full replacement option, it's probably not going to be worth it in the end. A majority of audio gear these days have circuit boards made in a way that makes it nearly impossible to rework them. For instance, if an amplifier dies, you'd have to remove it from the board and install a new one. Since they've gone to lead-free solder, the temperatures required to get that old component off the board are 280-300 degrees Celsius, This temperature often (usually?) melts the metal traces on the circuit board. To make matters worse, you need that same 280-300 degrees Celsius to get the new part back down onto the board, doubling the opportunity to melt that trace. Add into this the fact that the packages being used today are smaller and smaller so that it is nearly impossible to get the package leads to line up on a re-worked circuit board and you have a recipe for disaster.

I used to debug and re-work TVs and audio gear. I stopped about 15 years ago after several failed attempts. It's just not worth the effort. Nowadays, I just buy a new one.

[Dave Garrett]

12 hours ago, Kevin Bresnahan said:

Unless Square Trade has changed and offers a full replacement option, it's probably not going to be worth it in the end. A majority of audio gear these days have circuit boards made in a way that makes it nearly impossible to rework them. For instance, if an amplifier dies, you'd have to remove it from the board and install a new one. Since they've gone to lead-free solder, the temperatures required to get that old component off the board are 280-300 degrees Celsius, This temperature often (usually?) melts the metal traces on the circuit board. To make matters worse, you need that same 280-300 degrees Celsius to get the new part back down onto the board, doubling the opportunity to melt that trace. Add into this the fact that the packages being used today are smaller and smaller so that it is nearly impossible to get the package leads to line up on a re-worked circuit board and you have a recipe for disaster.

I used to debug and re-work TVs and audio gear. I stopped about 15 years ago after several failed attempts. It's just not worth the effort. Nowadays, I just buy a new one.

My understanding is that SquareTrade will attempt to repair a covered component, and if they can't repair it, they will either replace it with the same model or pay the replacement cost/original purchase price. If the item's value is below a certain price point (they say "typically around $400"), they skip the repair attempt entirely and pay the claim. 

I'd agree that repairs are probably a non-starter with most AV receivers these days, unless the repair involves replacing the entire circuit board. And since my unit was already discontinued when I bought it, if I'd had to file a claim they wouldn't have been able to replace it, so I'd have presumably wound up getting reimbursed for the purchase price.

I almost never opt for extended warranties, but the combination of Onkyo's HDMI board issues and the positive comments I'd heard regarding SquareTrade's customer service convinced me that it was reasonable to do so in this case. Like any insurance, you have to decide whether it makes more sense to pay the policy cost up front, or self-insure and assume the risk of further out-of-pocket costs down the road. 

[mjzee]

My two cents: we bought an Asus 2-in-1 (tablet/Windows laptop) for my son, and the screen got cracked.  We had a Square Trade warranty.  They replaced the screen but did a really unartful job - it looked like they shaved off the edges of the old screen in order to remove it, so you still see the shaved edges.  Worse, the installation wasn’t done well: the screen is now upside-down when docked, so it still works as a tablet but not so much as a laptop.

The thing to remember is that Square Trade technicians are not the original manufacturer’s techs - they’re just some third party.  You have no way of knowing in advance the expertise of your technician - there’s no word-of-mouth that you can rely on.  And I imagine their business model is such that they will replace your unit only as an absolute last resort.

[AmirBagachelles]

You might try calling or connecting via online form with Echo Hi Fi in Portland.... tell them what you are looking for. They post used gear everyday, and modestly priced AV receivers from Arcam, Rotel, and Marantz are seen regularly.  Definitely reputable for buying used vintage amps and receivers.