Denon's AVR-1909 AV receiver gets reviewed, not for the faint of heart

On the face of it, the Denon AVR-1909 receiver seems like a great unit for someone either HT beginners or casual users -- a reputable brand, rich feature set and modest $649 price put it high on the short list; good sound quality should cinch the deal. Not so fast, though -- the CNET gang ran the AVR-1909 through the gauntlet, and while the positives certainly came through (with sound quality besting the Onkyo TX-SR606), the setup and day-to-day use with the included remote left a lot to be desired. To be fair, the remote problem can be solved by using a third-party model, but the text-only black and white onscreen UI for setup is glaring in 2009. Obviously, trade-offs had to be made to hit the price point, and HT zealots like us can live with some setup difficulties for good sound, but more casual users might find this a hard pill to swallow. Hit the link for the gory details, and give this unit some hands-on time before committing.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 23rd 2009 12:21PM]

I purchased this receiver around the holidays as it was on sale at BB, and I agree with the review. The included remote is horrible. Many of the functions are on the back of the remote under a little door. So in order to do a few simple things, you'll find yourself flipping the remote over and over and over.

As soon as I configured my Harmony remote to work with the 1909, everything was happy happy.

-JF

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 23rd 2009 1:11PM]

I have a Denon 1909. The unit is tweaked, and now I only use the volume buttons on the remote while watching perfect 1080p and listening to any loss less soundtrack from my bluray discs.

[ack154 Posted Jan 23rd 2009 1:12PM]

The most intriguing part of this for me is the analog upconverting to HDMI output. I'm far from a home theater guru and feel I know enough to just make it sound good to my ears.

So, someone please correct me if I'm wrong on this and forgive me if it's a dumb question... but the way I'm reading this, I would be able run all of my sources to my receiver (no matter the connection) and then ONLY a single HDMI cable out to the TV? Correct?

As an example... I have a PS2 and Wii on a component connection to the receiver, along with a PS3, cable box, and DVD player connected via HDMI to the receiver. But right now I am running both a component cable and HDMI cable out to the TV. And this receiver (and others with the same feature) would allow me to just use the HDMI?

I'm just trying to make sure I understand what this is doing if I upgrade or recommend something to a friend - so please correct me if I'm interpreting incorrectly. :)

[xraycat82 Posted Jan 23rd 2009 1:36PM]

Yes that is correct. This feature is commonly known as transcoding, analog to digital conversion or upconversion. All new receivers in the same price range as this, inlcuding the Onkyo 606, Pioneer 1018, Marantz 5003 and Yamaha 663 support this method. The main differences between all of these models is the type of automatic equalization used, number of HDMI inputs and of course power ratings. I just bought the Onkyo 606, LOVE IT!

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 23rd 2009 1:37PM]

Yes, you are correct. ALL incoming video signals (with a few strange resolution exceptions maybe) can be outputted via the HDMI output. It is a killer feature.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 23rd 2009 1:50PM]

So it seems. Read the http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1050097 thread to see what those who own it think of it and what bugs it has, etc..

[ack154 Posted Jan 23rd 2009 3:14PM]

Thanks guys!

I'll check out that avsforum link as well.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 23rd 2009 1:39PM]

At work, we sell the snot out of this receiver, and it is very rare we have issues.

As for the ugly GUI, who cares. Once most people set it up, they will not look at it for months, years, or maybe not again for the life of the unit! I'd rather that money go into better sound, and extra HDMI input, etc.

However, I have the 2809, and for that sort of money, they should have done a bit better on the GUI, but it doesn't bother me.

[Ironhide Delta Posted Jan 23rd 2009 3:50PM]

Does this reciever have any latancy issues with gaming devices? I would imagine the transcoding might have some sort of delay factor. Not an issue with BluRay and the like because you can turn on that sound delay feature but with gaming... any noticeable issues?

[awfoote Posted Jan 23rd 2009 4:45PM]

The TX-SR606 got a better rating from cnet than this unit. The TX-SR706, although not reviewed yet, has slightly more and better features than the 606 and can be had for $100 less than the avr-1909 on amazon. I managed to get a silver refurb 706 from shoponkyo for $373 around thanksgiving and it's great.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 23rd 2009 8:35PM]

While Denon, Onkyo and Yamaha keeps getting reviewed, for pure audio quality Harman Kardon is hard to beat at this price point. Compare the HK AVR 254 to the 1909 and it has a better user interface, much better audio quality, the updated firmware has fixed most of the nagging bugs!

[ltf3 Posted Jan 24th 2009 2:53PM]

With you there...


I have a Denon (older model) and the damn thing is a mystery to me! (and I'm a media pro). Sure it works ... but the set ups and odd buttons make no sense to me at all.

I recently set up a Harmon Kardon. Wow ....very very nice. Sounded good at the price point, nice setup menu system, lots of inputs, full transcoding between inputs... great.

I want one for me!

Lee

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 24th 2009 8:10PM]

Most but not all.... I bought and quickly returned an AVR-254 late last year after finding myself banging my head against my TV after experiencing tons of bugs/freezing/audio dropouts, etc. Am waiting for the Pioneer 1019 in April.

[Woody Posted Jan 23rd 2009 5:31PM]

for $650 on the Denon, why not just get an Onkyo 806 for $630? way more features, and get your audio and video quality a good bump

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 23rd 2009 8:38PM]

Denon sucks all around - ugly receiver designs, overpriced, crappy remotes, outdated gui's, the list goes on and on, Only a tool would buy a Denon when there are much better choices available.

It's about as stoopid as buying a PC over a Mac. Some people just have shite for brains.

[(Unverified) Posted Jan 26th 2009 1:04PM]

If you are going to pass all your video through your receiver be very careful when considering the Onkyo models. They have a very well documented issue with blue pixels showing up in dark areas of the screen when upcoverting signals to 1080P via HDMI.