- Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 6 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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6 out of 6 people found this review helpful
4.5 stars
"Very good for the Money (Detailed Review)"
Pros: Does almost everything
Cons: Analog to HDMI upconversion not perfect. No auto-setup microphone. Only one (true) VCR record loop. Remote has a MILLION buttons.
Summary: I had previously used a Denon 1801 receiver and processed all video with a custom computer using an ATI 9600 for upconversion (ATI HDTV capture card for input). The machine has an Asus A7N8X motherboard that does Dolby Digital encoding on the fly.
I felt it was time to upgrade to Dolby Pro-Logic IIx, 7.1 and at least Component upconversion to drive my LG DLP. I looked at Onkyo 603x, Denon 1906 and Yamaha 657. They all sounded great, gave me what I wanted and had auto-setup microphones for size, distance, level and EQ. I was ready to buy a Yamaha when I noticed the little JVC. The JVC RX-D401 does HDMI upconversion and has USB audio connectivity (the 701 does that wirelessly, has all video upconversion a few audio tweaks and slightly more power).
Though I have always owned JVC S-VHS VCRs I didn't have much faith in thier audio stuff. To my suprise, the thing sounded great (beter than my old Denon) and actually works as advertised and had a built-in EQ. My other receiver choices were in the $600 range and this one only cost $370. I'm satisfied.
The downside:
1. Though there is a second Video out, it's not a true VCR record loop. Oh well, the computer as PVR came out of the system anyway. Though I was using a silent Sonic Tower heatsink, Fortran PSU and Papst fans - the hard drives spinning up every few minutes was getting old. Now I have total silence and a lower electric bill with the digital amp.
2. HDMI upconversion is not perfect. The ATI could pull all kinds of detail out of any source (mostly because it was upconverting to 1080i and 720p). The JVC looks a little soft by comparison. The JVC's Faroudja DLCi processing does handle vertical motion better. The JVC cannot show the color grey - the picture is made up of slightly green/purple splotches but it's hard to notice
3. No auto-setup microphone like some of the more expensive revivers (If the the 701 had tha feature, I would paid the extra money).
Overall, I am very happy with this thing. Now I have to replace my Pioneer SACD/DVD-A/DVD-V player with a Panasoniv 77S upconversion DVD player to get the most out of my system.
P.S. Model that end in "1" are silver, "2" are black. The HDMI/Cable box issue has been a know issues with the cable companies.
- 1 reply to this review
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Is it the 588? Just curious. I have the 401S and at first I thought it sounded better than my Denon, but I am starting to think it sounds a little compacted for CD audio. For HT, it sounds fine, but maybe just a tad underpowered. The power rating is for 6 Ohm speakers, with most speakers being 8 Ohms, this drags the power rating down and increases the THD.
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