Denon 2809 vs Denon 3808

[brainhulk]

Im in the market for a new reciever and was wondering which would u guys go with.
I need the hdmi switching with audio. That's why im stepping up

I'm a denon guy, I have a 3805 right now. I love the sound quality paired with my
speakers. But i'm open to other brands if the quality is just as good

Denon 3805
300b Tube amp
Klipsch reference speakers
PS3
xbox 360
wii
FiOS cable box
SACD Player

 

[s44]

The 2809 is a really nice unit, about the cheapest you can get with Audyssey MultEQ XT. The Onkyo SR876 has the same with better video processing, but prices have really skyrocketed in the last few weeks. Given that you already have and like Denon, I'd use this coupon (expires tomorrow!) to buy it for $800.

 

[Rio Rebel]

edited.

I just typed a long paragraph on how you're not "stepping up" with a 2809...then I saw you are using a tube amp and probably only want the receiver for signal processing.

 

[brainhulk]

rio, pls post your comments. I would like to hear them!
I'm only using the tube amp for 2 channel music

 

[s44]

I think he means that the 3805 has more power. Problem is, none of these Denon AVRs are really power beasts. For the price difference to the 3808 you could almost just buy an Emotiva XPA-3 along with the 2809, and that would have way more amp.

 

[brainhulk]

wow s44, thanks for the tip. I've been out of the audio game for awhile. I didn't know a quality separate like that could be had at such a great price. How do these sound?

Looking at the specs/price, emotiva looks really nice...

 

[Rio Rebel]

I was referring mainly to the amp. I love my 3805 and am not willing to go down to the 2800 or 2100 series to get HDMI capability.

 

[s44]

Originally posted by: brainhulk
wow s44, thanks for the tip. I've been out of the audio game for awhile. I didn't know a quality separate like that could be had at such a great price. How do these sound?

Looking at the specs/price, emotiva looks really nice...

Well, I'm of the belief that all well-made, similarly specced amps will sound the same. Emotivas are well made. 😉

They do tend to apply a bit more gain to the signal than higher-end models, but that's a matter for Audyssey and the volume control. (This appears to be compensating for the ever-weaker pre-out level of midlevel receivers these days.)

The rumor is that Emotiva is/was the OEM for Sunfire amps.

 

[Xed]

Call around authorized Denon dealers and see if you can get a deal. I got my 3808 for $1000 from J&R (This was a year and a half ago, ymmv)

 

[Project86]

Originally posted by: s44

Originally posted by: brainhulk
wow s44, thanks for the tip. I've been out of the audio game for awhile. I didn't know a quality separate like that could be had at such a great price. How do these sound?

Looking at the specs/price, emotiva looks really nice...

Well, I'm of the belief that all well-made, similarly specced amps will sound the same. Emotivas are well made. 😉

True! Nice to see another reasonable thinker on the forums.

The rumor is that Emotiva is/was the OEM for Sunfire amps.

I've heard that rumor as well. Even with nothing to substantiate it, one could reasonably believe it just based on build quality of both products. When Emotiva was new, I brought an RPA1 and a pair of AV123 Onix Reference 1s to a local "high end audio salon". At the time they were ignorant of internet direct products. I told them both products were from new very high end companies out of Canada. We compared the Emotiva to Sunfire, Krell, Parasound, Bryston, etc. The Ref 1s were compared to B&W, Dynaudio, Sonus Faber, Avalon, etc. Neither internet direct product gave itself away as being lower class. In fact both were highly regarded by the employees there. I never went back to that store as I'm sure they have since discovered the "trick" and regard those products as inferior.