★★★★★ 4
Expensive, but nice
Style: AVR-X4800H
I previously owned a Denon AVR-2808ci since 2008. That model's remote control didn't work well, and all controls were unnecessarily convoluted, so I was hesitant to buy another Denon. The thing that made me give them another chance is that the sound quality was nice, and I was hoping their engineers learned from their mistakes. I'm glad I gave them the chance.
This new model, the AVR-X4800H, also has excellent sound quality; however, unlike the old one I had, the controls on both the receiver itself, and especially on the remote control, are significantly improved. The controls are intuitive, and everything works perfectly.
That alone made me happy with the purchase; however, the ability to run 4k @ 120 hz for video gaming, and with extra HDMI ports they have here, all added to that value quite a bit. Then, in addition to that, the old model I had ran super hot. In fact, so hot, from just basic usage, it fried itself three different times in the span of a couple weeks (during the winter time), and it kept being repaired under warranty, until they replaced the top grate with one that allows more ventilation. However, this new model doesn't appear to suffer from that same issue. It gets pretty warm, but nowhere near what the old one did -- and I'm using the same Bose Surround Sound system with the new one.
That said, as a precaution, I went ahead and ordered an AC Infinity AirCom to put on top of it, to assist with cooling/ventilation, which has worked wonderfully as well. No the tempts on this Denon AVR have never gone above 87 deg, even on a warm room on the third floor during the late spring / summer time.
The other hesitancy I had was the price tag. I only purchased it because it was on a "25% discount", from $2500 down to around $1850. Granted, it was similar when I purchased the other one 15 years ago, but it's just an awful lot of money, in my humble opinion. I would say it was borderline on whether I would buy it for this amount, and if it went up at all, I wouldn't have purchased it. I may not purchase it again for this price, especially if I have one already that is working well -- it was only the wonky one that I already owned, that I just wanted to get rid of, that put more pressure to give them one more chance. With a working device, I probably wouldn't pay these prices again. But, if it were a few hundred dollars cheaper, then I probably would buy it again.
Hopefully this helps someone. It's a great device, just a bit expensive. And, if you get it, I would still recommend getting a top cooling fan for it.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 13, 2024
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