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Denon's AV wonder
Denon's affordable AV receiver is a winner.
By Michael Jones
December 2000
Denon AVR-1601 AV Receiver $1199
If there is one product category that deserves eternal damnation, then
it's cheap AV receivers. My experience of them has been almost uniformly
bad - harsh, hashy, thin, bloated and uncontrolled bass assault my ears
and make me want to turn the damn things off.
Yet, curiously I was looking forward to Denon's entry-level AV receiver - the AVR-1601. A few months back I had experienced the Denon 2800 (writing in the July 2000 issue of Tone) which was one of the best-sounding AV receivers I had heard, plus I've had good results from several other Denon items recently. So it was with more than some interest that I unpacked the AVR-1601.
Measuring the standard 434mm wide, the 160 is 147mm high and is very
deep at 417mm. You may want to check that your cabinet or shelf can accommodate
such a deep component.
In terms of features the 1601 is very well endowed. As it's a receiver,
the AVR-1601 includes an FM/AM radio with 40 station presets. An auxiliary
set of speakers can be hooked up to the Speaker B outputs, for use in
another room.
The AVR-1601 includes Dolby Digital and DTS decoding built-in for movie
sound. Naturally it also decodes Dolby Pro Logic. It also includes various
DSP sound modes as well which, as usual, are totally worthless.
The power rating is 60 watts for each of the five-channels. That may
not sound huge compared to some other receivers, but Denon do have a few
aces up their sleeve. The Denon includes fully discrete components for
the output stages instead of the cheaper and inferior op-amps often used.
Plus the amplifier is backed up by a solid power supply. All of this means
that the 60 watt Denon will play louder (and more importantly, control
the speakers properly) better than many 100 watt receivers.
I'm very fond of the current look of Denon components. The 1601 carries
on that look, allowing the front panel to include a number of controls
without looking intimidating. The front is dominated by the volume control
- a continuously variable device.
Many amps and receivers have most of their gain (or volume) in the first
fraction of a turn, as this makes the amp appear "more powerful"
to the uninitiated. With the 1601, Denon allows precise volume adjustment
over a very wide range, making it much easier to (for instance) select
the appropriate volume level for late night listening.
The
back panel is logically laid out, making it easy to connect up components.
The only real disappointment is the lack of s-video connections. This
is a pity as seemingly all DVD player and many TVs come with s-video connections,
which really do improve picture quality over composite connections.
The speaker connections are via binding posts for the front three channels
(a little plastic plug can be removed to enable banana plugs to be used).
Spring clip terminal are used for the surround channels and the Speaker
B outputs.
I found the 1601 easy to use. The front panel controls were easy to find
and use and the remote control worked over a wide range of angles. The
audible gap while changing sources was initially disconcerting, but I
quickly became used to it.
Where the 1601 really comes into its own is in sound quality. I mentioned
at the beginning that cheap AV receivers generally sound horrid. The Denon
doesn't. It is the best affordable Dolby Digital AV receiver I have heard
to date.
Most AV receivers spend more time reproducing music than they do movies,
so the straight stereo sound of the amplifier is an important factor.
(As well, I’ve found that the audible characteristics of the receiver
are invariably the same with two-channel music as with movie surround
sound).
Musically, the AVR-1601 is very good. Oh sure, it can't beat a similarly
priced amplifier (or even a cheaper audiophile amp, such as the Rotel
RA-931mkII reviewed here).
The 1601's characteristics revolve around the lack of normal cheap-receiver
nasties. The 1601 doesn't sound sound harsh and unpleasant. Instead it
reproduces music with a smoothness and clarity that encourages the exploration
of your CD collection.
Even a hard test such as a Mahler symphony didn't phase the 1601. Mahler
uses the full range of orchestral forces but even this didn't upset the
Denon. The sound kept in control - showing again the value of a good power
supply. Compared to audiophile integrateds, the Denon was a touch lean
in the midband.
Movie sound showed similar characteristics. Favourites such as Toy Story 2 depend on the accurate portrayal of voices for much of the emotional impact, so it's important that the receiver reproduces the sound or timbre of voices for the movie to move the viewer. The 1601 reproduced voices well.
Both Dolby Digital and DTs soundtracks were portrayed well. The subtleties in soundtracks such as Toy Story 2 or A Bug's Life were well reproduced. While the big bass bang in the opening of Toy Story 2 didn't rattle the Denon, it certainly made my Epos speakers lose their composure!
The Denon AVR-1601 is a stunning affordable AV receiver. Highly recommended!
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