Sony STR-DN840 7.2 Channel 1050-Watt A/V Receiver (Black)

I replaced a Harman Kardon AVR 335, which I thought was pretty nice. This Sony STR-DN840 blows it away. I replaced it to get HDMI ports... not really expecting much of a noticeable improvement in sound quality. I'm powering the same Harman Kardon surround speakers with a Velodyne MicroVee subwoofer. The Sony, outputting 150W per speaker vs 75W for the HK Receiver, is clearer and just sounds incredible. Now I can really hear the dialogue while watching TV and movies, where before I had to pick the best sound mode to get a decent sound effects/voice balance. The sound just seems to separate more crisply, and if I was just listening with my eyes closed I'd figure I had upgraded all of my speakers. I don't know how much is due to the higher power/channel. I like the remote. Speaker setup was extremely quick, and the non-annoying sound tones used for the auto-config is better than the usual sound assault. Yes, the method for entering the network password (selecting the letters/numbers/symbols from the remote) could really confuse people, but I figured it out pretty quickly. I was looking forward to the Bluetooth comm directly from my iPhone, but what I really like is how easy it was to wirelessly network the Sony and play music sitting on my computers . In Windows 7, I just enabled homegroup sharing and the Sony sees everything and I can skip the iPhone and play directly from my whole collection. Another sweet feature.... I can actually push music to the Sony from iTunes. Getting HDMI is what I was after... but the connectivity options and sound quality are what are insanely nice. The instruction book is so-so. I didn't really need to use it to setup everything above. Room for improvement overall, but the features and awesomeness make this an easy 5-star. BTW, I have had no HDMI or other issues so far.

I set this up on a home theatre with a 3D BlueRay, XBOX360, Wii and my FiOS Settop Box (cable tv). The HDMI works really well. Power up the source, receiver and then TV and all the signals seem to work well. CEC worked fine between my Vizio M series TV and this receiver. With that said, I suggest getting an aftermarket Harmony One or similar remote and setting up macros. The remote that comes with the receiver isn't great for running externals unless all your components support CEC, which only my TV did. It seemed like any input through RCA would only output through RCA outs on the receiver.A real drawback for video/audio going out to my TC. This was the only disappointing feature as coordinating input to TV and output by connection type is just a hokey thing to have to deal with. I bought RCA to HDMI converters for my XBOX360 and Wii and use only HDMI inputs to the receiver. I can imagine any other configuration. It was $60 for two so I would add that to the price when thinking about this purchase. I don't know how other receivers in this price class handle video output over HDMI from non-HDMI input connectors. The on-screen interface is archaic (pre-atari graphics) but it is well laid out and usable. I got setup on Slacker and it sounds great, no problems there. I have apple products and had no problems with the AirPlay. I use it all the time. There is a feature on these receivers to setup multi-receiver party streaming, I haven't used it but it looks interesting if you have a large entertaining area with multiple audio. Oh yeah, plenty of power for the cost. Hooked it up to some old Yamaha floorstanders and sounded strong. I use it to drive a Focal Chorus setup and have not complaints about the sound quality for home theatre. The 3D pass through works w/o any problems. I have a 3D BluRay hooked through the receiver and out to the TV and no problems or configuration required. Overall I really like the features and have had a good experience.

Ok... this is a very good receiver. It works well and functions well. Sound is very good and the sound fields are great. Howerver, do not think that because it has bluetooth, Airplay, 4k, BluRay, etc that you are getting all the connectivity that you might think you are getting. It has bluetooth, but only for connecting your phone/midi player to the input. It does not include the bluetooth transmitter, so it WILL NOT work with bluetooth earphones without a dongle. It has great Blu-Ray support, but only one of the inputs gives you "better Blu-Ray sound". Only one port gives you 4K pass through. In fact, you have to look at the function of each of the HDMI inputs to check the capability. AirPlay is audio only. To get video you will also have to purchase the Apple TV box. Nice receiver... but buyer beware... the connectivity is not all that it should be.

This receiver is designed to be a very good home audio product. I bought it to replace an older Sony receiver to gain more speaker power, more features, more connectivity and more HDMI connectors. Unfortunately, from the beginning the unit I purchased randomly turned itself off while in use, randomly turned itself on after being turned off, randomly stopped providing video signals to the connected TV, routinely produced various subwoofer distortions and failed to correctly control other Sony products via the Bravia Sync feature. Sony's solution was to get this defectively manufactured unit repaired.

This receiver is awesome. I use it in conjunction with a Bravia 55" TV, five Polk Audio speakers, a Polk audio subwoofer and a Samsung bluray player. It's remote is able to control all parameters of the tv, but not the bluray player. This receiver and the tv operate as one set, with a single button to turn-on, off, adjust volume and so on. The airplay feature works for audio only, which is a pity. I wish I could play YouTube videos, iPhone photos and iPod videos throughout it. Nonetheless, it works great for audio, and I s very intuitive, like you don't need to think to make it work. Just launch YouTube or the music app on your iOS device, select the STR on the airplay dialog, and the unit turns itself and the tv on, changes to airplay mode, plays the audio, and even shuts down the tv after a couple minutes. The tv in this case functions as an expensive display. Audio for movies is awesome, specially with the Polk speakers.its decodes the DTS audio off all blurays I've thrown at it. Watching a music bluray on it is delightful. Netflix decoding works very well as well. the netflix app runs on the Bravia TV and the audio flows via the HDMI cables from the tv back to the receiver. Overall it's very easy to use and ten times less cumbersome than the 15 year old Harman Kardon set that it replaced. My wife being non technical, could never understand how to fire up the HK receiver. With this one she turns the tv on and doesn't realize that the Sony receiver is on, as it operates seamlessly with the tv as one set.

I did a lot of research because I wanted a receiver that could be integrated with my computer's extensive music collection and play lists. I use iTunes so having airplay was important. The contenders where pyle (low end), oynko, pioneer and Sony. I have a small pyle amplifier (120 watts) and it works great but the larger stuff have noise and fan problems, but cost is very low. The real contenders were pioneer and Sony. When you compare real costs (adding on the bluetooth and WIFI to the pioneer) the Sony is a better bargain. Setup was relatively simple and you need a TV display to do that. Integration with airplay works as expected and sound is terrific. I have used all the network features and theywork very well with little to no issues, airplay, USB, Internet radio (slaker), and bluetooth. To navigate to the various features you need the remote which works very well and is logical. HOWEVER my only complaint is that the Sony receiver display is so minimalist that you need to have a TV display to navigate which menu display you are on. I am considering adding additional receivers to other areas in the house, but the I would like not to have a TV display requirement to listen to music.

I bought this receiver as a replacement for a Pioneer in a 5.1 surround sound home theater system. It provides excellent sound for Pandora, streamed movies, CDs, DVDs and particularly Blue-ray discs. The setup was pretty straightforward, once I learned to use the surround speaker connection for my back speakers, rather than the confusing surround back/bi-amplifier/front high connection. I linked the unit to my Wi-Fi network, and after a quick visit to the Sony website, I had my Pandora stations available through the SEN button on the remote. This was an unexpected and pleasant surprise. At the same time I upgraded my DVD player to a Sony BX510 Blue-ray player, which is also internet-ready. With this connected it was a breeze to stream on-demand movies from Amazon or Netflix. Once you pick the audio settings for TV, Blue-ray and music the receiver remembers the settings, which is nice because there are a lot of choices. I use A.F.D-Auto for TV, HD-D.C.S. for movies and PLIIx for music, which I think provide the best sound for each. Another cool thing is that any movies purchased or rented from Amazon are also available on my Kindle. I have no need for a smart TV with this setup and am very pleased with the unit.

I'm very frustrated with this purchase. I wanted to love it. The reviews were good. CNET rated it as the best receiver value of the year. So I jumped on it. While the features are great and the sound is good, there's one hiccup that keeps bugging me: when switching inputs (sometimes simply when switching between parts on a Blu-ray) the video will fail to be passed on to the TV. Audio will be fine, but I get no picture. Usually switching the TV off and back on again will take care of the problem, but not always. I was hoping that the recent update would take care of the issue, but no such luck. I know that some may think this a small snag, too small to drop the rating to 2/5 stars, but it is an ongoing nuisance that continually frustrates me. When I pay good money for a product, I expect it to function at least as intended. I haven't researched this issue so I don't know if others are having the same problem, just be warned that this issue exists Update - 1.10.14: After spending more time with the receiver, fiddling with settings, and swapping hdmi cords, I still am unhappy. Not only does the problem persist, I recently was unable to get any image whatsoever. I did a hard reset to factory settings with no luck. After switching the setting for "hdmi control" (which I've done many times before the reset), the image decided to appear on my screen. I'm now considering contacting Sony, but I am very wary of the hassle and questionable outcomes of sending electronics in for repair/replacement, if they're wiling to even cooperate, that is (note: this is not a knock against Sony's warranties in particular, just electronic companies in general). Based on my experience with this receiver, I cannot recommend it to anyone. Unless you absolutely need Bluetooth and wi-fi, other receivers should be considered. I understand that this problem may only affect a few customers, but the fact that a receiver has a problem with such a basic function which hasn't been corrected with firmware updates should give you pause.