cturcott

Overall Rating
 3 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
3.67 of 5, 3.00 votes

Price Paid:  $600.00 from Online

Summary:
Fairly good for my purposes, but not a magic bullet that suits all needs without a little outboard amplifier help. I had hoped that after hearing my friend's 1000ES model receiver that it would be good enough so I could leave my rack mount amplifier and processor stack behind me as it just takes up so much room and with the prospect of moving the enormous weight of these things has me wanting somthing smaller and more portable. Sadly, the technology has NOT arrived to use onboard amps on a receiver apparently without risking a little bleeding ear syndrome with some recordings. What I love about my old setup with the carver A-760x powering my Carver Amazing Platinum IV speakers is that music I HATE on other systems actually sounds smooth and pleasant and just makes me want to rock out when played on that. Motley Crue just sounds harsh and nasty to me and I never liked it growing up-until I heard it on my Carver setup with a seperate preamp. So after hearing my friend's receiver, and after reading these reviews, I decided to take the risk and see if it would really work out. It sounded ok on my friend's setup, but then he's using big, old box speakers of some variety and I'm using ribbon speakers. It's a good thing this Sony has preamp RCA outs, because I'll be using an outboard amp for the mains and I'll probably use the onboard amps for the center and surrounds for movie watching where listener fatigue is a smaller issue than with music to me. I also haven't figured out how to get the Sony to decode sampling rates of less than 44.1khz from my PC, and that's a disappointment if it turns out to be incompatible with odd rates like my old decoder was. This is a good unit, but don't give Sony more credit than they are due because they need to keep improving this technology until I can finally just use one box for everything (keeping my fingers crossed). I can now happily listen to my music twice as loud without any listener fatigue and now it makes me want to sing and dance along with it. I love that with a good setup my tastes range from classical to most any kind of rock or pop. If I use worse equipment, I like fewer kinds of music, and I don't want to give up the variety that I have now with having so much that just sounds GOOD! Enjoy, but beware thinking it will do more than it does in reality. Preout is a good thing.

Strengths:
Nice all in one unit.

Weaknesses:
Doesn't seem to like less than 44.1khz audio, amp quality is not high end.

Similar Products Used:
Carver. ROCK!!!!

Sonefree

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $1200.00 from sony store

Summary:
First I'm very sorry for all people having problems with this reciver. If you buy it today, I'm shure all the problems are gone, since this was only in the early models. This is the future, the digital amp. does not get warm. One of the worst problems for electronics is heat. Digital AMPs are very effective over 90% goes to sound. Not like transitiors where round 15% goes to sound. Rest of the effect goes mostely to heat. What are the source today? for most CD and DVD. What are they? digital. So it must be best if the signal goes digital, as far as possible. This reciver takes the PCM signal on CD's upconvert them too DSD signal (what is used on SACD) and belive me CD (PCM) signal don't get bether that this. Let's go too the sound of this digital unit. First I have too say that you should not use the analog connections. You will lose a lot of image, and detail. Use Coax cable from your DVD-player of CD-player, and you will hear some of the magic, on this Digital reciver. I have used this unit for about a year, and it takes some time to set it up. One thing that blew me away was that at once you set the speakers to small, the treble and mid. goes from good, to high-end. The only prob. is that you need a good sub. to take care of the low bass. Use a sub that is good with music, like Rel.net try (REL Stampede) it will please you with all kind of music. I don't know why it sound mutch bether on the small setting, but I think it's because the AMP don't need to use energy to drive the low bass tones. If you don't have sub. and need too use large setting for you front speakers, I would go for the DA9000ES. If you use my setting. Fronts, Center, Surround, SUB. You will have the best sound you can find, for under 2500$ The reciver is powerfull, and will play very loud. Some reviewers say that it's weak. That is not true. Mabye wrong settings. I listen most too music, and you will not belive the sound that comes out of your speakers. Do you think that your speakers sound bright, or the bass sound boomy. Try this reciver, with my setting. This is the best reciver I have heard. Don't get fooled by yesterdays technology.

Strengths:
Fantastic sound on Music and Film. Nice looking.

Weaknesses:
Remote is not very nice. Not i-link for SACD, DVD-Audio.

Similar Products Used:
Denon 3803, NAD T750, recivers. Arcam, Nikko, Sony, stereo integrated. Tried a lot Classe, EC, Cayin ect.

nickspicks

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $695.00 from www.oade.com

Summary:
I use the 3000es soley for two channel music listening, and IMO it excells. So much so, that i've sold my individual componants (that I paid around $3k used!!) and replaced them with this box. Componants in question were a McCormack DNA-1 and Musical Fidelity CD-PRE24. The key to these Sony digital amps is that you MUST feed them a digital signal. This way, the signal path goes incoming PCM > DSD upsample (the magic!) > digital drive amplification > D/A stage > speakers. The sound is amazing. Largest, most detailed soundstage i've ever heard out of any combo of stereo equipment i've owned. Imaging is so pinpoint, its downright scrary at times. Detail is so abundant that i'm listening to most of my music collection for the first time (so it seems). I know my review goes against what many others here have said, but I question if they are listening in the same method that I am. IMO, this is the best piece for two channel music reproductin (from a 7.1 reciever no less) out there w/o going into many thousands of dollars in seperates or the ultimate of high-end integrateds. I put it head to head against my other amp, a Manley Stingray...and it bested it! If you are looking for a low dollar, high value amp for MUSIC, then you must audition one of these. They sound fantastic righ out of the box but get much warmer/smoother after a few hundred hours of play. I've got a more thorough review at my site; www.nickspicks.com

Strengths:
unbelievable soundstage, imaging and detail.

Weaknesses:
crappy build quality "pulsing" volume

Similar Products Used:
none like this, but my hardware list of gear i've owned in the last 3 years that I can say sounded nowhere near as good as the Sony: Manley Stingray McCormack DNA-1 MF CD-PRE24 Y-S Audio Symphonies tube preamp B&K ST-140 amp

bbeacham

Overall Rating
 1 of 5

Value Rating
 1 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $999.00 from Crutchfield

Summary:
When the 3000ES works it sounds great. However, I just returned my 3rd 3000ES. The Sony digital ES receivers (2000, 3000, 5000) have quality problems. Some seem to work but many more are defective. I received my first 3000Es in 01/04 and thought it sounded weak, and there was a lot of hiss as it was turned up. After searching the net I found out that this is a common problem to these receivers. I contacted Crutchfield and they sent me a replacement. This one worked great. The sound was so good, precise and with plenty of volume with my Polk LSi 15 (fronts), LSiC (center), and LSi 7 (rears). But after a couple of months the video started dropping out. This is another common problem with these receivers. So I again contacted Crutchfield and they sent me another one. The 3rd one had the low volume/hiss problem like the 1st unit. So, I have returned it and bought a Denon AVR-3805.

Strengths:
Great sound if it works

Weaknesses:
Terrible quality

Price Paid:  $849.00 from Tweeter

Summary:
I picked this up as an open boxed item at Tweeter. I was inpressed with all the bells and whistle it offered and many inputs and outputs. Only one problem, after it was on for an hour or so it had this alwful hum. It came from all the speakers and I determined it to be a thermal problem. Took it back and picked up a Denon AVR-3803 (which I will exchange in a few weeks for a AVR-3805 when they arrive at Tweeter. See my review of the AVR-3803 and AVR-3805 when avilalbe.

Strengths:
Many inputs and outputs, A & B speaker chanels, can rename the sources, and ton of options.

Weaknesses:
Very load humming noise. Just a problem with mine? Who knows. The Tweeter Salesman told me 5 others were awaiting repair.

Similar Products Used:
Denon AVR-3803