Skoogs

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
2.33 of 5, 3.00 votes

Price Paid:  $99.00 from Pawn Shop

Summary:
Got this puppy mislabeled at a pawn shop. That's an elbow in the ribs for those of you who spent $500 on this thing. Very reliable for me. Never a single issue and I've had it for 6 years. Knock on wood. Great sound quality loud or soft. Some of the effects are cheesy, but still fun to play with. I've used it w/ Infinity's and JBL speakers, so I'm obviously not very wealthy, but this reciever is a terrific piece of equipment geared toward those able to afford decent mid-grade equipment. I have it's little brother as a studio monitoring system, and it's worked fine for 3 years as well. I guess some of these are just hit or miss unfortunately. The EQ takes tweaking to find a sweet spot, and that's always the case with any piece of audio equipment.

Strengths:
Strong and reliable, plenty of options, versatility, good power, plenty of inputs.

Weaknesses:
No multiple S-Video connections, and no component video connections

steamboy 2

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $499.00 from circuit city

Summary:
I have own this receiver for 5yrs,and never had a single problem with it.It plays great with alot of power & many surround modes. But it does not come with todays Pro LogicII,DD EX,DTS ES just really great 5.1. All the reveiews i have read about popping sounds, overheating,weak rear channels are not the case for me. The surrounds can be enhanced by virtual speaker setting that adds about 3DB'S via cinema studio ex a,b,or c. As far as i can tell i will not buy another receiver untill this thing breaks down,and then i will purchase the king of receivers (for me that is) yamaha.but for now i will con't to enjoy my sony.

Strengths:
100 watts per ch. strong DD,DTS performance

Weaknesses:
none for a 5yr old receiver

Price Paid:  $200.00

Summary:
This is my first Sony receiver unit purchase. Easy to use features, great sound. Terrible reliabilty. Looks like my outputs are blown as well. I bought it off as friend who purchased it new about 3 years ago. I've only had it about 5 months. I was playing a VHS tape on low sound and heard a pop, saw a little flash, and smelled smoke. Now there is no sound output at all, on any channel. This will probably be my last Sony receiver.

Strengths:
Good sound quality, through Cambridge soundworks movie works speaker system.

Weaknesses:
Very dissapointed with reliability.

Price Paid:  $350.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
I bought this receiver when my JVC died and couldn't be repaired; wanted a different company since the last one only lasted 3 years. Well, heard the pop, smelled the smoke and 'protect' mode. I might use it one a week! Bummer

Strengths:
Seemed to work ok with my separate CD and cassette players.

Weaknesses:
Tuner didn't pull in many stations well. Lasted only 3 years of very light use.

Similar Products Used:
JVC was my last receiver; but it only lasted 3 years also.

Price Paid:  $399.00 from Circuit City

Summary:
This is my first Sony receiver unit purchase. I have always been impressed with the price/performance quality of my other Sony products and I felt this receiver was a natural fit for my new home theater. This unit has extremely easy to use features, plenty of inputs, and in my opinion very good sound quality for the price. The problem is with the product quality. The outputs have blown on it 3 times in the last 2.5 years. Initially I thought it was a heat issue, but the last two times it blew the outputs within 30 seconds of turning it on. My repair shop, which has an extremely good reputation, has not been able to keep it alive during bench testing and has finally given up after 2 months (even with guidance by Sony support). The bottom line is that the product quality and/or design does not meet the usual level of Sony products and will probably be my last Sony receiver purchase.

Strengths:
Great sound, a little weak on the rear surround channels but can be compensated. Plenty of inputs for all my components, even the ol' turntable. Easy to use.

Weaknesses:
Terrible reliability in an age of extreme competition. My image of Sony reliability is shot.