Background:

I said it was 1997. Not sure about this, but probably darn close. Anyway, I give it a 5 for value because I paid absolutely nothing for it (aunt's tenets moved out of her old house and left this along with a pair of Yamaha 140W towers in the attic) and ALMOST anything is a good value for FREE, haha! Anyways, the CD input doesn't work on this, but everything else seems to.

Setup:

Alright, first off, I only use this as a stereo audio receiver thus far. I will probably get around to video soon enough (and maybe surround? Lord knows I have enough speakers) but for now my speakers consist of a pair of 80's Polks (8") in series with 90's Encores (8" I've never heard of them either, but the bass is WICKED awesome) on channel A and a pair of 10" "Acoustic Studio Series" (scam speakers that I found at Goodwill for $20) that provide most of the 100-200Hz range. No subwoofer attached yet.

Sound:

I'm really only comparing this to a 90-something Sony STR-DA555es. Sony definitely isn't a big player as far as audio quality goes, but their ES series is reportedly THEIR best (audio-wise) receiver ever made. Now, I know that Yamaha is supposed to be really good, but I've never really had prior experience with their home audio systems. When I saw this and the towers in my aunt's attic, I practically crapped myself I was so excited. I didn't know exactly what to expect, but I got it home and hooked my speakers up (minus sub) and started cranking. WOW! I can't believe somebody just left this thing lying around! It's quite impressive. The 240W is less than my 380W Sony, but it sounds like SO much more. I have to say that I don't like the "effects" much at all (it's really just delay and compression) but without them the sound is so CLEAN; I love it! The receiver says "YAMAHA Natural Sound" at the top of the face and I would say that that's really quite accurate. I love the Sony for it's features, and don't get me wrong, it sounds very good too, but it has built in compression that I can't turn off and I hate that about it. This Yamaha seems to simply amplify whatever signal you give it. I normally consider anything with a two band EQ or bass boost circuit cheap, but without the subwoofer, I like being able to crank the bass a little for certain songs or genres. The Bass, Treble and Balance pots are a little scratchy, but who's going to sit there and spin them while music plays? Set 'em and leave 'em and you'll never know it. As far as volume goes, with my speaker setup (and face it, there's quite a lot of speaker area covered) I can probably get the volume up to -28 before the neighbors are calling the house and the cops are kicking down the doors. And frankly, I'd be afraid to turn it up any louder if I were the ONLY person left on the planet. It's just freaking loud!

Features:

Not much to say here. 5 inputs, 2 of which have video. Monitor out (duh, it's A/V) and tape and VCR outs. Rear as well as center channel volumes independent of master. Built in tuner that I haven't even turned on (it's 2010, who listens to the radio outside of their car?) and 8 programmable stations to go with it. What it lacks in features (compared to my Sony and ESPECIALLY compared to most modern receivers that have HDMI, D-Sub, DVI, ad infinitum) it make up for in sound quality. And being free of course, but that's beside the point. I DO wish that it had a dedicated subwoofer output. I don't like having to run my speakers through my sub, but eh. It probably won't be that bad. I am VERY grateful for the headphone jack though. I will actually be using that quite a bit.

Overall:

In today's market, a receiver like this will most likely go for practically nothing. Definitely worth the time and money if you find one. I wish it had the remote, but alas. Small sacrifice. Definitely my new personal flagship for sound quality. I can't get enough of it! I'll probably be listening to music for about the next 24 hours straight. It sounds SOOOOOOO good.

i purchased this after my jvc was damaged. i was looking for yamaha. i am still using it today and think at the time of purchase--($399.00)it was a good deal

within 3-5 weeks after purchase, yamaha brought out their first d.d. reciever, if i would have been told about it i would have waited fot that instead

for what is is an outdated piece it still has yamaha quality
but you can not upgrade it to d.d. unless you buy vantas converter for $400.00 which is more than d.d.-dts receivers are going for...yamaha sound fields are second to none. i am now in the process of buying either a yamaha 595a or a 795a
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Similar Products Used:

jvc, 515

I purchased a Yamaha RV-701 from Crutchfield about a year ago. For the price I think it is a excellent reciever. I have listened to many Sonys, Pioneers, and Kenwoods and none of them had the clarity of the RV-701. I have my Yamaha hooked up to a pair of ESS AMT-1's and it sounds great. I believe that Yamaha is a very good company and I would recommend any of their recievers to anyone.

I originally bought my 701 about a year and a half ago as a shelf model ($175). My sister has some model of a Technics reciever that she paid just as much for and as far as I am concerned there is no comparison even though she has better speakers. I am expecting some new speakers by UPS tomorrow. =) I would recommend Yamaha receivers to anyone.

I bought one of these things at sears for $299 but,I don"t think it was worth it: the tuner was mediorce and idont think I will ever get used to the artifical sound of pro logic yuk! So,I traded it in for a SAE II 140 wattsX2 two channel integrated amp. It sounds mush better even though it is over 20 years old!Yamaha used to be a good company in the 80s,now,they seem just average.

I had purchased a Yamaha RX350 and was very very satisfied with its performance. Finally I erached the point where I needed to upgrade to a Surround system and purchased a Sony Dolby reciever. Didn't even hold a candle to the Yamaha and it wasn't even Pro-Logic!!!! Got rid of it really quick. Now I have completed my system with the 701 and does it ever sound good. The wattage is just right, sound quality is unmatched in most everything else I have sampled, very simple to use and powerfull to match. The different modes os surround are fantastic each with their own field. I personally would never recommend ANYTHING other than a YAMAHA to anyone I know!!! Keep up the great work!!!!! :-)