Price Paid:  $375.00 from Circuit City

Summary:
I bought this as part of a packaged system with 5 speakers and a subwoofer. I had just sold my 2 channel equipment which included a pair of Bose 901's, so I was used to having rich, room filling sound. I wanted to stay under a $500.00 budget and I did several weeks worth of comparison shopping in several stores. I kept coming back to this system as being the best sounding by far. I liked the full dynamic range of sound even better than several more expensive systems. I was not disappointed when I got this system home. The speakers are of the small variety with 3.5" cones, except for the subwoofer which is 8". After a week or so I began to notice distortion in the center channel, especially with dialog during movies. The quieter dialog was very difficult to hear. I thought that this might be due to the small center speaker, so I bought a larger (Accoustic Research) center speaker. This made the problem much worse. I also repalced my front speakers with larger units, thinking that this might help balance the system. The problem is still very bad. I am scheduled to take the receiver to an authorized service center later this week to have the problem checked out. I have noticed that several other JVC reveiws mention a similar problem. Assuming that this can be fixed, the sound from all of the other channels is very good. I question JVC's quality control standards since I have seen others mention this same defect.

Strengths:
Good overall sound

Weaknesses:
Center chanel distorted

Summary:
I compared three receivers that were comparably matched in specs and price and the JVC wins hands down with loads of extra bells and whistles, attractive styling and a great price.

It does require a little tweaking, though and on some titles the Pro-Logic distortion is noticable due to what can best be described as a soft approach to surround sound by JVC (as opposed to the Technics which is unbelievably aggressive and unadjustable) and the necessity to raise the db level to the surround speakers. In fairness, the distortion is a trait you'll find in any Pro-Logic receiver, including the Sony and Technics I had tested. A good pair of surround speakers compensated for this as the original pair I was using lacked the dynamic range for good surround sound.

A big plus is something that's rarely found in a Pro-Logic receiver: an S-VHS input and output. With the receivers video switching capabilities this feature comes in real handy for people who own TV's with both S-VHS and component video inputs.

Also of great convenience is the ability to make all adjustments with the remote and to see them on your TV or monitor.

This receiver also delivers excellent 2 channel stereo sound.

If you're on a budget and can't afford to go for a GOOD digital receiver, this is the next best thing. While there are Dolby Digital receivers that actually may cost you a little less, go for the quality of this JVC instead. A budget Dolby Digital receiver may leave you feeling more than a little disappointed. It's a worthwhile trade off and a adding a Dolby Digital decoder to this receiver down the road will deliver better results than a budget DD receiver will deliver today.

Highly recommended.

Strengths:
Nice styling, plenty of power, one of the few Pro-Logic receivers out there with an S-VHS input and output.

Weaknesses:
Surround channels a little weak
Needs a little tweaking

Similar Products Used:
SONY STR DE345
Technics SA-AX540

Summary:
I got this Reciever for my 16th birthday, and I've been impressed by it ever since then. I hooked it up to some speakers my Grand parents gave me (JVC SK-404), and for the age of the speakers, they sound exellent! For surround speakers I have sony's for my rears, and a pioneer for my center. This Reciever sounds awsome, and I would recommend this reciever to anyone!

P.S. Do not disregard this review just because I am 16.
Try the reciever out for yourself, and you will like it.

Strengths:
Crystal clear sound quality (even on older speakers), Easy to use, and has alot of good features.

Weaknesses:
Are you kidding me. No Weaknesses that I know of.

Similar Products Used:
I only use JVC. Nothing else is good enough for me.

Summary:
I own for 4 months. I am happy with it when its in stereo mode. When I tested it in DVD 5.1 channel mode, I found the amplifiers of the center channel and rear channels are not good as front channels. When setting volume low, I can easily here the music from the speaker was not continuous, it may due to the zero-crossing distortion. I wonder why designers of JVC design those amplifier differently??? Since the distortions of the center and rear channel are easy to hear, I can only give this machine 3 star. Any other owner have the same experience?

Summary:
I bouight mine from an online auction new mainly to use with my decoding DVD player and am quite happy with it. This was my first venture into DD 5.1 and found it a very economical way to do it. The unit is not positioned as high end or anything and I feel it delivers the performance it should, both for DVD play and for Dolby Pro-Logic with TV. For the price I bought it for ($127 + shipping) I probably would have give it a ranking of 5, but am giving a 4 because I feel my price/preformance ratio is a bit skewed because I got it so cheaply.