Price Paid:  $110.00 from J and R Music World

Summary:
After recently purchasing a new Samsung 27-inch flat screen TV for the bedroom it became apparent that sound quality was going to be an issue. It wasn’t an issue because of any faults with the TV. It was because the sound quality of the downstairs HT system, which consists of Outlaw and Paradigm components, has spoiled us rotten. So, some new sound components were needed to complement the new TV.

However, I wasn’t going to spend a whole lot of money on another room full of equipment. The challenge was to provide the highest quality sound with the fewest number of pieces at the absolutely lowest price. These criteria meant that the system would not be surround sound; no, it would be simple two-channel stereo. It goes without much elaboration that this was an important factor for my wife . . . she likes what the equipment does, she just doesn’t want to have to look at it.

The speaker selection was easy, BIC DV62s, a speaker that I’ve recommended to budget-constrained friends and relatives on numerous occasions. The BIC’s are deadly accurate within their usable frequency response, reasonably well made, and cheap at about $130.00 a pair when purchased from various Internet vendors. The speakers are set on Wood Technologies 32-inch real oak stands that are available online for about $90.00 delivered.

The receiver choice was a little trickier. Over the years I’ve built and used two Heathkit receivers, one of which was the legendary AR-1500 with its tank-like construction and incredible tuner. I’m also still using an NAD 7240PE receiver out in the garage. This classic component would be in the bedroom system if it only had a sleep timer, a remote, and was still able to output an FM stereo signal to both channels. The aforementioned Outlaw component in the HT system is the rock-solid, almost 40-pound 1050 receiver.

So, you probably understand the dilemma by now. In comparison to these benchmarks, there is not much currently available in the way of quality stereo receivers, especially inexpensive ones. The standouts in this class are the Onkyo TX-8211 and TX-8511. However, they both failed the inexpensive criterion and neither has 5-way speaker connectors that allow the use of banana plugs. The Sony and JVC entries are just too cheesy for the money in terms of build quality, although they probably both perform well. Kenwood made a really good stereo receiver featuring their outstanding K-Stat amplifiers up until 3 or 4 years ago, but they’re no longer available.

Searching the Internet I came across the TEAC AG-790 receiver. It accepts banana plugs, has a discrete component amplifier design, uses some pretty heavy-duty heat sinks and a big transformer, has a very flexible sleep timer, effective remote control, and it fits the inexpensive criterion, i.e., $110 at J and R Music World, which is an authorized TEAC dealer. As a bonus, it even has a phono input for those of us who still have vinyl. By all appearances this 21-pound two-channel receiver is built. Top it off with a 1-year parts-and-labor warranty and this baby is a contender.

Fortunately, early in life I sold audiophile components. So, I understand that if anything will go wrong with a component it will do so in the first 30-days. Otherwise, it will last long enough to give to your grandchildren. This understanding was critically important because the receiver was DOA. The delay-on relay between the pre-amp and power amp was faulty. However, rather than rant-and-rave at J and R and incur another $50 in to-and-from return shipping charges, I took the receiver to my friendly neighborhood authorized service center for warranty repairs. They fixed it for free and it is now running just as it should.

So, how does it perform? Wonderfully, thank you for asking. It has all the clean, clip-free power needed to drive the BICs flawlessly for any kind of program in a medium-sized room, including action movies and demanding live-concert and symphonic CDs. There are a couple of quirks, though, that prospective buyers should be aware of. The first, and most minor, is the loudness compensation. The sucker hisses, so don’t use it. Turn-up the bass instead, if you are so inclined. (Just remember that real audiophiles don’t use loudness and tone controls anyway.) The other more significant quirk – but only if you live in an FM fringe area and get your programming over-the-air – is the rather insensitive FM tuner as compared to the moderately good tuner in the NAD 7240PE. Fortunately, this is not a problem for me because there is a Hafler Isis FM tuner in the downstairs audiophile music system, which is almost as good as the old Heathkit AR-1500’s tuner section.

In conclusion, the TEAC AG-790 stereo receiver is an excellent buy, if it fits your needs as it does mine. If you can live with its minor quirks, buy it. If you can’t, spend more money.

Strengths:
1-year parts-and-labor warranty, heavy-duty design, 5-way speaker connections, phono input, and a very low price. The value rating below reflects the very good preamp and power amp sections of the receiver, while minimizing the quirks noted below in the weaknesses.

Weaknesses:
Insensitive FM tuner in fringe areas, noisy loudness compensation, and a bad quality control sample in my case.

Similar Products Used:
Heathkit AR1500 Receiver, NAD 7240PE Receiver, Outlaw 1050 HT Receiver, Onkyo Integra Preamp, Crown Power Amp, Hafler Isis FM Stereo Tuner, mint-condition ESS amt 1B Speakers, Paradigm Mini-Monitors, BIC DV62 Speakers, and a whole raft of Onkyo, Integra, Pioneer, Toshiba, Sony and Music Hall program input devices.