Price Paid:  $60.00 from A Re tards in Pitcar

Summary:
My brother was browsing the local classifieds one day and saw a listing for "5.1 home theater and speakers for sixty bucks. He told me about is as he already had an Onkyo 5.1 setup with KLH speakers and a Sony sub.

We got to this guys house and could not beleive what he was selling. All 4 KLH 100w surrounds, a 150w Pioneer center, a Jenson powered 100w downfiring sub, and the receiver a Technics SA-DX1040 with remote!! I automatically assumed this was stolen property and he threw in the receipts and manual!!

Neadless to say I bought it unheard on the spot. When I got it home and immediately hooked it all up and WOW Holy $h|te and a few other comments later my brother was kicking himself for not getting it for himself.

I give it 4 stars overall because there are a lot of nice newer models with desirable features that the 1040 doesn't have like 7.1, Dolby Digital 2, or THX certification. If you can get one of these for under Two hundred you should go for it provided the last owner didn't fry one or more of the 5.1 channels you might just be able to grab some nicer speakers for the setup. If you have multiple hundreds to drop go for the bleeding edge 7.1.

Strengths:
100 watts per channel
3 digital optical inputs
A and B speaker selection - A's for 5.1 surround and B's to crank through a pair of 260w Technics SB-A55's (A fifty dollar addition to my high priced setup)

Weaknesses:
Remote operational angle is small - you really have to point directly at the unit and NOTHING better be in the way or it dont work.

No Coax Digital in.

Slight heat, fan should be variable speed with thermisistor control. Fan only comes on over 50% volume. Still it doesn't get frighteningly hot.

Price Paid:  $220.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
I have owned this receiver for about 3 or 4 years now. I use this EVERYDAY. I CRANK THE HELL OUT OF IT EVERYDAY. Yes it does heat up a good amount and i overload it quite a but but thats because i beat the crap out of it all the time. The average consumer wouldnt ever play it at those levels everyday so the heat problem isnt really a factor. I leave this on all through the night and most of the day. My only complaint at this point is when i adjust the balance it makes a fuzzy sound and sometimes i have to jiggle the knob for it to cut the channel out. Also my remote broke 4 months after the purchase and i cant set any of my suround levels. Otherwise for the price this is one of the best recievers ive ever own or seen.

Strengths:
Clean sound, Good features, plenty of inputs, good power

Weaknesses:
Remote died after 4 months, poor online customer support, heats up quite a bit

Similar Products Used:
very very old technics receiver (late 80's digital tuning) technics SB-L76 3 way speakers

Price Paid:  $199.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
My overall assessment of this product would have to be ... wow. I saw this product at a Best Buy store marked at $199. I stood there and thought to myself.......is this thing mis-marked? the lower quality lines of technics receivers were sitting next to the 1040 for $50 more? Anywho, how could I pass it up?

Strengths:
The overall clarity of the product is exceptional. For the amount of money I had spent, I hardly expected the clarity and the longevity of this receiver. I have run it in it's home theatre mode, with a powered sub, as well as in bi-amped mode. Either way, this thing shines. As in an earlier post, it does seem to lack bass response; but I believe that is due to comparison to other products, that I believe, overproduce the lower spectrum of the sound scale. My former roommate purchased a $600 Sony unit at about the same time I had purchased this unit and I must say, the sound that came from his gear screamed unnatural, while the technics produced the entire sound spectrum crisp and studio-like.

Weaknesses:
I must say that this unit does get hot. But after over a year of using it I have found that it does reach a certain temperature, no matter if the amplifier is on standy, or under load. I have left the unit on for days, probably even weeks at a time and have had no problems with it reaching thermal protection. I really don't understand why the 1040 has gotten a bad rep for the unit's running temp. It may run hot, but I have proven that it doesn't matter through my year and a half of abuse :)(I do not condone leaving your receivers run on standby for weeks at a time)

Similar Products Used:
Sony dts receivers, Onkyo dts receivers, dabbled with Denon's gear

Price Paid:  $199.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
I have to say that this is one of the best audio buys that I have made on new equipment. I have been using it for the past 3 months with a pair of Magnepan SMG''s. Those are a 4 OHM load. Yes it gets warm at low volumes but if you turn up the volume a bit to the point which the fan comes on it will get ice cold(reason they did this was so the music volume would cover the humm of the fan). Even after running all night at low volume with the fan off it didn''t get too hot, not enough to melt down. It seems to get to a certain temp and hold steady. Anyway, that BS stuff. The sound is where this unit shines. Mine has tested at 106 watts per channel@6ohms which exceeds the specs by a small margin. That is rare with the lower cost brands. Highs shine, and bass kicks(before the magnepans they don''t play much low bass)I have a powered sub for that now. These speakers are said to reveal any weakness in your equipment. Trust me, there is no major weakness here. The soundstage and clairity are amazing. If you can get your hands on one for $200 or less BUY IT!

Strengths:
Low cost, great sound,plenty of power Dolby Digital & DTS. Aluminum front pannel. Solid build.

Weaknesses:
Does tend to run warm at low volume. Variable Gain Control mode turns the subwoofer output off when selected.(Magnepans need the sub)

Similar Products Used:
Pioneer, Sony ES, Yamaha, and a Jolida tube amp.

Price Paid:  $350.00 from CameraClub.com

Summary:
I never thought I would be the type of person to write a bad review but I just had to stop anyone out there from buying this thing. I bought the unit in Nov of 2000 and only had two speakers to use it with. I was satisfied with it (though it gets extremely hot). I recently bought a surround speakers and when I hooked them up the unit wouldn''t work. Nothing would come out of ANY speakers. It only works in Stereo Mode. I called Panasonic and they were very rude and unfamiliar with the product. A senior technician called me back and told me the it was broken. No kidding. So I want to advise anyone considering this unit to go elsewhere. This will be the last Panasonic audio equipement I buy.

Strengths:
Simple design.

Weaknesses:
Only works in Stereo mode. Gets extremely hot. Incredibly poor customer service.