Best Buy is selling the STRDE935 at $389.86. This is a great deal, and they have it in stock. This is at their store in Valencia CA.

Best Buy is selling the STRDE935 at $389.86. This is a great deal, and they have it in stock. This is at their store in Valencia CA.

Well I bought the Sony STR-DE935 about 2 weeks ago to replace my more than half-decade old Pioneer VSX 407 Pro Logic receiver. Just let me first say that I have been more than pleased with the performance and power of my Pioneer. It has done all that I ever asked of it and more with never a day’s problem. But given the fact that I had recently purchased my first house (and a whole host of A/V goodies to fill my home theater), I felt that I was ready to step into the digital revolution.
This whole thing started after I moved from my apartment into my house, and quickly realized that my original Toshiba 32” TV just looked silly against that big wall. Not to mention that it was kinda hard to see the picture considering where my couch had to be placed in the room (due to the location of the fireplace (you would have to see the room to understand)). So enter my new Panasonic PT51G53, 51” big screen TV. After about all of about 30 seconds of viewing, I realized that a big screen requires a much better video source that the 220+/- lines of resolution that my regular HiFi VHS and my analog local cable delivered. Through this revelation, my home theater was born. It currently consists of a Panasonic DVD player (the A110), Hughes Digital Satellite receiver, (Direct TV) HiFi VHS and a Pioneer CD changer. For Speakers, I recently picked up; Acoustic Research AR 318PS’s in the front, AR 215PS’s for the rears and an AR C-215PS for the center.

Let me just start by saying that the STR- DA935 is an awesome receiver. Hook up was pretty straight forward, and setup in not tedious, just precise. This little gem allows you to compensate for most all of the imperfections in your listening environment.

Then came the tests…. I started with the opening scene of “Lost in Space” on DVD via digital Coax. One word… AMAZING!!!!. Excellent audio separation with zero crosses talk. The sound was crisp and dynamic, and the LFE was very accurate. Next test…. Chopper Chase scene in “Godzilla” (also on DVD). Once again, FLAWLESS!!!. Last test…. Final fight scene in “Blade”. Now as most people know, the dialog in “Blade” can be a little hard to hear during a fight scene with all the music and special-FX. The 935 handled it beautifully.

My only point of contention with this unit is the lack of additional S-video inputs. But if you don’t need additional S-video flexibility, I believe this is the perfect receiver for this price point. (If you do, try the Pioneer VSX D608. It has Flexibility unmatched for the price) Unfortunately, (or fortunately, depending on which side of the home audio dealer cash register you are standing on) I am discovering the audiophile within me. As a result, I am trading my receiver up for the all new Sony STR-DA555es. Not because of any flaws with the 935, but more so because of my dysfunctional desire for that which is “Bigger and Better!
I ordered a 555es from a local Sony ES A/V dealer. He called his distributor while I was there, and they were shipping 2 out to him as they spoke. I am expecting either Friday or Monday for delivery, and I can’t wait to play with this new toy.

All in All, I have to give the Sony STR-DE935 a solid 5 stars, for what it is and what it does.

In the mean time, look for my review of the Sony STR-DA555es probably by the middle of next week.

This is an update to my earlier comments on the STR-DE935.
Now that I've had some time to work with the remote control, I have to say the remote is a complete loser. It is very limited in its control of the receiver, not to mention the other components, including the Sony TV in my system. For example, it is not possible to scan the FM tuner up and down, only to switch between presets, and direct entry of the FM frequency.

The 2-way LCD remote is a great idea, but it just doesn't pan out at all.

The remote is often slow to respond and many times fails to update the information in the LCD screen, and sometimes just goes blank, requiring removal of the batteries to reset it.

The remote is not capable of entering menu mode on my RCA DVD player, which severely limits its usefullness controlling it. (the Sony TV remote however works fine with the DVD, but of course will not operate the recevier.

I'm going to take one star off my review, due to the remote control. It just wasn't well thought out and actually makes operating the system *more* difficult than it should be.

I'm following up a review of this product I had left a few weeks ago. I've been using this receiver constantly for the entire time I've had it, for music, movies, dss, everything I could run through it. I actually did get the remote to work well with all of my other components, but here is the problem. We were watching a movie a few days ago, and immediatley after, a hissing developed in the rears and never stopped. It has nothing to do with the cables or the speakers, those are all top notch. It was the receiver. Rather than wait and see what may have developed, I returned it and picked up an Onkyo for the same price. Sony does make other great things, my cd player is from them and I could not be happier, but I am very disappointed in this product. I'm reducing my rating to a 2.

I've been looking to upgrade my HT for some time now and can now see the light at the end of the tunnel. I've tested the HK AVR 65 and 85, the Sony STR DE935, the JVC RX888VBK and the ONK TXDS575. I have read up on and listen to demo's in the store's for other models. I've always been a fan of HK and almost bought the AVR 85 but recently drop it form my choices due to its lack of DTS. I had a problem with the AVR 65 (distortion) which has been stated in various other reviews. I called HK today to see if the problem has been corrected and the rep statment follows: This is a know problem with the AVR 65 and will be corrected in a future model but will require a total redsign of the interal components. Things like RF sheilded chips due to the new digital chips being used in these receivers. There know of only 150 units out of 10,000 that have had this problem. Reality is that all units could have this problem depending on the setup, location, cables used etc. He also stated that there will not be any new models out until after the first of the year. So count out the HK's. The Sony I tested worked fine but did seem to run a little HOT when used for extended periods. It's been my experience that heat kills so that alone would cause me to rule out the sony. The Sony does offer nice features DD and DTS and enough S video for any setup. Sound was ok for the price you pay so if you want clearer more powerful sound spend more money and get a Yamaha or something similar. I did not like the Onkyo due to the lack of S-video so I ruled it out. The only unit that passed all my critera was the JVC which totally surprised me. I will post a review of that unit under its model number. When I move into my new house I will spend the extra money for a Yamaha but until then its the JVC. So for the Sony I give 4 stars if you only use it long enough where the heat is not a factor. If you listen to music or watch movies loud and for long periods make sure you have a fan blowing across this unit and its well ventilated. I would rate it 3 stars for this reason.

**UPDATE** It's been four weeks since I bought this receiver and I've become very unsatisfied with the product. As is stated several times below, there is definite hissing in the rear speakers, which has nothing to do with my cables or satellites (trust me, I hooked them in to another system and there was no problem), when this receiver is on for more than 4 or 5 hours, it gets way too hot for my armoire set-up and I have to let it cool down before using it again. the remote, ahhh the fabulous remote. It was wonderful at first, but after two weeks and 2 battery changes, I've had to program the damned thing about 5 times. The sound quality has also become too warm for my taste, which doesn't apply to everyone I might add. As far as value for price, this model may be it for some, but not for me. It did come with tons of inputs, etc. But that doesn't make it a great receiver. Granted, it has more options than most other digital receivers in this price range, but it clearly falls short in the sound category. Not for me, I'm taking this back and getting the Onkyo I had my eye on.

I just bought the 935 one week ago and it is now DEAD. After setting up (not as diffucult as others has suggested)the receiver to my Toshiba DVD, Sony SLV975HF VCR and MBQuart 6 speaker system, the sound was okay but not great. I was less than impressed with the power (these speakers DESERVE a better receiver) not to mention I could not get the receiver to decode any multi-channel recording. I was using the digital coaxial connection betw the DVD player and the 935, I had a digital coaxial cable, I tried both the 4 and 8ohm settings (the speakers are rated 4-8 ohms)and made sure to select the correct audio track. and yet i could not get it out of pro-logic mode. whatever. i had decided it was either my DVD player (1st generation) or it wasn't hooked up properly. either way i decided i would figure it out later since that night we were having about 60 people over for a party. we played CD's all night from about 9 until the receiver just died around 3AM. very disappointing since the party was just getting warmed up. luckily i still had my old receiver which we hooked up and the music continued until about 9AM. when i switched them, the 935 was practically on fire it was so hot. the next day after it was cooled off, i tried turning it on and nothing except a little click. i took the cover off to see if there was a fuse that i could replace. i found about 7 fuses inside but all were still good. who knows? what a piece of garbage. when i had it open i didn't see any fans. would it really be that difficult for Sony to put a $5 fan in there? i mean they've got to know it gets hot. i sent sony a nice email today, maybe they'll hook me up with an ES. if not, this thing is going right back to where i got it and i'll pick up a yamaha rx-v995 unless someone out there can convince me of something better for around $750. i know the yamaha is about $300 more than the sony but you get what you pay for. all i can say is: sony gives you more bang for the buck when it comes to tv's, dvd players, vcrs and a lot of other things but don't skimp on your receiver. stay away from anything cheap (not just sony) if you like to entertain or listen to loud music. be wary of cheap ticket prices. i've seen this thing sell for as little as $350. that means it probably costs them less than $300 to make (maybe much less). but you get what you pay for. don't rush into buying it just because you have to have dolby digital right away. don't let that money burn a whole in your pocket. wait a few more weeks, save up some more and get the one you REALLY want whatever that is. go ahead, splurge. you're gonna use the thing for at least 5 years right? the 935 is probably acceptable if you like to watch a quiet movie once every 2 weeks. but don't get it if you plan to use it every day. it's just not a rugged all-around workhorse. but that's just my opinion i could be wrong. comments?

In the past I have typically stayed with brands like Yamaha, Denon, NAD, Carver, etc., but the recent trend in the home audio marketplace which renders components obsolete as new technology rapidly arrives (Dolby Pro-logic, Dolby Digital, dts, etc.) has led me to re-think my purchase decisions. This is beginning to look similar to the personal computer industry, whereby the latest and greatest items today are commonplace (and replaced) in a matter of months.
As such, I decided to consider taking a look at units that had the latest technology features, specifically in terms of signal processing, decoding, etc., but are maybe not as "feature-rich" in terms of items that have always mattered to me, such as S-Video on all video inputs, pre-outs for all channels, good clean power, etc. By compromising on a couple of items, I can save myself quite a bit of money, while, hopefully enjoying the latest technology, and not worrying so much about what new replacement technology comes out in the next 18 months.

The Sony STR DE935 came the closest to fitting the bill. A couple of compromises here and there, but lots of (rated) power and cool "toys", along with Dolby Digital and dts.

After going through 2 remotes (and the remote didn't work too slick when it worked like it was supposed to), and what appears to be DSP induced distortion in the rear channels, I am going back to my "old ways". This unit is going back to Circuit City, and I will pry the extra $300 or $400 out of my wallet to be satisfied with something like the Denon AVR-3300. I could handle the compromises, even a goofy remote (that's an opinion thing anyway), and I may not need as much clean power as I'd like, but I will not listen to obvious distortion (also mentioned by others in the review of this product).

Neat product, and worth keeping (whether it's the "best" or not) if not for the distortion. No way.

I purchased the Sony STR DE925 about two months ago. I am very pleased withit performence. I had no trouble intalling it and learning how to use it.
The remote control can be made more user friendly to use. Overall performence
is superior.