Yamaha RX-V473

Yamaha has been a stalwart in the home theater receiver field for more than two decades now. Its early lead began with its smooth-sounding Dolby Pro Logic and 70mm Theater DSP modes. The company's latest home theater receiver, the RX-V473 ($449.95 list), offers integrated iPod and iPhone support over USB, plus AirPlay compatibility for streaming music wirelessly.

Design, Amplification, and iPod Connectivity
A fairly imposing piece of kit, the RX-V473?measures 6.4 by 17.2 by 12.4 inches (HWD) and weighs 17.9 pounds. It also offers plenty of connectivity including four HDMI inputs?one less than the Denon AVR-1613 ($399.99, 3 stars)?and one output. Notably, the RX-V473 not only switches video automatically among the inputs, but also passes through 4K video. That sets you up for the future, if and when 4K video becomes widely available. Unlike the AVR-1613, the RX-V473 also contains a full set of composite A/V inputs as well as component-level inputs, which helps if you've got older sources to connect without HDMI ports. This alone could be your deciding factor.

With five discrete channels of amplification, the RX-V473?outputs 80 watts per channel @ 8 ohms, 20-20,000 Hz, and 0.09 percent THD; ignore Yamaha's higher 115-watt figure, as that allows for almost one percent of distortion and doesn't offer a specific frequency range. There are Burr-Brown 24-bit, 192kHz DACs on all channels, plus a switchable Direct Mode for bypassing the EQ and DSP circuitry.?AirPlay support lets you stream music wirelessly from an iPhone, iPod, iPad, Apple TV, or a Mac or PC running iTunes. Unfortunately, the RX-V473 itself has no Wi-Fi; to use AirPlay, you need to connect the receiver to your home network via a wired Ethernet connection. Yamaha's remote is absolutely packed with tiny buttons; at least you can do almost everything you need to with it.

The stereo component industry is being dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century. For a long while, there was no easy way of hooking up an iPod or other MP3 player aside from using a Y-cable purchased from Radio Shack?which was fine as it goes, although it didn't sound the best. But it also didn't charge your player; you'd need a second cable for that, which was messy. Then Onkyo, Yamaha, and others began to sell accessory docks that charged an iPod and were easier to use, but these were expensive and came with another nest of cables, plus yet another remote control.

At least now receivers like the RX-V473 and the Denon AVR-1613 come with front-panel USB ports. You can plug in, charge your iPod, and listen all at the same time. But even so, integration is nowhere near it should be. Unfortunately, like with the Denon, the Yamaha RX-V473's on-screen menu system looks like it's from 1982 ColecoVision console. The graphics-free design and blocky fonts aren't pretty. Yamaha's OS and remote control are more responsive, though. I had little trouble navigating to various modes and listening options.

Performance, AirPlay, and Conclusions
Sonically, the RX-V473 is a solid performer. It had no problem driving a set of Energy Take Classic 5.1 ($399, 4 stars) speakers to deafening levels in our testing lab. That said, the quality of the sound was ever so slightly off when compared with the Denon AVR-1613. It's subtle, but the RX-V473 sounded a little thinner and muddier with the levels matched. It's something you'd only notice in a side-by-side comparison.

Next up were some movies. To test the RX-V473's home theater prowess, I ran scenes from the 2010 DTS Demonstration Blu-Ray Disc through the receiver, a Samsung BD-D5500 ($159.99, 3.5 stars) Blu-ray player, a Sony Bravia KDL-46EX620 HDTV ($809.99, 3.5 stars) and the Energy Take speakers. The Yamaha RX-V473 actually sounded ever-so-slightly better with movies than the AVR-1613, with its clear, distinct treble and a less emphasized upper bass range. In Robin Hood (the 2010 film with Russell Crowe), I heard clearly resolved arrow shots and crisp, natural dialog even when many things were going on simultaneously. Next up was the DTS-encoded Despicable Me, where the RX-V473 did a nice job resolving rocket engine rumble cleanly underneath the heated dialog between the on-screen characters, and delivering massive low-end punch through the Energy subwoofer whenever necessary.

Yamaha gives you plenty of other features to play with. There are 17 Cinema DSP modes, including a compressed music enhancer and various surround sound-enhancing circuits like DTS-HD and Dolby TrueHD, both of which offer master-quality audio from supported sources. The Silent Cinema mode distills a 5.1 signal into something that works for regular stereo headphones. As is typical for Yamaha receivers, most of these sound excellent. Even if they're not for purist audiophiles, they're quite sophisticated and add serious atmosphere to both music and movies. The RX-V473 supports FLAC 96/24 lossless, and also works with both DNLA 1.5 and Windows 7 systems.

AirPlay also worked particularly well. Once I plugged the receiver into our test network with an Ethernet cable, within moments it showed up on my iPhone as a possible AirPlay destination. I selected it and off I went, playing music tracks stored on the iPhone with little of the drama I saw with the Denon AVR-1613.

For this review, I also tested Yamaha AV Controller, a free app that turns your iOS or Android device into a Wi-Fi-based remote control for the RX-V473. Skip the on-screen menus and use this, because it's a much better experience. I liked it much better than Denon's; it features sharp graphics indicating which mode you're in, as well as simple navigation for selecting sources, activating DSP modes, and controlling playback.

Yamaha has clearly thought through its media options for the RX-V473. It's almost impossibly well specified for an under-$500 home theater receiver. It's still in the dark ages when it comes to iPod and AirPlay integration, since there's no actual Wi-Fi, and the on-screen menus look so dated. That said, it's still a solid performer in the traditional home theater receiver sense, and if you use the iOS or Android app, you won't have to deal with that on-screen menu system. The Denon AVR-1613 offers slightly better sound quality and native Pandora and Sirius XM integration, but it's buggier with iPod and AirPlay connectivity, and Denon's app trails the Yamaha version by a significant amount.

More Audio Reviews:
??? Yamaha RX-V473
??? Denon AVR-1613
??? Avid Pro Tools 10
??? Cakewalk SONAR X1 Producer
??? Steinberg Cubase 6.5
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/y3wlb5fls1I/0,2817,2405772,00.asp

neville george lucas numerology the game new hampshire primary hue jackson alabama football