Thank god I'm not deaf, because this receiver makes hearing a beautiful thing...
Written: Sep 21 '03
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Pros: Sound quality! Ease of use, simplicity. Unflashy.
Cons: Remote is a little user-unfriendly.
The Bottom Line: Excellent value, tremendous sound quality. If you're looking for quality without annoying flashiness, definitely consider Arcam.
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| canuck33's Full Review: Arcam AVR200 Receiver |
I was completely sold on purchasing a comparable Rotel receiver, without even auditioning it, simply due to my past experience with Rotel. Until, that is, a clever (and arrogant) salesman persuaded me to audition the Arcam AVR200.
This guy was at a top-notch high-end store in downtown Toronto, and put an Arcam DVD player with first the Rotel, and then with the Arcam receiver. I doublechecked his connections to ensure he wasn't pulling a fast one, as I thought he was kind of slimy (see paragraph above). Paired with a set of Mirage OM-9's (which I also ended up buying) I sat back, fully prepared to be underwhelmed. First, the Rotel, which was, as I expected, beautiful and musical. Then, the Arcam. In a large audio shop with high ceilings, and an open front door (through which a delivery was underway) I closed my eyes and waited.
When the music hit my ears, I was absolutely blown away. The distinction between the Rotel and the Arcam was the same difference I had heard 9 years prior when comparing a Rotel versus a Yamaha system (no comparison, obviously). While I'm not great at describing audiophilistic properties of music (bright,dull, whatever), what I heard was the purest form of reproduced music I had ever heard. The soundstage was accurate, as though the cellist was sitting to my left. In fact, my friend (who was with me) and I both looked to the left at the same time to look for the musician.
Some history here: I was looking for a receiver as the foundation component of a 5.1 home theatre. I wasn't looking for 7.1, and DTS-EX, and all that newfangled stuff that bumps up the price, for a little more technology. I was looking for a straightforward receiver that could adequately render 5.1 and DTS in a home theatre setting, but could also do justice to normal two-channel stereo performance. From what I had encountered thus far, receivers that were good at 5.1 sucked at normal music reproduction. Not so the Arcam.
Other people I had spoken to did not like the fact that the AVR200 did not have programmable inputs. I was looking for digital DVD, CD and Satellite inputs, and that's about it. I figured, so what if they're "hardcoded". So long as the inputs are there, I really don't care. I use coaxial digital inputs for the DVD 5.1 input, as well as CD. If I ever get around to buying the 5 cables required for DVD-Audio, as well as some 5.1 encoded audio DVD's, I've got the inputs for those as well (as my DVD also supports that format).
Loudness? Yep, more than I can stand, which is quite sufficient in my books, and ridiculous in the books of my wife. I've got the AVR200 mated with a full set of Mirage speakers, the mains of which are 8-ohms, and it powers them easily.
While it may have been nice to have bi-wireable binding posts for the speaker outputs, I don't miss it. I tried biwiring the speakers, but honestly, I couldn't notice much difference. So, I'm glad I didn't pay extra for that feature.
The remote is decent, I can figure out most of the functions, with the exception of the tuner. I simply cannot figure out how to change the station without going to the receiver and pressing buttons. If I could find the manual for the remote, I could probably decipher it, but it's definitely not user intuitive. The rest of the remote is pretty good, and it has the capacity to replace all of my other remotes used in this system. However, it doesn't replace ALL of the functions in the other remotes. As a result, I've still got four remotes that I use consistently.
Design is very subtle and understated. That's exactly how I like my audio and video components. I don't want lights flashing showing me graphic display bars etc. To me, that's just extra chip technology that detracts from the pureness of the electricity. Give me simple (as simple as 5.1 digital decoding allows), and I'm happy.
This thing is not particularly feature ridden. Yes, I can adjust the levels of the rears, and the tone/balance if I want, but I don't have the ability to program or customize existing decoding modes. But, I don't really care. It allowed me to set up the listening parameters of my room (i.e. speakers are X metres from head), and I trust the 5.1 and DTS decoding to do the rest, which is does wonderfully.
I guess one of the best compliments I can give this unit is that when I am watching a movie with a stellar soundtrack (e.g. Lord of the Rings), I forget that the music is reproduced. The reproduction is so natural that the soundtrack does what it is supposed to do; i.e. not be obvious, and just blend with where the movie is taking you. You forget that you have a stereo/speakers creating the music, and it just becomes one with the film.
Would I buy it again! Definitely. Would I recommend it? Unequivocably. A friend (who auditioned it with me, see above), ended up buying the same speakers, but with a more expensive Denon 7.1 receiver. In both of our opinions (epinions?) Arcam blows it away, and just makes the speakers sound so much nicer. He's not pleased with his system. I very much am.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 1800 CDN
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Epinions.com ID:
canuck33
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Reviews written: 11
Trusted by: 0 members
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