Yamaha RX-V673
Just Tested
TVs
Panasonic TX-L47DT65B
It has its drawbacks, but this Panasonic is easy to live with and has an insightful and dynamic picture performance – it’s a great set
Read
Home cinema amplifiers
Denon AVR-X2000
The AVR-X2000 brings Denon back to the AV receiver top table in this ultra-competitive price category
Read
Soundbars
Otone Sonora AV-Lance
A decent, affordable effort from Otone but sound quality is tainted by a distracting brightness
Read
In this month's mag
July 2013
SUPERTEST: Soundbar solutions £250-£450
GROUP TEST: 46-47in smart TVs
GROUP TEST: Standmount speakers £350-£450
© 2013 Haymarket Publishing
Comments
My onkyo 606 has had it's day and I'm thinking about this guy to replace it however unsure if I can use it for 5.1 config, bi amp my front b&w 685 and still run a second zone of stero speakers for another room??
It's got seven channels of power amplification built-in, so won't be able to deliver 5.1, bi-amp your fronts and power the speakers in your second room. It does have preamp outs for Zone 2 though.
I had cancelled my online order for the Yamaha Rvx673 as the store told me that this amp was not really man enough to drive the B&W MT60D speakers with the PV1D sub. They said if I pop in and listen to the Pioneer SCLX 56 I would think it time well spent... how right they were... off I trotted from St Ives on the two hour trip to the store. I got there and auditioned the pioneer and I couldn't believe how underwhelmed I was. It was also very treble heavy and I did not have much base coming through despite tweaks made by the store. Then they hooked up the Yamaha RVX673 and I watched the same scene of skyfall again. The sofa vibrated. The was more excitement and I felt more drawn in to the action. At the same time as there being more low frequency rumble, there was just the right (for my ears) amount of detail. All in all I felt that the Yamaha sounded far better with these speakers. The store attendant agreed and by the time I left (two and a half grand worse offbut very happy) he was thinking very differently about the Yamaha too. I did like the blue lights on the Pioneer tho
Can we have some blue lights please Yamaha?...
Very helpful review. I'm very much tempted to buy the RX-V673, but I got a great offer for the 5-star rated Onkyo TX-NR709. Which receiver would be the best match for a set of Ellipson 1303 speakers? Emphasis is on stereo sound quality, but I do need an AV receiver, not just a stereo amplifier...
Both amps will work well with your speaker package. I think the Yamaha will pull slightly ahead when it comes to stereo replay, though won't sound quite as big and powerful in surround.
Great reviw.The RX-V673 would make match with monitor Audio bronxe BX5 or BX6 ?
No phono in means I can't use it with my Oppo 95 so this is a no no for me.
John
Your review of this amp says "HDMI v1.3a = Yes". But given that it has 4k pass-through and ARC I assume it is at least HDMI v1.4? Can you please confirm (and update the review)? Also since it does 4k pass-through then I assume that 3D pass-through should be no problem?
Yes, it is HDMI v1.4, and does pass both 3D and 4K – it's one of our ongoing frustrations that the current set-up of the specs template doesn't allow this to be made clear on this, or any other AV receiver tech specs panel.
We are working on finding a solution, but in the meantime apologies for any confusion.
Thank you Ketan, that was really helpful. Best Regards!
Great review, as always. Can you tell me, please, if the rx-v673 is a good match for a Monitor Audio Silver rx-2 based 5.1 surround system, sound and power wise? I don't want to make the sound too bright...
The RX-V673 would make a great match for the Monitor Audio package. It's the most sonically-rounded amplifier we've heard at this price and shouldn't sound overly bright.