Denon DRA-800H 2-Channel Stereo Network Receiver for Home Theater, Hi-Fi Amplification, Connects to All Audio Sources, HDCP 2.3 Processing, Compatible with Amazon Alexa

This is my third Denon receiver starting with the AVR2805 back in 2005 (with AL32) and AVR-S900W more recently. Last week I received the DRA-800H Hi-Fi Network receiver from Amazon since this is exactly what I was looking for. A powerful 2-channel receiver amp that can play Pandora and YouTube music videos with 100W + 100W 8 Ohms discrete, high resolution sound. After hookup and listening to various sources I realized that this new receiver has the same powerful sound that Denon is famous for and the sound that I love so dearly.I hooked it up to my 4K AppleTV with HDMI and to TV HDMI (arc). Setup was a breeze and highly intuitive using the Setup Assistant. Used latest 4K HDR HDMI cables 4.4.4, Cat-8 Ethernet from router, as well as bi-amped (A+B) using 12 AWG Silverback speaker cables to my Monitor Audio Silver 6's toed in and with component isolation using Vibrapods. Still the average man's audiophile setup, but probably sounds just as good as a 100K setup. Make sure your TV has HDMI (arc). Can also hookup a pre-amp such as Shiit Magni3 and use this as an amplifier.A really nice feature is the HEOS button on the remote that gives me access to all my online music sources & tuner channels using one button operation. Same for the Quick Select buttons 1-4.Sound quality of Denon DRA-800H is powerful, detailed and sharp with just the right amount of base. I have heard this sound quality in all my Denon receivers and appears to be in their DNA. After all, it’s all about the sound. Watched Carlos Santana live Europa, Diana Krall, Latin / Cuban music, BB King the Thrill has Gone concert, etc. Denon you just made my life very happy!This is EXACTLY what I wanted. A powerful 2.1 channel receiver, albeit very high quality sound with 100 W/channel and be able to hook up to latest music videos using HDMI / AppleTV / YouTube / AirPlay. A clean setup with top notch sound for music listening. I packed my 7.2 Denon Receiver for future use.One minor downside is that the front USB is not compatible with my iPhone direct input. Surprising change, but can be overcome with AirPlay, BT, HEOS, RCA, etc. The Smart Remote function is a bit confusing for my TV (resolved now). Minor issues nevertheless.My next dream Denon receiver would be this unit with AL32 processing or the PMA-1600NE with the features & inputs from this DRA-800H 2-channel. Thank you Denon. This is posted on Denon website as well as Amazon. My photo needs updating.Updated 08-15-2019: After listening to this for another one week, I realize that the sound is getting even better and everything seems to be falling in sync. Smart Remote function works perfectly with my Panasonic TV remote. HEOS button - I use this every day. One push of the HEOS button or the Quick Select remote button takes me directly to my favorite Pandora station and starts playing. Sound quality is excellent as I have mentioned even through the headphone jack when I use my Beyerdynamic DT770 studio headphones. Highly addictive Network Receiver. I will upgrade my setup with Polk Signature S60's in October and replace the old Monitor Audio's as shown in photo. Will update this at that point. Also now using my EarSound ES100 pre-amp via RCA with excellent results.The matching of Denon DRA-800H with Polk Signature S60’s is perfect as recommended by Sound United. Photos attached.Update 06-06-2020. This receiver is now listed as top pick finalist in March 2020 edition of Sound & Vision magazine Top Picks section. Rightly so.

Can't say enough about this unit. I wanted a two-channel setup for our small family room. Every AV Integrated receiver has way too many features for me (i.e. Multiroom, 5.1, 7.2, 9.2, Roon ready, etc.) overkill in my opinion. I just wanted something I could get better sound for movies, sports, and stereo listening.I have the Denon PMA-1600 hooked up to a pair of KEF R-3s in our living room. This amp is in a smaller room connected to some Totem Acoustic Signature 1 speakers and sounds just as good. for TV listening Dialog is clear, music is full-spectrum. There's plenty of bass friends who ask where is the sub-woofer? I tell them I don't use one. The amp has all the features you need, an easy-to-use remote, and even tone controls!I watched "Dune" incredible sound, watched "Peaky Blinders" incredible sound, played my records, CDs, steamed music everything sounds fantastic. Wow!One thing that should be noted on some TVs, ours is a Sony, you have to switch the sound output for the amp to work. I almost sent it back because I could get no sound out of it. Read the manual made the adjustment and now everything works fine. The Manual is online.A cool feature is you can set the volume and when you tune the amp on it automatically starts on that set volume. I have mine set to around 45. So when I turn it on I can hear it. If there's a football game on I can turn it up or down. Also, the amp comes on and responds to my cable remote (Xfinity in my case). Didn't have to do anything it just works. Get yourself a good set of speakers and you are done.

I want to give this receiver 5 stars for sound quality and features, but a few things hold it back.In general, I'm happy that this receiver is 2.1 optimized as I have no need or want for more speakers, but the reality these days is that you need HDMI switching, so this receiver fills a real need.Sound quality: I give it 5 stars for the price. It sounds excellent--excellent resolution, clarity, and flat non-colored response. It punches well above its price point. Plus the amps are large enough to give it authority for playing loud. I appreciate the sound mode options (which can be changed with a button push on the remote). I originally bought this thinking about the 'good old days' when you had tone controls on the receiver. However, I end up playing this in Pure Direct mode which bypasses the tone circuits, balance, Restorer and even the unit's display. In fact it sounds so good that I replaced my 35-yr old 3-way speakers and subwoofer with a pair of Tekton Pendragons, and I'm truly happy with the fantastic sound quality with this pairing.Features: again 5 stars. Lots of inputs and outputs including the ability to use the receiver as a preamp only so you can put in the amp of your choice if you want. I have a firestick, blueray, and rasperry pi connected to the HDMIs. There is both optical and coax spdif inputs as well as the ability to play your music directly from a usb stick (more on that later). All of the input selections available on the display can be renamed so you know exactly what input you have selected.HEOS: I'll give it 3 stars for my purposes. I don't have a need to use the features to direct sound to another room nor do I want to get my smartphone involved in HEOS operation. I do not stream. Playing music from a USB stick or from a computer on the network is fantastic (both HEOS operations), however, the play buffer is limited to 300 songs. This is a real shortcoming. I had hoped to simply load my music on a USB stick, hit shuffle, and then be done with it. But the music is sorted alphabetically and the first 300 songs are put in the play buffer and you can only shuffle these songs.Bluetooth: 2 stars. It only supports SBC which sounds awful. My sony DAP supports bluetooth with LDAC, but it will only connect to this unit with SBC. Also this receiver does not support aptX or aptX-HD which is a true shortoming.ECO mode is interesting. It appears to use lower power for volumes below 50. Above that, you can hear a click as the receiver turns something on for more power. It keeps the unit cool for low volume listening.I got around the HEOS and bluetooth limitations by purchasing an Xduoo 10T-ii digital transport player which I dedicate to the DRA800h. I connect directly to the DRA's coax spdif and use the DRA's internal DAC for music, and it sounds awesome with flat detailed response, high clarity and resolution. I would have used an AES digital connection, but the DRA800H does not have one. A BNC connection would have been nice rather than RCA spdif but that probably doesn't matter much in a practical sense.Be warned that you have to configure the inputs. I could not get get the unit to play the analog out of my sony DAP and thought the unit was defective, but I had to configure the input for analog, and then all was fine. I also had to configure the digital input to be coax rather than optical.Another 'con' (LOL) is that I had to dump all my mp3s in favor of flac as the difference is immediately obvious due to the high sound quality of the DRA and the Pendragon speakers. Bob Dylan now sounds like he is in the room!In short, I think the DRA800H is a fantastic buy at it's price point and is loaded with lots of options and features. HEOS (300 song playlist) and bluetooth support for modern codecs need improvement, but are easily worked around with a digital transport using the DRA's spdif inputs and its internal DAC. The sound quality punches well above its price point and the Pure Direct sound mode is awesome. The DRA's dedication to 2 speakers (plus a subwoofer) is excellent. I can concentrate on putting my money into the highest quality speaker pair.