Denon AVR-2805 AV Home Theater Receiver

This is the best value for the money on the market in A/V Receivers. I have owned this one since its inception and it has been great. I strongly recommend it to anyone!!!

I previously owned a Yamaha DSP-1000 sound processor that had more power, sounded as good or better than the Denon, and had a much better remote and manual. I would not recommend it for the above reasons.

Price Paid: $354.00, used, from eBay on 10/03/2006I'm writing this review because I'm disappointed by the poor reviews from the other Amazon folks that this great receiver does not deserve.Summary:This receiver was released 06/01/2004 with an original retail price of $899, & its professional reviews were glowing. I had researched many different non-HDMI receivers at the time and also liked the Yamahas. Anyway, my main incentive was that I wanted a solid 7.1 receiver to produce Dolby Digital EX, Pro-Logic IIx and DTS-ES 6.1 discreet.At the time, I was waiting for HDMI (which this Denon 2805 receiver does not have) to continue to invade the marketplace to drive the price down, and was using a Teac Dolby Digital & DTS receiver which worked fine.As you've probably read, some have complained that: there are too many complex settings and options on this receiver, the manual is poor (but it's filled with pictures & diagrams, is detailed and made perfect sense to me), or that the remote is confusing. The fact is, yes, all of it takes a while to learn - but after investing some time playing with the receiver/remote/manual (which takes time), things begin to make sense and detailed adjustments can be made and appreciated. Honestly!This receiver also comes with DM-S305 setup microphone, at least I made sure mine did. I used this and it provided great speaker placement. My theater room is fairly even (like a rectangle).Because I like the surrounds a tad more aggressive, I manually made the adjustments. If you get a used Denon AVR 2805, it would be wise to make sure you have the microphone, because as you graduate to other receivers (that can handle HDMI etc [this one does not]), the microphone will add a nice selling point to a buyer when it comes time to sell.My speakers are ACOUSTECH 5.1-CHANNEL LOUDSPEAKER SYSTEM + I purchased two more additional, matching Acoustech surrounds to create a 7.1 system. The speakers sound is terrific and very clean with the Denon.[...]Back to the receiver, here are some options:[...]I frequently use Dolby Pro Logic® IIx Cinema (which provides 7.1 channels) with cable TV shows. It's terrific and can open up the atmosphere. And the Music mode of Dolby Pro Logic® IIx is wonderful and expansive with music on TV such as concerts. The same goes for using the DTS Neo modes. They don't sound gimicky, but more transparent & involving. Though be aware that direct 5.1 mixes from DVD movies sound far more distinct.There are still many things I haven't investigated and certainly lack understanding such as the EQ settings, multi-room use (if you use 5.1 speakers and use the remaining two speakers for another room), and video up conversions. Also, I use it maybe a couple of hours ever few days, so I don't run it hard, and I've never had one problem with it. Not once.The introduction of high definition and HDMI connectivity AFTER this receiver was produced has quickly made this and other non-HDMI receiver less relevant and, thus, the price has been reduced on eBay and the overall marketplace. And that is certainly fair.If you are still waiting for quality HDMI receivers to decrease in price or are waiting for HDMI advances, it's hard to go wrong with this intermediate, non-HDMI 7.1 receiver in the meantime (also called the 985).For an example, any of the three Lord of the Rings Extended DVDs in DTS-ES 6.1 Discreet sound breathtaking.Being non-HDMI I can't give the 2805 a 5 star rating, which I would have back in 2004 upon its release. HDMI is proving to be necessarily relevant with the advent of high definition in today's home theaters, as well as the release of Dolby True-HD and DTS-HD Master Audio that is becoming available, which the Denon 2805 does not support. Of course, newer Denon receiver$ do.But for what it does, it's enjoyably excellent.Strengths:Power, versatility, detailed settings. Learning remote. Clean, hefty sound; 100-watts per 7 channels. Good 100 page manual, which includes many diagrams. Many inputs. 7.1 pre-outs. On-screen display for helpful set up and information. DM-S305 setup microphone for speakers. Dolby® Digital EX, DTS-ES® 6.1 Discreet, and Dolby Pro Logic® IIx decoding. Multi-room, video conversions.Weaknesses:Non-HDMI. No sleep feature (auto-shut off after 30/60/90 etc minutes), which I use on other electronics. The one quirky, frustrating thing is that an older film (like from the 1980s-1990s) recorded in 2.0 surround will always throw the receiver into Dolby Pro-Logic IIx mode, and the manual confirms that is exactly what it will do (on page 42). What if you want to watch it strictly in 2.0 surround speaker placement? You have to turn off some speakers. So it's workable. It's a minor complaint.Some who are not into fine-tuning the details may find the receiver, remote and manual overly complex. It takes some time. Overall, its been awesome for me. [Yes, I go overboard on mentioning the non-HDMI thing with this Denon receiver, because if someone is new to the Home Theater, they really should investigate and understand HDMI ..... @ hdmi.org ]. Hope this review helps.

I just purchased this receiver and found it to be quite wonderful. The Dolby Digital and DTS surround for DVD's is terrific. It's handling of CD's is very, very good too. I found it easy to set up and the auto set up of the speakers is very easy to do. My only complaint is that the remote is a little bit confusing when you first start using it, but once you get used to it's layout and which buttons handle what feature, then it's a breeze to operate. It's bit on the heavy side to hold in your hand, but otherwise it's very good. Highly recommended for it's advanced features and ease of operation.