Performance First
The audio lover’s home theater system.

The Arcam $2,199 AVP700 preamp/processor and the $2,299 P1000 amplifier exchange some of the simplicity of an all-in-one receiver for the performance of separate electronics. On the source end, we went with the $1,799 DV79 DVD-Video/Audio player, which brings the total system price to $6,297.

Arcam’s AVP700 preamp/processor (shown below) and the P1000 power amplifier sacrifice some of the simplicity of an all-in-one receiver for the improvement in performance that comes from components that are dedicated to their specific tasks.

The P1000 is a seven-channel amp; you can connect it to the pre/pro via either RCA or the higher-end balanced audio connectors. The AVP700 has the processing modes to accommodate a 7.1-channel speaker system (Dolby EX and DTS ES), or you can go with a 5.1-channel setup and use the remaining two channels for a second zone. The AVP700 has a healthy complement of HD-capable video connections: two HDMI inputs and one output, plus three component video ins and one out. Its digital audio connections are solid but not extensive, and there’s no FireWire connection.

Separate pre/pro and amp combos require more cables by design, but that alone doesn’t make installation more difficult. In both the setup procedure and the owner’s manuals, it’s clear this Arcam combo is geared more toward the enthusiast who already has some knowledge of the subject matter. The pre/pro doesn’t use an automatic setup program, and there are plenty of adjustments to precisely tailor the pre/pro to your system and room, such as speaker EQ, audio delay to sync the audio and video, and separate subwoofer level adjustments for film and stereo. The on-screen display doesn’t work with the HDMI; it does work through the component video inputs, but only with an interlaced (480i/576i) signal. The remote is backlit and laid out well, but some buttons are cryptically labeled. It took a trip to the remote’s dedicated manual to figure out how to switch between inputs.
 
The DV79 player features one HDMI and two digital audio outputs, but no FireWire. It’s a progressive-scan model, but it’s the only player in our roundup that doesn’t let you upconvert the video signal to 720p or 1080i through HDMI. The player’s detail level is quite good, and its deinterlacer does an excellent job with film-based signals, so DVD movies look rich and artifact-free. It doesn’t handle video signals as well, so you may notice shimmer and other jaggies in video-based signals.

This player doesn’t let you pass high-resolution, multichannel DVD-Audio signals through the HDMI output. Since there’s no FireWire here, you must return to the analog realm to listen to high-resolution audio, for which Arcam has included all of the necessary bass-management adjustments. Still, add in the absence of SACD playback, and that $1,799 price tag seems a bit steep.

Arcam offers two HDMI and three component video connections, but no FireWire ports. The HDMI are geared primarily toward video reproduction and not toward audio. You’ll have to use six analog connections to pass DVD-Audio to the AVP700.

Interestingly, even when I tried to send standard stereo, Dolby Digital, and DTS audio signals through the HDMI output, the AVP700 pre/pro reads them as analog signals and passed them through to the TV along with the video signal. In order to get a digital audio signal to play through my speaker system, I had to resort to the player’s tried-and-true coaxial and optical outputs. Nothing in Arcam’s manuals explains why this occurs. In fact, Arcam doesn’t address HDMI as an audio option, discussing it only as a means for delivering digital video.

Once setup was out of the way, I could sit back and enjoy this system’s greatest strength: its audio prowess. As I expected from a dedicated amp, the P1000 has excellent dynamic ability and didn’t stumble even with the densest film soundtracks played at high volume levels. I was more impressed with the definition and quickness of individual effects within that soundfield, as if the system had stripped away a layer of audio film to reveal a fuller dimension to my favorite soundtracks. Even simple effects, like Darth Vader’s breathy dialogue in The Empire Strikes Back, were more convincing. With multichannel and stereo music, the Arcam gear ably walks that fine line between bringing out the best in the recording without adding any superfluous refinements.

Despite its sleek, modern appearance, this new Arcam combo is, in some respects, already old-school in its connectivity options. Component video switching and seven-channel analog audio connections were choice features just a year ago, but digital is making its move. The AVP700 does have HDMI switching for video, but the need to use coaxial or optical for digital audio and analog RCA cables for high-resolution audio are becoming things of the past. This in no way diminishes the system’s excellent audio performance, and many audiophiles prefer the analog realm anyhow. Still, the forward-thinking HT enthusiast may not find everything he needs here.

RATING: SOLID
Description: Arcam AVP700 preamp/processor, P1000 seven-channel amplifier, and DV79 DVD-Video/-Audio player

High Points: HDMI switching and balanced audio connections; excellent audio performance

Low Points: Can’t send high-resolution audio via a digital connection; the player’s video deinterlacing is only average; manuals are a bit confusing

Contact: Arcam
+44 (0) 1223 203200
www.audiophilesystems.com

Price: AVP700, $2,199; P1000, $2,299; DV79, $1,799
Total: $6,297

The Integra DPS-10.5 is a universal disc player that can pass both DVD-Audio and SACD signals through an iLink (FireWire) connection to the receiver. Like Arcam, Integra uses HDMI primarily for passing video, but future downloadable software upgrades could easily change that.

Once again, when I used iLink to transmit audio between the player and receiver, communication was seamless, and the DTR-10.5’s big front-panel LCD clearly displays exactly what kind of audio you’re listening to, be it DTS, DVD-Audio, or SACD. Another interesting feature is that, if you opt to run the player’s HDMI connection directly to your TV instead of going through the receiver, you can still see the DTR-10.5’s setup menus on the TV, thanks to iLink’s two-way communication.

Integra’s DTR-10.5 is a customizable receiver. Order a version with component video switching and digital audio inputs today, and add HDMI digital video switching or FireWire later with the addition of a slide-in module.

The Integra manuals give the clearest explanation of how each device handles HDMI audio. Like Arcam, Integra has chosen to focus on HDMI primarily as a video connection—at least for the time being. The player can output multichannel Dolby Digital and DTS signals through HDMI, but the receiver’s HDMI inputs can’t accept it. Integra says they’re waiting for the HDMI 1.2 spec so that they can offer the complete range of audio options, and the DTR-10.5’s modular design means it should be as easy as swapping HDMI modules when that time comes.

The receiver produces a wonderfully full, dynamic soundstage with both music and movies. The more volume I fed it, the more life it breathed into my test DVDs without changing the character of my speaker system. It didn’t struggle when recreating the cacophony of war in the “Battle of Pelennor Fields” scene from The Return of the King, although the pre/pro-and-amp combo was a bit better at heightening individual effects, particularly in the surround channels. The DTR-10.5, on the other hand, excels at rendering the complete soundfield. It did the best job ensuring that the background music in the “Lobby Shooting Spree” scene from The Matrix wasn’t buried by the numerous sound effects, and the receiver rendered the most information in the helicopter explosion in chapter 32 of the same movie.

Despite its many features, this system isn’t complex to use. The large, backlit universal remotes that come with the receiver and player are almost identical, except that the receiver remote uses an LCD and scroll wheel to change inputs—a process that isn’t entirely intuitive. I preferred the dedicated input buttons on the player’s remote.

Integra’s receiver offers 150 watts to each of seven channels. Each channel has dual outputs with individual level and bass management settings so that you can power two separate 7.1 systems in different rooms, though you can’t play them simultaneously.

Of the three ensembles in this roundup, the Integra combo is the only one to offer complete digital connectivity, along with wonderful flexibility and power to spare. Not surprisingly, it’s also the most expensive—but hey, you can power several systems off the DTR-10.5. With all of the connections on the DTR-10.5’s back panel, I needed only five to enjoy HDTV, high-resolution audio, and DVDs through my system. Perhaps we should start lauding receivers for how few A/V connections they have, instead of how many.

RATING: EXCELLENT
Description: Integra DTR-10.5 A/V receiver and DPS-10.5 universal disc player

High Points: Ample power; FireWire allows for digital playback of high-resolution music; on-screen menus through HDMI

Low Points: The receiver’s remote is somewhat confusing; no automatic setup procedure

Contact: Integra,
800.225.1946
www.integrahometheater.com

Price: DTR-10.5, $3,800 base (iLink module, $200; HDMI module, $500); DPS-10.5, $2,500
Total: $7,000

The RX-V4600 includes YPAO, or the Yamaha Parametric Room Acoustic Optimizer, which uses a small microphone and audio signals built into the receiver to test your audio system and optimize the receiver’s settings to improve sound quality.

The DVD-S2500 player can play back both DVD-Audio and SACD signals, in addition to DVD-Video, DVD-R/-RW, and just about everything else. This player sports both HDMI and FireWire, and it’s easy to designate which one you want to send your audio signals through using the intuitive on-screen menus. There’s also a set of multichannel analog connections to send high-resolution signals the old-fashioned way, with extensive bass-management settings.

Like the Arcam, Yamaha’s RX-V4600 doesn’t output the on-screen menu or upconvert other input signals through the HDMI. You don’t need the menu, but it makes the initial installation easier, so you’ll want to connect an analog signal, at least temporarily.

I first set up the system using HDMI for video (did I mention that you can upconvert DVD signals to 720p or 1080i through the HDMI output—another great feature) and FireWire to transport all of my audio to the RX-V4600 receiver, and the process worked seamlessly. I could easily switch between DVD-Video, DVD-Audio, and SACD with little delay, although the disc tray is somewhat slow to cue up discs and it froze up a few times. The two devices recognized and communicated with each other without fail.

Next, I tried sending audio through the HDMI connection. Again, the two devices communicated well with one another, and I didn’t hear any change in the quality of stereo CD and multichannel Dolby Digital and DTS signals. While the RX-V4600 can receive a multichannel, 24/96 DVD-Audio signal, the DVD-S2500’s manual not-so-clearly states that the HDMI output downconverts high-resolution audio to stereo. Because both devices have FireWire for high-resolution audio, this isn’t really an issue, but it’s confusing nonetheless. This combo was the only one that at least let me listen to multichannel Dolby Digital and DTS signals through HDMI —despite being the least expensive in the group.

The DVD-S2500’s performance surpasses that of some more-expensive players. Its deinterlacing processor does a good job with film-based signals and an outstanding job with video-based signals—the best I’ve seen from a DVD player, in fact—so artifacts or image distortions won’t be a concern. Detail is also good. The RX-V4600, meanwhile, had ample moxie to fill my large room with 5.1-channel music and movies. The bass from my tower speakers can sometimes get unruly in this space, but the Yamaha did a fine job keeping things under control while still providing solid impact. YPAO aims for a flat speaker response, and it got it. I prefer a warmer sound, though, and felt the equalized settings made the sound a bit too sterile. Luckily, you can tweak the EQ to find a sound that’s more to your liking.

The video performance on Yamaha’s DVD-S2500 is one of the best we’ve seen from a DVD player. The player offers stereo and 5.1 surround signals through the HDMI, but not DVD-audio or SACD. For those you’ll have to use the FireWire output.

This combo has a cohesiveness that I appreciate. The menus for both components are similarly laid out, and it just feels like these two pieces belong together. Yamaha has chosen some odd names for the buttons on the receiver remote, and setting up the AM/FM tuner presets is more difficult than it needs to be. This is one of the first receivers that can tune in HD Radio. If you’re able to pick up the signal—I could tune in five stations in one room in my house, but none in another—there’s an audible improvement in sound quality.
 
While $2,650 isn’t exactly pocket change, you’re not going to find a less-expensive system with HDMI switching and multichannel audio playback, FireWire, composite/S-video transcoding, multizone audio and video functionality, and a host of setup parameters—with above-average performance, to boot. This is an excellent value for someone looking to build a digital-minded mid-level system.

RATING: ELEVATED
Description: Yamaha RX-V4600 A/V receiver and DVD-S2500 universal disc player

High Points: HDMI switching; excellent video performance; FireWire allows for digital playback of high-resolution music

Low Points: The player can’t send high-resolution DVD-Audio via HDMI; both remotes are a little confusing

Contact: Yamaha Electronics
800.4YAMAHA
www.yamaha.com

Price: RX-V4600, $1,900;
DVD-S2500, $750
Total: $2,650