Home theater receivers work tirelessly to manage all the audio and video that create a superb cinematic experience in your living room. These centerpieces orchestrate connections between your devices, allowing you to enjoy multiple entertainment sources, facilitating amazing surround sound setups, and more.
This is a pricey option, but Marantz made sure to improve upon past AV receivers by covering otherwise empty bases from prior models. The SR8015 is equipped with an array of AV technologies to make it fit in any home theater environment. Starting with all things audio, it's got Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, DTS:X Pro, IMAX Enhanced, Auro 3D, plus the ability to connect a turntable for some vinyl playback or to stream from the likes of Spotify, Tidal, Pandora, and via AirPlay 2 devices, among others.
Marantz SR8015 The best well-rounded AV receiver More Denon AVR-X1700H The best all-rounder for digital and vinyl heads Pros Cons Why you should buy this: It has a dizzying array of modern features like Dolby Atmos, 4K, HDR, and streaming services, plus a rare phono input for turntable types. Denon AVR-X1700H The best all-rounder for digital and vinyl heads Sony STR-DH590 The best budget AV receiver Pros Cons Why you should buy this: It fits easily within most people's budgets, yet the Sony STR-DH590 still provides nearly every feature found on much more expensive receivers.Why we picked the Sony STR-DH590:
In terms of main source connections, the Sony STR-DH590 only has four HDMI inputs. While you won't be powering any rock concerts, it's more than enough receiver for a very satisfying home theater experience. Don't worry about a lack of connections, either. The Yamaha Aventage RX-A2A includes seven HDMI input options to handle any devices you may want to set up. There's even compatibility with Alexa and Google Assistant when you can't find the remote.
There are seven HDMI in and three HDMI out ports to handle your entertainment system, along with 17 speaker terminals, four subwoofer out ports, USB, and more. Helpful modes allow you to do everything from sync bass to set a sleep timer or enter an ECO mode to save energy. Outputs support up to nine simultaneous speakers or 11 channels in all, at 125W each, including four subwoofer outputs. There’s support for Dolby Atmos Height Virtualization, IMAX Enhanced, DTS, Auro-3D, HEOS, direction connections like AirPlay 2, HDR 10+, and HLG, as well as 3D signal passthrough. And if you have older connections to manage, there are also component and composite video inputs, five analog stereo RCA inputs, optical and coaxial digital inputs, plus phono.