Denon AVR-5308CI Receiver

met my expectations, January 25, 2009

I have owned the 5308ci for about six months. This receiver has every conceivable feature. You can basically connect everything and anything to it including 7 channel components. It has all the latest and oldest connections and has three subwoofer connections (I currently have 2 JL Fathom F113, also highly recommended). I read on Denon that it ...read full review I have owned the 5308ci for about six months. This receiver has every conceivable feature. You can basically connect everything and anything to it including 7 channel components. It has all the latest and oldest connections and has three subwoofer connections (I currently have 2 JL Fathom F113, also highly recommended). I read on Denon that it will even be upgradable to Denon link version 4. It decodes and upscales everything so there is no need to buy expensive DVD players to get these functions. The on-screens work very well which which was a big advantage to getting the Denon. I just didn't trust the likes of Onkyo, Yamaha, Pioneer to get it right. The firmware is updateable and so far Denon has released new versions about once a month. It does have wireless but I find it slow so I use the wired connection (Denon recommends using the wired connection for firmware updates). A nice feature is it is compatible with Windows so you can connect to your computer's Windows media player and play your music through the Denon. The Denon Mp3 interface is a little quirky but it works reasonably well. The unit comes built in with Audyssey and a microphone for automatic speaker calibration. The calibration did wonders on subwoofer imaging.


The negatives. This amp can only handle 6 ohm and 8 ohm speakers, no 4 ohm support. It is a lot more expensive than the competion, although I have seen them online for around $3,600 which is a bargain. Depending on your application the amplification may not be enough, although you probably be buying separates if you needed more power. There is a distortion penalty for using 6 ohm speakers vs 8 ohm (.7% T.H.D. vs .05 % T.H.D for 8 ohm.) You do pick up an extra 20 watts to 170 per channel when using an 6 ohm speaker though. I am using 6 ohm speakers and haven't noticed distortion issues. I don't think the amp will accept SACD signals via HDMI, instead you will need to connect SACD using the Denon Link connection or analog cables.

Overall I recommend this production, but if money wasn't an issue I would move up to the Denon separates. Make sure you have a deep cabinet to handle the size of this beast. minimize