| Author |
Thread: Yamaha RX-V740 6.1-channel Receiver Review |
    
Brian Mitchell |
| Posted on Tuesday, August 05, 2003 - 12:56 am: |
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Yamaha RX-V740 6.1-channel Receiver Review
The RX-V740 is the third Yamaha receiver I have auditioned in a year, after the mid-level RX-V2300 and top-of-the-line RX-Z1. Technology and build quality has quickly migrated from the RX-Z1 down to the lower lines of Yamaha receivers. The RX-V740 is no exception, which includes Yamaha's Digital ToP-ART design concept and high current amplification (90 watts x 6). Plus kudos to Yamaha for keeping the price down to a very reasonable $599 MSRP!
Feature rich
The RX-V740 was easy to setup for home theater use. The basic on-screen menu gives you settings for speaker level volume, surround delay, and speaker size. The subwoofer crossover is fixed at 90Hz, but you can choose to direct the bass to the main speakers, just the subwoofer, or both. In addition there is a 5-band center channel graphic equalizer to help match the tonal qualities of the main speakers if necessary. Although, I was using the same brand of speakers all around, I didn't find a need to make any adjustments. Nevertheless, this is a feature not often found on receivers priced at this level.
Remotely imperfect
The included remote control, model RAV236, achieves the basics functions, but doesn't quite win me over. It’s a thin, long, push button remote, with some glow in the dark buttons and a small LCD display highlighting the active component selected. It's not too over crowded with buttons and can be programmed to control any component. However, it was not intuitive when I tried to select surround options, which seem clearly labeled on the remote. So, I reluctantly scoured the manual and learned you must press an inconspicuously placed button labeled "AMP" to enable the receiver commands. When "DVD" mode is selected, you can control the DVD player, but you can’t switch surround modes unless you hit the "AMP" button to activate the receiver mode.
Ultimately satisfying
While the RX-V740 is not perfect, it gets it right on what's most important -- sound quality. It was almost as good as the higher priced Yamaha RX-V2300 I recently reviewed. But I don't want to belittle a receiver against its bigger brother. Needless to say, I was extremely impressed with how well it sounded for stereo music and home theater use. The RX-V740 can easily fill up a large room with sound and should be seriously considered for any budget conscious shopper. It's not overloaded with features, but the most important ones are in there, which include 5 assignable digital inputs (4 optical, 1 coaxial) and two component video inputs.
The Yamaha RX-V740 receiver is a budget best buy!
Pros
Excellent Sound Quality
High Current
Center Channel EQ
Low Price
Cons
Remote Control Usability
No THX Processing
Yamaha RX-V740 Receiver
MSRP: $599 Check Prices
Yamaha RX-V740 Features
Yamaha RX-V740 Specifications
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Remember I am just one man with one opinion. If you own this product, or have a comment or question feel free to add your thoughts below.
Brian Mitchell
Founder & CEO
eCoustics.com |
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Relevant Product Info
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Anonymous |
| Posted on Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 04:02 pm: |
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how can you say its high current without actually doing some power measurements? |
Anonymous |
| Posted on Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 05:45 pm: |
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While Yamaha, Onkyo and H/K are reknowned for their use of amplification that stresses high current output, actually bothering to measure said output would be a hell of a lot better way to differentiate amplifiers. |
Anonymous |
| Posted on Wednesday, August 06, 2003 - 09:12 pm: |
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Isn't Yamaha one of the few manufacturers which actually specifies power into 4 Ohm loads, even on their low end models, while most other makes specify 8 Ohm or at best 6 Ohm loading - this in itself would be an indication of higher current design, unless of course Yamaha doesn't mind having a few receivers blowing up under warranty. |
Hawk |
| Posted on Thursday, August 07, 2003 - 03:04 am: |
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No. I have a current Yamaha product brochure and none of their receivers are specified into 4 ohms. Besides that would not be part of the Yamaha philosophy.
Yamaha believes that high current designs (such as NAD) is a recipe for product failure and Yamaha is a stickler about having a product that doesn't fail. so there is no way that the Yamahas are a high current design. |
Anonymous |
| Posted on Monday, August 25, 2003 - 12:41 pm: |
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how would this receiver work with the Athena bookshelf speakers? |
G.DawG |
| Posted on Saturday, August 30, 2003 - 01:18 pm: |
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Horrible. The low end Yamahas tend to be very bright. |
Anonymous |
| Posted on Friday, September 26, 2003 - 08:47 am: |
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I quote:
"Yamaha believes that high current designs (such as NAD) is a recipe for product failure and Yamaha is a stickler about having a product that doesn't fail. so there is no way that the Yamahas are a high current design."
If that were true Bryston would never put a 20 year bullet-proof warranty on its high current amps. Granted high current usually means higher operating temperatures (though not always - see the Sunfire and Innersound mega amps) and heat always presents reliability issues unless more expensive top quality parts are used. I think the real reason Yamaha does not want to make high current amps is they cost more to build properly so that they perform reliably. H/K has been building high current amps and receivers for a long time (though recent moves to 7 channels of amps seems to have ended that) and their receivers have been at least as reliable as Yamaha, and don't shut down nearly as often from speaker overloads. |
Hawk |
| Posted on Friday, September 26, 2003 - 10:53 am: |
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You quoted me accurately, but I am not sure I understand what you are trying to say. Are you disputing my representation of the Yamaha philosophy or their belief that high current designs are inherently bad?
If the latter, then we absolutely agree. I would love to have a Bryston amp (or even an NAD) because I like the sound much better with the high current designs that I have heard.
My statement was merely to represent the Yamaha philosophy, not the truth behind the statement. Please note it was in direct response to another post suggesting Yamahas were specified into 4 ohm loads, indicating a high current design. I was merely pointing out that the previous post was mistaken. |
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Anonymous |
| Posted on Thursday, October 02, 2003 - 12:02 pm: |
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Please note that most of the new H/K seven channel receivers are still high current receivers, and posts from a number of H/K owners about the newer A/V receivers indicate a reliability on par with brands such as Yamaha. So far, my 7 channel H/K has been as bulletproof as my Yamaha, but my 6 channel Yamaha is definitely not high current. |
Anonymous |
| Posted on Monday, October 13, 2003 - 01:38 pm: |
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I was looking at the Yamaha website this morning
and saw that a 4ohm load is specified. Info is on
page 9 of the "New Product Bulletin" for the model. |
Anonymous |
| Posted on Tuesday, November 04, 2003 - 08:15 am: |
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Well. I had a H/K receivers 2500, I got it for special price since it was an outgoing model. But it did fail in the quality that I were ekspected. Some of the inputs just turned out. My dealer were helpful, and i traded it in for a rx-v 740. And now i am very satisfied.
My dealer have now quit the H/K brand after selling it for over 30 years. They had too much complaints from customers about the quality...
Norway. |
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| Posted on Sunday, November 16, 2003 - 09:12 pm: |
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Hi guys, I was reading your message exchanges about receivers. I am now on the decision part on which receiver to buy. I have already decided on my speakers(Paradigm Titans, CC-170, ADP-170, and PDR-12). But I am still confused which receiver I should go for. I can say that I will be 70% watching movies, and 30% listening to music and sometimes karaoke.  Anyways, I have a bugdet of $600 too. I have look into 3 brands, Yamaha, Onkyo and Marantz. I heard Yamaha RXV740 at Tweeter this afternoon but using the Mirage speakers. It sounded ok. Any recommendation will be greatly appreciated. |
New member Username: Harbolt
Post Number: 1
Registered: 12-2003
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| Posted on Saturday, December 13, 2003 - 03:58 pm: |
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Hello. I have been reading the different posts regarding the Yamaha receivers and I have a question. I currently have a HK AVR 510 and have been very pleased with it thus far. But recently, my svideo input has gone out and wheenever I try and watch a dvd, the screen flips and shows multi colors. If I connect the svideo directly to the t.v. without going through the receiver, it works fine. I have decided to get a new receiver and have been looking at hthe discontinued Yamaha rx-v 730 and the new rx-v 740. I am using Klipsch Forte II speakers for my fronts, Klipsch KG-1 speakers for my surrounds, and a Klipsch KV-3 for my center. I was wondering if one of these Yamaha receivers would make a good match since Klipsch is a pretty bright speaker itself? I was also wondering if anyone has an opinion on if it would be worth spending the extra money for the 740 if I can find a good deal on a discontinued 730? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.
Brent
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New member Username: Elitefan1
Post Number: 18
Registered: 12-2003
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| Posted on Monday, December 15, 2003 - 10:32 am: |
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Yamaha and Klpisch would be a sonic disaster. Both are on the bright side and thus a very poor match. Yamaha's have very poor multichannel power as the 730's output in 5 channel mode at clipping is a paltry 38 watts while in contrast the Marantz 5400[same list price] outputs 103 watts in 5 chanel mode. This would be a far beter match with Klipsch than Yamaha. Not to say the Yamaha is bad in and of itself but thay are a better match with a speaker like Paradigm. |
New member Username: Cargoil
Post Number: 1
Registered: 12-2003
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| Posted on Monday, December 15, 2003 - 10:43 pm: |
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Hi Hawk long time no see. I have been kicking back for a while and haven't posted lately. How are you doing? I hope all is well in your world. I finally went out and did it. I bought a pair of Vienna Acoustic Mozart's. Even though I got a great deal on them they are my first really high end speakers. I still like my old Wharfies but they can't compare to the Vienna's. Oh! by the way, almost all the newer Yamaha's are set up with a 4 or 8 ohm set up and automatically kick to 4ohm if you run both A/B speakers. My Yamaha 2300 is a good match for the Vienna's (they are very sweet) but I must say it was a bit bright for the Wharfdale's. Enough of that I really just wanted to say hello. Hope you have a great holiday season. Besides I know talking to you about anything but NAD is a lost cause. I hope this next year will bring you many happy days and good cheer. I guess there are two of us Johnb's on the site now so I had to change my name. I'm the old Yamaha, Wharfdale guy that used to give you a bad time. Take care Hawk.
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New member Username: Jaggu
Post Number: 4
Registered: 12-2003
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| Posted on Tuesday, December 16, 2003 - 01:32 am: |
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Brent Halbort,
There is a significance difference between the Yamaha 730 and 740 sound. The ?30 Yamaha amps sounded to me very thin. This is not the case with the ?40 amps from Yamaha. The difference is very noticable and am sure you won't miss it if you get to hear them side by side.
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New member Username: Harbolt
Post Number: 3
Registered: 12-2003
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| Posted on Tuesday, December 16, 2003 - 02:04 pm: |
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Ok, so they are different in sound. Guess my real question is if they are different enough so that the 740 would actually make a good match with my Klipsch speakers. From what I have read, the 740 would have to be quite a bit different in order for them to work with my speakers. Any thoughts on this? Thanks.
Brent
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New member Username: Hawk
Post Number: 6
Registered: 12-2003
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| Posted on Wednesday, December 17, 2003 - 12:03 am: |
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Johnb:
I am impressed! I know the Mozarts and they are an awesome speaker--one few people would believe could sound so good from such a small package. I wish I could afford them!
I have only heard the Mozarts driven by some very high end electronics (my local VA dealer doesn't even carry receivers--just separates!), so I bow to your experience. I would love to hear them though. It sounds like you got a great system going there, so I offer my congrats.
Happy holidays! |
New member Username: Hawk
Post Number: 7
Registered: 12-2003
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| Posted on Wednesday, December 17, 2003 - 12:13 am: |
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Brent:
IMO, the x30s are a horrible combo with Klipsch speakers. The x30s are very thin sounding, as Jaggu says, and they are very bright sounding. Since the Klipsch are a rather bright speaker, this would result in an exaggeration in the upper midrange that will lead to listener fatigue--not recommended.
I do think that the x40s are a big improvement. I actually compared a couple of the x40 models with coparable Denons (1804, 2803) and I find their sound to be very close, whereas before Yamaha tended to be much brighter than the Denon. Still, the Yamaha and the Denon tend to be brighter sounding than the comparable H/Ks, which you seem to be familiar with. H/Ks have a more relaxed sound which is a better compliment for the sound of the Klipsch speakers. I would suggest you stick with the H/Ks with your speakers and you can get superb deals on the H/K 525s which are being closed out right now. If you want an alternative, I would highly recommend the Pioneer Elite receivers, such as the TX-43/45 or the newer TX-53. The Elites are also a good match for your speakers.
Good luck! |
New member Username: Harbolt
Post Number: 8
Registered: 12-2003
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| Posted on Wednesday, December 17, 2003 - 12:32 am: |
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Hawk. Thanks for the info. Actually, I am now leaning toward the Marantz 6300. I have vowed not to go back to HK because of the bad luck I have had with my first HK surround receiver. Many years ago, HK was a good quality product but I think because of their commercialization and volume selling, I just believe their quality has suffered. How bout that 6300? Sound like a good match? Thanks.
Brent
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New member Username: Hawk
Post Number: 14
Registered: 12-2003
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| Posted on Wednesday, December 17, 2003 - 01:30 am: |
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Brent:
I do like the Marantz quite a bit. I have never heard it with Klipsch speakers, so I can only give what I think is likely based upon hearing both products separately. Nevertheless, I do think the combo will work well. The Marantz is somewhat laid-back, although not as laid back as the H/K or Pioneer Elite, so there will be a slight change in the sonic charecter of your system. Still, I think you will like it as the H/K can be a little dark sounding, but not the Marantz. So, it should be a nice change that you will probably enjoy.
Happy holidays! |
charlie Unregistered guest |
| Posted on Saturday, December 27, 2003 - 09:23 pm: |
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come on guys klispch speakers are horn loaded designs so their pretty efficient to begin with so just about any reciever could drive them and yes yamaha recievers are specified into 4 ohms. The other thing is that speakers are the most important link in the chain as far as sound is concerned. |
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