Denon AVR-889

[Sammy]

The price at Socket Circus on this unit is slightly less than the best price on line now. If they go lower next week I am thinking of getting it. I would like a network enabled and HDFM AVR, but with the Denon iPod dock and an external HDFM tuner, I can get that done for less.

Anybody have one?

How's the GUI look?

Do you know if it is selectable by source for 1080p upscaling? (The reason I ask this is that my BDP has the Reon chip and does a fine job but I'd like to upscale the 720p or 1080i via HDMI (or component) from Uverse to 1080p without using the Denon to upscale DVD's as the player does a fine job of that.)

Any information on this receiver would be greatly appreciated.

[crackinhedz]

the 889 is identical to the Denon AVR2309

Use coupon code: AFLAUD25

...is socket circus any cheaper?

by the way, what is Socket Circus? I cannot find on the net.

[Twitch9]

Very nice receiver you will love it. Denon made some really nice changes over last year models.

[Sammy]

Originally Posted by crackinhedz

the 889 is identical to the Denon AVR2309

Use coupon code: AFLAUD25

...is socket circus any cheaper?

by the way, what is Socket Circus? I cannot find on the net.

Yes. That is the price I am comparaing to. With sales tax in Cali it is $30 less than the AVR2309, but I am not sure if this is the unit that I want. But when they go to 40% off then buying the iPod dock and HDFM tuner separately will wash out and I can save some money right now on the receiver.

Socket Circus = Circuit City. I've called it that for years... Since before Worst (Best) Buy ever existed.

[Sammy]

Thank you crackinhedz!!!!!

Does anybody have answers to my other questions?

[Sammy]

The 889 doesn't have the RS-232 port that the 2309 has. Is this important?

EDIT:
6ave's 25% off coupon code expires on Tuesday according to fatwallet.com unless they renew it and CC might go to 35% off on Thursday. Decisions, decisions. There was 4 of the Denon 889's in the box on the shelf.

[crackinhedz]

Originally Posted by Sammy

The 889 doesn't have the RS-232 port that the 2309 has. Is this important?

it could be, the RS232 port may allow for firmware upgrades and connection to a PC for other applications. Would you miss it otherwise? maybe not.

EDIT:6ave's 25% off coupon code expires on Tuesday according to fatwallet.com unless they renew it and CC might go to 35% off on Thursday. Decisions, decisions. There was 4 of the Denon 889's in the box on the shelf.

6ave's coupon has been ongoing for many months now, even after it was said to have expired. But, no guarantee...it could expire I guess.

Also, its tax free. Im sure Socket Circus applies tax.

[Sammy]

Yes they do.. 8%, but it is marked down to $560 right now, so with tax it comes to $605. The 2309 at 6ave is $636. So is the RS-232 worth $31?

[crackinhedz]

Originally Posted by Sammy

So is the RS-232 worth $31?

...I don't use one, so I could not say.

That seems like a good price from socket circus, is it open box or brand new item?

[Sammy]

Brand spankin' new.. 4 in the box, one on the display rack.

What about the GUI and the 1080p upscaling? I have downloaded the manual from denon's website but cannot tell what the GUI looks like (manual shows it looking pretty primative) and it is not too clear on the upscaling by each component. I want to upscale all inputs but my Bluray player.

BTW, Neither Circuit City nor Best Buy show up as "authorized" retailers on Denon's website. Will I be able to register it with Denon for warranty support?

[Sammy]

Well I just picked it up. Now I am going to hook it up. I will post later on my first impressions.

[Sammy]

Well after quite a bit of time spent with the non-informative manual and messing with the non-intuitive settings, I've got it mostly set up. Had to reprogram the Harmony 880 a few times, but it is the Motorola VIP-1216 for Uverse that is giving me issues right now.

This receiver is pretty awesome and I am still getting it tweaked to my liking. But so far, I'd recommend it even though it has quite the learning curve. It is not for anyone who is not technologically savy, savy?

[dubldown]

I installed my 889 over the weekend also and I love the thing to death. I upgraded from an older Yamaha 5890 which had more power and still 7.1, but had no HDMI inputs. Even on the DirecTV DD sound I can hear a ton of difference in the details. And even though it has 30w less per channel, I don't even notice that as the sound is still very full and warm.

Setup for me was pretty easy, maybe because it is very similar to the Yamaha set up so I was kinda used to it.

I am finally getting to hear all the new codecs and every movie sounds so different now. I can't believe I waited this long to upgrade to a new receiver.

[Sammy]

My O.S. Sony was very simple to set up but of course it didn't have HDMI Switching or any of the new stuff that the Denon has. Funny thing is that it cost more in 1998 than the Denon did in 2009. I am going to keep it for another HDTV even though the remote doesn't control the volume any more. So far I here what your saying about the discrete placement of the sound.

[Sammy]

I love this receiver now that it is set up. I could hear the difference of discrete audio in playing Iron Man last night (5.1 Dolby TrueHD).

One thing, though is the power. There's a system power and a standby power switch on this unit. As far as I can tell, the system power is a "hard switch) on the face of the unit and not controlled by the remote. I have the BD player and Subwoofer (they pull 35watts each) plugged into the switched power outlets on the back of the receiver (outlet rated at 120watts total so there's headroom). These don't turn off in standby, only in system shutdown. On my Sony, I used the switched power outlets on the back of the receiver to turn the subwoofer and BD player on with the receiver. This is one drawback, but it is minor. Just trying to save on that leaking power consumption when the unit is on standby.