Denon AVR-X6300H 11.2 Channel AV Receiver Review & Comments

11 Channels what non-sense , However I do not watch rubbish sci-fi.I fail to understand why anyone needs more than 5.1. As for Audyssey as Hi-Fi World says its a gimmick ,I have never found any of these set -up systems to be of any use whatsoever, always have to adjust manually. Dirac does improve sound in rooms with poor acoustics.
 
Excellent review Steve. In your conclusion you state that it sounds as good as an Anthem MRX1120. Really? That's high praise indeed. I look forward to the reviews of the Onkyo TX-RZ3100 and the Pioneer SC-LX901. I am particularly interested to know if those two are essentially the same or if each has a noticeable brand voicing character. I currently run an Onkyo 875 in a Canton CD250 7.1 setup and I have been very happy with the sound from it for the best part of a decade for both music and movie use. I am very curious to know how the move to class D amplification has affected the signature Onkyo sound or if it's still the same character only now with 11 channel possibilities.
 
11 Channels what non-sense , However I do not watch rubbish sci-fi.I fail to understand why anyone needs more than 5.1. As for Audyssey as Hi-Fi World says its a gimmick ,I have never found any of these set -up systems to be of any use whatsoever, always have to adjust manually. Dirac does improve sound in rooms with poor acoustics.

I recently moved from 5.1 to 7.1.2 and even though most of the time I'm just using the Dolby Surround / DTS Neural X upmixers, I would never go back to a standard 5.1 setup. Everyone who has listened to my system has been amazed by it, and it's only a modest (see my signature) setup!

You need to actually listen to multi-channel, object oriented surround systems to see (hear) what you're missing.
 
11 Channels what non-sense , However I do not watch rubbish sci-fi.I fail to understand why anyone needs more than 5.1. As for Audyssey as Hi-Fi World says its a gimmick ,I have never found any of these set -up systems to be of any use whatsoever, always have to adjust manually. Dirac does improve sound in rooms with poor acoustics.


If you've the space available to you to accommodate them then 11 speakers would be what is recommended for Atmos. Atmos is being used with many genres of movie and not just Sci-Fi. Both it and DTS:X as well as Auro 3D are audio formats that are more imersive than conventional 5.1 or even 7.1 formats. Not everyone can accommodate a full 7.1.4 Atmos/DTS:X configuration, but those that can will welcome the opportunity of having the required amplification housed within one unit rather than having to use external power amps to power the additional speakers. There are more titles now being released with Atmos soundtracks than those not including Atmos.
 
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11 Channels what non-sense , However I do not watch rubbish sci-fi.I fail to understand why anyone needs more than 5.1. As for Audyssey as Hi-Fi World says its a gimmick ,I have never found any of these set -up systems to be of any use whatsoever, always have to adjust manually. Dirac does improve sound in rooms with poor acoustics.


And he's off again!

@High Fidelity Keep to the beloved sony threads. You have shown us your view on room correction, more than 5.1 etc, and bang on about sound quality, yet have you even got of ya botty to go and listen?

Maybe the hifi threads would be better?
 
11 Channels what non-sense , However I do not watch rubbish sci-fi.I fail to understand why anyone needs more than 5.1. As for Audyssey as Hi-Fi World says its a gimmick ,I have never found any of these set -up systems to be of any use whatsoever, always have to adjust manually. Dirac does improve sound in rooms with poor acoustics.
Bring back the disagree button.

If my room was big enough I'd add at least two more speakers.
 
And he's off again!

@High Fidelity Keep to the beloved sony threads. You have shown us your view on room correction, more than 5.1 etc, and bang on about sound quality, yet have you even got of ya botty to go and listen?

Maybe the hifi threads would be better?
And you're back, nice to see a post Steven.
Oh and yes, I agree with your sentiments, why oh why would anyone come on a 7.2.4 review with 5.1 mentality......, nothing wrong with 5.1 but leave the others alone for chrissake!!!
 
I think there is a point to trying to get the best 5.1 setup you can within your budget. I think a very good 5.1 system is likely to sound better than a 7.1.4 for the same price for quite a few films.

That being said in my case I would rather have a 7.1.4 system comprised of the Dali Opticon range than go spend similar on a 5.1 Dali Rubicon setup. In my case the limits of my hearing were such that the Rubicon's were not a substantial enough upgrade for me to justify the extra over the Opticon's. However I would swap my Opticon system for a set of Epicon 8's and 2's in a 5.1 setup and live with that for the next 5 years very happily. I am sure this will be different for others however.

So, yes - getting the first 5 speakers right is definitely important and should be where your money goes. But once you are happy with it then I definitely feel that there is a benefit to going to a 5.1.4 setup for a little extra if your receiver allows it. Some films make very good use of the overhead channels and do improve the "audio experience" in my opinion. Not just sci-fi but wherever there is a lot of action a good Atmos track can really add to the "immersion" ;) :blush:.

With regards to the X6300H though I really like that it seems Denon have done a good job on it. However if you are not bothered about the Heos capability then I would be interested to know how many people would prefer the one-box solution over the X7200WA and a power amp for not a considerable amount more. If you have space for 11 speakers it would surprise me that you couldn't also find room for a 2 channel power amp somewhere.
 
I've had my Yamaha RX-A 2030 for 3 years in 9.1 and would never go back to 5.1 and that's in a 6x5x3 room. The Denon looks very good but I'm wondering if I would ever spend more than a grand on a receiver in the future after seeing how fast my last two receivers have gone out of date.
 
The X6300 is a great receiver and a fantastic 1 box solution that we have started to spec in many installations driving £10K MK Sound Atmos systems.

We are currently running a discount for AVF member on the X6300.

Regards

Rich
 
I wasn't sold on Atmos before I needed to upgrade my Amp to update the HDMI connectivity (3D passthrough and HDR ready).
But once I had the new amp with Atmos, I couldn't resist at least trying it out and putting 2.. then 4 speakers overhead.
End result is I wouldn't want to back to 5/7.1 now.

Anyway, I have the Yamaha RX-A3050 + 2 channel Rotel Power amp, but would really prefer a 1 box solution.

I used to be a Denon man, but until Yamaha come out with their version of an 'all onboard' amp (can't be far behind surely) I'd advise people sit this one out and compare the equivalent models from all the major AVAmp manufactures (Denon & Marantz, Pioneer & Onkyo, Yamaha, Anthem and Arcam). However, I think Anthem & Arcam have priced themselves out of competition really.
 
Hi Steve. Long time lurker first time poster here from Canada. I really appreciate the reviews and podcasts at avforums. So I'm looking for some opinions...I'm about to take the plunge and buy the anthem 1120.

You state the denon x6300 sounds the same as the mrx1120. Is there no advantage to buying the anthem? From what I read in the best highend avr article the anthem sounds better than the x7200. By extension the x6300 sounds better than the x7200?

Right now in canada I can get the denon x6300h for $2600 + free heos speaker. I haven't asked how much my dealer can sell me this one for.

I can also get the anthem 1120 through my dealer for $2800 + free pw 800 paradigm speaker. Sounded like a great deal.

Now I'm second guessing myself...perhaps I can save more coin and go for the denon even at its msrp prices?

Mind you I live 20 minutes away from the Anthem headquarters so there is some civic pride.

Thanks
Dmega
 
Hi Steve. Long time lurker first time poster here from Canada. I really appreciate the reviews and podcasts at avforums. So I'm looking for some opinions...I'm about to take the plunge and buy the anthem 1120.

You state the denon x6300 sounds the same as the mrx1120. Is there no advantage to buying the anthem? From what I read in the best highend avr article the anthem sounds better than the x7200. By extension the x6300 sounds better than the x7200?

Right now in canada I can get the denon x6300h for $2600 + free heos speaker. I haven't asked how much my dealer can sell me this one for.

I can also get the anthem 1120 through my dealer for $2800 + free pw 800 paradigm speaker. Sounded like a great deal.

Now I'm second guessing myself...perhaps I can save more coin and go for the denon even at its msrp prices?

Mind you I live 20 minutes away from the Anthem headquarters so there is some civic pride.

Thanks
Dmega
In my world at that price I would go for the 1120 absolutely!
 
Oh dear HF calm down dear it's only a surround sound alogarithm. As regards 7.1, which I have had for some years now via my "Denon" AVCA11XV's analogue inputs / outputs, I find a palpable difference between 5.1 and its 7.1 sibling. So rather than expostulating about it and being somewhat iconoclastic and vexatious maybe you could be a little more empirical as opposed to describing 11 channels as being nugatory. As mentioned by others listen to this type of setup, unless you have already have done so, but don't knock it until you've actually tried it. If it's not for you that's fine, but don't be so invidious about it.

As regards to your comment that sci-fi is "rubbish" well this is a personal opinion of which you are fully entitled to. But to dismiss it with such scant regard shows a somewhat unfortunate and ambivalent attitude to a genre that does rather well in the world of entertainment and that many, many people enjoy, apart from the odd turkey as with all genres of film productions..... So there. :p
 
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11 Channels what non-sense , However I do not watch rubbish sci-fi.I fail to understand why anyone needs more than 5.1.
Suggest you listen to a few demos and then think again. The demo at this year's Bristol Show ( not sci-fi clips ) was really good and any enthusiast would endeavour to have a similar system; budget, space, wiring, wife/partner permitting.
 
the only thing that would put me buying a 6300

would be a half price 6200 - or cheaper than 6300 - 7200WA

for me the much better DACs and more powerful amplification stages etc in the 7200WA would win over

bit strange one of the major new features of the 6300 - the Audyssey App control is not ready
 
Hi Steve. Long time lurker first time poster here from Canada. I really appreciate the reviews and podcasts at avforums. So I'm looking for some opinions...I'm about to take the plunge and buy the anthem 1120.

You state the denon x6300 sounds the same as the mrx1120. Is there no advantage to buying the anthem? From what I read in the best highend avr article the anthem sounds better than the x7200. By extension the x6300 sounds better than the x7200?

Right now in canada I can get the denon x6300h for $2600 + free heos speaker. I haven't asked how much my dealer can sell me this one for.

I can also get the anthem 1120 through my dealer for $2800 + free pw 800 paradigm speaker. Sounded like a great deal.

Now I'm second guessing myself...perhaps I can save more coin and go for the denon even at its msrp prices?

Mind you I live 20 minutes away from the Anthem headquarters so there is some civic pride.

Thanks
Dmega
I didn't say the X6300 sounds better than the Anthem MRX1120 but it certainly sounds as good when you consider it's half the price (at least in this country). However there's no doubt that ARC is superior to Audyssey and at the price you mention, the MRX1120 is a far more tempting prospect.
 
Wish anthems were as cheap here! Just get the anthem......id much rather have a 1120 over any denon, but anthem are way out of my price range now in uk
$2800 Canadian is about £1800 GBP, that's a steal if the OP can get that deal, we would pay twice that I guess here in the U.K.
Ah well, oh to have those sort of contacts...
 
I'm not sure how much contacts come into play

Not sure of actual RRP prices but you may find they are just a lot cheaper over there - similar with SVS etc
 
I'm not sure how much contacts come into play

Not sure of actual RRP prices but you may find they are just a lot cheaper over there - similar with SVS etc
Agreed, just a comment.....
 
I didn't say the X6300 sounds better than the Anthem MRX1120 but it certainly sounds as good when you consider it's half the price (at least in this country). However there's no doubt that ARC is superior to Audyssey and at the price you mention, the MRX1120 is a far more tempting prospect.


I'm a new owner of the anthem mrx1120.

Thanks for the response Steve. I stand corrected for incorectly qouting you. I spent the most part of the afternoon listening to both the anthem 1120 and denon 6300 and in the end I felt the deal for the anthem was too good to be pass on.

Thanks for everyone's opinions I took them into consideration.

In this case my contact did help me out with a really good deal. I contacted 5 other sellers and none came close to my deal.
 
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Just a correction - there seems to be a lot of reviewers cut and pasting the streaming services available on Heos.
The thing is, you'll not get Rhapsody on Heos - as it was wound into Napster earlier this year.
SiriusXM is a popular service if you're in the States, but as a UK based website it would be good to mention that it's only accessible there OR if you use a VPN. This would then allow you to run a tutorial on how to setup a VPN so users could access it?

My $0.02
 
Just scratching my head around the fact that this is a high-spec proccessor and class AB amplification for 11 channels in a relatively compact case and 14.5 kilos weight.Will it drive something like 11 ATC bookshelves or KEF TDMs with good fidelity and enough headroom?

There has not been a real flagship one-box receiver since the Onkyo 5010(the Arcam 850 is 7 channels only),i guess if Denon make one the price would be more expensive than the entry-level separates.
 

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