Receiver for Harley Davidson owners
Written: Jan 18 '01 (Updated Nov 18 '01)
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Pros: Sound quality for both accuracy and surround sound, solid construction
Cons: See the review for a list and discussion
The Bottom Line: Sounds better, costs less. This is the opinion of someone who has listened to numerous products that cost more than $10,000 each.
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| harveyny's Full Review: Outlaw Audio Model 1050 6.1 Channel A/V Receiver |
Why would this be a receiver for Harley Davidson owners? Outlaw - how more appropriate could that be. An American audio company - the products are not necessarily made in America, but the designers and engineers are located in Durham, NH. By the way, if you removed all the Japanese parts on a Harley (front suspension, carburetor, electronics) you wouldn't have a functional motorcycle.
I set up my first HT(home theater) system two years ago. At that time, I was shopping of a sub $1000 receiver that could decode DTS. My list at that time consisted of the following brands.
Sony ES
Pioneer Elite
Marantz
Yamaha
Sherwood
Denon
After listening to these products, I decided on the Denon AVR 2800. The following list of equipment was purchased to hook up to the Denon.
Pioneer DV05 - DVD Player
Monitor Audio Silver 3i, Silver Center and ASW210 sub - speakers
Radio Shack PROLX5 - rear speakers
Lovan speaker stands
ACM Audio power conditioner
Nordost Flatline and AudioQuest Type 4 - speaker wires and interconnects
Q-Pods and other audio improvement accessories
Here are my initial impressions of the Outlaw in comparison to the Denon.
CONS
1. Very plain appearance - not of importance to me, but may be important WA(wife acceptance) factor. However in a HT setup within a dimly lit room, this is not a factor. You will be watching the video not the receiver.
2. Setup for surround sound a bit difficult because there is no manual control for the test tone. It cycles through each speaker sequentially. There are also no individual controls for the front and rear left/right speakers.
CORRECTION - you can control the gain for each rear speaker independantly (should have read the owners manual better)
3. Only one sub-woofer line out.
4. No provisions for additional speakers for another room.
5. Small buttons on the remote control.
6. The fluorescent display is very small and does not display a lot of information at one time.
PROS
1. What is most important to me is that this sounds better than the Denon. In terms of overall sound quality, everything sounds more natural and life-like. In the surround sound mode, it reminds me of the first time I heard a demonstration of Dolby Pro-Logic versus DTS. The sound effects are much more impressive than when I was using the Denon.
2. Second most important feature is price $599 plus about $45 for quick shipping. I paid more than this when I purchased the Denon AVR 2800.
3. Build quality - the unit is very hefty. The manual says that it weighs 36.3 lbs. The speaker connections are better quality than the Denon and all the RCA connections are gold plated. I only wished it had a IEC AC connection.
4. You can perform all the set-up functions from the front panel, so that if you ever lost the remote, you would not be sunk.
I plug all the video sources directly to the TV, so I do not utilize these connections on the receiver.
If you are some who "thinks differently" this is a product you should consider. Sounds better, costs less - what an ideal concept.
UPDATE - now it costs even less with a price of $499.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 644
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Epinions.com ID:
harveyny
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Location: IL
Reviews written: 88
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About Me:
My main interest is QUALITY. This affects the way I evaluate everything.
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