Home > Consumer Reviews > Denon DRA-397 AM/FM Multi Source/Zone Stereo Receiver w/ 80X2 Audiophile Power

First of all, I don't know why anyone would say this product is confusing. I'm no tech wiz, and I didn't need to consult the manual for basic operation. Programming in stations wasn't hard either.

But even so, this is a fairly picayune matter considering that a receiver is a device for listening to music (and other audio sources) and should be evaluated as such. What matters most is sound quality, and this receiver sounds excellent. No, it's not an audiophile product, but it's probably the best sounding receiver you'll find in production for this price range.

I've had mine for a few months and I'm very satisfied. I have it driving a pair of JBL HLS-610's which I consider to be about the same grade of product -- mass-market mid-fi producing great sound at an affordable price. Overall the sound is very pleasing; the bass is palpable and detailed, the highs are clear and smooth. The detail at low volumes is impressive, which in my opinion is what distinguishes a good amplifier from one that's just loud.

About the best thing one can say about a stereo component is that it allows them to hear things in their music they hadn't noticed before. This receiver has delivered that consistently. The phono stage is particularly nice; my records have never sounded better.

In contrast to commercial audio companies which deliver "big sound" by manipulating frequency response like crazy, the engineers at Denon have gone to the trouble of designing a stereo that adds very little coloration to your music. In fact, my favorite feature is the "pure direct" function -- basically a tone defeat on steroids -- which allows you to circumvent all the unnecessary circuitry to deliver a signal that's true to the original recording.

If I have any complaint about the product, it's that it's a bit bulky. I understand this is an artifact of the design. Still, it takes up a lot of room on the shelf. Also, the volume knob feels clunky.

I'll repeat that this stereo is not in league with truly high-end integrated amps or separates. You have to be prepared to spend a lot more money to get that level of performance (not to mention the cost of an audiophile inputs and loudspeakers). But if you're on a budget, or just don't want to pay at least twice as much for incremental improvements in sound, don't overlook this stereo. It might be the best value going.

I agree with the previous reviewer. The quality of sound coming out of this receiver is absolutely amazing. The only reason why Im not giving it 5 stars is that the remote is not user friendly. But that is minor. Enjoy the sound!

I was very pleased with the quality of the product and how fast it came. I thought I had needed new speakers
too, but the receiver sound so good that I'll wait for a while. Some reviews mentioned it was more complicated than what us older folks are used to so I let my son set it up and it's really quite easy to use. I'm back into the music in my house and on my deck.
It works well with my Zen MP3.

I needed a replacement for my broken receiver. I ordered this denon and it works great. I would highly recommend this!

The sound was very good but for some reason when I put my record player to the phono input it sounded horrible. When I switched it to another input it was great though. It is a simple devise as long as you only have simple requests, but the more complicated obviously you'll need to get help from the instruction manual. This unit stopped working on me (i think overheated) so It is now being fixed under warrantly since DakDepot is an authorized distributor... thank god. So in general, sounds good, read to manual for help, wierd phono reception, and if buying refurbished make sure to purchase from an authrorized dealer.