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52 DENON AVR_X4OOO + Approx
f,,t,2OO
Fresh-faced
firepower
Denon wants to reinvigorate the humbte receiver with its AVR-X4000, but does this nextgeneration oflering live up to the legendary legacy of the brand? Steve May takes a listen
DENON HAS HIGH hopes for its 2013
X-series of AV receivers, with the new range
boasting an unapotogetica[[y modernistic
feature set and some welcome refinements,
inctuding a reworked user interface, ctearer
front paneI disptay and hand-hotding Setup
Assistant to demystify insta[lation. The
model featured here tops the tineup, but
at tl,200 and tipping the scales at l2.3kg,
it's more cruiserweight than heavyweight.
The AVR-X4O0O is a seven-channeI design,
but supports nine-channeI processing shou[d
you want to lace up an additional stereo power
amp. ln the brand's AV stabte, it lords it over
the lookatike AVR-X3000, cheaper at f,8OO,
but looks up to the t2,300 AVR-4520.
Neat design
Cosmetica[[y, this receiver is slick without
being idiosyncratic. The fascia itself has a neat,
brushed finish and tlghtweight symmetrical
control knobs that frame a central trapdoor.
The roof of the AVR sports a couple of ptastic
heat mats, secured over the front-facing vents
with tittte plastic ctips. These stightty ugty
toupees are designed to prevent the roof of
the unit exceeding predetermined temperature
leve[s when the receiver is run at high volumes.
Overly cautious perhaps, but Denon and
Marantz have been using them for years.
Beneath the tid turks Denon's Dynamic
Discrete Surround Circuit D.D.S.C.-HD tech,
plus Denon Link HD anti-jitter wizardry - the
[atter only comes into effect when partnered
with a sibting Denon Link-toting Btu-ray p[ayer,
and went untested during my audition. To
optimise fidetity, signal paths have been
minimised. The Tl PCM]690 DAC used within
is common to most of the X-series models.
The layout of the rear panel is measured
and manageabte. The horizontaI speaker
terminats are colour-coded and there's a sheet
of matching labels provided in the box to help
sort your cable spaghetti. The HDMI provision
is generous, wlth six inputs (ptus a seventh
around the front), coupled to lnstaPrevue
HOME CINEMA CHOICE NOVEMBER 2O]3
POSITION: Leading the line of Denon's 2013
receivers, below the 2012-era AVR-4520
PEERS: Pioneer SC-1X57; Yamaha RX-A]030
thumbnait previews. There are three HDMI
outs, two of which can serve the main viewing
room, with an independent feed for a second
zone (note that the lnstaPrevue doesn't
function when this Zone 2 HDMI output is
active). The receiver can also distrlbute audio
only to a third zone.
Room EQ is achieved via Audyssey's
muttipte-position MuttEQ XT32 system
and supplied mic. ln terms of distance
and level it proved pteasingly accurate in
my room, but I stitt fett the need to make
my own extra manual adjustments. Another
Audyssey offering on the AVR-X4O00 is
LFC, which purports to controI the dispersion
of deep bass without adversely impacting
the LFE performance in room. The system
has seven levets of 'tow frequency
containment,' but my advice s to avoid all
of them like an Uxbridge nightctub on a Friday
night. When engaged, pretty much every thud
of bass is exercised from the soundtrack,
leaving nothing but shritt squawking. I may
have been ptaying The Expendables 2 on the
Blu-ray player, but my neighbours must have
thought I was cutling parakeets.
Thankfutty, there're ptenty of useful
features on board, too, inctuding Apple
AirPtay and Spotify (in itsetf a rather
exctusive combination ). The latter's onscreen
presentation is somewhat simptistic but it
works wetI enough and for Spotify subscribers
it'tt hit the right notes.
Surround sound simplified
'There are ptenly cf
usef i -j i featr-: reS,]r^r
boarC, including bcth
Appie AtrPiaV and
r-n i-jsic service Spctify'
The boffins at Denon ctaim they've taken big
strides in making its AVRs more approachable.
and they're hatf right. The setup and main
menus of the AVR-X4O00 are easity navigated.
enIivened with engaging graphics. But despite
the refresh, some aspects of the receiver
remain less than rntuitive; you'tt stitt need to
consutt the manual, which is supptied as a PDF
on a CD ROM or as a downtoad.
The AVR-X4000 presentsa minimalist front fascia
-a pull-down flap conceals USB and HDMI inputs
NOVE^,'3ER 2OI3 HOME CINEMA CHOICE
+ Denon's AVR-X4O00 features
a new simptified
Setup Assistant to demystify the receiver
instatlation, However, the operating togic
remaining inscrutabte and unintuitive at times
- shame there's no printed manuaI supptied
Yes. PLus Dotby Digitat
With a name tike 'X4000' you'd expect this
receiver to be ctad in spandex and boast secret
superpowers, such as integrated Wi-Fi or
Bluetooth streaming. But it doesn't. However,
I suspect neither wi[[ be crucial to the type of
serious home theatre buyer shorttisting this
modet. And this doesn't diminish the receiver's
connected performance - the Denon shines
when networked. Setecting the Network input
brings up a cotlection of icons representing
internet radio, Last.fm, Spotify, media servers
and Flickr. lt's DLNA i.5 compliant and handtes
disparate codecs weil; from USB and across
a LAN it taps its feet to MP3, M4AIAAC, FLAC,
WMA and WAV. Those running a music server
NAS are wetl served.
You can experiment with height and width
exotica (DTS Neo:X, Audyssey DSX and Dotby
Pro-Logic llz), atthough with on[y seven
channels on hand, you'[[ need to forgo
rear surround channets. The AVR atso
features a variety of picture presets
plus a user mode which altows you to
tune contrast, brightness, saturation,
hue and noise reduction. Personal[y,
I fee[ your source and disptay are the
more logical ca[ibration point.
Positive performance
The AVR-X4000's sonic characteristic
is futt-btooded but sweet - it's the
musical equivalent of a Ferrero Rocher
box. Digitonal's electro bop Seraphim
(Angel Mix),streamed as a FLAC
Studio Master from Linn Records,
is rich and gtuttonous. And catt me a
heathen, but I preferred the receiver's
multichanneI stereo presentation
to its direct two-channel detivery,
lndeed, the immersive nature
of the AVR-X4000's surround
(incluttered
handsets
compared to some AvR
Gan also use the fiee app
-you
HOME CINEMA CHOICE NOVEMBER 2O'I3
t,
The AVR-X4O00 has six lear HDMI inputs (and one on
the fiont panel), plusthree HDMI outpu:J
soundfield is a consistent joy. When tuned into
Sky Sports' Fl HD race coverage, transmitted
in Dotby Digitat 5.1, my viewing room sounded
as if under siege from angry bees. Engines
were panned front to back, teft and right,
in a glorious cacophony.
With pumped-up actioners, tike the
aforementioned ...Expendables 2 and its
DTS-HD MA 7l mix, the AVR-X4O00 stomps
around tike a bettigerent teenager, kicking
cans and debris into every corner of the room
with gusto. As Sty and his team unteash their
ordnance, the Denon responds with quick-fire
transients. lt's impossible to suppress a grin
at its antics, even though centre channel
diatogue delivery occasional[y sounds a
tad potite. Ctarity and definition
remain admirable.
The amplifier is rated at l25W
(into Sohms) with at[ channets driven.
Whi[e not an out-and-out votume
monster, it doesn't strain when
cranked toud; the integrity of the
soundstage isn't compromised,
remaining classy and controtled across
the range.
Overat[, the AVR-X4O00 delivers
on its modern promise. lt may tack
the witd invention of Sony's STRDA5800ES and the astounding
dynamics of Arcam's FMJ AVR750,
but both those modets compete in
price divisions a magnitude higher
than this weIt-behaved slugger.
I would have tiked to see THX
post-processing, and find the
operating logic at times inscrutab[e,
but this -cdet's forward-looking
feature s3: .as undeniable appeat.
And it s
-:
sputably a fine-sounding
receive.':':re
price
I
r',13i!'*5fi
No
No
7 x l25W (8ohms)
Yes. Three zones
Txinputs;3xoutputs
2xinputs:lxoutput
5 x composite; 4 x digital audio (2 x
opticalandZxcoaxial)
Yes. To 4K
434(w)
x
378(d)
Audvrr.vS
x
f,,f
187(h)mm
rf teOf
ii5g
audio catibration and LFC; Audyssiy DSX
. processing; HDMI passthrough; Appte iOS and
An_droid control apps; DLNA l.5media ptayback;
Eth_ernet; USB, AirPlay: vTuner; Spotify:-Ftickr;
D.D.S.C-HD; Denon Llnk HD:A124 pr6cessine
Ptus; HDMI lnstaPrevue; nine-channet pre-ouI
Denon AVR-X4000
+ fl,200 Approx + www.denon.co.uk
+Tet: (0)2890 279830
HIGHS: Engaging multichanneI delivery;
generous c0nnectivity; exce[ent network
streaming and content support; versatite
multiroom options
LOWS: At times, almost too refined; no
Bluetooth; ugly remote; not quite as intuitive as
Denon would have us believe; only seven
channets of amplification
Performance{f
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OveraltT***
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