Yamaha RX V475 5.1 Channel Network AV Receiver with Airplay

This is my first receiver purchase in 20 years. This receiver replaces an old Denon that had great sound but, of course, it didn't have Airplay to work with my vast iTunes library and a DAC to improve the sound coming from compressed digital audio. I am very picky about sound but wouldn't characterize myself an audiophile, since I don't have the budget to go there. Having said this, the Yamaha RX-473 seems to have a reputation as a one of the better sounding receivers for the price competing with Onkyo, Denon in the entry level audiophile components. I almost purchased Denon, but my gut feeling after reading hundreds of reviews is that the Yamaha was the way to go. Onkyo was never an option, due to its history of problems (although to be fair, they seem now living up to their high quality reputation recently).Virtually every review of the RX-473 makes it out to be one of the best values on the market without sacrificing sound quality. What made me wait for the RX-475 is that it now includes a Burr Brown DAC made by Texas Instruments. The DAC functions on every appropriate sound source per Yamaha's literature. Another thing is that the RX-475 has bluetooth capability so that I my wife can use wireless headphones (once the soon to be released receiver is available), though I'm sticking to a better sounding traditional copper wire connection for my cans.For those who don't know, a DAC is a Digital-to-Analog Converter. It turns 0s and 1s on a digital file such as that on a DVD, CD or Pandora, usually in the form of Pulse Code Modulation, into an analog electrical signal that our audio electronics can understand and amplify so that our speakers make sounds. As you might imagine, an ADC turns analog signals into digital signals, which is important for recording. Processors/receivers often have both ADCs and DACs in their circuitry in order to do many different audio related things. Burr Brown DAC 's are known as quality products but nowadays there are many good DACs. 2013 RX-X75 line features Burr Brown DACs as opposed the undisclosed DAC in the 2012 line. Most other receivers in the this price category don't list their DAC circuitry as something to brag about. All indications are that the Yamaha Burr Brown does the trick . I use an Audio Engine D1 DAC for my desktop listening and love the mellow 3D sound that it produces. So I'm picky about how my digital sources are treated. The sound on the RX-475 using Pandora, iTunes & Netradio sounds controlled smooth and non digital. So far so good.Setup was ok. It could be easier since the manual focuses on non set top box setups. I use Tivo, but any cable box would be treated a setup that is certainly an option, just not as primary option detailed in the manual. btw make sure you load the Manual CD and immediately get the manual, which is in PDF format to your tablet so you can have it to refer to in FRONT of the receiver. Once I got The RX-475 networked I was stumped by it not able to use my network even though the status was CONNECT. After a bit if frustration I restarted the receiver. That did the trick. Installation of the IOS app was easy on my ipad and iphones. Airplay works great and I can now play Pandora from my Mac to my whole house including the RX-475, Airport Express and other computers with speakers using 3rd party applications like Reflector. I've used the RX-475 for 3 solid days and have to say that I no longer use the remote. I only now use my Tivo Remote. but for anything related to the RX-475, I use the iOS App exclusively. In fact, sometimes I just go back and forth between the Tivo and Yamaha apps on my iPad and have complete control of my entire entertainment experience . The only minor complaint I have is that there a slight audio click that I hear when I rewind or forward 30 seconds on Tivo. Whether its a Tivo or Yamaha problem I have no idea. Other than that, the RX-475 is great upgrade for anyone in the receiver market . Let's hope RX-475 bluetooth transmitter/receiver solution works as well once its released.

First off No, I am not an Audiophile, however I have had many home audio systems over the past couple of years and have gone through a lot of products. I also have an extremely good ear, and that's not my personal opinion I have hearing test I must do yearly due to my job so I have paperwork to back up my statement. Haha.I got this reciever as I was in the market for a budget home cinema system. Now depending on who you ask some people will say spend more money on the speakers, and others will say spend more money the reciever. I opted for the later as i knew that the speakers I was getting at the time were just a temporary fix and would be upgrading later. This reciever actually replace the original reciever I had purchased which was the Denon AVR 400....Man what a difference!!!What the Denon did good at the Yamaha was great at. Mainly in overall sound. They are definetly louder than the Denon was without even hitting the same the decibel levels.Setup was typical of any reciever, string the wires , plug in sub, plug in connections turn reciever on and your basically 70% done. The menu screen or GUI is a little outdated but every reciever at this price point is going to look like that. This should not be a deterrent as you shouldn't need to go into your settings so much.Just to see how it worked I used the auto correction YPAO mic that came with reciver to setup the sound to about 80% of what I wanted. This feature is good for new people getting into home cinema scene as it will gauge your speaker distance and sound levels for each speaker. Once done with the auto correction I fine tuned the decibel levels to my likings as they were a little to bright for my liking and listeniong enviroment.Now they're some great features on the Yamaha1. It is 3D capable so if you have a 3D Blu Ray player and set it up to the reciever it works perfectly without any loss of video playback2. It is ARC enabled which is great as I have only one HDMI cable hooked up to the TV, for those of you that do not know most new HDTVs have this feature which basically enables the sound from your tv to be transmitted to your reciever via HDMI cord so you'll get surround sound from your network shows while running the HDMI to the reciever.3. Tons of sound modes. Yamaha took different recordings of places and tried to mimic those sound effects on the reciever. There are about 7 different sound modes for listening to music, to include as if you watching a music video to being at the music hall in Vienna. For watching movies there are even more sound effects. This is not a gimmick as they are all very distinct sounds.4. The decoding on this reciever is one of the best in its competing class and should be substantial for most user, the only people that would complain about it would be the audio snobs.Overall this is a great entry level reciever and one that should last most users or people starting out in home cinema a while. I plan on using this reciever for about 3-5 years as my next project is upgrading my speaker system next. There are enough inputs that would suffice most homes, enough decoding on the reciever to last most homes and the sound in my opinion is wonderful for my liking. I did not give the reciever 5 stars as that in my opinion means it one of the best. Now it is nowhere one of the best but for bang to buck it is worth 4 stars.