SonySTRDH190 2-ch Home Stereo Receiver with Phono Inputs & Bluetooth Black

I bought my STR-DH190 receiver to put in my "man cave" pool room. I respect SONY products, but I realized this 2-channel stereo receiver was a budget item, seemingly so inexpensive it must just be an entry-point-only receiver. I was shocked by its quality, sturdy construction, versatility and audiophile sound. It has Bluetooth connectivity, and a phono input for turntables. I hooked up a CD player, turntable, reel-to-reel, cassette deck, iPod, sub woofer and two sets of high end bookshelf speakers. The fronts are SONY Sscs5 3-Way 3-Driver Bookshelf Speakers. The rears are Polk. The sound is shocking, and everyone who hears it can't believe how it rocks. Now that this receiver is actually on sale at almost a "give-away" price, I'm tempted to buy another one as a backup in case one of my other systems needs a replacement receiver. It is Bluetooth ready, so I pair an Echo Dot with it for streaming. It is an amazingly versatile and reliable product. Highly Recommended.

I didn’t have any great expectations for this Sony receiver, I guess I’m a bit skeptical of things at first.But, wow was I surprised, and I was not disappointed in any aspect or functionality of this receiver.(1) I tried the FM tuner while listening through the headphone jack: outstanding. Easily volume control through the Sony remote.(2) I tried my iPhone pairing still through my headphones: excellent. Immediately paired with the Bluetooth of my iPhone to the Sony. Great sound. Easy to adjust sound volume and to use forward and backward either using the iPhone or the remote. The two times I paired it with my iPhone I simply pushed the “Bluetooth” button on the Sony remote, went to my iPhone Bluetooth settings, saw the Sony receiver was ready to connect and selected “connect” on my iPhone. I did not use the “pairing” button on my Sony receiver.(3) I finally connected a pair of JBL speakers. First I turned off the receiver (not sure if I needed to, but..I tried the FM first, then I paired my iPhone again. Both are Awesome!I don’t have a turntable, so I can’t report on it. Haven’t hooked up my Yamaha CD disc changer, because it’s old and the remote doesn’t work anymore. If I can get a replacement remote for it, then I’ll give it a try.In conclusion, the sound is superb with all of the above connections that I tried. And everything was simple to setup. I think the best sound was when I connected my bookshelf speakers. I’m sitting here right now streaming my Apple playlists and I’m blown away by the quality of the sound.I have an old 2011 Yamaha receiver, though it hasn’t worked for about 4-5 years, so I’m close to ecstatic to have an excellent new receiver that also has Bluetooth.Update 4/8/23I have just hooked up my Yamaha 5-CD changer and it works and sounds superb.The reason I have no trouble with the FM reception is probably because I am within 10 miles of the radio towers of the stations I listen to. So, the fact that this Sony comes with a proprietary FM antenna is not a problem.I only use the remote to adjust the receiver, so I can’t respond to reviews that state that the dials seem cheap.If you have had problems with your speakers, I highly recommend reading the instructions thoroughly to verify the impedance of your speakers and hook them up as described in the manual.I did have one speaker that did not work when I first hooked up my two speakers, but I quickly found that one of the speaker wires was not connected properly, but it took me about 30 seconds to rectify.Update 6/19/24More than a year later I realized that I had not tested the headphone jack on the front of the receiver. So, after attaching my wired Bose QC25 headphones into an extension cable I plugged the cable into the front of my receiver. Then I paired my iPhone via Bluetooth to the receiver and began streaming my music.The sound quality was so much better than the sound that I was getting from using my JBL speakers. I’m sure it would work with any decent wired headphones. Give it a try, or maybe you already have.I speculate that it takes less watts to power the headphones than it does the speakers.Now 5+ stars!Update 7/22/24My Bose QC25 headphones died, so I replaced them with Sony MDR7506 headphones and they work great, as you might expect when combining Sony headphones with a Sony receiver!

Speaking as a self-described "audiophile" (but a true audiophile with deep pockets would likely laugh), this was one of the best gifts I've given to myself in recent years (as I have a fairly large music library of nearly 600 albums of 1/3 vinyl, 2/3 CDs and some cassettes).Bought mine back in March--used to be $200, but when I saw it for $150 any hesitation went out the window and I grabbed it. I have been in love with it ever since. Fabulous sound and power (do you really need more than 100 watts per channel?), great remote control (not used to that, believe it or not), and it lives up to Sony quality. Powers my vintage components perfectly:> MCS Series 6202 Belt-Driven Turntable (had it since early 80s)> Nacamichi BX-300 Cassette Deck> Sony DVP-NS725P Disc Player (DVD but used mainly for CDs - audio-only connection)> LG TV connected via optical-to-analog adapter> KEF Reference Series 103/3 Stereo SpeakersInteresting observation about the way the ports are labeled on the back: what would traditionally be identified as a tape deck port (with IN/OUT) is just "Input 4," and while it's connected to my tape deck for playback, the REC-OUT is connected to a USB audio adapter to digitally record anything (mostly vinyl of course) to my laptop for mastering and iPod/digital library access.The Bluetooth connectivity is awesome as well with powerful range - great for playing music from mobile devices (phone and iPod Classic with BT adapter). The front line-in 3.5 port, identified as a "Portable" is also a great feature.At first, I was surprised that there was no input for optical, however since digital-to analog adapters are inexpensive and readily available, I think it's best to leave it that way. Would rather have the option, rather than an optical-only port that would otherwise go unused unless one had a component that required it.HOWEVER, if I were to make any improvements, it would be to add a USB Out port (preferably on the front), for digital recording on a PC. However again, since adapters are inexpensive and accessible, and for the price I paid for this device, I ain't gonna complain. Front level analog balance, bass and treble controls would also be nice, but you have access to all that through the menu.If you feel due for a simple, powerful and awesome stereo receiver/amplifier upgrade without breaking your monthly budget, this is a winner.