2. home-theater
  3. 126487-87976

Denon 4520CI + 4806 combo as pre-pro and power amp

I just recently bought an used pair 4520CI+4806 combo which previous owner used as pre-pro/power amp combo. Also, previous owner mentioned that 4806 amp section is better than 4520CI and that's the primary reason for using 4806 as power amp while using 4520CI as pre-pro.

Based on my research, it seemed like 4806 is one of the best Denon amp - beefy amp, power supplies, large capacitor etc. ( other than 5805 of course) and thought it would be great setup as audiophile friend of mine used Denon 4308 as pre-pro with NAD T773 receiver as power amp and NAD has power amp inputs other than regular 8.1 EXT inputs and it sounds great.  Based on checking with my friend, in case of NAD T773 setup, it looks like there is no involvement of volume control on power amp inputs in the receiver but it looks to me that's not the case for 4806 based on looking up online so far.

So here are my questions:

I primarily bought this setup and considering used as I can't afford 7200WA right now but wanted high end sound and that's why purchased used. Secondly, I'm also right now not really interested in setting up Atmos( but 4200W is on fire sale with 5.1.2 setup and is tempting though) for now but at the same time wanted best sound quality for both music and movies. My listening preferences includes 50% music and 50% movies.

1) Is it really worth the pain of setting up 4520CI as pre-pro and 4806 as power amp?

First of all, is this setup really recommended? Also I'm not sure if 4806 really supports power amp mode similar to NAD T773 or not. If it isn't then is this setup really valid/recommended? It's confusing as both are receivers and have volume controls in both 4520CI and 4806.

If this setup is valid, then can you recommend what are the setup steps involved in setting it up in both 4520CI to configure as pre-processor and 4806 as power amp?

2) Secondly, is it going to be any better than what's out there such as Denon X4200W which is on fire sale and also there is a great deal on Denon X6200W

4200 has discrete amplifier and is close to 28 pounds
6200 is close to 30 pounds with mono block power amp construction.
4806 is really heavy around 52 pounds and 4520CI 36 pounds similar to 7200WA with L/R separated mono block power amp construction.
4520CI amp is very similar to 7200WA as both are mono block construction with L/R separated except 7200WA has upgraded DACs

First of all I'm not sure if the amplifier differences between 4520/4806 to 4200/6200 are worth it? I don't really listen at high volumes but at moderate volumes and my speakers are rated 4 ohms.

I did not find really rave reviews on 4520CI other than usual Denon 4.5 stars review from Sound and vision which also provided 4.5 stars for X4200W as well. Does this mean they both perform equally well?

For 4806 there are lot's of good reviews out there raving about sound quality and internals:

https://translate.googleusercontent....Y1dXbr0MnJtbXw

http://www.avrev.com/home-theater-av...eiver-2-2.html

http://hometheaterhifi.com/volume_12...05-part-1.html

Last but not least, I appreciate your help and based on your replies I'll either keep this combo or may want to back out the deal if it's not the right setup as the seller did not provide accurate info on the setup so far and moreover the seller is not going to ship until early next week and I may have to to ask my money for refund(worst case).

Thanks.
adumadu
auxinput
2,920 posts
 

I agree with willland in the fact that you should sell the 4806 and put that toward a beefy amp (you can even look into a 5 channel amp). 

Yes, you could use the 4520CI + 4806 in the scenario that the original owner did.  Sounds like he had the 4806 originally and then bought a newer 4520CI and didn't want to spend the money on a better amp, so he used the 4806 as a stopgap.  However, it is far from the optimal way to use it.  As you mentioned, there are no direct amp inputs on a receiver.  You will use the 7.1 analog inputs and you must use the volume control on the 4806.  This means that the signal is going through the entire preamp section of the 4806.  If you are using the 4806 now, there are a few things I would suggest:

- reset the 4806 to factory defaults:  first press and hold RC SETUP button for at least 3 seconds, then press the 9, 8, 1 buttons (9 -> 8  -> 1).

- use PURE DIRECT mode (Press the PURE DIRECT button to select the PURE DIRECT mode)

- use DIRECT mode (Press the DIRECT/STEREO button to select the DIRECT mode).

- disable Room EQ (hit the ROOM EQ button until it shows as "OFF")

- turn up the volume on the 4806 to "0.0 db".  It's best to have the preamp at full level and these circuits typically work best when doing full signal level when being used as an amp pre-driver.


It is still not the best solution.  Like we said, I would try selling the 4806 and then put the money towards a stand-alone amp.  You can get a really nice 5-channel that sits in at around 75-100 lbs.  It will be significantly more performance than anything the 4806 will produce.

If you do choose to think about this, let us know what you would want to budget for this amp and we can start giving you ideas or recommendations.  A couple things come to mind.  Emotiva XPA-5, there's one on ebay for $749.  There's a B&K Reference 200.5 here on audiogon for $999 if you want something warmer.

adumadu OP
6 posts
 

Thanks for your input and clarifying that 4806 as power amp is just a stop gap and not a great option. Since seller has not shipped it, I’ll cancel the transaction instead of reselling 4806 to avoid hassles.

I’m not sure if I need power amp at all and happened to go that route based on this transaction as seller was offering pre-pro, power amp combo deal. Since I never had separates before, I did not know if this was right setup and thanks for all clarification. So, in the future I’ll buy separate power amp as opposed to stop gap solution.

I’ll take time to think about revamping my home theater with good warmer sounding power amp such as B&K or purchasing audiophile quality AV receiver such as Anthem 300(which I just auditioned used one today locally and it seemed to sound great but still has only one hdmi output ), Cambridge Audio 651r is available online for great price as well.

Moreover, I already have Sherwood R972 which sounds great but doesn’t have bell and whistles like Denon 4520ci like even basic HDMI CEC and has only 1 HDMI output but trinnov is fantastic.

auxinput
2,920 posts
 
Check out the Marantz receivers.  They generally sound very good.  You can get a previous generation still new-in-box from some sellers.  For example, Crutchfield has a SR6010 on sale for $999.  It has 2 HDMI outputs. 
adumadu OP
6 posts
 
Thanks. I'll check it out.
savdllc's avatar
savdllc
40 posts
 
Since you mentioned Cambridge Audio as one of the brands you might look into, I’d recommend you give Arcam a look as well; I own a home theater company in Atlanta, GA, and in my experience, I would say that the audio quality of their AVR’s (the AVR850 in particular) is the closest you can get to that of separates before taking the plunge into the world of really expensive high-end audio. If you want to keep the 4520CI as a preamp, there are lots of great options out there from the likes of Arcam, Parasound, Bryston, and many others. Let me know if you need any additional advice - we’re always glad to help. :)

-David Campbell
 President - Southern A/V Direct, LLC
More to discover