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Anthem MRX 720 Question

I want to improve the sound quality of my system and am looking at new receivers.  I have a 5.1 system with Paradigm S3's for L&R, a C3 center (LCR all V3), dual Klipsch subs and Sonance surrounds.

A fair number of people rate the Anthem 520, 720 and 1120 receivers highly for their sound and room correction software.  I'm getting close to pulling the trigger on a 720 but have a concern.

Many of the forums talk about HDMI connectivity, receiver lockup, firmware and various other issues.  To be fair, it seems like those discussions dropped off in recent months presumably as newer firmware became available.  

Does anyone have recent experience with the 720 they can share?  Have the HDMI, receiver lock-up and PlayFi issues been resolved?  Were those issues unfairly highlighted?  A demanding forum audience could make something appear bigger than it is.

I'm replacing a Yamaha RX-A3050.   With the current setup if I select FIOS, ROKU, BluRay, Spotify, Chromecast etc from the Harmony remote, a lot of activities happen behind the scenes; devices power up or down, inputs are selected, amps and fans turn on - and it all works every time even when I switch between activities.  Yamaha's switching is impressive since it rarely has HDMI/HDCP handshaking issues.  I love that since recovering from those issues usually involves recycling the power to the receiver, TV and/or device.

I want good sound but don't want to lose the reliability and ease of use I currently have. I'd really appreciate hearing what others have experienced with their Anthems.

Thanks in advance.


myoungva
mahler123
3,359 posts
 
OP
if you are happy with the Yamaha switching abilities, etc the newest Yamaha receivers also have room correction, but I didn’t think they sonically matched the Anthem
myoungva OP
6 posts
 
The Yamaha 3050 has YPAO which does OK with room correction but varies greatly each time you do it.  The Anthem's room correction is supposed to be best in class so I'm excited to hear it in actios.

I think I've come up with a solution for my situation. I'm going to use the Anthem to power the 5.1 system and Zone 2.  Then I'm going to use the Yamaha with a feed from the Anthem's line outs to power and control zones 3 & 4.

I believe I can do this in such a way that you won't need a degree in computer science to turn it on ... and have good sound!

The real issue as I have learned is sending a 5.1 signal to the main zone and a 2 channel downmixed signal to the other zones and have the sound be in sync on both.  This is super important if say your 5.1 is in the family room and you have zone 2 in the kitchen which is next to the family room.  If they're out of I didn't realize until I got into this how few receivers can do this.

Most receivers downmix the main if you send the audio to another 2 channel zone.  The Yamaha can keep the main in 5.1 and send down mixed audio to the other zones.  I am told (but need to verify) the Anthem can do this as well.  If true, I should be able to get the best of both worlds - good sound in the main, all 3 of my other zones in sync and easy to use.

If anyone's interested in the details, happy to share. 
pcc67
226 posts
 
I've had my 720 for 2 months, absolutely no issues. Love it. I use roku, playstation 3 and bluesound node 2i. Everything works flawlessly so far.  
jew16384's avatar
jew16384
59 posts
 

I have an 1120 Anthem and the software is poor no comparison to my Integra. One of the amp has failed and it no longer switches correctly.  The sound is ok cause I use my PASS LABS for the two out side speakers. As for the Audio return channel that’s a joke on Anthem equipment they have no idea how it works . The product is a solid F

 

soix
9,571 posts
 

Yamaha and Anthem are my two fave AVRs for both sound and reliability, but if I had your speakers I’d definitely go with Anthem because I think they’d appreciate the the higher level of performance and refinement.  Issues seem to be hit or miss, but I’d expect a company like Anthem will stand behind their products and provide fixes/updates/support when necessary.  Then again, if the issue is ongoing and frustrating return it and go with one of the new Yammy AVRs because they’re getting solid reviews and I’m sure will still sound very good in your system.  I demoed B&W 805D3s with the RX-A3080 with my best audiophile recordings and it did a surprisingly excellent job portraying all the nuances along with 3D imaging and a large, transparent, and deep soundstage that reminded me more of good separates than what I usually hear from mass market AVRs.  If they can pull that off it’s hard to see them falling short in an HT setup.  Just my $0.02 FWIW, and best of luck. 

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