We've reported on this mighty beast before, from various shows around the world, but now Denon's flagship AVC-A1HD multichannel amplifier is officially available in the UK for £3799.99.
Described as "a network-centric, high-definition, home cinema and digital media music powerhouse", the Denon packs wi-fi, internet radio, the ability to handle high-definition audio and music and photo streaming within its not inconsiderable casework.
Power is 150w across all seven channels, 1080p video processing comes courtesy of the Realta sxT2 HQV processing chip and there are Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD decoders within. A new control layout and a photo-real graphic interface should make the AVC-A1HD easier to use, claims Denon.
The flagship model is made in Denon's own high-end factory in Shirawaka, Japan. So comprehensive is its technical specification that we hardly have room here to mention everything, but here are the main highlights:
High-definition sound & vision
- HDMI 1.3a repeater with six inputs and two outputs
- 1080/24p pass through
- Realta sxT2 HQV processing for i/p and scaling
- Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD decoders (HDMI 1.3a)
- Deep Colour and xvYCC support (HDMI 1.3a)
- Auto lip sync (HDMI 1.3a)
- All analogue and digital video upscalable to 1080p
- 12 channel pre-amplifier / 9.3 configuration
- Full networking with wi-fi & Ethernet built-in
- Music & photo streaming from PC & Mac
- PC setup and control via Ethernet & wi-fi
- Setup and control via inbuilt web-browser
- Remote diagnosis, update and upgrade
- Internet radio with 11,000 + stations
- Selectable USB ports (Front/Rear)
- iPod-ready (using Denon ASD-1R)
- Up to four zone room-to-room capability
- DenonLink3 ultra-speed low-jitter audio interface
- Upgrade with POA-A1HD 10 channel amplifier
Sound quality
- Six independent power transformers
- Separate audio, video, pre-amplifiers, power supplies
- Three all-new 32-bit floating point DSPs
- Denon's Dynamic Discrete Surround Circuit HD
- Denon proprietary Advanced AL24 for all channels
- New audiophile chassis construction design
- Compressed Audio Restorer for MP3/AAC
- Pure Direct/Direct/Stereo for digital/analogue inputs
- New photo-real Graphical User Interface
- Front panel setup possible as well
- Unified music interface for iPod, USB and streaming
- Auto set-up and room EQ
- MultEQ XT from Audyssey
- Two remote controls for main and sub zones
