Is patience the right decision at this time ?

That is really a decision only you can answer based off of your immediate wants and needs. I really believe that al these issues are pretty minor in comparision to all the wonderful aspects these players have, but negatives tend to make for more exciting forum talk, lol... And firmware upgrades are becoming a more common practice.

These new receivers are so full of features at many different price points, and I have a feeling they will have a pretty strong re-sale value until more product is readily available. Why wait for tomorrow when you can enjoy today? Just my 2 cents...

Trust your instincts.
Unless you find a GREAT deal, wait.

I am in the same situation, there are still many "new" models coming out from difference brands, I'll wait at least until end of this year or early next year to decide. Hope this helps.

Wait till black Friday then pull the trigger on the best deal you can get.

A number of threads keep referring to "Black Friday." What's the meaning or signifcance of that?

? ? ? ? ?

Isn't that the day after Thanksgiving?

Oh. So the idea is that the best deals are available on that day. I get it. I thought it was referring to Halloween, and I couln't figure it out, since Halloween is not on a Friday this year.

But why is the day after Thanksgiving "black" Friday?

Supposedly because retailers finally get into black ink (start making profit) as of that day, also signifying the beginning of profitable holiday shopping season. Or something like that. We don't get that in Canada, but our Thanksgiving is in early October. We have Boxing Day sales instead (day after Christmas, here it's a holiday as well).

Personally I'm in the same boat, my old receiver is dieing (occasional static on digital inputs), doesn't have any HDMI so it can't accept even multichannel PCM so it's totally lagging behind the rest of my system. I waited for year and half for the receivers to FINALLY start being able to decode all formats available on HD discs. I would really like to get a new one now but like hoowaa I just don't feel that any of the products in 1-2k range are trouble-free enough to make me feel good about purchase. Perhaps buying a low-end receiver now to get features you need now and keep waiting till the killer product comes would be a compromise? You could keep your old one as amplifier and new one for digital features? I myself have a standalone stereo amp so the receiver doesn't need to be all that great.

Today's gear has today's problems. Tomorrow's gear will have tomorrow's problems. At some point, you have to decide if the waiting is worth what you're missing. This industry is definitely mature, so you can expect that just about anything you buy will work and work well.

One truth about consumer electronics -- you'll always get more bang for the buck tomorrow than you get today.

I'm not convinced that the $1-1.5K receivers these days really have any problems to speak of. Is the lack of a volume display on an HDMI output really that big of a deal? Picking nits if you ask me, but I guess it's important to some.

I recently bought a Yamaha RX-V1800 in that price range. It's a killer receiver and I'm sure I'll be happy with it for years and years. Should have done this sooner.

You must be a young gun. Black Friday is the biggest shopping day of the year (or used to be).

People get ads on Thanksgiving for shoppers to hit their stores at 6am or earlier Friday morning. The better the deals, the more people will wait in lines. Walmart and Best Buy are known for huge lines on Black Friday morning.

There are websites that come out with the ads in advance so you can see what's on sale several weeks before hand.


http://bfads.net/
Black Friday Ads - The Official Black Friday 2007 Website

http://www.black-friday.net/
Black Friday 2007 Thanksgiving Day Black Friday Ads at Black-Friday.net

I'm right there with you OP. I really need a new receiver but can't decide which way to go. I was looking to spend the same as you, but feel we're not quite there yet. I tend to buy a receiver once every 10 years or so, and want it to last. New receiver models are generally evolutionary from one year to the next, but every once in a while there is a revolutionary change. Currenty we are right in the middle of one of those rare periods, with new sound formats and HDMI connectivity. True, we can't predict the future, and something bigger and better is always just around the corner, but I think the dust will settle at least temporarily within the next year. I was thinking about picking up a new denon 3808 for $998, but might go with a stop gap solution like an Onkyo 605 for $400 to hold me over for a year or so. I thought about hanging on to my current receiver for another year, but it's killing me not to be able to enjoy the great sound available on HD DVD titles.

Black Friday is clearance stuff mostly, though.

HDMI 1.3b, if patience is your virtue. They have started coming at least the switchers.

I heard an alternate explanation of the term Black Friday. Because it is the busiest sales day of the year it is a Black day for salespersons as they are so busy.

As for patience, several medical studies have shown that the only known cure for upgraditis is to buy, buy now, and preferably buy beyond your budget. Unforunately, the cure is short lived and frequent new appications of it are required.

1.3b is just stricter testing standards. Not that that's a bad thing.

Actually, I'm an old gun . . . but still smokin'! I knew the Friday after Thanksgiving was the biggest shopping day of the year, but never heard it referred to as Black Friday. People in my office have heard it called that, though, so maybe I'm out of it. On the other hand, I never shop on Black Friday and I generally avoid shopping in malls unless absolutely necessary, so maybe that explains it.

Buy the Denon 3808 like your genius brother-in-law. and you will be happy.

I think you can wait and wait and buy stuff that eventually becomes the older model once all the bugs are fixed. If you are talking about buying the latest cutting edge stuff there is often going to be issues since they make changes to the designs. So if you want the new stuff that is out today in 12 months then wait but if you want the stuff that is newly released then go ahead and just buy the stuff now. BTW I have an Onkyo SR605 and it does everything it says it does and I don't have any problems.

Tell that to the tons of people that have overheating/popping/HDMI/etc. issues with it.

I have told them. I just did. I seriously wonder how many of these issues are from incorrect setup, connections and user error. It always amazes me how people will constantly ask questions on this forum that are clearly covered in instruction manuals. I think alot people just go about thinking "this wire looks like it belongs here" or "this seems right" and do some sort of permanent damage and then later finally figure out how to wire/setup things correctly and then blame the equipment when it doesn't work right. I am not saying this is always the case but I would imagine it must be some significant amount of the cases reported, just by reading some of the questions posted.

^+1

I have the 805 and it has never "over heated", has no popping, no visible synch delays, honestly, its probably the best AV purchase of any kind I've ever made. (The fact that I got for 750 ish on CC 4th sale doesn't hurt either).

I bought a 3 yr warranty too so if I did have issues I could get a replacement. I also had 30 days to see if i really liked it. So, yeah, you could wait, but I would guess for 99% of people, these receivers do everything they are supposed to do. If there was anything major wrong, there would be recalls and/or emergency firmware updates. I haven't seen this for the new Onkyo line.

Good for you guys, but that doesn't mean the equipment does not have issues.

Yeah but that doesn't mean people have to be paranoid about buying something right now either. If people are concerned about something having defects then go with a manufacturer that is known to stand by their product and provide good customer support.

If you're into technology and you're into waiting, you should probably give one up. As goals, they're mutually exclusive.

I'm just now switching over and there are parts of the change I wish I'd done earlier and parts I think I timed "just right." There are no longer any parts where I wish I was still waiting. The big LCD screen is next, but that has more to do with paying bills than concern about potential equipment problems.

I agree. Buy something, that's what a warranty is for. My point was merely that the problems aren't made up.

They all have issues. Just buy a major brand that sounds good to you.

Where did you find a 3808 for under $1K? I am trying to find one now...

Buy a decent receiver and a powerful separate amplifier. You can then replace the receiver repeatedly as new technologies become indispensable. I have an Onkyo 804 paired up with an emotiva lpa1...total price about 1100. Works very well. I am sure the 805 has much better features but I havent felt the need for anything more than what the 804 offers. Identify what you need and dont worry about all the newer possibly unstable technologies. Just my 0.02.

And incidentally, having worked with many retailers, the black in black friday does refer to the balnce sheet going from negative (red) to positive (black). This does not happen on that day precisely, but that is the start of the holiday season and so the expectation is that a gangbuster day of sales can move the balance sheet from red to black.