Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I've been using the SC-35 for several months and I am loving every minute of it. Whether its audio from a TV program, a movie or music the SC-35 is to audio as high def is to video. My previous receiver was an old $300 Onkyo unit which was not by any means bad, but compared to the SC-35 it just doesn't hold a candle.
Sound Quality
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The main benefit of the SC-35 is its ICE amp, a full range Class D amplifier which provides high power levels to multiple channels without generating a lot of heat. My older receiver would heat up and radiate this heat even while playing at modest sound levels, while the SC-35 can play louder (with no distortion) and only get warm to the touch. Channel separation is a big indicator of quality when talking about multi-channel amps and the SC-35 does not fail. You get crisp, distinct channels so there is no "blurring" between any of them. This translates to a much more dynamic "sound field" when listening to multi-channel soundtracks such as those found in movies. You really feel immersed, with sounds coming at you from all angles, even top down which was a new one for me.
Auto Setup really works
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My old unit had an "auto setup" and calibration feature. I put the mic in the position where my head would be and let it do its thing. I didn't think the Onkyo did a good job of setting things up because the sound was not really much different than the default settings...however the SC-35 surprised me once again. After running the auto setup on the SC-35, everything sounded BETTER. I was amazed at how well it compensated for speaker distances and room acoustics. I guess I'm jaded so I often write-off auto setup anything as a sales gimmick but on the SC-35 it works great.
Fully Customizable Inputs
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Instead of taking the "one size fits all" approach, the SC-35 lets you decide how to configure your a/v inputs. I am using all HDMI connections except for my XBOX360, which is component video. I was able to set up all the relevant inputs using the on-screen menu, label them so that the receiver shows the name of the device rather than some generic "aux 1, aux 2" text and I disabled all of the inputs I was not using so I don't need to tab through them when selecting the one I want. Another nice thing about the SC-35 is its excellent video conversion quality. I can connect just about any type of video source to this receiver, but have it output to my TV in 1080P via an HDMI cable. It not only reduces cable clutter, but it also has very high quality upscaling so lower resolution sources will look their best on your modern HDTV screen.
Excellent Auto Select Output
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There is an option to let the receiver decide the best way to output audio based on the input signal - and I love the way it just works. You don't need to change to "stereo mode" for music, it will automatically detect that the signal is stereo and output it only to the L & R channels (which is the best way to listen to stereo sound). It also knows when to kick over to Dolby PLII mode during certain TV shows, but most of the TV shows I watch are on HD channels and therefore have a 5.1 DD soundtrack. The auto select feature is the most useful when using my HTPC, as content on the HTPC can vary from 1 to 6 channels...and it's always on the ball playing it back correctly, so I never need to manually choose a playback mode.As far as negatives go, it's really heavy and it's very big. Not really negatives for me, but functionally and from a design standpoint there are no drawbacks to the SC-35. Its sound performance will match or surpass many pre-amp/amp setups at a fraction of the cost...and while it is more expensive than the average A/V receiver, it's well worth the premium. I only paid $970 for mine including shipping, but if the lowest price was $1,500 I'd still consider it a great deal. I've owned receivers from Kenwood, Yamaha, Onkyo and even Denon...none of them were bad but they all had caveats. The SC-35 is the most expensive receiver I have owned but it is also by far the best.
Whether you are an audio elitist or just someone who wants excellent sound for watching movies, playing video games and listening to music it is highly improbable that you would be disappointed with the SC-35. Just like Pioneer's Kuro Plasma TVs, the SC-35 is a receiver in a class of its own and it will probably be the best receiver of its kind for a long time to come.
Setup Note:
I'd like to mention that when you are setting up the speakers on this unit, if you set the front speakers to something other than "small", you will disable the subwoofer when playing back stereo music. Set them to small to have all low frequency sound sent to your subwoofer.
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