Denon releases two affordable S-series AV Receivers with multiple HDMI 2.1 inputs By WhatHifi

Denon has announced two new additions to its S-Series range of affordable receivers intended for smaller systems and budgets. Despite the low prices, the AVR-S760H and AVR-S660H benefit from some of Denon’s most advanced connectivity, including three HDMI 2.1 inputs each, making them particularly well suited for hardcore next-gen gamers.

Those three HDMI 2.1 inputs are rated to 40Gbps and can handle 8K@60Hz and 4K@120Hz video pass-through. All the HDMI ports (in total there are 6 ins and 1 out on each model) will boast 4:4:4 chroma sub-sampling and HDR pass-through for a wide variety of formats, including HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG) and BT.2020. 8K sources may be in short supply at the moment, but the AVRs provide 8K upscaling on all inputs, and there’s also plenty of next-gen gaming technologies, with Variable Refresh Rate (VRR), Quick Frame Transport (QFT), Quick Media Switching (QMS) and Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) all supported. eARC is on board too.

The Denon AVR-S660H and AVR-S760H are compatible with Apple AirPlay 2, while the front-panel USB port offers audio playback of high-resolution audio formats, including WAV, FLAC, ALAC and DSD 2.8/5.6 MHz. Wireless streaming from online music services is available using Bluetooth or Denon’s HEOS software. HEOS, built into both AVRs, lets users stream music wirelessly across compatible products within the home. Both amps will also work with Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri for voice control of AVR functions.

The new S-Series AVRs will offer Dialog Enhancer technology to allow users to adjust dialogue levels, while a newly added HDMI signal information feature will let users confirm the signal and format type they are watching.

Audyssey MultEQ technology is included for automatic acoustic calibration of the system. Denon's proprietary audio optimisation technology detects the speakers' size, type, and configuration and measures their response in up to six listening positions. With the AVR-S760H, listeners can also use the Audyssey MultEQ Editor app, available for purchase on iOS and Android, to manually change settings. Additionally, it has a Dual Speaker Presets feature, enabling users to instantly store and switch between two different speaker configurations and Audyssey settings.