An AV receiver is essentially the brain of your home theater. All signals come together here and are forwarded to your speakers. Depending on the design of the receiver, you can set up different setups. For example, the S660H can cook a 5.2 system.
The Denon AVC-S660H currently costs only 444 euros at Cyberport and cool blue*. That is a saving of almost 200 euros compared to the suggested retail price. According to Geizhals.de, the entry-level receiver has never been so cheap. You are currently paying at Amazon 491.45 euros*.
Denon AVC-S600H: perfect for the 5.2 system
More than five speakers and two subwoofers cannot be operated with the Denon receiver. But a 5.2 system is more than sufficient for most home theaters. Especially since the S660H delivers a high output power of 100 watts per channel, putting a lot of strain on your speakers.
Six HDMI inputs and one HDMI output to the TV or projector provide ample connectivity options for many different devices such as game consoles and Blu-ray players. Three HDMI connections support 4K resolution at up to 120 Hz or alternatively 8K resolution at 60 Hz Multiple game modes minimize input lag while gaming. There are also connections for turntables and network cables, as well as WLAN and Bluetooth.
In addition, the Denon AVC-S660H can handle all HDR formats such as HDR10, HLG, HDR10 + and Dolby Vision. Different sound formats such as Dolby TrueHD provide a rich 3D sound. However, the Denon receiver does not support Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. The S660H scores with many smart functions such as voice control via Alexa, Google Assistant and Siri.
You can also stream music directly from Amazon Prime Music, Spotify and Co. and connect the receiver to the HEOS system integrate from Denon. So you can listen to the same music in different rooms, as long as the corresponding speakers work in the other rooms.
Denon AVR-X1700H: The alternative with Dolby Atmos
If you want more, the Denon AVR-X1700H, a long-running favorite among AV receivers, is a very good alternative to the S660H. You can currently get the X1700H from Amazon for only 499 euros.
With the larger Denon receiver you can operate a 7.2 system, so two more speakers. Unlike the smaller S660H, the X1700H supports high quality sound formats Dolby Atmos and DTS:X and has a higher output power of 120 watts per channel. So if you value 3D sound and own or want to buy the right speakers, the X1700H is a good choice for just under 500 euros.