Panasonic SA-XR55S Receiver

Nice 7.1 receiver for the price

Strengths: Price, Audio output quality

Weaknesses: Style, Remote control functions

Summary: First off, I should mention that the description is wrong, this is a 7.1 receiver. The audio quality is why this receiver has somewhat of a cult following and I ended up buying this myself. It sounds better than the other receivers I've owned in the past from Sony, Yamaha, Pioneer, that I paid probably twice the cost of this one. The buzz around this unit is basically that it's the first digital receiver to be implemented better than many traditional receivers, even some "audiophile" ones.

I would suggest that before you plunk down a bunch of cash on a new receiver that you give this a try and spend the extra money on speakers or room treatments which would make far more of an audio quality difference. I won't go further into the audio performance, because it is so subjective; I was pleased and you probably will be too.

For the weaknesses / oddities of this unit, the styling reminds me of my first Akai receiver in the 80's. There are a few functions that the remote cannot do, for example sleep and sound tests must be done from the front panel. On the back panel, I was surprised to see that even the surround speaker posts accepted banana plugs (usually they only fit bare wire on cheap receivers). An oddity of the spacing is that if you have dual banana plugs, they don't fit right unless you turn it so you plug two different speakers into the plug set. Also this has a two wire input for the FM antenna instead of coax, which is unusual, but my antenna came with an adapter, so no big deal. The remote control reception seems weaker than most other devices I've owned, ie some times you have to hit the button more than once to get it to do what you want.

It has some really unusual features for this price range, like auto bi-amping if wired correctly and dual-amping stereo. Another nice feature is the two coax and two optical inputs can be assigned to any device. It handles surround decoding well. There is component video switching. Features it lacks include DVI/HDMI video switching and XM-radio. but those are new features found only on much more expensive receivers at this time.

So in summary this is an excellent receiver with a few minor quirks. The audio quality is shockingly good for an under $250 (I paid $234) receiver.

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Good Quality in a Small Package

Strengths: Small size, reasonable price, good sound quality, 7.1 channels, full-size binding posts

Weaknesses: Remote not ergonomic; mechanical build quality not high

Summary: This is the successor receiver to the highly regarded Panasonic SA-XR50S (which I own), and Panasonic has improved things with the SA-XR55S.

The cheap spring-clip speaker binding posts of the 50 have given way to full size 4-way binding posts for ALL channels on the 55. This allows for better quality, lower resistance connections to all speakers, and this alone improves the sound quality and usability of the unit.

In addition, the analog input quality has been upgraded.

The overall sound is improved, in terms of dynamics, detail, speed, and musicality. For an inexpensive, lightweight receiver, the 55 offers amazing sound quality that could not have been touched for anywhere near the price a few years ago.

And all of this is offered in a relatively small and lightweight unit, and it will fit into spaces that traditional receivers can't.

The downside is that the unit feels lightweight and not very durable, so it should be treated with care to prevent damage.

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Another nice receiver from the oft underated Panasonic

Strengths: Price, performance, light weight?

Weaknesses: Remote could be better. No HDMI

Summary: If you are here, you've read about all the features, so I won't bore you with those details. I bought this receiver because I wanted to compare the SA-XR55s to my trusty Panasonic SA-HE200K.

The first thing you'll notice about it's receiver is its light weight. It feels more like a CD player than a traditional receiver. Of course, its not traditional- it uses digital amps. According to what I've read, digital amplification reduce weight and require little or no heat sinks.

The performance of this receiver is very good to excellent. When compared to my HE200, the XR55s does seem to provide a little more detail, but not noticeably so. The XR55s also sounds brighter (or is it that my HE200 sounds warmer?). The XR55s sounds brighter than my spare Onkyo 100w receiver as well. I should emphasise the XR55s sounds brighter when compared to my other analog receivers- but most people would probably feel it sounds fine when not doing a direct comparison.

Whether the brighter sounding XR55s is better than my HE200k really boils down to personal preference. On some tracks I appreciate the extra detail the XR55s seems to provide, the warmth of the voices my HE200k provide is something I may have trouble giving up.

As of right now, I'm keeping both. If you're looking for a nice low priced receiver (got mine for $150), then you should consider the SA-XR55s. It performs as well or better than many traditional analog receivers and at a much lower price.

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A good receiver

Strengths: Good Sound

Weaknesses: Remote

Summary: This panasonic SA-XR55S receiver is an all digital receiver and good for the price you pay. Nice bass and experience was good while watching movies. Listening to music is not that good as other popular receivers.

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For pure stereo sound, this out does $1000+ Receivers

Strengths: Clean power, comparable to many receivers/amps between $1000-$3000, definitely worth a try

Weaknesses: looks like a dvd player (not the best looking receiver), many setup options must be done with the knobs (not the remote)

Summary: I'd highly recommend this receiver, as we did back to back comparisons against $3000 equipment. Our tests involved using only two speakers, and when you have it in stereo mode, the XR-55 will go into dual amp mode. This means that two amps are used to drive each speaker.

There are plenty of reviews about this Digital (Class D) receiver around, but I'd like to share my own experiences. Compared to a Marantz 8500 receiver ($1600 new), the Panasonic XR-55 provides more detail and more power. It sounds a LOT better, and my friend said he would definitely choose the XR-55 over the 8500 (his 8500 is just sitting in a box right now). Then we did the real test. We compared the XR-55 to a $3000 Krell amp. It was scary how close the XR-55 came to the Krell. The Krell was slightly better in some of the details of the highs, but I couldn't tell any difference with my ears. Only one of the audiophiles there noticed the difference and was able to point it out on one particular segment of one song.

For less than 10% of the cost, the XR-55 does almost as well as the Krell amp. Without a doubt, I'd highly suggest trying out this receiver, and returning it if you don't like it. It's definitely worth a shot. The only downsides are the aesthetics and the lack of ability to control all of the setup through the remote. And to be honest, I don't mind how it looks. It matches my DVD player really well, but just doesn't look as sleek as some other receivers. But it's really the sound that counts, and with this receiver, you get the best bang for your buck in my opinion.

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Best sounding digital receiver in this price range.

Strengths: Compact size with plenty of power.

Weaknesses: The remote control and lack of HDMI.

Summary: The sound quality of this receiver is amazing. The lack of noise/distortion allows you to hear your music in a whole new light. It puts receivers that cost much more to shame. I replaced an aging Yamaha receiver with this one and I was surprised at how much better it actually sounds. Quite an improvement.

The unit stays cool which is very important if you plan on placing it in an enclosure. The amp puts out plenty of clean power. Still, it does need an active sub to hit the lows.

The remote is the only weak spot. With all of these fine qualities, the remote should be able to handle more functions without having to go to the unit itself. Other than that, it's not a bad unit at all.

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Panasonic Receiver

Strengths: Low distortion, digital amplification, slim design, price

Weaknesses: Set-up and manual not that user-friendly

Summary: This is a great receiver for the relatively low price point. I'm quite impressed with digital amplification. The lack of noise distortion was amazing. The midrange was very detailed. At the price, you can't go wrong with this receiver.

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Panasonic Digital Receiver SA-XR55

Strengths: Amazing Clean Sound quality, Small Size, Price.

Weaknesses: No HDMI

Summary: This is a great truly Digital receiver from Panasonic that has an amazingly clear sound quality. It has lots of audio/video inputs and outputs and is a 7.1 channel receiver with binding posts on all speaker connectors. Even though it does not have HDMI its sound quality makes it an excellent buy. Plus the small size is an asset for small spaces or crowded racks. Higly recommended.

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Great receiver

Strengths: Front of unit very simple with a lot of hook-ups in the back.

Weaknesses: lacking a satelite remote control sensor.

Summary: I purchased all Panasonic componets for ease of operation and I plan to hide receiver inside television cabinets and will need to purchase a remote control sensor for outside of cabinet doors.

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Great 7.1 Receiver Ever

Strengths: Great clean sound quality

Weaknesses: No HDMI

Summary: This is a nice 7.1 receiver ever with lower price that you can get. I would highly recommend for this receiver, because it provides a clean sound quality without any noise (As I tested). This receiver is small size and light weight unlike most other receivers. Many inputs / outputs are available for connecting other digital resources.

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GOOD DIGITAL RECEIVER FOR THE MONEY

Strengths: - Powerful 7.1 channel digital receiver for the money - Runs warm, not hot like those analog receivers

Weaknesses: - Plain looking front panel/buttons

Summary: For the money this 7.1 channel receiver is a good performer. Unlike those analog receivers, this digital receiver runs cooler - the case temperature was barely warm after watching a 2-hour movie. The thing I don't like about this receiver is its plain/cheap looking front panel/buttons. If you're not into looks then this Panasonic SA-XR55S would make a good digital receiver for your home theater.

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SA-XR55S Receiver Review

Strengths: Nice bright sound!! Very powerful.

Weaknesses: Can not control all functions from remote control

Summary: I replaced my old Sony receiver with this Panasonic SA-XR55S receiver as the Sony has fewer inputs. The Panasonic has a sufficient number of input jacks to handle most of the household needs. I used it to play DVD movies on my 3-channel speaker system and it works excellent. I like to hook up the wireless headphones using the available headphone jack and shut off the external speakers using the buttons provided on the front panel. I would rate this receiver as a very good value for the features. The only improvement I would expect in the next model is the ability to control all the functions from the remote control instead of using the front panel.

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Best Bang for th bucks

Strengths: 5.1/6.1/7.1 ability in one. Digital amp and slim and good looking. Wondeful sound

Weaknesses: less features...poor menu

Summary: Great receiver. I bought this from Amazon for 150 shipped on a awesome deal and it does sound good for musinc and movies.

It is very slim compared to other products from different manufacturers for given wattage and features. I use to get something burning smell after it runs for half an hour or so. I was planning to return to amazon but the smell went away after 10-15 days of use.

For the price this is a best buy I ever made in audio equipments.

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Good Receiver at a reasonable price

Strengths: - 7.1 Channels - All digital

Weaknesses: Not enough optical inputs

Summary: This is a great receiver at a reasonable price! Since it is all digital, it also consume less power than traditional receiver. My only grip is that it only 2 optical inputs. Looking at most of the A/V components, most have optical outputs. I look forward the next version that will come equip with HDMI inputs (like 4 of them) will be great.

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Panasonic Digital Receiver SA-XR55

Strengths: Sound quality, sound quality, sound quality

Weaknesses: None at the price paid - $150

Summary: The sound quality is really amazing. For the price paid it is unbeatable. Complaints about remote control are irrelevant since most of the time I use universal programmable remote. Design-wise I would disagree with claims of unattractiveness. It is more on the side of recent Samsung DVD players with just some bare controls on the unit itself, while most of the features are accessible with remote only.

I am still a bit sceptical about the power handling since my traditional view is: powerful amplifier section must be heavy - you need a good heavy transformer to feed the output amplification section to pump some good speakers. This unit is very light! But it is more a prejudice than actual experience with this receiver - so far this is the first one that beats this rule...

Binding posts on all channels is a big plus as mentioned in other reviews. At the price paid for the second receiver it is an excellent buy.

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