Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Denon AVR 4400H problem

Hey guys. The volume on my Denon receiver isn't working like it used to. Basically I haven't used it in a year because I was bedridden but now I am up in my wheelchair. When I turn the volume up, it isn't as loud as it used to be. What I mean by that is I would normally listen to it at around -15 or -10 at the most which is very loud. Now for some odd reason, I can turn it up past zero and the volume just starts to get as loud as it was previously at say- 10. It doesn't matter what mode I have it in IE stereo or with all seven channels running. I have had many receivers over the years and have been bedridden for extended periods of time, but when I go back to use them the volume level is the same. It's really bizarre and I do not have a sweet clue what is going on as nothing was changed. Do you guys know what the issue could be? Any help is greatly appreciated. Also I'm using voice to text on my phone so disregard any grammatical errors made. Thank you

If you can reach, I would try power cycling the Denon first by unplugging it for half a minute and plugging it back in. I've solved countless electronic issues just by restarting them.

My Onkyo AVR has a feature called "Intellivolume" that allows me to adjust the gain of the individual inputs, whether RCA, optical, or HDMI. Perhaps the Denon has a similar feature that isn't at its default settings.

Cam, are you using a different source? YouTube for example comes in louder than Netflix.

I can't unplug it.

It is the same no matter what source it it.

I played the move Edge of Tomorrow, and the bass at the beginning is extremely loud. If I turn the volume down, the bass is still loud. The other channels are quieter than they should be.

Also - If I turn the volume from - 40 to - 20, the volume increases, but not much. I can play the volume at 0 and talk to someone with normal volume. Before I would have to yell to someone if I had the volume at - 15.

Cam, I know you say you didn't touch any settings but a power outage may have affected them.

I suggest you take some time to troubleshoot by cycling through some settings:

- stereo only
- Audyssey on/off
- dynamic volume
- check the per source volume setting

PITA...I know.

I checked some other forums and reddit threads. If the above troubleshooting doesn't work, then there's the possibility that the AVR has gone bad.

https://www.avsforum.com/threads/a-v-receiver-not-nearly-as-loud-anymore.2936944/
(check Peterc613's comment; the other forums I checked all say what he says)

I don't like throwing money on repairs when it's a significant fraction of a replacement model, but it's not like your model is obsolete even 5 years later. I'm willing to live with the inconvenience as long as it's still working.

Yeah... I'm buying a new receiver.. Suggestions on a new one? I do like Denon, but I have read that other brands are built better.

I don't bother to keep up with what's current. I can't even keep track of who's got real engineering chops and who is just a trademark bought at a bankruptcy auction.

There's not a lot of players left: Colquhoun (Bryston), Lenbrook (NAD), Masimo (Denon, Marantz), Paradigm (Anthem), Sony, Voxx International (Onkyo, Pioneer), Yamaha, and a few bit players.

It's practically an oligopoly like the Canadian chain restaurant business, where MTY Food Group and Recipe Unlimited line every food court or strip mall.

I bought the Denon AVR-X4800H.

I was outraged that all of my kitchen appliances in my last home failed within 10 years. I made sure to boycott the same brands (Moffat and Frigidaire) when I replaced them. Hopefully you'll get a better ownership experience than the 4 or 5 years you got from your last AVR. I would consider 15 years to be a reasonable AVR life expectancy. The stove that came with our current house lasted 40 years (and we only replaced it when it started making terrifying noises that no electric appliance should ever make).

Maybe it's just me, but Dirac has some gall to charge an additional licensing fee to use their software. It would be like installing heated seats and navigation in your car and charging a monthly subscription fee to be able to use it.

https://www.dirac.com/online-store/
https://www.dirac.com/online-store/denon-avr-avc-x4800h/#DenonAVR-AVC-X4800H