HDMI 2.1 AV Receiver needed

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After purchasing a Sony Bravia KD43X89JU, and then realising when it arrived one of the two HDMI 2.1 ports is also shared with eARC (currently now using digital out to an old Yamaha RXV477) I now need to look for a 4K 120hz capable AV Receiver, happy to spend up to £500 and I've been looking at the Yamaha RXV4, just wondered if anyone had any opinions on this model, or could suggest alternatives please ?

Looking at purchasing late feb early March and connected will be a gaming PC, PS5 and Series X.

Thanks,

 

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Thanks ill go with the Yamaha then, was looking at a Denon earlier although was a bit more expensive with less 2.1 HDMI ports. Just need to find one now as everywhere ive found its out of stock! Thanks.

 

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There's only really two choices in new; the Yamaha or the Denon.

Denon - more channels but Denons have a reputation for running hot enough to kill themselves without adequate ventilation. (look up Denon cooling fans USB)

Yamaha - have been far more reliable in the past. Not as powerful, but that's not an open and shut case. Sounds better for music.

Mind if I ask which one you'd go for please, the Yamaha is out of stock everywhere and Richersounds say there's a queue of about 50 people with no ETA, the Denon is in stock for order.

https://www.richersounds.com/denon-avr-s660h-black.html

https://www.richersounds.com/yamaha-rxv4a-black.html

 

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Thanks for the response, really appreciate the insight I’ll be mostly gaming and watching movies so if it gets close to March and cannot get the Yamaha I’ll just go with the Denon.

Thanks again.

 

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Here’s a question if anyone can answer, I’ve ordered the Yamaha RXV4A from a shop who had one in and it’s arriving in the week, I’ve been reading up on board issues with hdmi 2.1 and have been assured it’s latest stock from Yamaha so should be unaffected.

I’ve also been reading complaints about the hdmi ports being lower speed 2.1 (23gbps or something) rather than higher speed (like 40gbps from what I remember), will this cause me issues running my series x / PS5 at 120hz 4K with HDR10? I run my PC at 1080p 120hz so that shouldn’t be an issue just concerned about the consoles, I’m not fussed about future proofing I just want the devices to work as well as they do directly connected to my TV.

My knowledge about av is limited so need to get as much facts as possible before it arrives and decide whether to open it or send it back. Thanks.

 

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If the port is not HDMI 2.1 ready and the firmware has been applied and confirmed working by the shop I would cancel it. Reading on the AV forums (https://www.avforums.com/threads/yamaha-rx-v4a-v6a-owners-thread.2316719/page-120) some users have reported fail firmware upgrades and now Yamaha are doing board replacements, when will that happen no one knows. If you are looking to get a AV with HDMI 2.1 ready then it should be ready out of the box.
I had a similar conversation with a sales rep from PeterTyson and he sounded convincing but still be cautious. He told me with the Yamahas that was built and purchased after Q2 of 2021 have the 2.1 ready. The machine was released back in 2020 of Q1 from what I've read. Also when you say you've been reading the complaints about the HDMI ports, are those people using the right cables to allow the full bandwidth through?

Thanks for the response, yeah I was reading that thread the weekend and it was the reason I started getting concerned about my order. From what I found out they have been doing board replacements since Q4 last year, and new ones have a yellow round little sticker on the box next to the serial number. The one I received today had the yellow sticker so was pretty happy about that, updated firmware and it shows a * near the firmware version which is another indicator apparently that the board is a fixed one.

Set it all up and plugged in PC, Series X and PS5 and it all works great and all devices are working with 120hz, gave Doom Eternal a bash on the series x, looks and plays just as good as connected direct to TV have absolutely no idea what those complaining were on about, maybe its future proofing and will cause issues with 8k with slower ports, dunno.

 

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Good to hear, i was looking at the same model but I think with a bit more extra money I can end up getting one with Dolby Atmos. Enjoy your setup!

The one up from mine the RXv6a has it although its £649 so £200 more, thanks good luck with your search.