4 of the 11 AV receivers whose manufacturer publishes a US list price fall in this band. Every figure below is the manufacturer’s own, linked to the page it came from.
Last verified: 2026-08-09
What “high-end” means here
A price band has to be drawn somewhere, so we draw it on manufacturer list price and say where. This page is $3,000 and above. List price is not street price. These models discount, some of them heavily, and a model at the top of one band is often bought for less than one at the bottom of the next. We do not publish retailer prices, because a price we cannot keep current is worse than no price at all. Use the band to narrow the field, then check what it actually costs today.
We hold 16 AV receivers in the database. 11 of them have a list price published by the manufacturer; the other 5 do not, and are named at the foot of this page rather than guessed into a band.
The 4 in this band
Marantz CINEMA 40
- List price
- $3,800
- Amplified channels
- 9
- Power
- 125 W (8 ohm, 20 Hz-20 kHz, 0.05% THD, 2ch driven)
- Main-zone pre-outs
- 11 channels (full)
- 4-ohm rating
- not published
- Tallest layout
- 7.2.4 (requires 2 channels of external amplification)
What the published figures favour
- Every main-zone channel can be handed to an external amplifier, so the amplifier section inside it is never the ceiling.
- 9 amplified channels, enough for 7.2.4 (requires 2 channels of external amplification) without adding a power amplifier.
- 4 subwoofer outputs, which is what independent multi-subwoofer correction needs.
What to check before buying
- No 4-ohm rating published. 8 and 6 ohm ratings only.
- Power is published with two channels driven only, so the figure overstates what it delivers with a full surround bed running.
product listing
NAD T 778
- List price
- $4,799
- Amplified channels
- 9
- Power
- 140 W into 8 ohms / 170 W into 4 ohms continuous, THD <0.08%. Full Disclosure Power: 9 x 85 W all channels driven.
- Main-zone pre-outs
- none
- 4-ohm rating
- published
- Tallest layout
- not published
What the published figures favour
- Rated into 4 ohms, which most receivers at any price decline to commit to.
- 9 amplified channels, enough for a taller layout without adding a power amplifier.
What to check before buying
- No main-zone pre-outs at all. The amplifier inside it is the amplifier you keep, permanently.
Denon AVR-A1H
- List price
- $7,199
- Amplified channels
- 15
- Power
- 150 W (8 ohm, 20 Hz-20 kHz, 0.05% THD, 2ch driven)
- Main-zone pre-outs
- 17 channels (full)
- 4-ohm rating
- not published
- Tallest layout
- 9.4.6
What the published figures favour
- Every main-zone channel can be handed to an external amplifier, so the amplifier section inside it is never the ceiling.
- 15 amplified channels, enough for 9.4.6 without adding a power amplifier.
- 4 subwoofer outputs, which is what independent multi-subwoofer correction needs.
What to check before buying
- No 4-ohm rating published. 8 and 6 ohm ratings only.
- Power is published with two channels driven only, so the figure overstates what it delivers with a full surround bed running.
What reviewers report 2 published reviews read
Both reviewers rate the performance highly and then disagree, flatly, about whether it is expensive. They are not contradicting each other so much as measuring different things, and our own catalogue happens to settle which reading is the useful one.
Consistently praised
- Both reviews put the performance at the top of the range without qualification. One reports rich, bold and powerful sound with exceptional dynamic control and a natural approach to dialogue; the other frames the whole unit as the pinnacle for a home theatre and praises the precision of its construction.
Consistently criticised
- <b>The two sources disagree about the price.</b> One lists it as expensive, full stop. The other lists an attractive price point for the channel count as a positive. Both are describing the same figure. The difference is that one is counting the outlay and the other is counting what it costs to get fifteen amplified channels into a single box. Our own database is the check on that: the only processor we hold, the Marantz AV 10, lists higher than this receiver and has <b>zero</b> amplified channels, so the separates route starts more expensive before a single power amplifier is bought. That does not make the outlay small. It makes the per-channel reading the defensible one.
- The physical size draws comment from both, with opposite signs. One counts the mass as evidence of the build; the other lists big, heavy and bulky as a drawback. If it has to share a rack or a shelf, measure before ordering — that is the one part of this both reviewers agree exists, even if they disagree about whether it is a problem.
Reviewers point to it suiting
A room that genuinely needs a high channel count, where the alternative being priced against is a processor plus outboard amplification rather than a cheaper receiver.
Reviewers suggest looking elsewhere if
The channel count is aspirational rather than planned, or the rack cannot take the size and weight. Paying for fifteen channels to run seven is the expensive reading of this receiver, and it is the one the first reviewer is warning about.
Sources: What Hi-Fi? · AVForums. These are other reviewers’ findings, not ours — we have not heard this speaker.
Marantz AV 10 (processor, no amplification)
- List price
- $8,000
- Amplified channels
- 0
- Power
- Pre-amplifier/processor. No built-in power amplification.
- Main-zone pre-outs
- 17 channels (full)
- 4-ohm rating
- not published
- Tallest layout
- 9.4.6
What the published figures favour
- Every main-zone channel can be handed to an external amplifier, so the amplifier section inside it is never the ceiling.
- 4 subwoofer outputs, which is what independent multi-subwoofer correction needs.
What to check before buying
- No 4-ohm rating published. Not applicable. Power capability is determined entirely by the external amplifier you pair with it.
- Power is published with two channels driven only, so the figure overstates what it delivers with a full surround bed running.
At a glance
| Model | List price | Amplified channels | Main-zone pre-outs | 4-ohm rating | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marantz CINEMA 40 | $3,800 | 9 | 11 ch | not published | source |
| NAD T 778 | $4,799 | 9 | none | published | source |
| Denon AVR-A1H | $7,199 | 15 | 17 ch | not published | source |
| Marantz AV 10 (processor, no amplification) | $8,000 | 0 | 17 ch | not published | source |
What this page could not include
These AV receivers are in our database, but their manufacturers do not publish a US list price, so there is no honest way to say which band they belong in:
- Yamaha RX-V6A — no list price on the manufacturer’s US page
- Yamaha RX-A4A — no list price on the manufacturer’s US page
- Yamaha RX-A6A — no list price on the manufacturer’s US page
- Onkyo TX-NR6100 — no list price on the manufacturer’s US page
- Arcam AVR11 — no list price on the manufacturer’s US page
We will not take a price from a retailer listing to fill that gap. Retailer prices move, and a band built on one would be wrong within the month.
Related
- AV receivers Under $1,500 — the same category, lower band
- AV receivers From $1,500 to $3,000 — the same category, middle band
- AV receivers ranked by main-zone pre-out channels — the whole category by upgrade path
- The gear database — every figure used here, with its source
- How we work — the method, and where it breaks