We purchased the Sony STR-DH790 7.2 Channel Receiver so that our expert reviewer could thoroughly test and review it. Read on for our full product review.

The Sony STR-DH790 is a 7.2 channel receiver that packs a lot of great features into a fairly affordable price. The STR-DH790 is a significant improvement over Sony’s previous STR-DH770. While they have the same number of channels, the STR-DH790 makes some changes to the exterior, making it more streamlined and adding a number of new features, such as Dolby Atmos support, a more advanced auto calibration system, and an improved audio return channel (eARC) HDMI port.

Curious to see how well this affordable 7.2 channel amplifier would perform in real-world conditions, I hooked one up to my own home theater setup. Over the course of a few weeks, I tested how well it worked with Dolby Atmos content, its sound quality for listening to music, how easy it was to set up and use, and more.

The Sony STR-DH790 has been streamlined compared to its predecessor, losing the USB port, moving the calibration input to the headphone jack, and moving the button labels from the display to the buttons themselves. I like the overall effect, but the front of this device is still a little too busy. The twelve thin buttons that line the bottom of the display feel dated, and the small labels are overly difficult to read.