Azur 651R Home Cinema Receiver
Finally, a home cinema receiver that will make your music sound as great as your movies. The Cambridge Audio Azur 651R is perfect for pumping out audiophile stereo and the biggest of big-screen surround sound action.
It's rare to find an amp as versatile as the 651R in its class. Unusually, the 651R is equally at home delivering the passion and fidelity of truly inspiring stereo music as it is making you leap out of your seat to big-screen surround sound action.
The video, of course, is no slouch too. The 651R's Anchor Bay ABT2010 scaler will coax 1080p Full HD detail out of even analogue video signals. And the amp also features a unique scaler bypass mode that improves picture quality by preventing "double-scaling" content that has already been upscaled externally (for instance on a Blu-ray player or PS3).
Video
For truly stunning home cinema, the 651R features top-end 7.1 outputs (with option to run twin subwoofers), dual Texas Instruments 32-bit DSPs to support the broadest range of surround formats and speaker layouts, and a comprehensive range of HDMI inputs and outputs.
It also features our unique "Follow Main" Zone 2 option. "Follow Main" lets you listen to the same digital source as is playing in the main room, in another room (most home cinema receivers will only let you hear analogue sources elsewhere).
Another feature of the 651R that's rarely found elsewhere is DTS remapping. This lets you easily rephrase DTS-HD High Resolution and Master Audio format audio signals to your 7.1 speaker layout perfectly.
Audio
For brilliant, pin-sharp audio - in both stereo and surround modes - the 651R features a range of quality components that fit with our principle of designing for "Sound First". Toroidal transformers for a high purity, low-distortion signal, discrete amplifiers to reduce noise and X-Tract near-silent cooling combined with a rigid low-resonance chassis maximise audio signal quality.
And there's plenty of room-filling power too - 175W RMS power in stereo (2 channels at 6 ohms); 100W RMS power per channel for home cinema surround sound (7 channels at 8 ohms). Yet that power doesn't cost the earth - the 651R features an environmentally friendly standby mode that uses less than 1Watt.
Stunning power, stunning audio reproduction, stunning amplifiers - the Cambridge Audio Azur 651R Home Cinema Receiver is perfect if you want the best in home cinema sound and visuals and the best in hi-fi stereo sound, all in one surprisingly affordable package ...Read more
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The 651R is designed from the ground up to perform at its peak not just when driving up to 7.1 surround sound speaker set-ups, but also to deliver stunning, pin-sharp stereo music from your main front speakers. Such versatility is rare indeed.
7.1 outputs delivering 175W RMS power stereo (2 channel, 6 ohms) and 100W RMS power surround sound (7 channel, 8 ohms).
Run as a 7.1 system (with option to run twin subs), or as a 5.1 system with the option to bi-amp and bi-wire the hi-fi speakers or run a second zone in another room - the choice is yours.
DTS-HD High Resolution and DTS-HD Master Audio surround sound formats do not support more than one standardised 7.1 home speaker layout. So, if your home speakers are arranged differently to the layout the soundtrack was recorded in, they can end up out of phase. But simply choose the 7.1 speaker arrangement that matches yours on the Azur 651R and 751R and the signal will be perfectly rephased.
Our latest-generation EQ, dynamic volume and phasing automatic setup system means the 651R will always sound at its best, no matter what shape or size your room is, and no matter where you sit - with setup optimised for three separate seating locations.
Most modern, surround sound home cinema receivers will let you run a second audio zone somewhere else in the house. You can listen to one piece of music in one room, while listening to something else in a second room. The catch? The second room can only use an analogue source for the audio. Of course, the 651R can do this too. But with its "Follow Main" mode, it can do something more - something unique to our receivers. In "Follow Main" two rooms can simultaneously receive the same digital audio signals, including the audio from HDMI.
This video processor upscales any source, including analogue standard definition, to pin-sharp 1080p Full HD. The amp also uniquely features a "bypass" mode to improve picture quality by avoiding the common problem of "double scaling", where your Blu-ray player, PS3 or video streamer has already upscaled content once, and your receiver then scales it again.
By focussing solely on the things that make music and movies sound and look so good that the hairs on the back of your neck stand up, and cutting out any extra cost and clutter, we aim to deliver the best-sounding system at this price you'll ever hear. That means we remove stuff that you don't need and which can introduce distortion to your all-important audio and video signals - like a phono stage, networking capabilities or a pre-amp in a home cinema receiver. Everything that's left is there to make your music and movies sound and look better.
As well as a full metal chassis, toroidal transformers and X-Tract near-silent cooling, the 651R features isolated input and video processing boards, individual crossovers for each speaker and Advanced Bass Management to ensure minimum noise distortion, maximum video quality, and the best quality audio out of whatever sound format is playing.
At Cambridge Audio, we're huge fans of what these premium components can do for audio quality. So, while other people save them for their top-of-the-line separates, we put them everywhere we can. As well as delivering a high purity, low-distortion signal they deliver a better bass response. For pure audio quality and minimum distortion, we accept nothing less.
Chosen not just for its good looks (although we think our solid, brushed aluminium fronts make a great addition to any home), we design all-metal cases because they're very stable and introduce less resonance to any signal.
Our near-silent cooling combination of funnelling heat through a heatsink and thermostatically controlled fan means that our systems stay cool without delivering distracting noise. Only at moments of peak power use will the fan really be at full speed (and those moments, of course, will be when you won't be able to hear it).
High-quality and up-to-the-minute digital signal processors mean the 651R plays all the latest audio formats including: Dolby Digital, DTS, Dolby Pro Logic II/x/z, Dolby True HD, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS-HD High Resolution Audio and many more.
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Features -
175 watts RMS per channel 4 HDMI inputs, 2 HDMI outputs Anchor Bay ABT2010 scaler video Scaler bypass mode – allows user to engage/disengage video scaler for each input as appropriate Oversize low flux toroidal transformer and discrete amplifiers delivering ultra-low noise and distortion Dual Texas Instruments 32-bit DSPs for compatibility with the latest CODECs Audyssey 2EQ Room EQ, Dynamic Volume, Dynamic Loudness and Autosetup Full 5.1/7.1 multi-channel analogue inputs and preamp outputs DTS Speaker re-mapping or Prologic IIz post processing for 5.1 + Height configurations Independent Zone 2 audio and video output Supplied with separate zone 2 remote control Twin subwoofer outputs Individual Crossovers and Advanced Bass Management Bi-amp mode for front left/right with surround back left/right in 5.1 set-up X-Tract™ Forced/Convection Heat Tunnel for virtually silent performance FM/AM tuner with RDS RS232 control, IR Inputs, IR Outputs, Trigger outputs Low resonance, acoustically damped full metal chassis Pure Analogue Stereo Direct Also controllable from 651BD/751BD remote
Specifications
| Power output |
175W RMS per channel, into 6 ohms (two channels driven) 140W RMS per channel, into 8 ohms (two channels driven) 100W RMS per channel, into 8 ohms (all 7 channels driven) |
| HDMI | HDMI 1.4a, EIA/CEA - 861D, HDCP 1.1, ARC and 3D-TV/deep colour pass through supported |
| Architecture |
Cirrus Logic CS43122 24-bit 192kHz capable DAC for Front Left & Right Cirrus Logic CS52526 24-bit 192kHz capable CODEC for surround channels + 24-bit 2 channel |
| A/D Conversion |
Two TI Aureus DA788 32-bit DSPs Anchor Bay ABT2010 scaler |
| Audio Inputs |
8 x Line Level Analogue Tuner (FM/AM) 7.1 multi-channel analogue Input 5 x digital co-axial, 5 x digital optical |
| Video Inputs |
4 x HDMI 3 x Component Video 4 x Composite 4 x S-Video |
| Main Audio Outputs | 7 x Amplified Speaker Outputs, 7.2 Preamp outputs |
| Main Video Output | 2 x HDMI (1.4a), ARC through HDMI A |
| Zone 2 Outputs | Surround back channels, 2.1 preamp audio outputs, component, S-Video and composite video outputs |
| Recording Audio Outputs |
2 x Line Level Analogue 2 x Digital Co-Axial, 2 Digital Optical |
| Other connections |
1 1/4" / 6.35mm Headphone Output (32 To 600 ohms recommended) 3 x IR emitter outputs, 1 IR Receiver Input (un-modulated), 1 IR Emitter Input (modulated),1 x zone 2 IR emitter input, 1 control bus input/output 2 x 12V trigger outputs 1 RS232C, 1 IEC type mains inlet |
| Max. power consumption: | 1400W |
| Standby power consumption: | <0.5W |
| Dimensions (W x H x D): | 430 x 150 x 420mm (16.9 x 5.9 x 16.5’’) |
| Weight: | 17.4Kg (38.3lbs) |
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I love it because...
Ben
Training Manager
“It serves as a brilliant hi-fi as well as a top-notch home cinema. I get goose bumps every time I hear the raindrops in the intro to Riders on the Storm on my 651R, but the surround sound in Inception rocks too!”
