DENON DRA-900H

The Denon DRA-900H is a stereo receiver, not a home cinema one, and that makes it an unusual and rather useful thing. It is built for two speakers and a subwoofer, but it keeps the HDMI sockets, the ARC connection and the streaming of an AV receiver.

That combination suits a very common situation: a living room where the television and the music system are the same system, and where a five-speaker surround layout is neither wanted nor practical.

What Apple Home actually does with it

This is an AirPlay 2 device, not a HomeKit accessory, and the difference matters.

• It appears in the Home app as a speaker you can play to, and in Control Centre as an AirPlay target.
• You can put it in a room and group it with HomePods for synchronised multi-room audio.
• Siri can send music to it by room name.
• You can use it as the audio output in a scene or an automation.

What you cannot do is turn it on, change the input or set the volume from the Home app as if it were a smart plug. Power, inputs and surround processing stay on the remote, the front panel and the manufacturer’s own app.

Before you buy

Because it is a stereo receiver, the speakers matter more than usual. Two good speakers driven properly will outperform five cheap ones in the same room, which is the argument for this receiver over an entry-level AV model.

It includes a phono stage for a turntable, which the AV receivers in Denon’s range often do not.

For Dolby Atmos and a full surround layout, the AVR-S770H is the starting point instead.

Specifications