A friend of mine's son is buying a new receiver and wants a Sony. He has a connection at Sony and can get a substantial discount if he sticks with the Sony brand.

What do y'all (hehehehe) recommend? I have no experience with Sony.

Thanks!

Sony's ES series of receivers is their best offering. If there's a significant discount involved, that's where I'd start looking.

i have a sony es preamp and besides the remote sucking as bad as it does,the sound is awesome and it is built very well.i would say take full advantage of his connection and go with something in the es line.es and run of the mill sony are two different leagues. also, if he does go that way,check out the es777 400 disc dvd sacd player to go with it.(both silver aluminum faced)...with a substantial discount,buy as much as you can!!.....ron

Craig, if he could still find a DA4ES and possibly as low as $500, it'd be a fine buy, despite the silly hullabaloo over the all channels driven power. The new DA2000ES with digital amplification is another one to consider.

Thanks for the help guys.

If the discount is substantial (25%-40%), have him consider the STR-DA5000ES or the STR-DA9000ES. The release of the 9000 has been delayed a little. Digital amplifiers in these units remain largely unproven, but if he can save $600 on the $1500 DA5000ES it may well be worth it. In my opinion though, Sony has not come close to topping the DA777ES that was discontinued just over two years ago. I've got one that is three years old and I'll probably never get rid of it.

Todd