Back in the misty days when 2-channel stereo was still an exciting new format and tubes
ruled the land, Sherwood was a brand name to be reckoned with. Together with such com-
panies as Harman/Kardon, Fisher, Marantz, and McIntosh, Sherwood was instrumental
in launching the American hi-fi industry on a path that would culminate in today’s high-
end audio gear—grist for our sister publication,
Stereophile
.
However, the path was a rocky one. When audio went solid-state in the 1960s and ’70s,
Sherwood and the other giants of American hi-fi found themselves unable to compete
with the cheap transistorized gear flooding in from Japan. One by one, the American com-
panies fell on hard times and were forced to sell. For the next decade or so, the once proud
Sherwood logo appeared only on a long line of inexpensive, mass-market gear.
Then something wonderful happened. Several years ago, Sherwood—now owned by
Etonics—announced a new line of high-quality audio products. Named after the location
of the company’s assembly plant in the UK, Newcastle components would be sold only
through custom installers and AV specialty retailers.
The first product in the Newcastle line—the R-945 AV receiver—was introduced to
great critical acclaim in 1998. Michael
Fremer reviewed it in the May 1998 issue of
the
Stereophile Guide to Home Theater
. Next
came the company’s first home-theater sepa-
rates, the AVP-9080R processor and AM-
9080 multichannel amp. I not only gave the
9080 combo a glowing review in the (sadly
defunct) webzine etown.com, but found the
pair satisfying enough to use as the center-
piece of my reference system for several
more years.(The AVP-9080R and AM-9080
were also reviewed in the June 1999
SGHT
.)
Progress marches on, and the 5.1-
channel 9080 separates I so enjoyed have
been superseded by the 7.1-channel P-965
processor and A-965 multichannel amplifier.
Going full circle, Sherwood recently repack-
aged its flagship 965 separates, combining
the two pieces into a single cabinet to create
the subject of this review, the R-965 AV
receiver.
ULTIMATE AV
| DECEMBER 2004
Sherwood Newcastle
R-965
B
S P E C I F I C A T I O N S
R-965 AV receiver
Output power, stereo:
120Wpc @ 8Ω,
20Hz–20kHz, 0.05% THD
Output power, surround:
140Wpc @ 8Ω, 1kHz,
0.7% THD, 1 channel or channel pair driven
Signal/noise:
line, 105dB; phono (MM), 80dB
(IHF A-weighted)
Sound modes:
Dolby:
Virtual Speaker, Headphone, Pro
Logic II, Pro Logic IIx Music, Pro Logic IIx
Movie, 5.1, EX
DTS:
96/24, Neo:6 Cinema, Neo:6 Music,
ES Matrix 6.1, ES Discrete 6.1
Other:
Stereo, 7.1-channel analog bypass,
MPEG Multichannel, 13 DSP modes
Video inputs:
Rear: 3 component, 6 S-video,
6 composite. Front: 1 S-video, 1 composite
Video outputs:
Monitor: 1 component, 1 S-video,
1 composite. Record: 2 S-video, 2 composite
Analog audio inputs:
Rear: 1 7.1-channel, 8 L/R,
1 phono. Front: 1 L/R
Analog audio outputs:
9 preamp, 2 L/R
Digital audio inputs:
2 coax, 7 optical (1 on
front), 1 USB
Digital audio outputs:
1 coax, 1 optical
Other connectors:
1 RS-232C (DB9), 2 IR ins,
1 IR out, 2 12VDC trigger outs, 2 Sherwood
DigiLink, 2 switched AC outlets
Dimensions:
17.4"
×
7.8"
×
17.8" (W
×
H
×
D)
Weight:
51.8 lbs
Price:
$1999.95
Sherwood America
(800) 962-3203
www.sherwoodusa.com
Lawrence E. Ullman
> AV RECEIVER
Electronically reprinted from
DECEMBER 2004
www.UltimateAVmag.com
