AVR-X3900H
amplifier
$1,849
Used market: $1,330*
Specifications
3 of 6 values have a recorded sourceExpert Audio Engineering Commentary
Headroom Notes
Both published figures are kept because only together do they mean anything. 105 W is into 8 ohms across 20 Hz - 20 kHz at 0.08 % THD, two channels driven; 135 W is into 6 ohms at a single 1 kHz tone with nearly ten times the distortion allowance. Denon prints the same pair for every channel group - front, centre, surround, height - so this is a per-channel figure, not a sum.
Thermal Behavior
The manual permits 4 - 16 ohms, but only after a hidden service-menu step: hold ZONE2 SOURCE and STATUS for three seconds, press DIMMER twice, then select 4 or 6 ohms. Out of the box the receiver is set to '8 ohms'. Anyone who connects a 4-ohm speaker and skips that procedure is running the receiver outside the setting its own manual requires.
What the datasheet actually says
Quoted verbatim from the manufacturer’s own page, with the date we checked it. We state what is printed, not what anyone intended by it.
«Rated output: Front: 105 W + 105 W (8 Ω/ohms, 20 Hz – 20 kHz with 0.08 % T.H.D.) / 135 W + 135 W (6 Ω/ohms, 1 kHz with 0.7 % T.H.D.)»
One amplifier, two power figures, three measurement conditions changed at once: the load drops from 8 to 6 ohms, the signal narrows from the whole audio band to a single 1 kHz tone, and the permitted distortion rises from 0.08 % to 0.7 %. Only the first figure can be compared with a full-band rating from another manufacturer.
checked 8/5/2026* Estimated with the depreciation fallback (~72% retained value). · checked on 8/5/2026