I've been in a personal lather about the Denon AVP-A1HD duo since I first saw them at the IFA exhibition last September.

Now they are here, in the flesh and hot under the casework.

I have played and I have listened, and can confirm that my initial desires have turned into a full scale love affair.

Amazingly powerful amplifier

Let me start backwards in the sound chain, at the outputs for all ten of the POA-A1HDs amplifier channels.

Not only do these offer 150W a piece - enough for two complete 5.1 systems in different rooms or some combination across four zones for multi-room - there are two sets of outputs per channel for bi-wiring (yes, that is 20 pairs of terminals on the back.).

However, to use these ten channels would be missing the POA's best feature; each adjacent pair is independently bridgeable, giving you over 300W for a five-channel system if desired.
If desired? If desired!

If you have a very serious speaker system then the bridged power mode is simply awesome. I don't just mean it will go a bit loud, it goes absolutely bonkers loud with such spectacular grip and dynamic impact it will take your breath away.

Stupendous audio

During a very high volume romp through Aeon Flux on HD DVD, the beast drove a huge ÂŁ20,000 five-channel speaker system to the limits.

Bass notes on the soundtrack's score, and effects like gunfire, have a very physical impact, literally thumping into your chest and making your flares flap wildly in the aftershock.

The sheer involvement is stupendous and, assuming you haven't already got an ASBO for noise at this point, the grace and aural comfort even at high levels is close to (if not better than) the best commercial cinemas.

With the mad peak level meters on the frontpanel hitting the 0dB attenuation level, the POA was pumping some 600W per channel into the speakers' 4Ω load without a hint of distortion, grain or top-end glare.

This grace and effortless power is as addictive as Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and the way it can stop and start a big bass driver is just stunning. Never before have I heard my speakers' bass cones hit the end stops at 118dB - without a hint of distortion beforehand.