Insignia™ - 200W 2.0-Ch. Stereo Receiver - Black

When on sale, this is a great bargain unit for basic 2 channel amp with minimal features. Best uses are for garage, second listening area, or outdoor pool area. Business use within limits. No one should confuse this with a home theater receiver. This is really not meant for that. Its two channel only, limited power, limited connectivity, limited adjustment, and basically limited everything. However, if you can accept those limits and make this very use specific, there is a good value here. I had an old pair of Yamaha NS-A200XT's that I used to use for home theater a while back. Paired with this amp, I think they sound ok. Clearly, this amp isnt putting out anywhere enough to really max out those speakers, but the sound quality and level is actually better than I thought it would be. I really didnt care for HDMI or having lots of connectivity options. I pretty much want this for radio and BT only. I feel the tuner is at least ok with the included antenna. It finds plenty of local stations and plays them clearly. BT sound quality is not fantastic, but that is a limitation of BT. It sounds ok, though. BT range is actually more than I expected. I have some BT stuff that wont connect stable over 10 feet. This unit is stable up to about 25 feet. Basically, within the limits of the unit, everything is at least ok. Because the unit includes BT (and with good range to boot), this is actually a good deal. Comparable units from others are in the $150-$200 range.

Don't mind the brand, and don't mind the price. This thing is so sweet, it's really basic but it gets to the point. It surprisingly has a good amount of power, and the music comes out clear. It does not have a lot of options when it comes to equalizer settings, you only have bass and treble, but for this price and what you're getting... you really don't need much more. I use the bluetooth option ALL the time. The range is great, and it does not cut off between walls that easily. I use this stereo for my outdoor speakers, I have 4 speakers connected, 6.5" 2-ways, but honestly, I am happy just using 2 speakers. Music gets loud, bass is noticeable, and the vocals are understandable. The sounds are not muffled, or distorted when turned up. I have not been able to turn it all the way up, and I don't think I ever will have to. This stereo is by far one of my best purchases, I was more impressed than surprised. The remote range is more than acceptable, I can play with the volume and settings from across the pool, (same thing with the bluetooth). It does not have a subwoofer output, which is kind of disappointing, however there's way around that. I have a subwoofer plate amplifier that has line in/line out for your speakers, so I run my speakers in that manner. (The subwoofer plate amplifier DOES NOT amplify my speakers, only the subwoofer). Overall, as you can imagine, I am quite happy and satisfied with this product. Yes, it only has outputs for 2 channels, but honestly, that's all you need. I was going to get a 5.1 stereo for the backyard, but I like i said before, I was impressed with the sound of this item. 200 watts is more than enough.. trust me. Enjoy.

Was looking for a cheap replacement receiver and got this on the deal of the day. It's perfect for my need as a straight 2 channel receiver. Nice packaging. Got it home and set up quickly. Basic unit , A/B, AB speaker set up. Three input, CD, Aux 1 & 2. Aux 1&2 have both in/out function. You have to use Aux 1/2 for phono, etc as the inputs have no descriptions, nor does the screen display anything but CD, Aux 1, 2, 3.(?) Haven't figured out what the Aux 3 on display is for as there are only Aux 1 & 2 inputs. Nice feature is the remote. That also has buttons for CD, Aux1, 2, 3(?). Receiver works well with a better antenna, the single wire supplied isn't great, I only got 3 stations to auto program on that. Made my own dipole to 98.4 speck and was able to get the 30 presets. So far so good, unit working well. Bluetooth is ok, losing some definition in translation. All in all I would recommend it, it's a good unit for a basis stereo and it's cheap!

I'll try to make this review very short and specifically aimed at the audiophile. If you plan to use this unit to listen to music, especially through headphones, keep looking. This unit is not designed for that purpose. I bought this unit to listen to vinyl albums. Connected it to an Audio-Technica LP120 turntable & used Audio-Technica M50x professional studio monitor headphones. Running through the right receiver, vinyl albums sound INCREDIBLE with this combination. Not with this receiver though. The soundstage has a substantial imbalance. Highs can get very piercing and mid tones are very fat and dominant. Lows, even on the highest level, are not strong enough. This is okay if you are listening to older music, but if you're a fan of dance and hip-hop music, you will be disappointed. I tried switching to very high-end Bowers and Wilkins headphones and it made the situation worse. The Audio-Technica headphones were better at compensating the lack of bass from the receiver; the Bower and Wilkin's (already outstandingly balanced) had almost a complete lack of bass altogether. To make a long story short, I really wanted to like this unit, but it is not designed for critical music listening. Really, I'm not sure if I like it for casual listening either. Sound lacks muscle in this unit and I find myself constantly adjusting the bass and treble to compensate for the music I'm listening to. Not good.

Alright so I was able to get this receiver as an open box item (although, everything was still completely factory sealed when I opened it up) for just under $60 before tax (awesome price!) and I must say I have been really impressed. Although this is obviously one of Best Buy's in house brands I would say that as long as it has a decent life span (I have picked up a couple of JVC receivers from mid-80s that are still going strong) this is probably one of the best deals currently on a stereo receiver, especially with the added luxury of having Bluetooth built-in (so much better then the extra Bluetooth add-on devices in my opinion). This receiver pumps out power ratings (100w per channel x2 at 8ohms) in the usual range of other comparable (price range wise) stereo receivers including Onkyo, Sony, and Yamaha, and has roughly the same audio quality as the lower end stereo receivers of each of these aforementioned companies, yet the Insignia beats all of these competitors by offering the Bluetooth feature and really enticing customers with the price (this receiver is regularly on sale for between $90-$100 and can be purchased when on sale for even less if you go with an open box one, as I did). So, overall this Inisgnia stereo receiver appears to be a great deal if you can get one for the right price.

As of the date of this review i had it for over 5 years. Not once did it every break or needed anything. Haven't cleaned it in forever but no dust build up. It had safety limmerters, once I connected a car Subwoofer from sub to recever no amp in between, it HITS but after volume 55-58 out of 64 the receiver just shut down to prevent any damage to it self. I know it wasnt the sub because I run that with a 800w amp in my car. Dont let that 100w fool you. I have 4 speakers connect to this thing and when i have house parties i rarely take it up to 64. I keep it at 55 to 59, more than enough. I have 2 bose tops (they don't produce any bass) and 2 3 way speakers thats for my bass. With all of them connect it doesn't rock the house li6kr a actual sub but it gets thr job done. only thing I wished for is for this thing to have more outputs instead of the 4. The frame is metal with the exception of the glass/plastic front. The remote still going even though my dog took a run at it. It's in not too bad of snap but surprised It's still functions normally. I have a 90lb dog not light bites. All in all great receiver. Have everything you'd want. Only problem is the price in all them 5 years it did not drop. But it didn't rise so i guess It's ok.

I bought a Bluetooth to audio (RCA) adapter from Amazon to use with an old receiver at my wife small business. However, the adapter did not keep reliable Bluetooth connection. I have had to reconnect Bluetooth at least once a week. I have considered buying Sherwood RX4508, which has Bluetooth 3.0, but kept debating about it. This simple receiver has very similar look and spec with the Sherwood receiver (especially the connector layout in the back of both is almost identical). When BB had it on sale for less than $100, I thought why not give it a try. It is a better deal than the Sherwood and it comes with a remote control. We use an Android tablet to stream music from internet and connect to this receiver thru Bluetooth. It has been a month and the Bluetooth connection has not disconnected once. My wife business has 4 speakers on the ceiling and we don't need any fancy sound. This receiver works great for our need. Like other reviewers have noted, it is not hot at all comparing to 5 other receiver I have owned. By the way, there is no where in the manual, on the box, BB or Insignia website telling the version of the Bluetooth. I guess it has Bluetooth 3.0 like the Sherwood receiver. If it has Bluetooth 4.0, they would printed some where. However, this is not a mobile device, therefore there is no need to has newer Bluetooth 4.0 version since the big difference between 3.0 and 4.0 is power consuming.

I bought this to replace an aging 25 year old receiver to get the Bluetooth interface so I could stream audio from my tablet. Everything works fine but the tone of the unit is a little disappointing. With only a two-band EQ of Bass and Treble the receiver cannot be adjusted to obtain a full range of tone without increasing undesirable frequencies. As the bass is increased the unit also brings up the lower mid range frequencies and the unit begins to sound brassy and muddy; and as the treble is increased to bring in clarity it also becomes slightly harsh sounding. I am a musician and these are deal breakers. I have excellent high end speakers and they tell all. If the unit had pre-amp out and amplifier in jacks I could put an EQ in the system and make it sound great it but that feature was not designed in. Also many of us still have record players and this unit does not have turntable inputs, a serious oversight for a stereo receiver considering that people looking for a stereo receiver are probably really into stereo and turntables and records are still at the heart of vintage audio. In fact they seem to be making a comeback. Turntables have very low outputs and require a pair of pre-amplifiers which are built in to units accepting turntables. Overall the features aren't bad and it is super easy to use. If you are looking for an inexpensive stereo receiver then this would be a good unit.