I am interested in purchasing a 1050 but the posts I have seen here regarding optical audio dropout have me concered.

Does anyone have any input ragarding this issue ?

Has anyone had this issue and resolved it with a new unit or found some other cause ?

I have only two real issues with the 1050, one minor and one I consider major. If I had known about the second I wouldn't have bought the 1050.

First, the volume knob on the unit seems to sometimes have a mind of its' own. This is a bit annoying but since the remote works perfectly and I generally use the remote anyway I can handle it.

Second, the s-video switching on the 1050 is mesed up in that some video sources cause it to generate a distorted signal resulting in picture roll and other artifacts. Outlaw insists this is due to some sources being too 'hot' by being over voltage specs. Be that as it may, I've never had this problem unless the 1050 is in the loop. This is unacceptable to me in an AV receiver and IMO should have been fixed as soon as it was detected in the QA process.

The pros are well covered here and are absolutely correct too - good build quality, etc.

Charlie

I haven't seen other posts about the S-Video problems - does anyone else have this issue? Please let me know before I go and buy one as this would be a serious problem for me as well!

I havent had any problems with the optical inputs causing sound problems. Ive used both of them for 5 months now. As far as the "s" video, Ive heard of this problem in quite a few posts. I run my "s" video direct from the source to get around it.

There is a thread here about the S-video switching (it's an old thread). Outlaw has said that the 1050's design meets the industry standard. Most people have had no problems at all (I used the S-video switching for a Panasonic DVD player, Panasonic VCR, and a Scientific Atlanta digital cable box without trouble for around a year and a half).

As for the optical audio dropout issue, I didn't hear anything at all about it until a few recent threads. There are apparently a few 1050's that have had some trouble with their optical digital inputs. Based on this thread , it sounds like it may be related to the OPT1 input only, and even then does not appear to be a universal problem (I used both optical inputs without trouble). I don't think there has been any official comment on the subject from Outlaw yet, but a call to Scott or Mike might give you some more info straight from the source. There was also a lot of talk late last year about a drop-out problem caused by a few specific DVD's -- that issue was identified to be caused by an improperly-encoded Dolby EX flag on those discs (see this thread and this thread for the original debates), and can be fixed by turning the surround back speaker on in the 1050's setup even if no speaker is present.

------------------
gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

[This message has been edited by gonk (edited August 26, 2002).]

What is the device that you have connected which they claim is "too hot" ?

rgps, there isn't a list of specific devices. Follow the link gonk provided in the post above to read the full details on the s-video switching problem.

My Hughes GXCEBOT DirectTivo box is very bad through the 1050 and fine via a direct connection. The old DVD player I had (RCA, don't know model) was a bit of a problem, but the newer one is better. The new one is a low end Panasonic and while it's much better the image still rolls at some places, and the places are repeatable.

Sometimes specs are not followed to the letter - this is the case in all fields of engineering I've ever dealt with, and when it's common practice the thing to do is not to insist sullenly that we're right and everyone else is wrong, the thing to do is take care of our customers.

IMO the quality assurance folks should have caught this one and Outlaw should fix it.

I did experience audio drop out recently using the opt1 input on a DD EX formatted DVD. I changed over to the Opt2 input. Since then, I have not ran into the problem.

I really enjoy my 1050, for movies and music. I would recommend it to anyone considering a receiver purchase.

The sound that this unit produces is GREAT. I listened to the Marantz, Denon and Sony models when I was shopping around. I am very satisfied with my decision.

I also have the opt1 optical problem, however, I don't have any problems with my s-video switching.

I probably should have pursued the opt1 problem long ago and sent my unit back, but the workaround worked (using the coax input instead) and I just kind of let it go. So, my bad on that.

All that being said, I'd buy the Outlaw again in a second.

Well I am jumping in with both feet my 1050 is on it's way. I hope I get one with both optical inputs working as I do use two. If I don't I guess I will have to return it for another one.

Everyone's input is greatly appreciated. This board is great and the loyal outlaw customers have really helped me decide to purchase based on quality instead of getting caught up with features. I really want the 950/770 combo but WAF on that one was impossible so I figured the 1050 is a good first step.