Integra DRX-4.3 9.2 Channel AV Receiver Review

Integra DRX-4.2 & 4.3 Introduction

With the recent revamping of the Audioholics Showcase Home with home automation by Control4, I was on a quest for a new AV receiver for my bedroom system. I wanted something that could transmit all of my HD sources from my upstairs theater room using only Ethernet since I didn't have HDMI behind drywall. Integra is currently the only major AVR brand that supports HDBaseT on some of their receiver products. A logical choice for my application was the DRX-4.3 9CH Atmos/DTS:X HDBaseT AV receiver. It's been a number of years since I reviewed an Integra or Onkyo AVR and I kinda avoided them knowing the HDMI growing pains they were enduring. Ever since Onkyo acquired Pioneer and benefited from shared production platforms, I heard less HDMI-related issues being reported on the forums.

Note: The DRX-3.3, 4.3 and 5.3 HDMI boards have been completely redesigned with shorter signal paths for maximum signal integrity.

Does the DRX-4.2 have the goods for its hefty asking price or is the premium blown on the convenience of having built in HDBaseT?  Read the review to find out.

My actual review sample was a DRX-4.2 but during my installation and review process, Integra refreshed this unit with a newer model, the DRX-4.3. The DRX-4.3 has ALL (except HDBaseT) of the same features and performance of the DRX-4.2 with the following inclusions.

• Atmos Height Virtualizer (pending firmware update)
• IMAX Enhanced (pending firmware update)
• A new, much faster quad-core processor
• Zone B output that works great for using wireless headphones
• White rear panel to make it easier to read the connections during installation
• Upgraded clear binding posts
• Support for Airplay 2
• Wi-Fi capability

Design Overview

The Integra DRX-4.2 and newer DRX-4.3 are feature packed AV receivers that have some features most of their competitors do not such as: HDBaseT support on the DRX-4.2 for transmitting HD audio and video up to 328 ft using Cat 5e/6 Ethernet cable (about 130 ft for 4K resolution). Works with Sonos is another claim to fame for the Onkyo/Integra brand. Integra network receivers are now certified and compatible with the Sonos platform, earning the Works with Sonos badge which is a useful feature if those products are part of your ecosystem. The DRX-4.3 has 2 additional zones of audio which is rare in receivers of this price class these days.  The DRX-4.3 has Chromecast built-in for Audio and Airplay technologies allowing you to stream virtually any audio from a smartphone, tablet or PC to your home theater. The DRX-4.3's HDMI specifications and HDCP 2.2 compatibility support the latest formats. The DRX-4.3 enables transmission of Dolby Vision, High Dynamic Range (HDR) formats, with BT.2020 support, and provides enhanced picture quality by simultaneously enabling greater detail for both the dark and bright parts of an image.

The DRX-4.3 is rated for 100wpc (2CH driven) across all 9 amplified channels with the ability to expand to 11 channels of processing via an external 2CH amplifier. The amplification section is traditional Class AB with a linear power supply and 2 very large fans flanking the rather smallish heatsinks. That's a lot of transistors to cram into a single heatsink like this, which is common these days for Dolby Atmos / DTS:X AV receivers. Realize just a few years ago, these same-sized products had only 7 internal amplifiers. Now receiver companies are cramming 9, 11 and up to 13 channels into similar-sized products. If you were planning on running a 7.1.4 speaker configuration using this AVR, you'd have to add an external 2CH amplifier to power the surround back channels. Unfortunately, you can't reassign the front channels to the surround backs so if you want more power to the fronts, I'd recommend getting a 5CH amplifier to power the front LCR's and surround back channels. This is an especially good recommendation IF you're running 4 ohm speakers for the front soundstage to take some of the pressure off this workhorse.

5CH Amplifier Recommendations: Outlaw Model 5000, Monolith 5X

 

Preout for Surround Back to run full 7.1.4 Speaker Configuration

$1,400 is a big chunk of change to throw down on an AV receiver and quite frankly, in this price class, sister companies to Integra offer more brawn than the DRX-4.3 via the Onkyo TX-RZ830 (currently on sale for $549) and for a little less money, the Pioneer VSX-LX504. However, the Pioneer and Onkyo units have fewer integration features, such as three 12v trigger outputs and multiple IR inputs. Is the DRX-4.2 or DRX-4.3 worth their price of admission? Read the review to find out.

Integra Setup

I haven't looked at an Onkyo/Integra OSD in probably 10 years and I have to say I really liked the interface a lot. It was basic, yet very functional and intuitive to use. I literally found everything I was looking for in the initial setup without having to hunt down into the sub menus.

One thing that really impressed me about the DRX-4.3 is its comprehensive bass management and speaker configuration options. Each speaker group can have independent crossover settings and if you set the mains to "small," ALL other speaker groups default to "small," which is how it should be. Channel trims were adjustable in .5dB increments, distance in .1ft step size, and Integra included LFE crossover adjustment and level control, something some competitors like Yamaha completely dropped from their AVR's. Having LFE level control is really useful to tone down the LFE effects on bass heavy Blu-ray or DVD mixes without having to actually turn the sub level control down. In most cases, we recommend setting the LFE crossover to 120Hz to NOT truncate any bass the producer intended to go to the .1 channel from multi-channel mixes. The only thing I wasn't crazy about during manual setup was that the test tone generator cannot be lowered via the master volume control. It just turns on in BLAST mode, which depending on your room size and speaker sensitivity can be quite loud and uncomfortable. I typically like to see the ability to adjust master volume level with all trims initially set to 0dB. Then, I adjust the master until the mains read 75dB at my primary listening position and calibrate the rest of the channels to that reference with the subs boosted a few dB of course.

 

Integra DRX-4.3 Bass Management Setup

Impedance Switch - Leave it Alone!

Like most AV receivers these days, two of the nine internal amplifiers can be reconfigured for bi-amping the front channels if your speakers are bi-amp capable. I don't recommend using this feature since the power supply isn't big enough for your speakers to really benefit from it, especially if you're running the internal amps to power the other channels simultaneously. Integra included the dreaded impedance switch in the configuration menu and we highly recommend leaving it on the default 6-ohm setting regardless of actual speaker impedance. Setting it the 4-ohm setting will significantly drop the available output power of the receiver, as you will later see in our test report. It's only there for one purpose: to clip the amp sooner so it will generate less heat by being tested at a lower power level for 4-ohm UL certification purposes. This receiver has two giant fans and lots of nanny controls already built-in aside from the impedance switch. Don't further choke the power by enabling the low setting of this "feature."

 

Integra DRX-4.3 Configuration Menu

AccuEQ and Manual GEQ

Older Onkyo and Integra AV receivers employed Audyssey XT32 room correction but dropped it in favor of a proprietary design only found on their products. AccuEQ calibration tool built into the chipsets used in their latest AVR's. I believe this was done as a cost cutting method to keep Onkyo a class leader in features and performance for their respected price points.

I was not able to test AccuEQ in this review since the DRX-4.3 was installed in a different room than it was operated in. I wish Onkyo and its competitors would learn a lesson from Anthem and allow their room correction systems to interface via PC and a home network. Then you could utilize the room correction independent of AVR location since you would NOT have to plug the microphone into the AVR but instead directly into a laptop with the room correction software loaded up.

 

Integra DRX.4.2 GEQ

I continue to scold Denon for including manual GEQ's in their AVR's instead of a PEQ, so it looks like I must do the same now with Integra. This is just such a waste of a potentially great manual calibration tool. A much more useful approach which would especially help for bass calibration and tuning would be to replace this with a PEQ to allow for adjustable frequencies and bandwidth. At least Integra gives you GEQ down to 25Hz compared to Denon's lowest adjustment of 63Hz. I did find the 25Hz and 40Hz adjustments somewhat helpful in tuning my subwoofers in my configuration.

Integra DRX-4.3 Backpanel - note wireless inclusion replaces HDBaseT

The white background really does make the silkscreening easier to read compared to black of the predecessor model, another nod to the brand’s commitment to helping installers in the field. The Integra DRX-4.3 has 9-channels of built in amplification (with 5-way binding posts) but 11.2 channels of processing, which is great for those wanting to expand their systems to a full 7.1.4 speaker configuration. For such installs, I'd recommend getting a meaty 5CH amplifier from Outlaw or Monoprice to use for the front LCR channels and surround backs and let the Integra power the rest. The DRX-4.3 has two subwoofer outputs but they are unfortunately parallel connected and don't offer independent channel trim and delay settings. This receiver has 7 HDMI inputs (front HDMI limited resolution) and 2 outputs while the DRX-4.2 also comes with HDBaseT connectivity, which is a unique feature to some Integra AVR products.  Legacy component and composite video cable is still supported which is nice since we are seeing these connections disappearing on most products these days.

HDBaseT (DRX-4.2 model only)

As I indicated earlier, my AV equipment for my bedroom system is located in my theater room upstairs. Up until I installed the DRX-4.3, I had my Marantz UD7007 Blu-ray player located in the bedroom with a direct HDMI connection to my Panasonic 42" THX Plasma display with coax going upstairs to my AV receiver which was limited to 5.1 Dolby Digital and DTS. Replacing my old but trusty Marantz SR6004 AV receiver was tough for me but I wanted to modernize my connections. The Integra DRX-4.2 allowed for this by converting my HDMI sources to Ethernet via the internally built in HDBaseT transmitter.  A single Cat 5e Ethernet cable run through my drywall between both rooms allowed me to terminate to the Integra HDB-RX1 HDBaseT receiver ($400), which is certified to transmit 4K/60p/4:4:4 video at full 18Gb per second to your display. Most inexpensive HDBaseT systems are limited to 10.2GB per second so it was nice to see Integra didn't cut corners here. In fact, they claim this is one of the first products to support 18.2GBs.

I only tested HDBaseT at 1080p resolution since that was the maximum resolution of my Plasma display. Over a period of a few months, I had my Amazon FireStick, Marantz UD7007 Blu-ray and FIOS DVR connected to the Integra DRX-4.3 and I'm happy to report the HDBaseT connection to my display was flawless. I never experienced video dropouts or loss of resolution. This is a pretty bulletproof solution for anyone not able to run an HDMI cable between their AVR and display device. This device allowed me to place my source devices back into the same room as the AVR while also allowing me to now enjoy high-resolution audio on my Blu-rays since I had a direct HDMI connection between my Blu-ray player and receiver instead of using coax like I was using on my older receiver.

Streaming & App Control

    

Integra Control Pro App

The Integra DRX-4.2 and DRX-4.3 have too many features for me to cover completely in this review. However, it's worth noting that both models employ a very high-quality DAC section from AKM (AK4458) and supports virtually every hi-resolution and lossless format including: 2.8 or 5.6 MHz DSD, as well as gapless playback of FLAC, WAV, ALAC and WMA files. It has Chromecast Built-In with Google assist and Apple Airplay 2 support is coming via a firmware update. With Amazon Music, Spotify, Pandora, Deezer and TuneIn built-in, you can select a station and search for music available on these services via the Integra Control Pro & Integra Music Control app (for Amazon Music) on your phone. The free apps puts a range of streaming options at your fingertips, from universal hi-res audio via network-attached devices to internet streaming services to music on your smartphone and tablet. It even has Works with Sonos so once the receiver is connected to Sonos Connect, any music or source can be sent from the Sonos app to it.

 

The only negative feature I'd gripe about is the rather Spartan remote Integra ships with this receiver. However, this is somewhat remedied by using the free App control, which gives you streaming, source selection, audio adjustability and volume control of the receiver from anywhere in the house as long as it's configured on your network. The App does offer almost complete control of the receiver including source selection, audio adjustability and most importantly access to the OSD on your display to navigate through the onscreen setup menu.  This is useful if the AVR is located in a remote area from your TV where IR signals won’t reach.  One feature that is often buried on Atmos AV receivers is the option of turning on/off center spread when using the DSU to upmix 2CH sources. This can be done using the Quick Menu button, then scrolling down a bit into the options for those that care to fiddle with this.

Custom Installers will appreciate the PC Setup app which is currently designated for dealers only, but Integra is working on hosting it for consumer use in the future.

 

Integra PC Setup App

Once you have the App installed on your PC, you simply enter the IP address of your Integra receiver and load it up. The setup features are extensive and allow you to tweak everything in the AVR, including EQ, speaker settings, audio settings including EQ, the ability to turn center spread on/off for the DSU, etc. I have two minor gripes, one being the tabs being poorly labeled (ie. 4 2. Speaker tabs that should be better labeled to reflect what they are for such as speaker level, bass management, THX settings, etc) and the other being the interface is sometimes slow and unresponsive. Regardless, it's still a very useful setup tool especially if your AVR is in a different room than the speakers and display it is connected to.

Integra DRX-4.2 & DRX-4.3 Listening & Bench Tests, Conclusion

I connected the Integra DRX-4.3 to my in-wall 5.2 RBH Sound MC speaker system, which includes two SI-10 in-wall subs powered by their SA-500 500 watt Class D amplification.

Note: All of the speakers in this setup are 8-ohms nominal, which is what I recommend when using this receiver.

I conducted most of my listening tests using streaming services from my Amazon Firestick and FIOS cable box. I also did high-resolution music listening on Tidal through my Control4 EA-3 control system via digital toslink connection. The cables were all Bluejeans HDMI, and 10AWG speaker cable.

Tidal Music Listening Tests

I honestly don't know how I lived without Tidal streaming services. It's such a great convenience to have in the home though a great control system like Control4. Their recent OS3 update now supports MQA audio for even better resolution if the content supports it.  I fell in love with the teen voice of Billie Eilish when I first heard her song "I Love You" that my daughter was playing on her laptop. Upmixing to Dolby Surround really proved a great immersive sound despite the fact that I wasn't using height channels in this configuration. I think the DSU is quite a nice upgrade for 2CH music listening in 5.1 over Dolby Prologic II (when center spread is enabled to preserve stereo imaging). Listening to "Bad Guy" got to flex my RBH subwoofer muscles while Billie's vocals came in loud and clear though all of my bass managed speakers. If you're gonna listen to music from this artist, you'd better have bass capable speakers or powered subs. She even warned about this on her Youtube channel. The Integra receiver handled my speaker system well during this listening session. I moved on to more seasoned musicians like George Benson and selected a few of his top tracks like "Turn Your Love Around" and "Naimi" and "The Ghetto." Man, could Benson play electric guitar and simultaneously sing like no other.  I loved just cranking his music and hearing him strum along to his vocals as if it were a duet. I gave the Integra DRX-4.3 amplifiers quite a pounding with these tracks and it happily played along without shutting off or causing audible distress.

Movie Watching

We literally watched the entire third season of Daredevil on Netflix with the DRX-4.3. Not only is this probably the best superhero show of all time thanks to its incredible character development, storylines, acting and fight choreography, but the sound is also mixed superbly. What a shame Disney pulled the plug on Netflix of this very popular show. The DRX-4.3 did a great job of filling our bedroom with an enveloping surround field and anchored action from the front soundstage. Every bone-crushing blow was felt and heard between Matt Murdock and Bullseye. I sat with my wife one night and binge-watched 4 episodes in the row until I looked up and noticed it was 5am in the morning. We found ourselves binge watching many of our favorite programs ever since I installed the Integra receiver. From Gotham to The Orville, it did not disappoint.

Integra DRX-4.3 Measurement & Analysis

All measurements were conducted using our Audio Precision APx585 8 Channel HDMI Audio Analyzer.  The Integra DRX-4.3 was defaulted to high impedance mode (8-ohms or more).

For more information about how we measure power amplifiers, please see:

Basic Amplifier Measurement Techniques

Integra DRX-4.2 Bench Test YouTube Report

Integra DRX-4.3 Preamplifier Measurements

The DRX-4.3 is capable of outputting 3.8Vrms unclipped from the multi-channel preamp outputs, which is more than sufficient output voltage to drive virtually any external amplification to clipping.

At 1Vrms output, the FFT of the DRX-4.3 was very good when driven with an analog input signal as indicated by the 2nd order harmonic being 104dB below the fundamental. This was about 5 dB worse when driven with an HDMI signal at the same output level however.

Integra DRX-4.2 Preamp Out FFT Distortion Analysis @ 1Vrms

Integra DRX-4.2 Frequency Response - Pure Direct

Direct mode produced a flat frequency response within the audio band 20Hz-20kHz with a CH-CH deviation of +-0.13dB. The -3dB point out was out to about 78kHz and I noticed some peculiar ringing above 50Khz that even the folks at Integra were puzzled by.

 

Integra DRX-4.3 THD vs Frequency Response - Pure Direct

The Integra DRX-4.3 has very low distortion via the analog outputs even when driven to 3Vrms it was less than .01% THD+N. This receiver has all of the right ingredients to be used as a dedicated pre/pro if you choose to add external amplification.

 

Integra DRX-4.3 Bass Management Frequency Response

Bass management was excellent on the Integra DRX-4.3 with perfect slopes and cutoff frequencies specified by THX certified products. I set the HPF and LPF's to 80Hz and measured the -6dB point of the LPF to be 80Hz with a 24 dB/oct slope and -3dB of the HPF to be 80Hz with a slope of 12 dB/oct. The only anomaly I found in speaker setup on the bench was the SBL and SBR were slightly out of phase with the other channels so I had to add 0.1ft distance to compensate for preouts and 0.4ft distance if DSP was engaged. I've never seen this behavior before in an AVR so I'm not really sure of the cause but it's a fairly minor point of concern.

 

Integra DRX-4.3 Signal to Noise Ratio (1Vrms) - Pure Direct

The DRX-4.3 preamp output exhibited a very low noise floor (92dB unweighted, 100dB A-wt) with 200mVrms input drive and 1Vrms out. This is excellent.

Power Measurements

Using our Audio Precision APx585 8-channel HDMI analyzer, we conducted a full barrage of multi-channel amplifier tests on Integra DRX-4.3 per our Amplifier Measurement Protocol. We tested power using three methods all of which were taken at < 0.1% THD + N:

• Continuous Full Power Bandwidth (CFP-BW) from 20Hz to 20Khz into 8 and 4-ohm loads (up to two-channels)
• 1kHz Power Sweep vs Distortion (1kHz PSweep) - popularized by the print magazines, this is an instantaneous power vs. distortion test at 1kHz. The problem with this test is it often masks slew-related and or frequency response problems some amplifiers exhibit at the frequency extremes, and thus inflates the measured power results. It does provide an instant gratification # for consumers to argue over on the forums so we are now incorporating this test to please the masses.
• Dynamic PWR - 1kHz CEA-2006 Burst Method testing. This is a dynamic power measurement adopted from the car industry similar to IHF method only a bit more difficult for an amplifier and more representative of real musical content.

Keep in mind the handful of review publications still doing 3rd party measurements typically don't do continuous power measurements and they usually publish power measurements into clipping at 1% THD + N. Our measurements are very conservative as we use a dedicated 20A line with no Variac to regulate line voltage.  We constantly monitor the line to ensure it never drops more than 2Vrms from nominal, which in our case was 120Vrms. 

For more info on amplifier measurements, see:  The All Channels Driven (ACD) Test

 

Integra DRX-4.3 CFP-BW (2CH) Power Test - 8 ohms

With two-channels driven, the 100 watt/ch rated DRX-4.3 delivered 128 watts/ch for full bandwidth 20Hz to 20kHz at < 1% THD into 8-ohms.

 

Integra DRX-4.3 1kHz ACD (7CH) Power Test - 8 ohms

The DRX-4.3 was able to output 74 watts/ch at 1% THD and 60 watts/ch at 0.1% THD with 7CH driven. This is pretty respectable for a moderately priced AV receiver.

 

Integra DRX-4.3 Dynamic (7CH) Power Test - 8 ohms

Integra DRX-4.3 Dynamic (2CH) Power Test - 4 ohms

The DRX-4.3 performed well for CEA 2006 short dynamic burst tests by delivering 295 watts/ch with 2CH driven at 4 ohms, 1% and over 138 watts/ch with 7CH driven at 8 ohms, 1%.

# of CH	Test Type	Power	Load	THD + N
2	CFP-BW	128 watts	8-ohms	1%
2	CFP-BW	*175 watts	4-ohms	1%
2	1kHz Psweep	143 watts	8-ohms	1%
2	1kHz Psweep	118 watts	8-ohms	0.1%
2	1kHz Psweep	204 watts	4-ohms	1%
2	1kHz Psweep	156 watts	4-ohms	0.1%
5	1kHz Psweep	94 watts	8-ohms	1%
5	1kHz Psweep	74 watts	8-ohms	0.1%
7	1kHz Psweep	*74 watts	8-ohms	1%
7	1kHz Psweep	60 watts	8-ohms	0.1%
2	Dynamic PWR	197 watts	8-ohms	1%
2	Dynamic PWR	295 watts	4-ohms	1%
7	Dynamic PWR	131 watts	8-ohms	1%

Integra DRX-4.3 Power Measurement Table

*The Integra DRX-4.3 had very touchy nanny circuits to protect it from overheating. I knew when I saw the big fan and smallish heatsink, this would be the case.  Although I was able to measure some impressive 4-ohm power figures, the DRX-4.3 was unable to sustain those figures for more than a few seconds without current limiting kicking in along with the very quiet fan. This would limit output voltage to 13Vrms or 40 watts/ch (4-ohms) and the only way to restore nominal operation was to unplug and power-cycle the receiver, after you let it cool down for a bit.  

 

Integra DRX-4.3 1kHz ACD (2CH) Power Test – 4-Ohm Setting DON'T USE!

Whatever you do, do NOT set the impedance switch to 4-ohm or you limit power in a similar fashion ALL the time. In fact, in the 4-ohm setting the DRX-4.3 was only able to deliver about 26 watts/ch whether it was driving 2 or 7 channels.  Integra made this switch WAY too accessible which is unfortunate as I'm sure it will increase the chances of consumers setting it incorrectly thinking they will get more power when in fact they will get much less.

Integra DRX-4.3 CH-CH Crosstalk (1CH, Undriven)

With ACD except for the one under test, the DRX-4.3 provided > -45dB of CH-CH isolation at 20kHz on the worse channel. This was a decent measurement though I’ve measured better on competitor products. The stereo front/left right CH-CH crosstalk measured about 5dB better which is good stereo separation is most critical for the front channels in terms of audibility.

Conclusion

The Integra DRX-4.3 AV receiver has all of the processing power, streaming options and multi-zone features you'd expect for a receiver of this price class. The THX certification is partly responsible for its excellent bass management ,which is among the best that I've seen in Atmos receivers recently regardless of price. I enjoyed the THX Music mode upmixer for 2CH music sources as I often felt it was on par with the DSU and sometimes even a preferred listening option. The App gives you the ability to change DSP modes on the fly or set particular modes based on source type independently for each input which is really cool.

The weakest link to this product is its amplifier section having too many nanny controls to make it recommended to be used with 4-ohm loads. Luckily the DRX-4.3 has a superb preamp section ripe for using with external amplification in case you need more power or your main LCR's are 4-ohm rated. This cannot be said for ALL AVRs with pre-outs in this price class so it's worth noting.

I found the HDBaseT integration in the DRX-4.2 was virtually bulletproof in my testing. However, it does add significant cost to this product. The separate HDB-RX1 adds $400 making this an $1,800 package which is a lot to ask for a receiver of this class. If you don't need HDBaseT or other custom integrated features the Integra's offer, than I'd recommend considering one of the Onkyo or Pioneer models for around $1k that I mentioned earlier. However, both of these Integra models are good performers with solid preamp sections for future expansion. Their custom integrator options are noteworthy if those features are important to you. If you want an integrated HDBaseT system that works and has the bandwidth capable of the highest resolution currently offered, than the DRX-4.2 may just be the receiver you've been looking for so scoop one up before they're gone. I've certainly enjoyed the time I've spent with my review unit as it drives my 8-ohm RBH speaker system well and has all of the features I could ever hope to use in my application.

The Score Card

The scoring below is based on each piece of equipment doing the duty it is designed for. The numbers are weighed heavily with respect to the individual cost of each unit, thus giving a rating roughly equal to:

Performance × Price Factor/Value = Rating

Audioholics.com note: The ratings indicated below are based on subjective listening and objective testing of the product in question. The rating scale is based on performance/value ratio. If you notice better performing products in future reviews that have lower numbers in certain areas, be aware that the value factor is most likely the culprit. Other Audioholics reviewers may rate products solely based on performance, and each reviewer has his/her own system for ratings.

Audioholics Rating Scale

• — Excellent
• — Very Good
• — Good
• — Fair
• — Poor

Metric	Rating
Frequency Response Linearity
SNR
Measured Power (8-ohms)
Measured Power (4-ohms)
Bass Management
Build Quality
Ease of Setup
Remote Control
Performance
Value