Receivers are, as a product category, as interesting as towels drying. But if you want decent audio, they're the first step in the chain. Thankfully, you don't have to spend a lot to get a lot of features.

Take Sherwood's new RD-705i and RD-7505.

The RD-705i is a seven-channel amp with 100 watts per channel into 8 ohms. Total harmonic distortion is a claimed 0.2%.

Connectivity wise, there are three HDMI 1.4 inputs, plus component, composite, and the usual bevy of digital and analog audio connections.

A 802.11n adapter is included, allowing the RD-705i stream Internet radio (including Pandora) and files from UPnP devices from your home network. A Bluetooth adapter is available as well, or you can plug in your personal music player via USB to stream music from it.

The RD-705i is $500 and will be available in November.

The RD-7505 is pretty much the RD-705i, minus the network streaming capabilities. Though you can still buy the Bluetooth adapter to get music wirelessly from your phone.

The RD-7505 is $400 and will also be available in November.

Sherwoodusa.com