Audio Reviews

My family and I could not have picked a better receiver for our first foray into the world of home theater. Installation was a breeze, and all of the knobs, switches and connectors are clearly marked to ensure that mistakes are minimized. Set up/configuration was easy - just follow the instructions in the manual, and either interface via the remote control or the knobs on the actual component. We were able to set AM/FM presets, sound levels for each of our 6 speakers, brightness of display, etc.

The Onkyo works with DTS, Dolby Digital, and Dolby ProLogic II sources, so this base is covered well. There are several pre-set audio configurations that allow users to select the best sound depending upon the type of material. For example, "Orchestra" directs the sound to the two front speakers, and optimizes the sound of symphonies. "Stereo" sends the signal to the two front speakers and to the subwoofer, for sound that will shake your room. It is very easy to find a preset that meets your needs.

The sound this receiver helps to pump through our Polk Audio speakers is amazing. Firing up "Saving Private Ryan," and watching the opening sequence is absolutely incredible. I was ducking as the sound of bullets went whizzing through the speakers (not kidding)!!

My only beef is with the "learning" remote control. I have had difficulties in getting the "macros" to work. Everything else with this product was easy to set up and configure, so this was somewhat of a let down.

Remote control issues aside, this is a terrific piece of equipment for the price. I strongly recommend taking a step up from other brands to the Onkyo. Although a name not exactly in the mainstream, we remain pleased after almost one year of ownership.

I bought this receiver to replace a 6 year old Sony (STR-D915). I had no idea what I was missing! The sound quality of this Onkyo absolutely kicks butt on the Sony. I am extremely pleased with it. For both music and home theater the sound is excellent.

One important feature on this unit: it has A+B speaker switching. A lot of receivers these days don't. If you want to drive speakers in another room you will want this.

The setup features on this unit are nice and easy to access via the remote or the front of the unit. The remote, by the way, is very good and has learning capability.

Features I like:

Intellivolume - Allows you to adjust +/- 12 dB the volume of the various audio inputs. So like on my setup where the TV input is, for whatever reason, a lot quieter. Now I can adjust that out to be equal to the other inputs.

Volume Start and Max Volume - I have kids that like to turn knobs. Occaisionally with my old Sony I'd fire it up only to have my eardrums rocked because my 2 year old had cranked it all the way to the right. With the Onkyo, I can set the volume that it will always start with, and I can also set the max volume. The unit can't be cranked any higher than that setting.

Speaker volumes - You can independently adjust the volume of each speaker (5 channels plus sub)and keep it that way. So if you have an assymetrical speaker setup, you can compensate for it(...)

used to power a high end mission stereo system in 5.1. sounds great with music and home theatre. i have expecially loved the all-stereo mode and dolby Pro-logic II for movies.

all around recommended by someone who has previewed over a dozen receivers in past 3 years.

After doing a ton of research to find the right receiver for me, I decided on this one - in favor of the competing Denon and Harmon Kardon receivers.

Onkyo gets 5 out of 5 for the feature set. Onkyo certainly did its homework before developing this piece of amazing hardware. This receiver can handle almost any audio format available today (Dolby Digital 5.1, DTS, DTS-ES 6.1) and has several DSP features like Dolby PL II, Neo:6, and more.

This receiver has connectivity features that would satisfy even the demanding users. It has more than enough video (S-Video as well as component video) and audio inputs, including one for turntables! Further, 3 optical digital audio inputs, 3 coaxial digital audio inputs and 1 optical digital output make sure that you can connect every device to it using the digital connectors.

It also features pre-outs for all 7.1 channels, which makes it easy to upgrade your home theater system, should you wish to move on.

The built-in amps are powerful with 100 watts per channel (100 x 6 watts) with 8 ohm speakers (the most usual speaker impedence). This should be sufficient for most medium sized rooms upto about 300 sq feet (assuming you like to listen real loud).

Sound quality is amazing, and it works its magic equally well on 2-channel as well as multi-channel sound inputs. Being THX-certified, you would have high expectations with its sound and picture quality, and take my word for it, you will not be disappointed!

The superior OSD is clear and very easy to navigate through. The remote control is a bit large, but its capabilities are amazing. The remote is lighted and has functions for programming macros and for programming individual buttons from buttons on other remote controllers.

All in all, this THX-certified receiver has all that any home theater aficionado could ask for.

This amp is amazing, from the remote which is large I'll admit but unlike most universal remotes, IT WORKS and is so easy to program. It has so many inputs and outputs that you will never fill them all. The sound is awesome and it has enough power drive any speakers hard.

Pure audio function is for all of you who want home theatre but still want good stereo hi fi sound. This mode shuts down everything in the amp which is not required to produce stereo sound. ie, video processors, 6 channels of the sound, the power supplies that are not used and even the LED supply.

The hifi sound is incredible it truly allows "audiophiles" to have their cake and eat it to.

It has massive weight to it at 20kg so make sure you have somewhere stable for it and don't stick it on top of your VCR.

It has a huge array of digital in's and out's even on the front for your hand held digital camera.

Its speaker and sound setup takes about half hour from start to finish if you are in any way competent.

It has a great feature where buy you can actually select the recording input or sound input for any device. Meaning you can watch a video on one VCR while recording a DVD to your second VCR without effecting you picture or sound output from the 898.

My only gripe about it is the way that all amps that are going to be sold in Europe no longer take banana plug inputs. Which means that you need to use the pin type plugs but on most AV units there are so many speaker outputs that they cluster them together and allow no space to use any connectors, so you end up having to buy "gold tails" or go back to the archaic method of simple bare wire.

It seriously rocks but make sure that you have some serious speakers or the money will be truly wasted. [....]

the most amazing thing i ever heard

I got this as my first jump to surround sound/HDTV and i didn't want to get something that I would need to replace later when I updated my other components. That was the deal sealer for me, this bad boy has 3 component jacks and you need/want component jacks for HDTV, DVD, PS2, HDTV converter box, etc. So you need a few and this had the most for the money. A HDTV will also have 1-2 components so keep in mind you'll want a receiver with at least 2. I was very impressed that this unit it the 'brains' so to speak. Everything goes thru this unit, it's like a head unit rather then a piece of a system. Even the TV goes thru this. Very nice, the remote can control everything. Nice sound options, fairly easy to configure. Optical outs, one on the front, give great sound quality.

Just so many features I could go on and on. Onkyo is a quality brand from what I was told and I couldn't be more happy with the unit.

I was looking for a dolby digital receiver to replace my old harman kardon pro logic receiver. I tried the new panasonic receiver and was not happy with it. I returned it and was looking at the receivers offered by both onkyo and harman kardon. I chose the onkyo TX-SR600. I have no regrets. The first thing I did was play music. The sound was so sweet and powerful that I thought I died and went to heaven. After a long set up process, I watched MINORITY REPORT as my first movie using dolby digital. "WOW", I have never enjoyed watching a dvd more than I did using this receiver. The only drawbacks are that I now need to buy a phono pre-amp in order to listen to lp's, and also the volume control needs to be turned up high to get a good sound level. I have heard of how good onkyo receivers are, I'm a believer. Try it you will be too.

i have a tx8511 onkyo receiver i cant hook up a sub but i do have 15" inch speaker technics it good for bass but not for movies because i cant really hear the voice wonder if any1 out there can recomand good receiver of onkyo and good price for sub roofer hook up with 15" speaker.

From my experience in testing receivers and listening to sound, this receiver kicks butt.
I have bought and tested the following in my home:
HK AVR520
Marantz SR7200
Onkyo TX-SR700
Yamaha RX-V1300

They are all great receivers and depending on your sound preference and speakers you might choose a different receiver. But for my setup (bose speakers), I just love the Onkyo.
Please let me know your thoughts if you own this receiver or have heard it.

I love mine! I've dropped it a hundred times and it keeps working perfectly. I love the fact that it only takes one AA battery. It makes it much more light weight.

I've used these for years, and they've taken some serious abuse I've used them while running in the rain, dropped them, etc. The sound is great, and the design is nice. These are perfect for athletes who are still using cassette tapes rather than mp3's or CD's while working out. General advice: Panasonic's sport walkmans are far superior to (another brand). (another brand) always broke in less than a year. I switched to Panasonic because they warranty their Shockwave parts for a year rather than 3 months (like (anther brand's) ... walkman). The Panasonics have been superior across the board. I've had several because I lost some and had to buy new ones; one broke after about two years (of serious abuse). The only advantage (another brand) has is the brand name (they pioneered the personal stereo.) Don't buy (another brand); stick with Panasonic.

What drew me to this receiver was actually the power requirements - about a third of my present Sony receiver. Set it up in my office and one by one hauled my speakers upstairs to try it out...gave the old guy quite a workout :-)

I was really surprised how good it is. There's an ocean of different sound options and it takes a while to wade through them. Result: really clean sound, but don't even think about using it without a sub-woofer in multi-channel modes. The bass and treble controls only work in 2 channel stereo mode. I found this mode useful for FM radio when I didn't really want the woofer pounding away.

OK.. the bottom line here is lots of clean sound but a little bright -- choose your speakers carefully (Paradigms sound great). The sound has a hint of "digital" -- not as "warm" as a good conventional receiver. You will need to play with it for a few days before you realize the sound you want.... but there seems like dozens of different options -- good thing your settings are remembered. I do miss the equalizers on my big Sony.

Great Sound! Almost enough volume to make your ears bleed -- gets a little compressed at very high volume, but no distortion (I didn't drive it high enough to see if it would start clipping). I won't miss the massive heat produced by my old receiver... and my electric bill will surely be a lot less. No doubt you'll see a lot more digital receivers in the future.

I'm using it with Athena Point 5 MK II speakers and it sounds fantastic. Sound is very clean and detailed whether you're watching a DVD or watching TV in Dolby PLII mode.

The Harman Kardon AVR125 that I had sounded 'warmer', but not as detailed or clean.

I also thought this sounded slightly better than the SA-XR25.

After 10 month, my sc-ak200 is alway perfect. I crank the volume and it had no distorsion. The sound is alway clean and crisp.

I added subwoofer yamaha ( yst-sw105) to add more bass and my experience with this system is marvelous.

I would recomend this purchase.

I wanted stereo with very good sound and powerfull.I had the choice between Panasonic, Jvc or Sony. I tried the jvc and sound is not good but it is hard to choose between panasonic and Sony. SC-ak200 or Mhc-gx20. I chose the ak-200 because it had two amplifier, better sound in low volume and a better sound definition with good bass for the speaker size. The sony has not this quality and my experience with this system is beautifull. Panasonic is recognized to make hight quality system.

Pros : Good and powerfull sound for the two ways speakers
: Good price for this quality
: 5 cd charger (CD-R and CD-RW)
: a beautiful appearance

Con :The only shade is the charger CD who is slow and do a little noise

For people who seeks a great quality system, low price with the beautiful sound, the Sc-ak200 of panasonic is for you.

The unit I have may perhaps be the predecessor (SL-SX282C). Its look and features are identical. I must give praise to this unit! For the price, it has functioned incredible for me. I have abused mine horribly, dropping it on tile, gravel, concrete about 6 times now. I thought the poor thing had given up the ghost finally on the sixth time...upon examination, the spindle was bent so badly the cd was moving over an 1/8" inch up and down.....and the unit still attempted to play!! I applied judicious pressure with a ball point pen..and its working again..hehheh. The buttons are easy to use and have a positive click. It has a a lockout slider so the buttons aren't pressed by mistake. The 40-second skip feature really is skip free. The battery consumption seems to be better than advertised. The remote is a nice feature for car use, although kind of redundant for handheld use....but its fun to play with. Careful with the battery compartment lid...its kinda flimsy..but it stays attached, which is nice. The spring loaded top also is a bit delicate, but opens nicely with a slider in front....nice touch. As for the sound....just leave it on "x-bs" mode...best highs and lows. Mine also has a weird mode called "train", which cuts the highs a bit. Replace the lame sounding supplied headphones with a nice pair of Sony earbuds and it becomes studio quality (tip- when looking for headphones, look at the "specs" section....pay attention to the frequency range...get the lowest in MHZ (megahertz) that you can....my Sony earbuds go down to 13 mhz...it helps the x-bass feature immensely...this is key to good sound in headphones) If you're looking for tight, crisp, bass heavy sound on a budget...Its a great setup. Just don't drop it *7* times...lol :D

I've had this CD player since Christmas now, and so far it's been everything a good CD player should be. It's even got some small and unnecessary add-ons that just make playing with it even more fun. The lid lifts up pretty far, and in addition to that, the front button to open it works so that you don't even have to pull it open with your fingers - it opens automatically all the way. Other players might do this, but my old one didn't and was a cheap GPX from '98 that wasn't very good. For the record, by the way, I wouldn't recommend any GPX. This CD player also has another nice feature - the battery door is attached by a hinge, so you don't have to worry about taking it off to replace the batteries and possibly losing it (as I did with my old one). The buttons on the top are easy to use and self-explanatory, and so far it hasn't skipped at all - which was the main concern. My old one got to the point where you had to press play for 15 minutes before anything actually happened, and if you moved it ever so slightly while loading the 10 second anti-skip, it would skip repeatedly for the entirety of the CD and not stop until you turned it off and started all over - a HUGE problem since I mainly used it on train and car rides. Anyway, this player is nice, my mother picked it out (pretty good considering the only thing I said it needed to have was color). I haven't dropped it yet, but it held up well on my latest train and car rides. Overall, nicely funtional and pretty too.

I just got this and my first impressions are totally positive. I bought it because I was really sick and tired of the dangling headphone wire, which sometimes gets caught on my jacket or other things. I'm surprised that there aren't many products like this.

With support for MP3 and AAC (advanced audio coding, a better-than-MP3 audio format developed by Dolby), the SD05 can hold up to 2 hours of hi-fi music. It's surprisingly easy to operate, and because it's foldable, easy to transport, too. The manual is a bit skimpy, but I think most people can figure it out pretty quick. The headset itself is comfortable, although I wish there were more bass.

I have never used this particular product before but since it is panasonic it is almost garunteed to be good
thank you