Looking for new receiver

[bigdog1218]

I'm finally ready to upgrade my entry level HT equipment I bought when I was in college. I have the new TV picked out, Pioneer 5020, and will most likely get a PS3 this winter for Blu-ray

I'm having trouble with the receiver because I can't figure out which features are worth having and at what point am I not getting much for my $. I have it narrowed down to 4 receivers and would love any opinions and input.

I think I've narrowed it to the Denon 2809ci and Onkyo 805.

I'm leaning towards the 2809, but a coworker has the Onkyo 805 and loves it and it's $500+ cheaper. The Denon has the newest version of Audyssey and from what I've read on AVSforum it sounds better. But I'm wondering if that extra $500 will be better spent somewhere else.

I have an Axiom setup for speakers with m22's, the vp150 and qs4's.

Any opinions would be great, thanks.

 

[Excelsior]

I would def say that the $500 could be spent better elsewhere....don't get caught up in AVS too much regarding folks opinions of SQ.

 

[Xed]

Honestly, if there's a place nearby you should just go audition them and decide what sounds best to you (which is all that matters)

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: bigdog1218
I think I've narrowed it to the Denon 2809ci and Onkyo 805.

For the kind of money you're discussing, you may as well kick it up to the Onkyo 875 and get some insane video scaling hardware.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

What's your sub situation?

 

[Slick5150]

Too bad you didn't decide this last week as Circuit City had the Denon 889 (which is the same as the 2809) for $499 on a price error. Its a steal at that price.

But yeah, you can get some good deals on the Onkyo 805 right now as they're replacing it with the 806.

 

[jhh979s]

You could also look at the Denon 988, same price as the 805. I bought one about a month ago and love it. In my opinion, anything Denon makes is going to be better quality than Onkyo, but that's just my opinion.

 

[Oyeve]

Originally posted by: jhh979s
You could also look at the Denon 988, same price as the 805. I bought one about a month ago and love it. In my opinion, anything Denon makes is going to be better quality than Onkyo, but that's just my opinion.

I think they are both pretty much on par in most respects. Although I always get Denon and the only POS I got was a 5 disc DVD changer that was not up to what i expected from Denon, but it was dirt cheap so I aint complaining.

 

[bigdog1218]

Thanks for the replies so far.

I've thought about the Onkyo 875 also, but I've had people tell me it's not worth having the AVR do the video scaling since the TV can do just as good of a job. I don't know if it's true.

Yoyo that's one of the areas I was thinking of putting the extra money towards, right now I have a JBL PB10, but I was thinking of upgrading that also.

Jhh979s, the only reason I haven't looked at the 988 is it only has 2 HDMI inputs. Do you think that's enough?. Should I really worry about the # of HDMI inputs?

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: bigdog1218
I've thought about the Onkyo 875 also, but I've had people tell me it's not worth having the AVR do the video scaling since the TV can do just as good of a job. I don't know if it's true.

Your TV isn't going to do as good a job as the Onkyo 875.

Jhh979s, the only reason I haven't looked at the 988 is it only has 2 HDMI inputs. Do you think that's enough?. Should I really worry about the # of HDMI inputs?

If you have a good universal remote (Harmony One, etc.), this shouldn't matter - just get an IR-controlled HDMI switch. If you don't, it's something to consider.

 

[Jeeebus]

Originally posted by: erwos

Originally posted by: bigdog1218
I've thought about the Onkyo 875 also, but I've had people tell me it's not worth having the AVR do the video scaling since the TV can do just as good of a job. I don't know if it's true.

Your TV isn't going to do as good a job as the Onkyo 875.

not so sure about that. The Pioneer Kuros are fantastic at video scaling.


I have no personal experience with the 805, but there are a large number of people peeved at various problems with the **5 series of Onkyos, from lip sync issues to bad Audyssey mics. Personally, I just bought the AVR 1909 (Denon) for $571... still sitting in the box as I'm waiting for everything else to be delivered.

My 6020 should be coming soon too!

 

[erwos]

Originally posted by: Jeeebus
not so sure about that. The Pioneer Kuros are fantastic at video scaling.

Not as fantastic as the Reon HQV. The Kuros are very good at upscaling compared to your normal HDTV, but they're by no means fantastic. If they were packing a particularly amazing scaler chip, the marketing would say as much.

Then again, you might be better off just buying an 805 or 806 and then grabbing a DVDO VP-20 - you can get a refurb for like $600.

I have no personal experience with the 805, but there are a large number of people peeved at various problems with the **5 series of Onkyos, from lip sync issues to bad Audyssey mics. Personally, I just bought the AVR 1909 (Denon) for $571... still sitting in the box as I'm waiting for everything else to be delivered.

The Onkyos are popular receivers compared to the Denons - I wouldn't be surprised to hear more complaints about them.

 

[SlickSnake]

Harman Kardon 254

Harman Kardon 354

They finally upgraded their receivers to handle HD audio codecs. They are a brand new model and can be had at BB. They had them there for a few weeks now. I hope they release a higher powered 100 watt version, but I may pick up the 354 soon for one of my HT systems. So I will let you know down the road what I think of it. And the 75 watt one is plenty of power for most peoples applications. H/K don't lie about their power outputs like most makers do. And they sound a lot smoother then the Onkyos. They sound more similar to a Denon amp wise.