New receiver

[TKE899]

I'm in the market to purchase a new AVR. I currently have an older lower power denon 1803 model pushin my B&W 602's S3 and 601's S3 and CC6 S2. Looking to upgrade to something affordable yet enough power to make use of these speakers.

There are currently 4 models that I have been looking at.

1) Denon AVR-2308ci
2) Denon AVR-2808ci
3) Onkyo 606
4) Onkyo 705

I have not yet had the opportunity to hear any of the new audio formats DTSHD or DDHD. I know the Onkyo receivers have the decoder even on their lower priced receiver.
Are these worth the extra money?

Any comments or reccomendations on other brands would be greatly appreciated.

 

[vi edit]

"Power" is a bit of a overvalued feature IMHO. The difference between 85 watts and 105 watts is rather insignificant. What you are are really getting in the different models/price ranges is more in the way of A/V processing from display devices and various levels of multi room support.

One would see a much larger jump going from a $400 set of speakers to an $800 set than they would having a $400 set of speakers and going from a $400 receiver to an $800 one.

What sort of devices will you be hooking up current or future wise?

 

[PurdueRy]

Note that I believe you have to go up to the 3808Ci to get beyond 2 HDMI inputs from Denon

 

[Slick5150]

I've always been partial to Yamaha's receivers, though Denon's are nice too. Yamaha's you have to get into the higher end models to get more than 2 HDMI inputs as well. Onkyo is one of the few makers that puts 3 or 4 HDMI inputs on mid-range models, but I don't think they sound as good as Yamaha's do. A lot of it will depend on preference and budget.

 

[DaveSimmons]

I have Onkyo receivers in my living room and home office and am happy with them both.

Denon has a reputation for better sound quality (in the $1,000+ range at least) but it comes at a much higher price for the same feature set. If your speaker set cost less than $1,500 then I doubt you'll hear any difference buying the Onkyo 606 instead of even a high-end Denon.

 

[TKE899]

Originally posted by: vi edit
"Power" is a bit of a overvalued feature IMHO. The difference between 85 watts and 105 watts is rather insignificant. What you are are really getting in the different models/price ranges is more in the way of A/V processing from display devices and various levels of multi room support.

One would see a much larger jump going from a $400 set of speakers to an $800 set than they would having a $400 set of speakers and going from a $400 receiver to an $800 one.

What sort of devices will you be hooking up current or future wise?

Right now I would be hooking up PS3 via HDMI, Xbox 360 with component and optical out so i guess it would be nice if the receiver would output the component through HDMI, and the other component I would be hooking up would be a Direct TV HR-21 via HDMI. My speaker setup isn't spectacular but I wouldn't consider it the low end either. Plus I plan on getting some floor standing B&W to try and complete a 7.1 setup.

Are the HD formats noticably better than standard DD/DTS?

 

[Slick5150]

Originally posted by: TKE899

Originally posted by: vi edit
"Power" is a bit of a overvalued feature IMHO. The difference between 85 watts and 105 watts is rather insignificant. What you are are really getting in the different models/price ranges is more in the way of A/V processing from display devices and various levels of multi room support.

One would see a much larger jump going from a $400 set of speakers to an $800 set than they would having a $400 set of speakers and going from a $400 receiver to an $800 one.

What sort of devices will you be hooking up current or future wise?

Right now I would be hooking up PS3 via HDMI, Xbox 360 with component and optical out so i guess it would be nice if the receiver would output the component through HDMI, and the other component I would be hooking up would be a Direct TV HR-21 via HDMI. My speaker setup isn't spectacular but I wouldn't consider it the low end either. Plus I plan on getting some floor standing B&W to try and complete a 7.1 setup.

Are the HD formats noticably better than standard DD/DTS?

Depends on the movie, and on your speaker setup. If you don't have a fairly good setup then no, but if you do, then yeah, it can be quite noticeable.

 

[Atomic Playboy]

Originally posted by: TKE899

Originally posted by: vi edit
"Power" is a bit of a overvalued feature IMHO. The difference between 85 watts and 105 watts is rather insignificant. What you are are really getting in the different models/price ranges is more in the way of A/V processing from display devices and various levels of multi room support.

One would see a much larger jump going from a $400 set of speakers to an $800 set than they would having a $400 set of speakers and going from a $400 receiver to an $800 one.

What sort of devices will you be hooking up current or future wise?

Right now I would be hooking up PS3 via HDMI, Xbox 360 with component and optical out so i guess it would be nice if the receiver would output the component through HDMI, and the other component I would be hooking up would be a Direct TV HR-21 via HDMI. My speaker setup isn't spectacular but I wouldn't consider it the low end either. Plus I plan on getting some floor standing B&W to try and complete a 7.1 setup.

Are the HD formats noticably better than standard DD/DTS?

I have the Onkyo 605 (connected to a PS3 via HDMI), and while I've been happy with it, I have noticed occasional speaker pop when decoding certain streams (I don't recall what exactly, DTSMA or TrueHD I think). This is apparently a known hardware issue which was corrected in the 606, so it should no longer affect the Onkyos, but it might exist in the 705. YMMV.

HD formats are definitely better than standard DD/DTS, but don't count out the "lesser" audio streams; Transformers was DD only and it had a fantastic audio presence. Still, if you listen to a disc that offers DD/DTS and a HD equivalent, you'll generally be able to tell the difference.

 

[newnameman]

Correction, Transformers had a 1.5 mbps Dolby Digital Plus track.

 

[vi edit]

The soundtracks on the high def disks are definitely top notch and very noticeably better than DVD. The LFE channel and surrounds in particluar have a lot more "pop" to them and the surrounds have much better seperation.

 

[Googer]

Onkyo. I have use Onkyo's Premium Integra Line, but I would also consider other brands as they provide comparable performance with better value.

I have listend to both Denon and Onkyo and the Denon sounds very dead with almost no mid-range abilities. I would also highly recommend looking in to Pioneer Elite, for the money their stuff is legendary and cannot be beat price wise. Seriously kick ass stuff.

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
I have Onkyo receivers in my living room and home office and am happy with them both.

Denon has a reputation for better sound quality (in the $1,000+ range at least) but it comes at a much higher price for the same feature set. If your speaker set cost less than $1,500 then I doubt you'll hear any difference buying the Onkyo 606 instead of even a high-end Denon.

I have seen similar questions posted at AVS and usually people overwhelmingly go for Onkyo for quality and Denon for raw power (volume).

 

[Pacfanweb]

Denon, as of just a couple years ago, definitely had a different "color" to their sound than a brand like Yamaha or NAD.

I've tried all of them....my old-ass Yamaha Pro Logic receiver still sounds fantastic, just doesn't have the latest and greatest surround formats.

I had an NAD 5.1 receiver....that is a powerful and damn good receiver, too.

Tried a Denon, and took it back...this was right before the NAD....then the salesman told me (local hi-fi shop at the time, now bought out by Tweeter ) that he and the other guys there had noticed the difference in the Denon's sound....but at the time, the Denon had a few more "bells and whistles". So lots of people liked them for that reason. Plus, if you didn't hear the other receivers, you'd have never known.

After all that, I'm using separates, but that's another story. I've heard good things about the Onkyo's and the Pioneer Elites....but for years now you couldn't go wrong with a Yamaha. I'd recommend them first with NAD a close second based on personal experience.

 

[erwos]

If you're using your PS3 for Blu-Ray playing, your receiver isn't going to be doing the decoding for those new audio formats anyways - it'll just output them as PCM.

If it were me, I'd go for the Onkyo 606.

 

[TKE899]

Thanks for all the input. I am going to order the 606 from Amazon for what I think is a pretty good price.

 

[Koing]

My mate has the Onky 605 with the 602's and his setup sounds really good to my ears. He has an okay KEF sub also. His rears and centers are a bit cheap but it still sounded sweet!

Koing

 

[shiner]

Onkyo is great if you want to fry some eggs on top of it while you watch a movie.