Moderators dtel Posted March 8, 2012 Moderators Share Posted March 8, 2012 I was reading the other thread and you had 6 Onkyo's and a Yamaha in the past and thought you would be the man to ask. Or anyone who would know [8-|] I don't even know if I'm going to change or not or when but was looking at Onkyo. I have a Yamaha RX-V730 now, it has pre-outs which I need but none of the newer sound formats for Blu-ray and no HDMI. Besides what I don't have now the Onkyo's also has streaming internet radio which I use alot and can only get Pandora through my Blu-ray player. The models I was looking at were the 709 and the 809. Obviously the 809 has ton's of stuff better than the 709 but the 709 has everything I really need. At over a $300 difference I don't know if it's worth it to me, the power difference is not important to me. I really like the yamaha I have but it's getting old and lacks some features I really could use. I'm not stuck on Onkyo brand but I would really like to have the internet radio and i really need the pre-outs and either of those models have everything i need. I like the Hk's but they don't have what I need, or would like to have. I'm just a little nervous switching brands considering when I found the first one I also listened to denon and really didn't like it at all. How does the sound of the Onkyo compare to the Yamaha ? I know it's alot of questions but i keep equipment for a really long time when they keep working and would probably have whatever I decide on for a good while. Part of the reason I'm having a hard time with this, mine works fine and i don't really need to do anything. [:S] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Posted March 8, 2012 Share Posted March 8, 2012 D, if you don't know what they sound like you should go buy one, try it, then return it and get another, try it, do it again then decide.I know it's a hassle and it's your deal but you cannot know unless you audition at home. Good luck whatever do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted March 9, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted March 9, 2012 Thanks, never really thought of trying one like that, I have never done that before. I need to check return policies, especialy if I try one I don't like at all. Good idea [Y] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jess28 Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 onkyo 807 was a really good model in my eyes.they took a step back with 806. with the 807 they made it like the 805 and added networking and other upgrades. the 906 is another great model it has everthing you are going to need plus usb. i would check those out you can save loot buying used. you are never going to use 90 % of the shit they throw into these guys the only thing the new ones offer that may be of use is 3d compatability. i dont like sending my video through these anyway the 906 has a decent chip in it so does the 805 they also have really some decent pre/pros also if you have amps onkyo is the reciever i choose,to me there alot like klipsch upper models have a nice sound and you get the most bang for your buck plus they are really dependable the 806 was really bad was always over heating i loved my 807 sounded like the 906 1007 without alot of the extra junk they throw in there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
themrclean Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 I will say that in my opinion the Onkyo sounds great for movies in DTS oh higher, however I am not happy at all when listening to music. I literally find myself changing listening modes, and adjusting frequencies back and forth every time I try to sit and listen to music. For movies I get a deep rich sound with my Xf-48s, even without my sub hooked up there is plenty of bass and mids. With music, that deep richness is gone and all that I get is treble and a little bit of mid bass. If you are planning to listen to a lot of music, I would stay far away from Onkyo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vital Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 For internet radio go with the Squeezebox Touch and then throw in whatever receiver you like that has pre-outs! The Squeezebox is an awesome little unit, I use mine all the time. If I were in your shoes with your needs I would buy the HK 3600 "$544 on Amazon" and Squeezebox Touch "$249 on Amazon" for the same price as the Onkyo 809 "$899" but have even better internet radio as well as the ability to play all of your flac, mp3s or whatever else you have stored on your laptop/computer and have better sound as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonJCarney Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 I had the yammy 361 (I think that the model) that I snce gave to my father. Then in order onkyo 608-3007-HT RC180-709-3008. I also have an onkyo 509 in my livingroom. I went through the exact same situation that you are going through trying to decode between the the 709 and 809. Since I was running an XPA-5 at the time the power ratings had little meaning to me. It came down to a $300 price difference for extra features I just wasn't going to need. My move from the rc-180 to the 709 was based mostly on the ipod integration. I can also tell you that the x09 series on onko run vastly cooler than the x08 and x07 series. If your cabinet is very well ventilated then by all means you can go to accessories4less and purchase an older refurbished model with a 1 year warranty to save money. If your cabinet is not well ventilated I would not suggest going with any model older than the x09 series. Even when I wasn't using the amp section it would still get very hot. For under $500 the 709 can be had and the internet radio works great. It's like anything else really in that it takes a bit of time to get used to it but I use it all the time for zone 2 (the room next to my HT is a home gym). I do still need to purchase another avr for the bedroom and I do want to try another brand like Pioneer, Denon, or Marantz just to see if I have been missing something. Onkyo has a model comparison chart on their website that makes it real easy to see what your getting when you upgrade from one model to the next. You may have looked at it already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonJCarney Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 It's so hard to compare sound to sound for me cause I only listened to the yammy with klipsch HD300's and Polk monitor 70's. Plus being my first avr I didn't have a frame of reference. I can tell you that the onkyo would seem to have a very true sound. I would'nt say warm or harsh but maybe middle ground. I listen to a ton of itunes music in my car and on my onkyo so thats really my only comparison unfortunately. A friend of mine had a pioneer 1021 with Klipsch rf82's and his HT did sound great but room size can change things alot IMO. I know that for the cost of shipping back you can return avr's to onecall. Thats what I did with my 709. Basically a 30 day trial period. I liked the 709 alot but Gorm put his 3008 up for sale and I really wanted to try the audyssy multi eq XT 32 (since I run 2 subs). Cost me $30 to send the 709 back so really it was a great way to give it a try. Never sent anything back to Newegg but I know their retrun policy is basically the same as onecall. You can get a 100 opinions on the "sound" of these avr's but honestly none of them will mean Sxxx since the the room and speaker parameters won't be the exact same as yours is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blowndc Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 I'm relatively new on here, so take my opinion for what it's worth. I've own a few Yamahas in the last 12 years. Most of them are mid-line ones. I was given a Yamaha DSP-A1 a few years ago as a gift. I've been enjoying the heck out of it. While it's way outdated technology wise, it still sounds great. I've been looking around at possibly upgrading to a new receiver with HDMI and such. I work within minutes from a huge electronic store, so I run over there and test out their receivers all the time during my lunch breaks. I've tried all the Onkyos that you've listed, tried the Denons, Tried the newer Yamaha. So far my favorite is the Harman Kardon line. I think they're are more musical compared to the other brands. The HK AVR-3650 or AVR-3600 would likely be my next purchase. Give the HK line a listen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arky Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 There's no doubt H/K mates very well with Klipsch. Don't know about the feature issue though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cornfedksboy Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 I will say that in my opinion the Onkyo sounds great for movies in DTS oh higher, however I am not happy at all when listening to music. I literally find myself changing listening modes, and adjusting frequencies back and forth every time I try to sit and listen to music. For movies I get a deep rich sound with my Xf-48s, even without my sub hooked up there is plenty of bass and mids. With music, that deep richness is gone and all that I get is treble and a little bit of mid bass. If you are planning to listen to a lot of music, I would stay far away from Onkyo. I agree 100% with this post. The Yammy, to my ears was better for music and the Onkyo for movies. I espescially prefer Audyssey to YPAO for calibration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldenough Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Hi Dtel, I can also give a hearty thumbs-up to the H/K 3600, I ended up with it after auditioning many other AV receivers. It has been in use long enough (9 mths) now for me to say I couldn't be happier with it, Ok maybe I could, but I am not going to spend $1500 to find out. What really pleases me is that it is equally as good playing music as movies, and that requirement was paramount in my decision to buy it. Ease of use deserves an 8 of 10, stylish looks gets it 9 of 10. I believe the AVR 3600 can be found at heavily discounted prices now. I don't think you can go wrong with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nezff Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Im not sure I could ever own another receiver without XT32! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 The one thing for sure is the greatest sound I ever heard from speakers came many years ago, before any auto room correction.That's when quality and build were all done to provide great sound, not endless gadgets that make things sound worse than 30 years ago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted March 9, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted March 9, 2012 WOW thanks everyone, i have some new ideas and ways to think about this. First I think I like the Squeezebox idea because I can look at different receivers and i don't have to buy it at the same time which helps. Also it may be less limited to functions not being in a certain receiver, like Pandora on my Blu-ray player it the only internet music built in with no other apps except what samsung offers for that model. One thing I didn't say was why I need the pre-outs, it's not for additional amps for HT. I use the pre-outs on my Yamaha for a separate 2 Ch setup which is real convenient considering it then connects everything already connected to the Yamaha, this way they can be used for 2 Ch like the Blu-ray player/Cd/DVD player and satellite. The other thing I didn't say was it is used for 95% music, we probably don't watch 4 movies a month. [] More 2 Ch music with some DVD/Blu-ray concerts most of the time in 2 Ch also. Everyone I have talked to said the HK line is one of the best for music and was what I was leaning toward until I noticed the "networking" receivers, but Squeezebox could add that to any setup. But I would not want to give up the Ht setup even as little as we use it because it sounds great for movies. Really to be honest all I feel I'm missing is the new codacs or whatever there called, and connections for Bluray. And a couple more internet radio stations. All the answers gave me some things to think about. I really appreciate the help from everyone, there are so many options and choices it's easy to get lost in features which may not even be used. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted March 9, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted March 9, 2012 The one thing for sure is the greatest sound I ever heard from speakers came many years ago, before any auto room correction.That's when quality and build were all done to provide great sound, not endless gadgets that make things sound worse than 30 years ago. That's true in 2 Ch for sure, we use a old HK 930 and plain CD player with some Cornwalls and the sound is NICE, I tried it with the Yamaha Ht receiver and it was OK at best. The Cd player is one of the first to come out, it does NOT play any Cd you have burned only originals it's so old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonJCarney Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Don't forget about apple tv for $99. I added that to my onkyo 509 for music Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted March 9, 2012 Author Moderators Share Posted March 9, 2012 You guys got me thinking, which could be dangerous Right now I have my Blu-ray player connected to the Tv with HDMI cable for the best pic, BUT it's connected to my receiver with 6.1 cables using the 6.1 input button because the receiver does not have HDMI. How much am I losing in sound quality without the better connections and the new Blu-ray decoders like dts hd, true hd, and dts hd master audio ? This is a big concern I have no idea about. I also do not have any kind of room auto eq with my receiver I just adjust the volume of all the speakers with a db meter from where we sit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Sooner or later you will need to change over to an hdmi avr or prepro.You can use what you have with analog out and your BR player should be outputting hd audio through analog if capable. The point I want to make is all these radios sound different, to me and those I know.There are two schools of thought, one is they all sound the same pretty much pick features and price first.The other is(including me) they all sound different, most suck at music, I put sound first then everything else after. Unless you have owned many units this may not matter cause you don't know what you're missing.Once you know what you're missing................. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonJCarney Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Room eq is huge. DTS and true HD are awesome. Once you use audyssey multi eg XT 32 You'll be in love. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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