I have my TX-DS656 for 12 years now... And overall this is a really great A/V-reciever. I never had prroblems with it, but... Now I wanted to mount some speakers in the kitchen and I can't turn them on... I came to the conclusion that my remote speaker switch doesn't work.?

i have a TX-DS656 and the Fan does not cut on when being on for a while? Is there a problem? If i run it without a fan what would happen? Please resopnd to my Email @ itzwhat@aol.com

thanks

Good power/dimmer/setup/timer

Remote is a shocker!!!.... Fan (but I secretly like to know it's working hard)!!!

For the price, this is a great receiver. sure there is no DTS/THX...etc. But you are getting real bang for your bucks. I pulled my amp apart when i first got it, just to see what makes it tick. The components used are good grade, with some being real "audiophile grade" for such a modest receiver, good sized capacitors are used & a decent power transformer. This receiver keeps it all pretty simple, yet delivers where it really counts, (which is what we want right?) I have run 6 full on DVD movies, ie: Pearl Harbour...etc: back to back at near THX levels, this baby got hot and that fan was doing overtime, but it did not miss a beat, in fact the sound became a little more smoother & slightly warmer. I have owned many Onkyo products, and I have the fantastic 989 in my sound room, the 656 was a great product from them, and for there 1999/2000 catalogue, it graced the front cover over there top of the range THX models. WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU.

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Build quality; Full power to all channels; Video Switching; Audio source recording capabilities; Cinema RE-Q & only 6 soundfields that are trully useful. true 6-OHM impedience without fear of blowing your speakers. Dimmer & full speaker set-up w/bass mgmt.

Fan, remote and no DTS; these subtractions are easlier out weighted by the overall performance of this great product.

As far as Home Theater (DD5.1) and music (CD & analog tapes) goes, the Onkyo TX-656 past ALL the test. My 5 full-size spkrs; Cerwin-Vega AT-12 in front, KLH 311 3-ways in rear and JBL C-305 in center, and AR PS-112 12"-subwoofer, really are conveyed clean and strong via the powerful capabilities of this receiver. DVD, CD, Digital Cable, video and cassette tapes never sounded better. The video switching and audio recording features along with 85 watt powerful amp makes this a win win combination. I hear the fan, only it doesn't bother me. The remote is junk, but other Onkyo model remotes work fine. I use the RC-391. E-Bay should have Onkyo remotes in the RC-390 series. I will caution, spend money on QUALITY interconnects and lower grade speaker wire... I recommand AR interconnect cables and Monster for the speakers. If you are NOT satisfied after checking your connections, change your speakers or their locations. You really need to experience full sized sound with this unit - it will blow you away. I've used this set-up for over 3 years now and don't miss not having DTS. By the way, I purchased above unit at Topps as an Open-Box item w/instruction manual and the better RC-391 remote.

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I also own the Onkyo TX-575x in my bedroom HT and another older Onkyo Intega TX-AV810 PRO DPL integrated amp for my other bedroom setup.

sound clarity, sexy appearance, construction

phono grounding,

I recently purchased the TX-DS656 at Circuit City as an open-box item for $329. The receiver was new but, did not have a remote or instruction manual. As a result, I somewhat limited on its capabilities. I'm new to the Dolby Digital era but, I've owned Onkyo products my entire adult life. This box is amazing. From the time I hooked it up and turned it on, I new I made a great deal. The sound is clear and rich. I have all Infinity speakers for home theater and a set of Bose for multisource speakers. I orginally purchased the TX-DS474 and immediately returned it to the store. My old Onkyo TX-3000 (you old STEREO guys out there remember this box) blew the TX-DS474 away. I was a little hesitant to buy the DS656 but, glad I did (especially based on the price I paid). I can hear the fan when the music stops but, this is minor to me because when the music stops it time to turn it off or play something else.

As stated earlier, I'm without an instruction manual and remote. Onkyo rep wants $25 for the manual and $80 for the remote. I don't have that type of money. If anyone make a copy of their manual and send it to me, I'll gladly pay $10 + postage.

I can be reached at russell.rowe@usda.gov.

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Very Good Bass Management System. Good selection of Digital Inputs; SVideo in and out; Excellent DSP dycryption(Motorolla Chips. Good Powerfull, Clean Amp; 5.1 inputs for future upgrade

No on screen display for Svideo

I bought this receiver in July of 1999 and have enjoyed it immensely. I find it to be a reliable performer and is built solidly. I have enjoyd both music and HT and my system shakes the floor boards of my apartment when playing Saving Private Ryan or any other high action film(Matrix, Aliens-Special Edition, Clear & Present Danger etc.). The Dolby Digital Decoding is excellent with the Motorolla chips. When used for music, it is a solid performer. I believe this receiver coupled with my CD Player (Rotel RCD-951) re-produce very detailed and open sound. I believe this was an excellent choice for a receiver and would buy it again. There are many good products out there so one must test as many as possible before purchasing.

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HK avr65, Denon 2800

Clean power and amazing sound quality, nice OSD and console display

Unfriendly remote, overly sensitive remote volume control, not OSD for S-VHS, poor console controls for system adjustments

I love this receiver except for the points mentioned above. The daily irritants are:
(1) The overly sensitive remote volume control that requires light taps on the remote to adjust the volume to your liking.
(2) The very unfriendly remote. Although it is dubbed a learning remote, there is only a very small section of the controller that actually has user assignable buttons. The buttons are all the same shape and size and combined with the fact that it is unlit, make trying to find buttons in the dark very difficult.
(3) You can not access the OSD unless you are in some composite video mode not S-VHS. This almost defeats the purpose of having an OSD. This could be remedied slightly by having more descriptive information appear on the console screen.

Things I like about the system:
(1) I like the look of both the console screen and OSD.
(2) The system is very sexy looking with a big volume knob.
(3) I haven't ever encountered any problem with fan noise.
(4) Lots of clean power. The sound quality is excellent.
(5) Multiroom capability.

I love this receiver, but there are some annoying little features that they could fix for the next model.

If it is hot out, i can turn it around and use it as a fan!
Rubber feet, incase i get struck by lightning i just hold them. The sound is so bright i dont need to use any lighting in the room.

no speed adjustment on fan

Boy this baby really rocks. I can't believe its not seperates!! These guys really must use large power supplies and really big transformers because i am almost deaf, its beautiful.

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Clear and powerful sound from any source

Remote, like most receiver

I'm still amaze of the quality and purity of sound coming from that receiver, no hiss or noise, never tough it would be that good. After listening for over 3 months to many receivers in the 1000/1200$ cdn. i pick up this fairly complete receiver, it's may lack DTS but since there no sofyware available around, who care! The DD is simply marvelous and made my Paradigm Studio 60 sound like it never did before, what a match. But enough talk, let go back asnd listen to it

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Very good dolby digital sound. Good reproduction of highs. S-video inputs for everything. Front inputs for VCR-3.

Remote, fan noise, does not convert composite video to s-video

I am very happy with this purchase. As others have said, this unit sounds very clean and has power to spare. Also, it has the most inputs/outputs that I have seen. Also if you do dubbing, you will fall in love with this unit. You can easily set up a loop between any two devices, which makes dubbing a breeze. The only downside is that the rca jacks and s-video jacks are seperate ... so you can't just run s-video out to your tv...

The multiroom capability is interesting. You can listed to a seperate source on the aux room speakers. However, controlling the multiroom setup is rather complex and you have to use the yechhy onkyo remote to do it. I miss the speaker a/b buttons on the lower end product!