Good ampifier. Nicely-designed panel. Beautiful.

Very low quality D/A sucks.
Ergomically-Bad-Designed Remote.

Comparing Digital input with analog input with the same source, says CD, the analog sounds much better. The digital one produces untolerable output. Ears get tired listening with the digital artifacts. That's why I'm using 676 instead. A much better one.

Similar Products Used:

ONKYO TX-DS676

I have had my TS-DS656 for about 3 months.I run NHT SuperOnes for front and surround. I have a NHT 1.2a for a center and a AR SO-12 sub.All I ask from my reciever is to be able crank them up cleanly....and to have excellent definition in DD mode. The 656 does this quite well.
The 656 replaced a Denon AVR-2500 (no Dolby Digital) which I loved until I purchased a DVD player.
I wanted to purchase a new Denon with DD but the pricing is a bit high.
So I looked at Onks.
The build quality was to me equal to Denon period. Which blows Sony away.
The Onks remote sucked as much as the Denons.....they (mfrs) just have not figured that one out yet. To me finding the "blessed remote that comes with a component that will operate all" is not reasonable or logical expectaion. One has to find something that works for them.
My Onkyo does everything well for me and it is ready for upgrade.
The fan noise problem that some folks talk about here is a joke....they don't have thier systems set up correctly.....mine has to cranked up quite well for it to activate. And at those levels my neighbors are complaining
For $599 this unit is excellent and is easy for the spouse to operate (which is a important consideration for some)
Have fun and enjoy your home theater.....Kevin

Crystal clear sound
Excellent seperation of the highs and mids
Strong construction looks worth the money as well as sounds worth the money.
More than enough flexibility for other upgrade hookups
Bass is strong and deep

No DTS
The remote sucks (Although thats a given on most receivers and besides I bought it because of the sound and not the remote)

Since I have bought his receiver I have been nothing but impressed. I have been slightly disappointed with the fact that it doesn't have DTS, but the sound quality and the design keep me believing that this reciever is equal to if not greater than the new models. Although it is not THX certified it does carry the specifications of other THX systems. Which is equal wattage to all channels. The Onkyo 656 sends an equal 85 Watts to all of its chanels. As far as the fan sound, I have heard it on occasion, but only when I have stopped a track that I was playing very loudly and the fan was spinning off. However, to complain about the fan noise is really silly. For it to be a problem it would have to make some sort of difference in performance, but it doesn't because first of all it is not a noise, it is the air being pushed from the fan itself. If the fan did make noise that would mean the ball bearings were bad and it would need to be replaced.
My system consists of the following
Onkyo TX-DS656 DD 85 Watts into 5channels
Pioneer DV-606D DVD Player
Pioneer PD-F958 100 + 1 CD Player
Acoustic Research 308HO 200W (Front)
Acoustic Research AR4C 150W (Center)
Acoustic Research Edge 150W (Surround)
Advent AV500 400Watts (Subwoofer)
I can honestly say that this receiver was and still is worth its $749.99 that I spent on it. I would recommend this receiver for its great sound quality. The speration is superb and the bass is breath taking. I plan to buy a Philips Pronto remote when I get the chance.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer VSX608 and Pioneer VSX508

Having problems with the fan noise. When using the multi-room feature the fan instantly kicks on and runs non-stop. Extremely annoying and very loud. Talked to Onkyo and they said that is normal but the fan should not be that loud and they have an upgraded fan as part of the warranty and would replace it. I have not received the new fan yet but was wondering if anyone else has run into this same problem. Thanks

Excellent Sound
Decent FM Reception
Level of control via the remote especially with the number of inputs and outputs

Terrible remote
No onscreen programmability through S-VHS
The Manual
Questionable AM capability

Looked at a Denon and a Sony ES. Sorry can't remember the model numbers but they were comparable and all within a couple c$100s of each other. Using the same speakers and audio source, the Sony was the clear loser. The Denon was very good and the only thing I could differentiate was that the Denon's bass was a little weaker.

The remote is poor. It is not back lit. The remote does not work all the time and I have tracked this down to the fact that the batteries do not fit snuggly. I have since inserted a thin piece of foam which has improved matters. I would have liked some macro keys a few more programmable keys. I have since replaced the remote with One for All Cinema 6, cheap and took some time to get all the useful codes, but works just fine.

The manual does not explain all the possible EL display codes, which left me up in the air trying to debug a problem with the digital TV box. This was not the first time the manual has left me frustrated.

FM reception is similar to the Luxman. The AM reception is an adventure as a cheap am radio will receive stations that this will not.

I liked the variety and number of possible input sources and the ability to select different combinations has been interesting. I have actually found this usefull and think this is a feature that tends to get over looked when evaluating products.

Not having OSP on the S-VHS is a pain. It will be worse when I add a DVD with component video.

Watching movies or listening to music (DMX or CD) is a delight and I have no trouble recommending this receiver to friends.

Similar Products Used:

Luxman L210
Luxman T210L

I may be a little premature in writing this review. But I wanted to put in a vote of confidence for this receiver.
I listened to Sony, Denon, Yamaha, Marantz and Onkyo. I like the Denon over Yamaha because it seemed to have more air and projected a larger image. The Sony ES line sounds quite good also, at least much better than their other receivers. But the concept of a 4 Ohm switch didn't project a vote of confidence in my mind in terms of being able to produce large currents for musical peaks. I am sure that the Marantz is quite good, but I wasn't able to really A/B compare against anything else. I liked the Marantz 780 features, but it was a bit more than I wanted to pay. I wasn't able to do A/B testing with the Onkyo either.

I found the Onkyo at two stores. At one of the stores, the salesman told me that all receivers sound the same. While speaker selection will probably have more impact on the sound. All $800 receivers don't sound the same. I only stopped there once. The other store carried Onkyo, Rotel, and up.... I have always liked Onkyo for their large capacitors and build quality. I also wanted front A/V hookups and the Denon 2700 didn't have these. The Onkyo has a lot of audio (Tape1, Tape2, CD, and Phono) as well as AV inputs. This store had it all set up with the speakers that I wanted and it all sounded very right. I walked away with this very nice receiver and NHT SuperOnes.

I have had it for about 10 days. It does what I expect from Hi-Fi gear. If the recording is so-so or poor. You hear it. If the source is great, it sounds great. I must admit that I have only listened through my digital satellite and HI-FI VCR. One of these days I will hook up my CD player and take a good music listen. But, last night I wanted Star Trek, Generations. The back-ground music was great and the dialog was very clear and crisp without being edgy.

Some people have complained about the fan noise. Well, I haven't heard it yet. It only turns on when it gets so hot. It might turn on after several hours of loud listening, but I think it is a non-issue for 99% of the buyers out there. The remote is not great, but it works. I would be happier if it was cable of learning more codes. The on-screen menus with S-Video would also be a plus.

I am going to rate it 4 speakers. So far, it is meeting my expectations. Once I get a DVD and/or CD hooked up to it, I may want to adjust the rating. But, so far it seems to be a top notch unit! It could easily make it's way to 5 speakers.

I have the TX-Ds656 and all I have to say is WOW. The price listed is not right. The value is over $800. The unit is worth every penny too. Buy this unit and you will not be disapponted. It is easy to use which tells you of the engineering thet went in tio make it user freindly.

Bass, clean amp power, multiroom capablilities.

Does not have DTS

Okay first off. I upgraded from the TX-DS656 to the TX-DS777. At first I was convinced that this modell 777 was a much better model than the 656. Well a turn of events has changed that. The TX-DS656 has much better bass in movie play back. I mean so much so that if you have full speakers in the front you do not need a powered sub in order to get ground shaking bass and this is without the 3D bass feature being activated. The TX-DS777 has no bass (if it did it was not enough and no where near the amount of bass present in the TX-DS656 even without the #d bass button enabled). The Mids and highs sounds so much more destinct on the 656 and the bass is not at all overpowering. The 777 had either too much or too little. I really do not want to make this into a long report, but I will say this the TX-DS777 did have more features and more power, but when the sound was not as good as this 656. I am lucky to get it back. I will say this when I do get my hands on the 898 it will have to undoughtedly out perform the 656 in all areas. What I also do not understand is why you cannot turn off the display on the 777 and you can on the 656. This feature seems to have only been given to the TX-DS989 and not even any of the newer models have this feature.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo TX-DS777

Smooth and tender sound

Not support DTS

Excellent

Good quality, easy to use

annoying remote, no DTS

I have owned it for a while and I like it for music and movies. I'm not sure whether it is my speakers (Wharfedale 7.2) or this, but the high notes sometimes just don't sound that great. From the other reviews, I think it might just be the speakers.