It has plenty of power. It would get five stars hands down for sound quality, ease of use and the well thought out remote. But recently I am having problems with it. One time I went to watch a dvd and it would get no sound at all. I had to switch to a different digital imput(from optical 2 to coax) then back, and it worked fine. But it makes some strange clicking noises when I play a dvd now. Also some movies won''t play in dolby digital unless there is a manual selection screen. I know for a fact that it is supposed to automatically play the dd soundtrack. (There is a way to set it up so it plays dd automatically, for those who didn''t know). As much as I hate to do it, I may be switching to Harmon Kardon now......

Functional capabilities

Low bass

In direct mode it sounds bass-light, I had to equalize up low frequency but it did not really help. It has RI connectors for the second zone, but I was surprised with its limitations: all one can do from the second zone is turn on/off, source selection (only analog inputs) and volume. No control on the tuner, no sleep timer, no balance, no calibration. Nothing. I found a workaround for the tuner. I have connected the RI cable to two connectors and plugged them into RI main and RI Zone 2. Then I select the tuner as the main zone source and this allows me controlling the tuner. I still can’t turn it of from the second zone (which is my bedroom), I just use sleep timer.

Drives difficult loads with ease Great remote control Solidly built Good for movies Better than I thought it would be for stereo listening

Bad sound fields (are there any good ones?) Not enough inputs Second room instead of A/B speakers

Decent overall amplifier - sounds good in DTS and 6.1/5.1/THX etc. although the other sound fields ie. orchestra, unplugged are mostly just irritating more than they are musical. 2 channel sound could be more lively but it is better than I expected from a Jap A/V receiver. Running the CD player with the receiver in ''direct'' mode has yielded the nicest results. I Currently run Totem Mani-2s for fronts - very difficult 4 ohm load for any amplifier and huge current-sucking hogs - but the Onkyo surprisingly barely breaks a sweat. I have never heard the cooling fan kick in so either it''s quiet or it doesn''t work. I liked the 777''s A/B speaker setup better than the 787''s second room setup - you''re better off getting a separate amplifier for multi-room anyway... it makes it hard to compare 2 sets of speakers/different cabling etc. or pseudo-bi-amp your front speakers. The remote is the best out there - I love the programmability of all buttons for 8 sources - way better than those gimmicky touch-screen remotes unless you buy a $10000 Crestron setup or a Pronto or something similar - also I find it way more logically set up than the Denon, Yamaha, etc. It could use another set of a/v inputs for another component or two, as well as a few more fiber digital inputs to round things out - I''ve used every input available and I don''t even have that many components - what do I do when I get a mp3 machine or a DVP? Build quality is excellent. Look and feel are expensive. Overall I am quite impressed with it. I''ve also owned a 777 and an older 636 from Onkyo as well as an Integra DVD changer and Onkyo CD changer. I have never had a problem with any of them.

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Yamaha RXV-1/3000/1000/2200/596 Denon, Harman-Kardon, Onkyo, Sony etc.

THX select EX, quality build, learning remote, power,...

Not found yet.

The top class AV receiver. Sounds great in home theatre, also in stereo. With On-screen display you can set-up this receiver very simple. Good remote controler. In surround modes DD,DTS,THX,you will feel so many, many details and fabulas ambience. Onkyo will relly move your speakers. If you look for details in stereo , don''t, (just buy stereo intg. ampl. for 1000usd),because this is still "TOP" AV receiver.

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HK, YAMAHA

Everything about this receiver is a strength except, see below

THe speaker connectors set a little close (BIG DEAL)

I have read reviews that downgrade this receiver. However, I have come to the conclusion that they must be Denon and Yamaha owners who know the screwed up. Anyway, This is one great receiver. I''m running B&W Nautilus 804''s, HTM-2, and 4 B&W 601 s3 for surround w/ onkyo add on amp. It drives these speakers like they were a match made in heaven. I''m very impressed with this receiver if you can''t already tell. I have grounded my chassis. (just in case) for any induced noise. The 7.1 is incredible even though there are only about 4 movies that take advantage of this. I can''t recommend a better receiver in this price range up to $1500.

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Denon, Yamaha

Awesome power and great flexibility in setup of input and output sources. Remote zone capability allowing you to play from a different source in two different areas. Example, cd outside, tv inside house.

If using remote zone2, all other use of the receiver must be in stereo mode so no theater sound in living room while playing music outside. Set up procedures can be frustrating.

I love it. It took me awhile to set it up but that's user error. Getting ahead of myself, I bought component video monster cables for my DVD and my monitor out connection, only to find my TV did not have component video capability. SO, it did have S-video so I bought that cable to connect the monitor out from the receiver to the TV. WRONG!, You must use the same cableling from the DVD to the Receiver as you use as a monitor out cable. SO, I then had to get an S-video cable to hook my dvd to the receiver. Frustrating. So make sure your TV input and DVD output have the same abilities. So, Next to buy is a component video capable tv to get the best picture. I do alot of entertaining outside, so I love the Remote zone capability. It allows you to play music outside, while people inside can watch tv or play from other sources like FM, tape, etc. The only problem is if you use the remote zone capability, you cannot play the system in any other mode by stereo. System kicks butt and has tremendous sound in all modes. Theater will shake the house and crystal clear. The receiver does run a little hot, so if your thinking on putting it in a cabinet with little breathing room, you may want to add a small $7.00 fan in the back of the unit to keep the air moving out. I would not close the door on the cabinet. I actually got rid of the cabinet I had and bought an open rack to house my system. It gives me better access to the back cableing and the unit breathes better. As with all these units, be ready to spend some money on the cables and speaker wire. I bought pre-made monster cables and monster speaker wire, and at the end of the day to hook everything up, I spent around $250. You may be able to get one of the prepackaged set up kits for much less. Buy this unit and take your time setting it up. You will love it.. Best buy for the bucks

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DTS and DD5.1 playback

Music

For video, this is a very good product. It sounds fine. However, I've not been able to the 12-Volt trigger to work correctly to turn off an amplifier (it will turn it on, but never turn it off). It decodes DTS and DD 5.1 (I don't have room for the 6th speaker for 6.1) fine and seems to work well in these modes.

On my system (Linn center channel and L/R front speakers, Mirage surrounds), two channel music is completely lifeless and dead with no bass. I added a Proceed two-channel amp, and that's helped a lot. There's actually bass! My Pioneer Elite DVD/CD player is likely part of the problem, too. My roommate's Proceed CD player is likely better.

For video, this is fine (other than the 12V trigger). I'd give it 5 stars. For music, however, I't give it two or maybe one star. I'm probably going to upgrade to a separate amp, then to a separate preamp.

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No receivers; Proceed 2-channel system.

DTS-ES, THE-EX 6.1 PROCCESING. 7.1 CHANNEL PRE OUTS, TONS AND TONS OF CLEAN POWER; HDTV COMPONENT INS/OUTS

MABEY A BIT MORE SOUNDFIELDS. I ONLY USE ONE OR TWO ANYWAY THOUGH... USUALLY DOLBY DIGITAL 6.1 OR DTS-ES, OR THE-EX

IT IS THE BEST RECIEVER MONEY CAN BUY UNDER 1000$ RETAIL PRICE. THATS ALL I HAVE TO SAY........

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YAMAHA, DENON, HARMAN KARDON

Home theater sound rocks.

Music quality, but "all channel" is pretty good. THX mode seems quiet when compared to regular 5.1

Kevin says this thing is perfect in 2 channel mode??? I think you need to try a new hobby. After reading your post I switched it on and blinked to make sure I wasn't seeing the wrong sound field. This reciever is great but two channel mode is the worst sounding option of the entire reciever and nothing is close. The all channel option is the best in my opinion.

....and Matt calls EQ's cheesy? Have you ever used one? I have a Yamaha EQ-550 and I can definately assure you it's not "cheesy". All you need to do is hook one up to know that.

You must enjoyed a muffled feeling. Me, I prefer clean bass and crystal clear highs.


The THX mode is awesome, but you need to crank it up to get the effect. I noticed when switching back and forth from THX to normal 5.1 that THX was a bit quiet. 5.1 was much more room filling at the same volume.


Anyone else notice this?

Very very good DD/DTS/THX receiver. It is the best receiver under $1000, no question here. It along, with plenty of speakers, will deliver stuning HT effects and it is the best bung for the bucks. I use it to drive my Dynaudios and B&Ws, with Onkyo 6 DVD changer, a beautify HT setup. 've opened the cover to see the inside, very impressive. Huge transformer and better-than-computer-grade cooling fan. Plus up-to-date decoder. (who the **** complains about no discrete 7.1? how many real 7.1s you can find right now anyway)

Remmeber it is an AV receiver, it is best for HT use. naturally HT differs from pure music listening. In the pure music domain, Onkyo's bass is a bit loss and highs are bit harsh(remmeber my main speakers are DYNAUDIOS, and those features might not be a bad thing for HT!). The only physical catch is that the speakers banding posts are packed a litte bit on the tight side, while, which receiver is not nowadays, but I don't use it for video switching anyway, ge! wasted component switching on the 787.

that's it!

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777, Denon, Yamaha, HK(good, if they don't advertising shameless "High Current" spec)