Onkyo 804

[darien87]

Hey folks,

I know that Onkyo has a great reputation in the A/V community. However, I only have experience with Denon and Yamaha. I am looking at the Onkyo 804 because it looks like it has all the functions I am looking for, and right now it's on Ubid at a great price.

Can anyone give me their opinions on Onkyo products; especially if you've heard this receiver? I'm just about to pull the trigger because $550 seems almost too good to be true.

Also, does anyone know whether Onkyo honors their warranty if purchased from an online dealer?

Thanks,
Darien

 

[darien87]

I see that Onkyo does indeed support UBid, so I think I'm about 85% sure I'm gonna buy it. Anyone have an opinion?

 

[darien87]

I see that Onkyo does indeed support UBid, so I think I'm about 85% sure I'm gonna buy it. Anyone have an opinion?

Dammit!!! I wish people could get their stories straight. I just called Onkyo to make sure the 804 could do uncompressed PCM audio, and the guy told me that it doesn't. Once again, I'm being told that I need to wait for HDMI 1.3. What is the deal? Some people say any HDMI will work, others say it has to be 1.3.

 

[MUDSHARK]

The only negative I have read about the Onkyo line is that the units tend to run hot. I considered the 804 actually but the unit was over 17 inches deep and would not allow enough room for the connections since my entertainment center is only 19 inches deep. I went to a Marantz 4001 instead (15.5 inches deep). Every unit considered had HDMI issues in user reviews.

The 1.3 issue is discussed at length on the AV forums. Since I have a 5.1 the 1.3 is not an immediate issue for me. The 1.1 on the Marantz seems to work well however other users have indicated problems. This whole HDMI thing appears to be a big crapshhot currently.

 

[MDS]

Dammit!!! I wish people could get their stories straight. I just called Onkyo to make sure the 804 could do uncompressed PCM audio, and the guy told me that it doesn't. Once again, I'm being told that I need to wait for HDMI 1.3. What is the deal? Some people say any HDMI will work, others say it has to be 1.3.

If you are talking about the ability to pass multi-channel PCM that was decoded by a HD-DVD or BluRay player, then you have to wait for HDMI 1.3. You could wait for the forthcoming 705 or 805 which will support 1.3.

I've owned nothing but Onkyo receivers for the last 15 years and never had a single problem with any of them. I think the user interface is the best of any brand; the simple things are simple and the complicated things are fairly simple too.

As far as them running hot, that has not been my experience. Any receiver will get warm to hot if pushed hard for long periods of time but none of mine have ever gotten so hot you couldn't touch it. Just be safe and provide adequate ventilation - a minimum of 3 inches on each side and the same or more on top and you shouldn't have any issues.

 

[darien87]

If you are talking about the ability to pass multi-channel PCM that was decoded by a HD-DVD or BluRay player, then you have to wait for HDMI 1.3. You could wait for the forthcoming 705 or 805 which will support 1.3.

That sucks, because that's exactly what I was looking to do. I wanted to be able to play the lossless audio tracks from my PS 3. I was under the impression that as long as the player did the processing, any HDMI would be able to pass the audio. So I guess this is not the case?

 

[darien87]

According to this article, that is specific to the PS 3 and lossless audio, since the PS 3 does the decoding, any HDMI receiver should be able to play the uncompressed PCM tracks.

http://blogs.ign.com/chubigans/2006/12/29/41597/

It's soooo annoying that there is so much misinformation out there. Even manufacturers reps don't always know what they're talking about.

 

[Seth=L]

Just to clear things up,

HDMI 1.2 is a capable of doing 8 channels of 192kHz/24-bit audio, DVD-Audio, SACD and HD video. HDMI has always been capable of this since 1.0.

HDMI 1.3 allows for bitstream Dolby True HD and DTS-HD (master audio as well) to be sent out of the player to be decoded inside the receiver or pre/pro.

Some players offer firmware upgrades that allow for Dolby TrueHD and other formats to be decoded internally and converted to 8 channels of 192kHz/24-bit audio for true 7.1 discrete audio on an appropriate receiver or pre/pro.

If you get 1.3 I don't really see much of an advantage, at least not with audio.

 

[Seth=L]

According to this article, that is specific to the PS 3 and lossless audio, since the PS 3 does the decoding, any HDMI receiver should be able to play the uncompressed PCM tracks.

http://blogs.ign.com/chubigans/2006/12/29/41597/

It's soooo annoying that there is so much misinformation out there. Even manufacturers reps don't always know what they're talking about.

Yes, there is a lot of that problem.

 

[no. 5]

If you are talking about the ability to pass multi-channel PCM that was decoded by a HD-DVD or BluRay player, then you have to wait for HDMI 1.3. You could wait for the forthcoming 705 or 805 which will support 1.3.

I was under the impression that HDMI v1.3a was only necessary if the receiver is to be doing the decoding, and that any version would work if the player was doing the decoding.

And, by the way, congratulations on four chicklits.

 

[darien87]

I was under the impression that HDMI v1.3a was only necessary if the receiver is to be doing the decoding, and that any version would work if the player was doing the decoding.

That's how I understand it as well. The article in the link I posted above says the same thing. But who knows, I've gotten wrong info before.

 

[darien87]

Just to clear things up,

HDMI 1.2 is a capable of doing 8 channels of 192kHz/24-bit audio, DVD-Audio, SACD and HD video. HDMI has always been capable of this since 1.0.

HDMI 1.3 allows for bitstream Dolby True HD and DTS-HD (master audio as well) to be sent out of the player to be decoded inside the receiver or pre/pro.

Some players offer firmware upgrades that allow for Dolby TrueHD and other formats to be decoded internally and converted to 8 channels of 192kHz/24-bit audio for true 7.1 discrete audio on an appropriate receiver or pre/pro.

If you get 1.3 I don't really see much of an advantage, at least not with audio.

Hey Seth,

I don't understand why the 804 only does 5.1 from PCM. If the PS 3 is doing the decoding, shouldn't 5.1, 6.1 and 7.1 all be the same, as far as the receiver is concerned?

 

[Seth=L]

Maybe the Onkyo doesn't have 192/24 bit for all 8 channels, maybe it only has 6.

 

[darien87]

Well, I just checked into H/K receivers to see what they offered, and according to one of their reps, their receivers only do 5.1 from PCM also. But the guy tried to tell me that it was some kind of software licensing issue and didn't have anything to do with their hardware.

Geez. Who's idea was all this HDMI crap anyway?!?!? It sure seems to be a complete ClusterF***! Nobody seems to have the full picture as to what's going on.