I was happy to get the notice from Yamaha a few days ago about these units coming out and the price and features on the 663 are good and will keep Yamaha in the ball game as far as quality and afford ability to the budget conscience consumers, especially those who want to upgrade to the new HD audio codecs and not get into a huge issue with the spouse about why do you need a new receiver? But when I started reading about the two new units and looking at them I thought that Yamaha was going a little too cheap. The wattage outputs aren't that hot matter of fact I was disappointed in them. The power cable looks cheap, why isnt it detachable? For 400 bucks more and the only real addition is HD radio and an HDMI input?? What kind of scaler are they using? $400 more and one would think at least ABT or Reon would be listed. But, I cant find anything specified.
And as far as the second sub out if the YPAO isnt using it to make seperate sub assignments or decoding for 7.2 audio then isnt it the same as just hooking up another sub to the first one as a line out? My JBL sub has a line out for that reason to connect a second sub in series. I dont see the big deal for 2 sub outs other wise. Dont get me wrong I love my Yammy 795A I have to of them in my house and am looking for a new reciever for the new HDMI HD codecs but still cant decide. Right now Onkyo or Integra are in the lead for me. Any thoughts?
Here's the problems with the Onkyo/Integra stuff...
The Onkyo TX-SR605 does not feature preouts, as the RX-V663 does. The Onkyo has reported issues with popping and general HDMI issues. Many claim that the TX-SR605 doesn't sound that good (I have a hard time believing that). The TX-SR605 does not feature a scaler.
The Onkyo TX-SR705 is a jump up in price and adds preouts, it still has no scaler. It adds some connectivity as well. I haven't heard much about this model concerning SQ or HDMI issues.
The Onkyo TX-SR805 is a mamoth receiver but has arguably mamoth problems. It produces a lot of heat (as does the Integra DTR-7.8). The heat issue could cause the receiver to break down quicker as well as other components on your AV rack affected by the heat it produces. I hear the TX-SR805 has a scaler but it's hidden, it's not likely that most people will be using it (it is not mentioned in the user manual apparently).
In regards to your concerns about the "wattages", they probably aren't necessary. The highly aclaimed Yamaha RX-V659 was reputable for it's stellar amplifier performance for the price. The Yamaha RX-V663 and RX-V863 both use this same amplifier. Quite simply, if you don't need those extra digital inputs, additional HDMI input, and the HD radio, go with the RX-V663. I believe they both use an older version of an ABT scaler.
Yamaha and Denon both have good track records of having good HDMI handshaking and functionality, Onkyo/Integra are a bit less reputable in this regard.
You will spend over $1000 to get a Reon HQV scaler in a receiver, fact is you are better off getting an Oppo or an HD DVD player on the cheap to scale your old DVDs. The PS3 is a good scaling player as well.
