Onkyo TX-NR626 Receiver Review

[ullemann]

Hi Adam - a quick question off-topic: How do I attach a picture from my archive ?? ( I want to show you my dog. )

 

[ullemann]

Thanks, Adam !

Hello Adam - I found it under the "Avanced ..."
Here is my Chicca !

 

[Adam]

Niki and I are out walking right now, but I'll check when we get home.

 

[Adam]

Oops, I was too slow. You posted as I was typing on my phone.

Beautiful pooch!

 

[ullemann]

Our vet guessed she is a mix of German Shepherd and an Irish Setter.
She was abandoned as a puppy and we took her in. She repaid it with love, loyalty and giving us fun.

 

[jcl]

Our vet guessed she is a mix of German Shepherd and an Irish Setter.
She was abandoned as a puppy and we took her in. She repaid it with love, loyalty and giving us fun.

Sweet looking dog. We rescued our dog from a shelter a couple of years ago and she's amazing. The shelter labeled her as a border collie mix, which are supposed to be sensitive dogs according to our trainer and need a different approach to training. Well, it didn't seem to be working all that well for us so we bought a Wisdom Panel dna test off of amazon for around $60 ( the vet wanted $300 which we weren't ready to pay.) Turns out no border collie but equal parts Rottweiler, Great Pyrenees, Spitz, and Chihuahua. Revised training plan worked really well, although she still gets excited by the big brown truck and the neighbor's cat....

 

[ullemann]

Hello jcl and Adam - back to the topic -
I got the manual printed. I am generous and forget about the cost ... !

Then I started playing aroun and tried to do the Audossey calibration - what a mess:
I followed the manual: for the Multi QE Full Calibration.
1. The subwoofer ( JBL active ) should be set to 75db. Starting from the "mid" position of the level knob ( which is the position I used it satisfactorily over the past years ), it reached values around 46-47 db. Gping step by step higher, even setting the subwoofer level at max ( the walls were shaking !!!! ) it did not reach 50 db.
2. Following the manual, which said, if the 75db cannot get reached "ignore it and proceed with next step".
I did. The first speaker to set is/was the left front speaker. I heard a series of sounds like a "boing - boing" coming from the speaker. Three times, every time a little louder.
Then the screen said: "Speaker Detect Error" - which means, according to the manual, that the speaker was not detected.
I re-tried several times more. Always the same result.
Wondering whether the mike might be defective, I placed the mike closer to the speaker. The result said: "Ambient noise too high". ( This indicates to me that the mike is working.)
I moved it a little away, step by step, and got the same results, until it I got the same initial "Speaker Detect Error" text on the screen.

3. Then I tried the Quick Start Calibration. Same results ..... !

4. I went to the speaker set-up and checked the levels, distances, etc.. I verified the distnces with a tape measurer, typed the reslts in, etc.
Then I tried the Audyssey calibration ( both types: Quick MultiEQ Full ) again. I obtained exactly the same results as before.

All this is described in a very confusing way, with references back and forth to other parts/pages of the manual.

After about 2 hrs of useless attempts I gave up.

I am very disappointed and I am seriously considering to return it.

Do you guys have any suggestion ????

 

[Adam]

Hi Ullemann,

Sorry that you're running into this frustration. It's possible that you got a defective unit or mic, so exchanging it might be the best option. However, a couple of questions:

1. How loud is the background noise in your room? When I do my calibrations with those mics, I shut all of my windows and turn off all appliances (including my refrigerator and air conditioning/heating system).

2. How did you have the mic mounted? I put mine on top of a tripod now, but I used to place it on top of a mop handle or books/boxes at ear level. I do not stand in the room when I run the calibration because I don't want to interfere with the acoustics. I had a friend who would get similar errors to what you've described, and then he told me that was just standing in the room holding the mic in his hand. Once I got him to put it on top of something, it worked.

 

[ullemann]

Hi Adam -
I really appreciate your immediate reply - I wish vendors answered as fast and exhaustively as you did .... they don't, even though they get paid for their products and the expected follow-up service! ( I bought the unit from amazon.de. I have contacted the seller by e-mail, but no answer yet ! )

I placed the mike on an empty card-board box and a cushion ( to get to the desired "ear"-height ) as to place it exactly in the position where my head is when I listen.
The room was completely quiet, I waited until my wife was gone to see our daughter and granddaughter. No background noises, at all, were present ( windows shut, etc. ). Also we live in the country side, in an isolated area with no neighbors. The dogs were sleeping in the garage .... ! No heating/cooling was running, we have perfect weather right now... no need !

I was standing ( motionless !!! ) behind the sofa where the mike was placed - not in between the speaker and the mike.

I want to give you a list of the speakers - perhaps they are not compatible ???
SW = Audio Pro Basic Sub ( active )
Front ( left + right ) = JBL Northridge Series E 60
Center = Bose VCS 10
Surround + back = 4 "GBS" KL 350 ( up to 100W ). That is a German company. ( I use the same type speakers for side/surround and back position. )

All speakers are set at the 6 Ohm impedance selection ( Onky prescribes this selection, if any speaker is higher than 6 Ohm. The other selection is 4 Ohm, but none of my speakers is below 6 Ohm ).

I got only to start the calibration of the subwoofer ( and had to skip it because it did not reach the requested 75 db level ) and then the left front speaker. When I got the error message for that left front speaker, there was no way to go forward to calibrate any other ones. The options were: "repeat" or "cancel". After a many useless repeat attempts I had to cancel the calibration.


Perhaps this helps ?

Thanks a lot in advance for taking all that time for me ! I don't know whether I will ever come to Tucson, but I really would like to have a beer with youand say thanks in person !
Ullemann

 

[ullemann]

Hi Adam, is there a simple way to check the mic whether it is working ?
Thanks - Ullemann

 

[ullemann]

Sometimes it is better to squeeze my own brain cells .....I put the jack of the mic in my cell phone and I dictated a message with the SIRI app. ( I also held my thumb over the phone's mic to keep the voice from entering the phone from there. ) The spoken words appeared as written text. That indicates to me that the mic is working.
Correct ???
Tks -
Ullemann

 

[Adam]

Hi, Ullemann. I'm sorry for the delayed response.

I admit that I don't remember the initial check for the subwoofer to be at 75dB. Maybe mine was, so it happened very quickly. I thought that it went straight into sending those "boing" sounds through the left front speaker when I ran the Audyssey setup.

For the "Speaker Detect Error," did it make noise out of any speaker(s) besides the front left speaker? I ask because, if it was trying to make it's way through all of the speakers, it's possible that it didn't detect one (like your center). Have you played something and verified that sound comes out of all of your speakers? If not, double check your wiring and make sure that all speakers are connected.

Again, it's entirely possible that you got a defective unit.

 

[ullemann]

Hi Adam - thanks again for taking time for my problems !http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/images/smilies/smile.gif
All speakers work individually - there is a speaker set-up option and there was sound from each speaker.
Earlier today, I contacted the seller by phone, we went through all and any set-up and installation steps. Everything I had done was right.
Then we did a reset. Same problem after that.
After the reset, we noticed that the "Audyssey"option in the set-up menu was gray-shaded = not selectable, while all other menu steps were in bright white letters = selectable. He said that is a strong indicator for a defect.
He told me to send it back, and as soon as I e-mail them the tracking number they will send a new replacement.
I have to say they were/are very professional and quick ! If I had bought the unit from a local dealer, the time for his reaction would have been longer !
Let's see how the new unit works out ..... ! I will keep you ( and those who read us ) updated.
Many thanks again !!!!
Ullemann

 

[ullemann]

Hello -
I have received the replacement.
After hooking up all components/speakers I tried the Audyssey calibration. First attempt and it worked fine !!
That proves that the first unit has/had a defect.
Unfortunately I have to travel to China for 2 weeks, therefore I won't be able to try out the features of the unit.
For now the only thing I can already say: it sounds great after the Audyssey calibration.
When I get back from China I will play around with it and let you know more !
Have a great week-end y'all !
Ullemann in Italy

 

[fuzz092888]

That's great that the replacement works. Don't forget to try the different Audyssey listening modes (music vs movie or some such thing) since they will sound differently.

Hello -
I have received the replacement.
After hooking up all components/speakers I tried the Audyssey calibration. First attempt and it worked fine !!
That proves that the first unit has/had a defect.
Unfortunately I have to travel to China for 2 weeks, therefore I won't be able to try out the features of the unit.
For now the only thing I can already say: it sounds great after the Audyssey calibration.
When I get back from China I will play around with it and let you know more !
Have a great week-end y'all !
Ullemann in Italy

 

[ullemann]

Hi to all -
I wanted to let everybody know that the Audyssey calibration is an easy-to-do procedure, just a few minutes !
I thought it was a longer and more difficult task ! But it's really easy and fast, just a few minutes.

Ullemann in Italy

 

[fuzz092888]

Don't forget the Audyssey mic positioning chart.

 

[systemreviews]

Hey nice reviews.. It helped me a lot in purchasing this item...
Thanks.

 

[efxguy]

This has helped me at least in knowing this is a common problem. Yet I think it is an update software issue. I did my set up when I got my system in October. Sub even went to 75. All worked with the set up and the reciever was amazing. I just got a new cabinet and shelves in my movie room. So I disconnected the reciever. Put in the cabinet and first checked for updates. There was an update. Well now I am having the same problems, exactly. So a question for you. Did you update software? Did your sub go to the 75?

 

[MonteMallin]

Hello. I bought this receiver a couple weeks ago as it has everything I wanted. So far so good, but I do have some questions and as others have noted, maneuvering around the manual is not easy. I am running the system primarily with phono, but I also want to be able to play CDs through a blue-ray player. I only have two front speakers at the moment, as I am using the unit almost exclusively for music. I do have the bluetooth set up, which is great. SO, my questions are:

1. How can I get it to play louder? I am sure with all this power I can get it louder, but it seems relatively low unless I blast the volume levels all the way up. Is this because I only have two speakers?

2. How can I get the wi-fi to work without plugging in a TV?

3. What's the best way to set up the DVD player to play music? Which connections are recommended?

4. What's the simple set of directions to calibrate the music? I'm not all that smart.

Thanks. I notice that the last discussion on this thread was a year ago. I hope this gets noticed!

MrMonte