Onkyo TX-SR805 AV Receiver Review

[admin]

The Onkyo TX-SR805 represents the current pinnacle of value at its price point. It sounds good, decodes all the latest HD audio codecs, sports a large power supply, has an impressive feature set, THX Ultra2 certification, and Audyssey MultEQ at a price well below what the competition offers. This high level of value is not just limited to this particular model; Onkyo has spread value and features across their entire product line. Onkyo has resurged into the market as a serious player once again and clearly upped the ante with the TX-SR805. Highly recommended.

Discuss "Onkyo TX-SR805 AV Receiver Review " here. Read the article.

 

[Seth=L]

How bout some power benchtests?

Seriously though, I was anxious to see AH do a review and it is a pretty good review. Since video processing doesn't concern me (at least not in the receiver) it seems like a great deal and something to look into in the future.

 

[mike c]

anybody know if the onkyo models feature different crossovers for every speakers set? (FL FR, C, SL SR, BL BR)

if it does, which models does that start with? 6xx?

 

[MDS]

It was a good review and I'm glad to finally see a review of an Onkyo receiver as I've been buying them for years.

One clarification though: IntelliVolume is not dynamic compression. IV just allows you to set an offset between different source inputs - so if your cable box connected to Video 1 seems to be about 3 dB louder than the dvd player connected to DVD, you can set IV to -3 dB for the Video 1 input in an attempt to keep the volume levels somewhat consistent as you switch sources. It's nice but doesn't work so well for things like cable because each and every channel can have a different level.

 

[mike c]

yeah, my denon has an audio input adjustment as well ... and even the different DVD movies have huge db swings between movies.

 

[davo]

Good, solid review - not a single mention of "dance-able" or "proverbial foot tapping". Well done.

Now about the 'running hot issue'. Is the amount of heat coming out a result of a better design to eject the heat? I would rather have it out than in.

Anyone (cough audioholics cough) want to crack a few amps open and report on actual heat inside the amp next to the source?

 

[MDS]

I can't speak to the heat issue directly but Brain Florian of Secrets did a review on it and he found that the HDMI-CEC feature was a major culprit of the heat.

If you aren't aware that is the feature whereby remote control codes are sent over the HDMI interface. Onkyo has new name for it (which escapes me at the moment) but it is similar to their old RI (Remote Interactive) feature that does things like turn on the receiver and select the DVD input when the DVD player is turned on. You can easily imitate the same behavior with a universal remote and I suspect most people will have no use for the HDMI interactive feature so you can turn it off and see how that affects the heat.

 

[fmw]

I have a question, please. I'm about to replace my 605 because it generates pops and tics that jump all around the various speakers whenever it is in the Dolby Digital mode. It doesn't do it all the time but it does it enough to distract me during a movie. Did you hear any of these artifacts from the 805? I'm thinking about getting a Yamaha to avoid this problem. Hopefully the 805 doesn't have it. My 605 is perfectly satisfactory in every other way.

 

[DavidW]

anybody know if the onkyo models feature different crossovers for every speakers set? (FL FR, C, SL SR, BL BR)

if it does, which models does that start with? 6xx?

The crossovers are independent by speaker set.

 

[DavidW]

I have a question, please. I'm about to replace my 605 because it generates pops and tics that jump all around the various speakers whenever it is in the Dolby Digital mode. It doesn't do it all the time but it does it enough to distract me during a movie. Did you hear any of these artifacts from the 805? I'm thinking about getting a Yamaha to avoid this problem. Hopefully the 805 doesn't have it. My 605 is perfectly satisfactory in every other way.

No ticks or pops on the 805.

If you have a 605 and it suffers ticks and pops, sounds like a defect.

Onkyo has a two year warranty, depending on how long ago you bought it, exchange it for new at the store or get it into Onkyo for service if it is beyond store exchange period policy.

 

[rnatalli]

Good, solid review - not a single mention of "dance-able" or "proverbial foot tapping".

I thought Onkyo's have a lot of "slam."

 

[fmw]

Thanks. The popping problem is pretty common. I read about it from many 605 owners. I think the design itself might be defective. Glad to hear the 805 doesn't show the problem.

 

[davo]

I thought Onkyo's have a lot of "slam."

They do!!

I was having a lingering poke at a certain speaker cable reviewer. Those who know, know.

 

[gliz]

I own a 605 and have had no issues with it. On Onkoy"s site right on the front page there is a firmware upgrade. enter in the serial number on yours and see if it is one that needs it. Mine did not.

 

[rnatalli]

Add those $7,500 "danceable" cables and you're gold.

P.S. I know you're poking fun, as am I

 

[autoboy]

What a great review and thanks for going over the video processing features that had me so confused. I was under the impression that the 805 had some scaling features built into it, not just an average SD deinterlacer.

I am actually looking at the 875 for it's SD and HD video processing capabilities. My cable box allows native output of content and it would be great to let the receiver do all the work on the difficult 1080i deinterlacing.

I have one question about the bass management on this receiver. I have an Axiom Audio setup, m60s, vp100, qs8, and an SVS PB12-NSD. Since the vp100 and qs8's bass capabilities are limited, I would prefer to cross them over at 100hz, while the main m60s get crossed at 50-60hz. If I set the SVS sub to a 80hz crossover, what happens to the bass from the center between 100 and 80 hz? Does it still get routed to the sub? Does it get routed to the mains? Or does it just dissappear because this is not a good setup?

 

[swestbom]

DSD check please

Could someone at Audioholics hook up something like an Oppo Digital 980 to check out DSD over HDMI with the 805?

 

[AVRat]

autoboy, just disable the x-over on the sub and set the x-overs appropriately in the receiver. That frequency range will have diminished output doing it the way you mention.

 

[jliedeka]

Even though I'm more biased towards Yamaha and Denon, the Onkyo 805 is on my short list for my next receiver. I actually consider it a plus that is only does deinterlacing/transcoding since I don't really need the receiver to do that anyway. I just want it to deinterlace my VCR and Xbox composite outputs.

I'm betting the heat issue isn't too serious at normal playback volumes. It sounds like the Onkyo will meet my needs and the street price is <$900.

Jim

 

[edmcanuck]

Not to get too nit-picky, but...

weighing in at over 50 pounds, it is a bit heftier than many run of the mill midrange components. Actually, at its asking price, the TX-SR805 outweighs other competitive receivers by about 10 lbs, an increase of 125% over the typical weight.

40lbs to 50lbs is in no country's math-system a 125% increase. It's a 25% increase.