Replacing a onkyo receiver tx ds696

[Chessie]

It got fried by lightning last week. Looking for a replacement that would not be a "lesser" unit. Obviously the newer ones have HDMI now, so that will be a plus. How do Onkyos compare today...with Denon or Yamaha...are all three pretty equal?

 

[Chessie]

It got fried by lightning last week. Looking for a replacement that would not be a "lesser" unit. Obviously the newer ones have HDMI now, so that will be a plus. How do Onkyos compare today...with Denon or Yamaha...are all three pretty equal?

I wanted to add...

I'm having a hard time finding one with all the "must haves" that I had before. In addition to the usual things...

100 wpc min...along with:

multi zone/source
phono input
sleep timer

So far, the best I see is the Onkyo TX NR 709 or the HT RC370. Doesn't appear to be much difference in the two.

Any thoughts? Or anyone have another model that I should give thought to? My Onkyo was a kick-butt receiver...I want to replace it with nothing less.

 

[Adam]

Hi, and welcome to the forum!

Receivers have come a long way in terms of audio processing since you bought that Onkyo. One big improvement is the auto setup routines that a lot of them have now that will set the speaker levels, timings, and equalizer settings. The auto equalizer settings on my last two Pioneer receivers made a huge difference in the quality of sound in my system.

What is your budget for this?

IMO, because you can buy a separate pre-amp for a turntable, the lack of a PHONO input doesn't need to be a deal breaker on a receiver. It's always nice to have it all in one package, though.

 

[Chessie]

Hi, and thanks for the reply!

I have replacement-cost insurance, and I really don't want to spend more than what they will pay for. So getting the same features, at least, is what will matter. Also, since it was a very highly rated receiver, I want to replace it with something comparable. I don't want a separate amp for the phono...it was on my old one, so I'd really like it on the new one.

 

[Adam]

Sounds good.

If you can get them to buy the Onkyo TX-NR709 that you mentioned, you'll be sitting pretty. That receiver will blow away your old one, IMO. Being ten years newer, the feature set will make you feel like it's Christmas morning.

 

[Adam]

Oh, and to add to the above - I checked out the Onkyo offerings like you did, and I also didn't see a lower model with all of those features. I might have missed something, but I think that you have a good case for requesting that insurance pay for the 709. It's the same brand (which is very important to some people), it's the same class of receiver (just newer), and it has the feature set that you had before.

 

[Chessie]

Just an update...the insurance dude could find no way to disagree with my choice, and he has agreed to the cost of a 709 (found at H H Greg for $650).

Now I am trying to figure out how to connect everything, and I am having a problem.

I use OTA broadcasting, so I have only a coaxial connection to my new Sharp tv. Bluray is connected to the BluRay/DVD HDMI input...and the HDMI Main out goes to the TV. But the receiver is smart enough to send the audio from the Bluray, to the speakers, and the TV is smart enough (it's a Sharp and apparently these two guys talk to each other - who knew?) to turn off it's speaker when it is receiving input from the BluRay.

However, for the TV broadcast audio, I need to send that back to the receiver, and there are only optical audio outs from the TV, which need to go to the optical connector on the 709, but that option requires no other use of the TV/CD inputs...I think. But I also have a CD player...and that is where I have it plugged in. I am completely confused. Surely there is a way to make all this work? Can anyone "de-confuse" things for me?

 

[bikdav]

Good Point

Hi, and welcome to the forum!

Receivers have come a long way in terms of audio processing since you bought that Onkyo. One big improvement is the auto setup routines that a lot of them have now that will set the speaker levels, timings, and equalizer settings. The auto equalizer settings on my last two Pioneer receivers made a huge difference in the quality of sound in my system.

What is your budget for this?

IMO, because you can buy a separate pre-amp for a turntable, the lack of a PHONO input doesn't need to be a deal breaker on a receiver. It's always nice to have it all in one package, though.

Adam brought up a good point about the phono input issue. In my situation, my current receiver has no phono input. While it might seem like an inconvenience, you have the advantage of choosing a quality phono pre-amp instead of relying on what is already provided in a receiver.

 

[Adam]

Hi, Chessie. That's awesome that insurance covered the 709! I think that you'll enjoy the new features.

Naming of inputs on receivers is for convenience, but you can use them interchangeably (except for the PHONO input which is amplified differently). Now, here's the beautiful thing - you can assign the HDMI and optical jacks to different inputs, and you change the name of the inputs. Ahhh, yeah.

Page 44 of the owner's manual for the 709 begins the discussion of assigning the jacks to different input selections. Page 52 begins the discussion of setting up sources, with editing names discussed on Page 53.

So, to sum up - you can assign the TV/CD (or the "GAME") optical input on the back panel to some other source input selection (such as "CBL/SAT"). Whichever source you pick, that's the button that you'll push on the remote to listen to the TV. If you prefer the receiver front panel to say "TV" or the like instead of "CBL/SAT" (in this example), you can set the receiver up to say that.

I've done that myself on my Pioneer. I have my MacBook connected to an optical input assigned to my "CD" input, but I've edited the name to say "Mac" on the front panel when I select it. I still have to push "CD" on the remote control, but the front panel confirms that I've selected the Mac.