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"Wow, what a super receiver for the money!" on by clherbert
Pros: So many hook-up opinions with easy set-up
Cons: None that I can honestly post as of yet
Summary: After quite a bit of research,this is the first receiver I've ever purchased. Written by a true non-audiophile, I found the set-up with the manual to be very easy. I had it up and running in under 5 minutes with HDMI only set-up with the Oppo 981-HD DVD, Scientific 8300 HD cable box, and a Vizio 1080P 47 inch LCD, and Monoprice 24 AWG netjacket cables-one 6 foot and two 3 foot. What a nice set-up with a super receiver. My finshed lower level system shakes the house!
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"Great sound for this Value for money receiver." on by bzgrowllaa
Pros: Lots of hi-end components (HDMI 1.3) and features (Audessy eq) found in a resonably priced player
Cons: The remote is a bit big for my liking.
Summary: FIRST LOOK
Packed well, Instruction manual was pretty good. Remote caught me by surprise with it size.
CONNECTIVITY
Setup was fairly straight forward with customizable digital audio inputs and ability to rename inputs. I have it hooked to my Panasonic 50" plasma, a mixture of Infinity 750's and 1200's Home Theater satellite speakers and a custom made BASH 500W JBL dual subwoofer. My inputs include components like a satellite receiver, a DVD player, a audio/video media player, an Xbox and soon a HTPC. The outputs of these devices vary from s-video to component to HDMI.
SOUND
I have been using the Onkyo for about 2 months now and the receiver has exceeded my expectations both visually and audibly. Movies are very immersible. Music is also very sharp and crisp. The Onkyo is highly customizable also has an nice OSD for tweaking more in depth options. The HDMI out was very convenient but so far I have not been able to get the output running to the plasma's external speakers.
COOLING
The 705 has two silent fans underneath the unit which blow air up over the amp fins. The 605 version does not have these fans from what I have heard. The 605 model according to web forums has an issue with popping. The 705 does not have this issue. The 705 also does a better job of cooling.
OTHER
The receiver has everything you could want in a mid range receiver plus many features only found in Hi-end receivers. Remote is huge but has a manual back lit button on the side. I don't use it as I have a Harmony 880 remote. -
"Amazing Quality for Amazing Value" on by Roman Gladiator
Pros: Sound Quality, Features, Full 1.3, THX, Connections, Set-up, Look and Feel, Heat Management, Blue Light
Cons: None. No clicks, pops, heat issues. Nada.
Summary: Greatest receiver under $1000 out. Full 1.3 Features, Sound is great, and it blows the 605 and 805. No heating issues, infinite connections, 3 HDMI inputs. This receiver is off the charts. This is the true Ultimate Receiver. Amazing Combo of Quality and Value.
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"Not perfect, but VERY good for the price" on by caseyboy
Pros: Does Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD MA, 3 HDMI inputs, pretty easy setup
Cons: Video processing not great, runs very warm, Denon (to my ears) still sounds a little better
Summary: I've been using the TX-SR705 for about a week now. All in all, I'm very pleased with my purchase. Onkyo's receiver lineup for 2007 is very impressive; offering HDMI switching and decoding for both Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD MA for under $1000 (or, for the SR605, under $500) is a pretty amazing value.
My previous receiver was a Denon that was only about a year old. However, it lacked support for the new HD audio codecs and only had two HDMI inputs. To get the features I wanted on a new Denon receiver, I would have had to spend $1200 and still only get two HDMI inputs. After a lot of research, I decided to go with the '705. Denon and Onkyo are really the only two brands I spent much time considering. While Sony, Pioneer, and Yamaha have all gotten a lot better over the last few years, for me they still just don't rank at the top. I still think Denon is the best; to my ears they produce a warmer, more natural sound while the Onkyo is a little "brighter." But, when you factor in the price difference, the Onkyo is hard to pass up.
I found the '705 easy to set up and use. The remote is very good and if you don't want to spend the money on a Logitech Harmony universal, this is a good alternative. While the on-screen display is nowhere close to the new Denon and Sony GUI's, it will still work easily for most people. I've got my DirecTV HD DVR, DVD-recorder/VCR, HD-DVD player, and Blu-ray player all hooked up through the receiver and it handles them all with room to spare. It's powering a 5.1 Bose speaker system. Movies sound GREAT, especially using the new HD audio codecs or uncompressed PCM audio! People who say that "plain old" Dolby Digital and DTS on their DVD is good enough don't know what they're missing!
Sadly, I agree with the Cnet review of the '605 and '805 that video is not as good on this receiver as audio is. The upconverter leaves a lot to be desired. The '705 does poorly when it has to deinterlace an incoming signal and produces noticeable "jaggies." It also seems to lack (or just have really poor) 2:3 pull-down processing. Of course, most all receivers at this price point suffer from video processing problems and you'd have to spend nearly twice as much to get anything with HQV processing, so at least the '705 is not alone here. I'd just suggest leaving any upscaling and deinterlacing to either your TV or disk player.
In the end, I'm very pleased with my purchase and when you consider the price, it's an almost unbeatable combination of quality, features, and budget. If, like me, you just can't bring yourself to spend the money on a Denon, this is a great second best option! -
"Excellent value, excellent preformance" on by HUNTERDEN
Pros: Has all features you could want at an affordable price.
Cons: I can't name a con without being really nit picky
Summary: I have this unit hooked up to my Directv HR-20 and my DVD player via HDMI with KEF 5005.2 as my speakers. Sound quaility is outstanding and I swear the HD picture is better passing the picture through my reciever then when I had my HR-20 connected directly to my TV via HDMI.
Onkyo TX-SR705 user reviews (black)
Where to Buy
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