CNET editors' take
- Published on: 03/17/2009
Home-theater-in-a-box systems are often associated with tiny speakers and underpowered AV receivers, but Onkyo (like Yamaha) bucks the trend, packing its home theater systems with big, boxy speakers and component-grade AV receivers. The company announced two new HTIB systems this week, both of which look impressive in terms of value, at least from the specification sheet. Let's take a look at the new systems:
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Back panel of the HT-R370, the included receiver on the HT-S3200.
Key features of the Onkyo HT-S3200:
- 5.1 home theater system with 110-watts per channel
- Two-way front and center speakers, each with 3.25-inch woofer and 0.75-inch tweeter
- Smaller rear speakers, each with 3.25-inch woofer
- 110-watt subwoofer with 8-inch driver
- Component-style 5.1 AV receiver
- Audyssey Dynamic Volume and Audyssey Dynamic EQ
- Three HDMI inputs
- Two component video inputs
- Three digital audio inputs (two optical, one coaxial)
- Currently available in black, $380 list price
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Back panel of the HT-R570, the included receiver on the HT-S5200.
Key step-up features of the Onkyo HT-S5200:
- 7.1 home theater system with 130-watts per channel
- Two-way front speakers, each with a 5-inch woofer and 1-inch tweeter
- Three-way center channel with two 3.25-inch woofers and a 1-inch tweeter
- Smaller rear speakers, each with 3.25-inch woofer
- 290-watt subwoofer with 10-inch driver
- Component-style 7.1 AV receiver
- Audyssey 2EQ automatic speaker calibration
- Four HDMI inputs
- Four digital audio inputs (two optical, two coaxial)
- Minijack input on front for connecting to an MP3 player
- Sirius-ready
- Includes Onkyo UP-A1L iPod dock
- Currently available in black and silver, $600 list price
These HTIBs compare favorably to the packages Yamaha announced recently. The HT-S3200 offers one more HDMI input over the comparable priced Yamaha YHT-391BL, although Yamaha's system steps-up to two-way satellite speakers. It's worth noting that neither system features automatic speaker calibration, which seems like an oversight even on these inexpensive systems.
The step-up HT-S5200 outdoes Yamaha's YHT-591BL ($650) when it comes to number of speakers--offering a 7.1 system compared with Yamaha's 5.1 system--but Yamaha's receiver features onboard decoding for Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio. Of course, the true test for these home theater system will be comparing how they actually sound, and we're looking forward to putting Onkyo's and Yamaha's systems head-to-head.
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