Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Onkyo TX-NR708 7.2-Channel Network Home Theater Receiver (Black)

I chose Onkyo TX-NR708 because of two key features that I can not live without. VGA video in and Ethernet connection. I have looked at many different receivers but they did not support VGA input. All of my home theater equipment is hooked up to the TX-NR708 and I solely require one HDMI cable from the Box. The set up is very uncomplicated to make For you who have done this earlier, it should not be any trouble what so ever. The rear of the unit is very well geared up and every connection is labeled clearly. There is A LOT of connections, which is nice, outstanding for future expansion. Roughly everything can be set up by using the receivers "ON SCREEN DISPLAY".

I experience absolutely no problems having this unit communicate with my other devices. These are the devices I have now connected to the TX-NR708: Xbox 360 (via HDMI), PC ( via HDMI), PS3 (via HDMI), HD Cable receiver (via HDMI), Dreamcast ( via VGA), VCR ( via composite) and last Game Cube via the component input. All of these goes to my brand new Samsung LN46C630 which is also connected with HDMI. Up-conversion is great and works perfect. And there was no trouble with the DCDi Cinema processing.

When it comes to the speakers, I am using a 7.1 system and I could not have been happier with the sound. The auto set up option is fine to have but if you are like me and solely want the best you will have to do various tweaking by your self.

I also tested network radio and it is a really pleasant feature. as well as listen to music from my PC. You could also update the TX-NR708´s firmware instantly via the network/internet which is a plus. I could also connect to my PC which is using Windows 7. I use a Logitech Harmony One, which works fantastic with the NR708. I did try the "original" remote controller while I was setting up my home audio system for the first few days. And from that, I can tell you that it was extremely uncomplicated to use and worked nice as well. I also know that it can be programmed to operate other devices, however I did not try this functionality of the remote control.

The sound is wonderful, in particular when playing music, and that is 1 thing I luv about this TX-NR708. Some units I've experienced do the whole movie/surround effects great, but lack when it comes to good old music playback. This unit has got the audio quality that is sufficient for listening to 2 channel stereo music, if you have some good speakers of course. It also definitely supplies a healthy amount of power to the channels to drive a wide range of speakers.

The front display is very great and gives you the data you require. You can change the brightness and the back light on the volume control can be switched off. The option, Pure Mode will let you turn off the TX-NR708´s display. the solely thing you will see is a LED indicating that the recieiver is in "Pure Mode".

For the advanced users, there is plenty of options to fiddle with to get the receiver sounding the way you'd like. Again, since this receiver has On-Screen-Display, making adjustments is a breeze. You do not need anymore to sit and stare at the small display on the front. You can do it all through a lovely and simple to use Graphic User Interface on your TV. Also, it accepts a broad range of different loudspeaker impedances.

I have used it daily and it has not let me down.

This is also worth to mention.... The Onkyo TX-NR708 is much more cool than my previous Onkyo receiver.

The connections on the front are also a great addition. I have 2 HD video-cameras that I can now easily connect to the receiver through HDMI via the front panel HDMI port. There is also a front panel USB port, composite connections, 1/8" mini jack line input, input for calibration microphone, and of course a headphone output; plenty and surely convenient!

For all these reason I give the TX-NR708 5 stars. You do not want anything more than what you will get with this avr. It exceeded my expectations.

/AudioSystemReviews

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