The Official Onkyo TX-NR509 Receiver Spot! - Blu-ray Forum

solarrdadd · 04-22-2011, 02:59 AM

Keeping in line with releasing new A/V technology, feature packed, affordable for the masses, Onkyo has released some of it's newest models for 2011. Included in this line is the TX-NR509 A/V Receiver. Yes, you guessed it, that "N" in the model is for networking as this receiver is network ready for home network music streaming, internet radio, network firmware updates, DLNA, just about anything network--this will do it!

here is a shot of the front & back of the receiver:

very nice. here is a link to the official Onkyo TX-NR509 model page

it's available at lots of places including amazon & newegg. i purchased mine at newegg and got it for $343.99 with free 3 day shipping. this is beyond just simple entry level, Onkyo has stepped up entry level means by giving you a receiver that supports iOS devices with direct USB plug & play, iOS control app ready, HDMI 1.4a 3D ready, internet radio, home network ready, SACD/DSD support, Audyssey 2EQ & Dynamic Volume, Dynamic EQ, Zone 2, Windows 7 support and more...and they call this entry level, huh!

i sold my TX-SR308 receiver which i loved but more than anything, wanted network support so i could listen to my hi-rez FLAC files and WMALL music on my NAS with or without my tv on. when i saw this was released and at the price, i had to jump on it.

it pumps out 80wpc and that's more than enough for my small basement offices secondary HT setup. i'm powering 3 Axiom M2v3's for fronts and a pair of ceiling mounted QS4v3's for surrounds (on brackets) and an Emotiva Ultra Sub 10 to round out my 5.1 system in my office (my small secret hiding place). the supporting cast are an Oppo 83 & a HD Cable DVR; everything video is HDMI.

i have not done the actual calibration program through Audyssey yet (i will later) as i just wanted to make sure the most important features work, you know, like it powered up, sound came out of the proper speakers, video showed up on the tv like it was supposed to, you know, stuff like that!

the first thing i did after checking for sound and picture output was to do a firmware update that i knew was available for the receiver. i selected update in the setup menu and away it went. i didn't have to do a thing except wait for it to say it was complete and do a power restart by pushing the power button on the receiver and it was done in less than 5 minutes.

i did test an SACD/DSD 5.1 and it worked fine, sounded great too (Steely Dan: Gaucho), HBO on HD Cable in 5.1, The Fith Element blu-ray Lossless audio & streamed music from my NAS--Elton John, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road 96khz/24bit & Rush, Moving Pictures 96khz/24bit and everything looked and sounded as incredible as it should have.

the front USB is where you plug your iOS device in and listen to music from it. it's a very basic overlay and like the networking feature, it does not give album art but does give info like artist name, song name and album name on your tv & on the screen of the receiver which having it show up on the receiver face is nice so you don't actually have to have your tv on to listen to music either from your iOS device, your network or internet radio. everything can be navigated and operated from the receiver screen; this is a plus! oh yeah, yes it does charge your iOS device while it's plugged into the receiver--whether the receiver is powered on or in standby mode...sweet!

another nice feature is 7 channel audio. now, while the amp section inside the unit doesn't support more than 5 channels it does offer pre-outs for the surround back l&r channels so you can get an external amp and drive those two back channels should you ever want them so your not necessarily paying for the amp power now and not using it; get the amp when you want or need it...cause you just might not!

then again, you just might!

for anyone that has a small to small-medium area, wants lots of the newest features listed and not want to spend a lot of money, i do highly recommend this receiver. and hey, who made up the rule that you have to spend a lot of money go get great, modern features; i'm here to break that and a few other rules with the Onkyo TX-NR 509 Receiver.

Thus far, no regrets, everything works! i'll keep you all posted as i move along with it. you all know i'm a big Onkyo fan owning the 5507 pre-amp and recently selling the TX-SR308 receiver and before the pre-amp i had the incredible, TX-SR 805 (in a class by itself) receiver so yes, I do love me some Onkyo. they have always done right by me.

Ok, excuse me while i go and register this great receiver with Onkyo. I'll ieep you all posted.

Hillside Trece · 04-22-2011, 04:21 AM

Thanks for the post, Solar...I still don't know what to make of the new faceplate design Onkyo is going with. Upon first glance, I don't like it especially compared to the concave-style faces in the previous generations; someone mentioned the new design looks too Sony, and that's true -- and NOT where Onkyo wants to be, by a long shot (when discussing AVRs).

Their new stereo receiver has this faceplate design, too, and I'm glad I bought my TX-8555 when I did for my two channel system, as I still don't know if this new look will grow on me...but, in the plus column, this is also the design the company is using with their new high end hi fi separates, which it definitely complements, so I'm not sure yet...

As for the 509, it looks like a great model for that level -- I had a TX-SR600 which put out 80 watts X 6, and although it was good once you got it rocking, I won't personally go back to anything under 100 per channel in the future.

ZoetMB · 04-22-2011, 04:25 AM

One of the things I've never liked about Onkyo receivers, even the high-end ones, is that they never include digital optical or coaxial outputs. I have a stand-alone CD-R unit that takes digital in so I need/want this.

And even though most AV receivers have an analog audio output for recording, none of them have tape loops anymore. I still want to be able to monitor at the recording device to make sure the cable connections are good, etc.

Also, IMO, any receiver that wants to call itself a "networked receiver" should have WiFi built in. If Sony can do it for their 570 Blu-ray player, the receiver manufactures can do it too. And whatever happened to Ethernet over HDMI? It's part of the HDMI 1.4 spec and as far as I know, not one manufacturer has implemented it as yet.

I see this receiver has component and composite video, but no s-video. That doesn't quite make sense to me. What would be more logical to me is that low-end receivers have legacy connections and high-end receivers don't, because it's more likely that someone who spent a lot of money on a high-end receiver has also replaced their older peripherals. Personally, I could live with only one composite, one component and one s-video connector and that would be more than enough (although it wouldn't be for someone who still had a Betamax player, a VHS deck, one or more Laserdisc players and some game machines with analog video, in addition to HDMI sources). I'd probably only wind up using one of them and that only to support an old VHS deck.

(But that's just me.)

Hillside Trece · 04-22-2011, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ZoetMB

One of the things I've never liked about Onkyo receivers, even the high-end ones, is that they never include digital optical or coaxial outputs. I have a stand-alone CD-R unit that takes digital in so I need/want this.

And even though most AV receivers have an analog audio output for recording, none of them have tape loops anymore. I still want to be able to monitor at the recording device to make sure the cable connections are good, etc.

It's funny you mentioned "tape loops" and CD-R recorders; I just discussed this on another audiophile forum because I was in the market for a graphic EQ for my two channel system, and my Onkyo TX-8555 which runs that system doesn't have a TAPE LOOP...

Indeed, it's been awhile since I've seen any product with a TAPE 2/MONITOR loop and I am trying to figure out a way around this to connect an EQ to my two channel setup...and I too have a CD recorder, a professional grade TASCAM.

With regard to your standalone CD-R burner: If it has DIGITAL IN, of course, why couldn't you just connect your CD player/changer to the DIGITAL IN jacks, as I do? Are you trying to record more than just one digital source?

solarrdadd · 04-23-2011, 02:08 PM

last night before going to bed i turned on the receiver with the remote app from my bedroom on my iPad2 and set the volume and selected it to play all from my NAS so that i could run a little bit of a stress test and also make sure the app was working properly. my girlfriend told me this morning that i left some music playing in the basement. i said that's great news cause i turned it on from the iPad while laying in bed to performe the test. she thought that was kinda cool!

while it wasn't an incredibly loud volume (and i don't listen to things at incredibly loud volumes either) i did test for 2 things. one was that the unit would fail or quit from a fault of running for more than 6 hours straight. the second was to see how hot the unit would be from being on at a volume that i would be using real world for an extended period of time.

well it passed both test with flying colors. it was almost barely noticable temp wise and considering it was on for 10hrs non stop and the fact that it's an Onkyo and in the past, they did run hot, this was a good thing. they have come a long way in how they build and heat sink their amp sections. yes, i know it's a small amp section but i'm still happy to see how cool it actually is here at 10am EST considering i turned it on yesterday at 11pm!

so far, everything is working out just fine. i can see from some of the post that some of you are not happy about the unit with your reasons given; i respect them of course. as an owner of the unit, and my needs for my small secondary HT it is more than enough and it's got all the features i could want and need in it for it's intended use. i still highly recommend this unit to anyone. price to performance, dollar for dollar, so far i see this unit as incredible buy.

glad and proud i went with it. this is todays Onkyo!

Hillside Trece · 04-24-2011, 06:15 AM

Great feedback and input, Solar! I for one totally respect your decision to go with the 509; it's not that I don't like it, just from surface glances at the images you provided, it's just that I don't know what to make of their new design for the faceplates and chassis yet -- it does, to me, in some ways scream "Sony AVR" and that's NOT a good thing. On the other hand, I love the way this new look appears on Onkyo's high-end stereo separates, which they have just launched...

solarrdadd · 04-24-2011, 04:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hillside Trece

Great feedback and input, Solar! I for one totally respect your decision to go with the 509; it's not that I don't like it, just from surface glances at the images you provided, it's just that I don't know what to make of their new design for the faceplates and chassis yet -- it does, to me, in some ways scream "Sony AVR" and that's NOT a good thing. On the other hand, I love the way this new look appears on Onkyo's high-end stereo separates, which they have just launched...

nope, not a problem buddy. i use it for my secondary system in my basement office. i'm not a live and die guy in this thing like so many people are or claim to be. i want nice things that work first and are as simple as possible. price is always important to me as well. for it's use it offers way more power than i need so im covered there and plenty of features that i wanted.

i know it's not gonna be for everyone and in most cases not for most of the folks here cause of the entry level lable, onkyo brand and other reasons too. but like i said, i'm easy to please, i love the onkyo brand and it does what i need it to do and i didn't have to spend a ton of money. i got one last kid in college and money is important.

i'm very happy with it, the looks of it are fine by me because i'm not looking at it when i'm watching a movie or listening to music. it's not ugly but for some it's not what they want to see in a receiver. i don't want tuna with good taste, i want tuna that taste good!

i just put up this thread to let folks who might have been or are interested in the unit what i think about it as an owner. everyones comments are welcome as long as they are civil to each other!

Hillside Trece · 04-26-2011, 04:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by solarrdadd

nope, not a problem buddy. i use it for my secondary system in my basement office. i'm not a live and die guy in this thing like so many people are or claim to be. i want nice things that work first and are as simple as possible. price is always important to me as well. for it's use it offers way more power than i need so im covered there and plenty of features that i wanted.

Gotcha. Something similar to what I was trying to explain in some other threads that were getting so technical and some people attempting to be so aggressive with what "has to be" and what we "must adhere to" and how if we don't our systems are completely unlistenable -- absolute nonsense.

Quote:

i know it's not gonna be for everyone and in most cases not for most of the folks here cause of the entry level lable, onkyo brand and other reasons too. but like i said, i'm easy to please, i love the onkyo brand and it does what i need it to do and i didn't have to spend a ton of money. i got one last kid in college and money is important.

Well, I'm not sure if you're referring to Onkyo as being "entry level" when you say "label," but I don't agree with that if you are saying it -- sure, there are entry level products in their lineup, such as the very receiver we're discussing here, but the brand itself is far from what I would call an entry level beginner's type basic product maker; as you go up in product lineup scale, their gear gets more and more sophisticated. But you do say that you love the Onkyo brand, so perhaps you meant something else. Indeed, to have to put kids through college it's tough, and this company definitely gives you bang for the buck, no doubt -- I wanted something a lot more sophisticated and powerful than the 605 when I was shopping for it, but we just couldn't afford it, so I know what you mean. The 605 ended up having everything we needed to get into high def and Blu-ray codec decoding, and it still does after all these years.

Quote:

i'm very happy with it, the looks of it are fine by me because i'm not looking at it when i'm watching a movie or listening to music. it's not ugly but for some it's not what they want to see in a receiver. i don't want tuna with good taste, i want tuna that taste good!

I understand; I happen to be one of those people that like to look at my gear as it's in action, so the faceplates have always been up to scrutiny for me -- even when listening to my two channel system.

Quote:

i just put up this thread to let folks who might have been or are interested in the unit what i think about it as an owner. everyones comments are welcome as long as they are civil to each other!

Well, that last statement seems to be a stretch for many lately on here, but I for one am trying my best to do that for you with this thread (keep it civil and stimulate positive feedback and comment tracks). Appreciate your input about the receiver. I still don't know what to make of its new faceplate design, but as I said, I like the way it looks on Onkyo's new high end hi fi separates line (a bit different in execution here, but similar):

http://www.onkyousa.com/model.cfm?m=...=Reference&p=i

http://www.onkyousa.com/model.cfm?m=...=Reference&p=i

And their new stereo receiver:

http://www.onkyousa.com/model.cfm?m=...s=Receiver&p=i

beefytwinkie · 04-26-2011, 05:23 AM

That new design looks nice! I like it. Looking into getting a cheap budget receiver for my computer this summer.

Thanks for all the input in this thread, guys.

Hillside Trece · 04-26-2011, 05:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by beefytwinkie

That new design looks nice! I like it. Looking into getting a cheap budget receiver for my computer this summer.

You mean a cheap budget stereo model? If so, the new 8050 is a nice model, but I have to say...don't let this company's MSRP ratings on their products fool you -- I own the TX-8555 100 watt X 2 stereo receiver which is powering my dedicated two-channel/music listening system, and this thing is a beast...overbuilt with solid, all-aluminum controls, crisp, clean power and an overall vibe that just screams "underpriced" for what you pay for this thing. Don't look at the new 8050 as a "cheap, budget" solution for your computer -- think of it is as a great value in an overachieving stereo receiver solution! Of course, the 8050 isn't here yet, and I haven't heard it, but if it looks and performs like my 8555, it's going to be a steal in the hi fi sector.

beefytwinkie · 04-26-2011, 05:55 AM

I was looking into at least getting 5.1 for my computer. I needs to know where the zombies are coming from! I was looking at the Yamaha RX-V371. It's only 229 on Newegg. That's not too shabby. Maybe I'll even grab a speaker set. Something like the RM75 set. I have a PSW10 to go with it.

I have to stop typing now. I'm close to buying the darn thing just thinking about it! Damn you guys!

Hillside Trece · 04-26-2011, 06:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by beefytwinkie

I was looking into at least getting 5.1 for my computer. I needs to know where the zombies are coming from! I was looking at the Yamaha RX-V371. It's only 229 on Newegg. That's not too shabby. Maybe I'll even grab a speaker set. Something like the RM75 set. I have a PSW10 to go with it.

Oh, okay -- I thought you were responding to the images I posted of their hi fi separates and new stereo receiver...

beefytwinkie · 04-26-2011, 06:26 AM

Cool! The P-3000R and C-7000R look damn sexy. I'd love to put them side by side with an Emotiva ERC-2. And that's another thing I want...

I've never actually listened to just a stereo receiver. I bet they sound great since they have all their components just dedicated to putting out two channels.

I'll have to stop by an audio store some time and demo some of these new receivers. So much new stuff coming out.

solarrdadd · 04-26-2011, 10:42 PM

hillside, i wasn't calling Onkyo Brand "entry level" i was referring to the TX-NR509; it's considered an entry level receiver. i own the PR-SC5507P Pre-Amp and i can tell you there nothing entry level about it so no, that was not a statement against Onkyo. I love onkyo!

Hillside Trece · 04-27-2011, 04:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by beefytwinkie

Cool! The P-3000R and C-7000R look damn sexy. I'd love to put them side by side with an Emotiva ERC-2. And that's another thing I want...

Yeah...those components look absolutely breathtaking -- I wish I could afford 'em. They're a bit too pricey for me. Is that Emotiva a CD player or another kind of component?

Quote:

I've never actually listened to just a stereo receiver. I bet they sound great since they have all their components just dedicated to putting out two channels.

They do -- most "audiophile" types immediately disregard stereo receivers as pointless and useless for stereo applications, but with the right one picked, they're really not. For less money than an integrated amp (most of the time), a good quality one can kick some serious behind with the right speaker setup as well -- Onkyo, Denon, Yamaha, Outlaw, Onkyo's Integra division and some others are still making good stereo receivers for two channel applications. Sony makes one, but I'd steer clear of that model. There are also REALLY cheap models from Sherwood, Insignia (Best Buy's brand) and some others that should really be avoided.

I use a stereo receiver as the dedicated unit for my separate two channel music only system -- you get good amplification (with the Onkyo TX-8555 that I use) plus a tuner and preamp in one solid chassis.

Quote:

I'll have to stop by an audio store some time and demo some of these new receivers. So much new stuff coming out.

These are hard to find in stores today unless you find one in a Circuit City (if the store is still open) or Best Buy, and these are normally cheap and should be avoided; not too many dedicated audio shops for good quality stuff around, depending on where you live, but I know that in New York City, there's a J&R Music World which is one of the last of a dying breed of respectable shops for demoing gear and getting good advice...they carry Onkyo and I actually bought my first surround system from them...many people buy gear online from them now.

solarrdadd · 04-27-2011, 01:23 PM

belive it or not, if you have a cd/blu player that has "volume" control built into it (Oppo 83, 93 & 95) and said unit has stereo RCA outputs you can buy say a 2 channel amp (Emotiva UPA-2) you can use those stereo outputs, connect them directly to the amp IC inputs and connect a pair of speakers to that and you have a beautiful, super powerfull 2 channel system!

i've tried it with my UPA-2 and my 93 for a test and it works like a charm. now you've got a dedicated 125wpc ( 125wpc @ 8ohm & 185wpc @ 4ohm) 2 channel amp, your player (Oppo) that you can use to play everything including networked music from your pc or NAS, blu-ray audio, SACD, DVD-a & CD's and you can control the volume of everything with the Oppo remote (yes it has a volume control on it!)

if you wanted to use the mentioned amp with a different player that doesn't have a volume control feature built into it, no problem, the emotiva amp UPA-2 has a built in adjustable gain control knob on the back of it that will allow for manual adjustment to the volume output the the speakers from the input source so you simply set said knob to a level that your happy with and your good to go. you will simply have to adjust it to change said level of sound.

that would make a hellova 2 channel system, the emo UPA-2 & oppo 93 and for under $900 shipped--hard to beat that

Hillside Trece · 04-28-2011, 04:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by solarrdadd

belive it or not, if you have a cd/blu player that has "volume" control built into it (Oppo 83, 93 & 95) and said unit has stereo RCA outputs you can buy say a 2 channel amp (Emotiva UPA-2) you can use those stereo outputs, connect them directly to the amp IC inputs and connect a pair of speakers to that and you have a beautiful, super powerfull 2 channel system!

i've tried it with my UPA-2 and my 93 for a test and it works like a charm. now you've got a dedicated 125wpc ( 125wpc @ 8ohm & 185wpc @ 4ohm) 2 channel amp, your player (Oppo) that you can use to play everything including networked music from your pc or NAS, blu-ray audio, SACD, DVD-a & CD's and you can control the volume of everything with the Oppo remote (yes it has a volume control on it!)

if you wanted to use the mentioned amp with a different player that doesn't have a volume control feature built into it, no problem, the emotiva amp UPA-2 has a built in adjustable gain control knob on the back of it that will allow for manual adjustment to the volume output the the speakers from the input source so you simply set said knob to a level that your happy with and your good to go. you will simply have to adjust it to change said level of sound.

that would make a hellova 2 channel system, the emo UPA-2 & oppo 93 and for under $900 shipped--hard to beat that

Solar,

Could this procedure also be applied to non-two channel systems? In other words, I seem to have plenty of power for my two-channel system with a 100 WPC Onkyo stereo receiver, and my Marantz CD changer in that system doesn't have a volume control (I know what you're talking about; my previous Marantz changer did, as does my Oppo BDP-83 BD player).

However, I am looking for a lot more power for my HT system in which my Polk RTi12 mains could benefit from much more juice (they're being powered by an Onkyo 605 surround AVR with 90 WPC) -- so could I do what you describe above to feed those speakers more power through, say, an Emotiva because my receiver doesn't have preouts? If that's the case, how does the setup work -- the Oppo's RCA stereo outs get fed to the Emotiva for signal, but what about the player's HDMI out which I'm using now for bitstreamed audio and high def video?

solarrdadd · 04-28-2011, 11:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hillside Trece

Solar,

Could this procedure also be applied to non-two channel systems? In other words, I seem to have plenty of power for my two-channel system with a 100 WPC Onkyo stereo receiver, and my Marantz CD changer in that system doesn't have a volume control (I know what you're talking about; my previous Marantz changer did, as does my Oppo BDP-83 BD player).

However, I am looking for a lot more power for my HT system in which my Polk RTi12 mains could benefit from much more juice (they're being powered by an Onkyo 605 surround AVR with 90 WPC) -- so could I do what you describe above to feed those speakers more power through, say, an Emotiva because my receiver doesn't have preouts? If that's the case, how does the setup work -- the Oppo's RCA stereo outs get fed to the Emotiva for signal, but what about the player's HDMI out which I'm using now for bitstreamed audio and high def video?

the problem would be for HT use that with the system setup connected from the oppo 83 to say an XPA-5 amp is that it's only good if your only ever gonna use the 83. it won't work with anything else because the speakers will be connected to the amp which is connected directly to the oppo.

my recommendation of said setup is best served for a dedicated 2 channel only setup because the oppo would be the only thing being used that's connected directly to the amp. if you were only ever gonna use the oppo and the amp as a system then you could do the following for 5 channel HT use (keep in mind that the oppo now becomes the a/v pre-amp and is only useful with it's own functions)
if your using the oppo yes, you could connect it directly to say an emotiva XPA-5via RCA's and set up your speakers via the speaker setup in the oppo menu. you would not be able to use the sound from the HDMI, that would only be used for video. in the setup menu of the oppo 83 you can go to hdmi audio and select off so no audio is being sent out. you would connect your hdmi directly to your monitor/hdtv for 1080p video only. you would have to work at it calibration wise at the oppo end in the setup menu but if your willing to deal with it, yeah, it could be done.

Hillside Trece · 04-29-2011, 08:33 AM

Thank you for the explanation -- indeed, the only component I use in my HT is the Oppo BDP-83, so this could work I suppose...

BUT...

I don't like the idea of losing bitstreaming of the advanced codecs via HDMI from the 83 to my Onkyo 605, and needing to go through the audio setup menu of the 83...

Let me ask you this: If just the stereo outs of the Oppo are being used (analog RCAs) to feed, say, the front two channels of an amp like the Emotiva, how would this work with the rest of the multichannel speaker arrangement? In other words, I still would have three other speakers -- the center channel and the two surrounds -- so these would remain connected to the Onkyo, correct? Just the RTi12 mains (in my case) would be seeing power from the Emotiva...

But how would this work?

solarrdadd · 04-29-2011, 09:49 PM

it's getting deeper than i thought and way off thread topic. i will say this in closing, it will work for simple 2 channel audio or for multichannel as long as the oppo analog outs supply the IC for the amp. mixing audio between the bitstream via hdmi to a receiver for some channels and the analog outs to a seperate amp for certain channels might cause timing issues between the channels and other potential issues. you know they say lossless is supposed to be lossless (i'm not saying it's true either) but you would still be getting lossless audio from the analog output of the oppo as long as its set to do the decoding onboard. other that that, you should look for answers on your subject matter by either doing a search here at the site or create a thread for it as other may have answers as well as questions about what you want to know.

i'd like this thread to get back on track with the TX-NR509 receiver.

i hope i helped somewhat. best of luck. if you do find the answers you need from someone who is using such a setup or if you create a thread for it, please PM me so i can check it out.

04-22-2011, 02:59 AM	#1
solarrdadd Blu-ray Prince Top ranked HT gallery Member since:Jul 2008 Location:Virginia Home Theater Gallery:255 4K collection:209 Blu-ray collection:1344 DVD collection:4 Blu-ray reviews: 42 Trading Score:316	The Official Onkyo TX-NR509 Receiver Spot! Keeping in line with releasing new A/V technology, feature packed, affordable for the masses, Onkyo has released some of it's newest models for 2011. Included in this line is the TX-NR509 A/V Receiver. Yes, you guessed it, that "N" in the model is for networking as this receiver is network ready for home network music streaming, internet radio, network firmware updates, DLNA, just about anything network--this will do it! here is a shot of the front & back of the receiver: very nice. here is a link to the official Onkyo TX-NR509 model page it's available at lots of places including amazon & newegg. i purchased mine at newegg and got it for $343.99 with free 3 day shipping. this is beyond just simple entry level, Onkyo has stepped up entry level means by giving you a receiver that supports iOS devices with direct USB plug & play, iOS control app ready, HDMI 1.4a 3D ready, internet radio, home network ready, SACD/DSD support, Audyssey 2EQ & Dynamic Volume, Dynamic EQ, Zone 2, Windows 7 support and more...and they call this entry level, huh! i sold my TX-SR308 receiver which i loved but more than anything, wanted network support so i could listen to my hi-rez FLAC files and WMALL music on my NAS with or without my tv on. when i saw this was released and at the price, i had to jump on it. it pumps out 80wpc and that's more than enough for my small basement offices secondary HT setup. i'm powering 3 Axiom M2v3's for fronts and a pair of ceiling mounted QS4v3's for surrounds (on brackets) and an Emotiva Ultra Sub 10 to round out my 5.1 system in my office (my small secret hiding place). the supporting cast are an Oppo 83 & a HD Cable DVR; everything video is HDMI. i have not done the actual calibration program through Audyssey yet (i will later) as i just wanted to make sure the most important features work, you know, like it powered up, sound came out of the proper speakers, video showed up on the tv like it was supposed to, you know, stuff like that! the first thing i did after checking for sound and picture output was to do a firmware update that i knew was available for the receiver. i selected update in the setup menu and away it went. i didn't have to do a thing except wait for it to say it was complete and do a power restart by pushing the power button on the receiver and it was done in less than 5 minutes. i did test an SACD/DSD 5.1 and it worked fine, sounded great too (Steely Dan: Gaucho), HBO on HD Cable in 5.1, The Fith Element blu-ray Lossless audio & streamed music from my NAS--Elton John, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road 96khz/24bit & Rush, Moving Pictures 96khz/24bit and everything looked and sounded as incredible as it should have. the front USB is where you plug your iOS device in and listen to music from it. it's a very basic overlay and like the networking feature, it does not give album art but does give info like artist name, song name and album name on your tv & on the screen of the receiver which having it show up on the receiver face is nice so you don't actually have to have your tv on to listen to music either from your iOS device, your network or internet radio. everything can be navigated and operated from the receiver screen; this is a plus! oh yeah, yes it does charge your iOS device while it's plugged into the receiver--whether the receiver is powered on or in standby mode...sweet! another nice feature is 7 channel audio. now, while the amp section inside the unit doesn't support more than 5 channels it does offer pre-outs for the surround back l&r channels so you can get an external amp and drive those two back channels should you ever want them so your not necessarily paying for the amp power now and not using it; get the amp when you want or need it...cause you just might not! then again, you just might! for anyone that has a small to small-medium area, wants lots of the newest features listed and not want to spend a lot of money, i do highly recommend this receiver. and hey, who made up the rule that you have to spend a lot of money go get great, modern features; i'm here to break that and a few other rules with the Onkyo TX-NR 509 Receiver. Thus far, no regrets, everything works! i'll keep you all posted as i move along with it. you all know i'm a big Onkyo fan owning the 5507 pre-amp and recently selling the TX-SR308 receiver and before the pre-amp i had the incredible, TX-SR 805 (in a class by itself) receiver so yes, I do love me some Onkyo. they have always done right by me. Ok, excuse me while i go and register this great receiver with Onkyo. I'll ieep you all posted.

04-22-2011, 04:21 AM	#2
Hillside Trece Banned Member since:Nov 2010	Thanks for the post, Solar...I still don't know what to make of the new faceplate design Onkyo is going with. Upon first glance, I don't like it especially compared to the concave-style faces in the previous generations; someone mentioned the new design looks too Sony, and that's true -- and NOT where Onkyo wants to be, by a long shot (when discussing AVRs). Their new stereo receiver has this faceplate design, too, and I'm glad I bought my TX-8555 when I did for my two channel system, as I still don't know if this new look will grow on me...but, in the plus column, this is also the design the company is using with their new high end hi fi separates, which it definitely complements, so I'm not sure yet... As for the 509, it looks like a great model for that level -- I had a TX-SR600 which put out 80 watts X 6, and although it was good once you got it rocking, I won't personally go back to anything under 100 per channel in the future.

04-22-2011, 04:25 AM	#3
ZoetMB Blu-ray Ninja Member since:May 2009 Location:New York Blu-ray collection:172 DVD collection:27 Blu-ray reviews: 3	One of the things I've never liked about Onkyo receivers, even the high-end ones, is that they never include digital optical or coaxial outputs. I have a stand-alone CD-R unit that takes digital in so I need/want this. And even though most AV receivers have an analog audio output for recording, none of them have tape loops anymore. I still want to be able to monitor at the recording device to make sure the cable connections are good, etc. Also, IMO, any receiver that wants to call itself a "networked receiver" should have WiFi built in. If Sony can do it for their 570 Blu-ray player, the receiver manufactures can do it too. And whatever happened to Ethernet over HDMI? It's part of the HDMI 1.4 spec and as far as I know, not one manufacturer has implemented it as yet. I see this receiver has component and composite video, but no s-video. That doesn't quite make sense to me. What would be more logical to me is that low-end receivers have legacy connections and high-end receivers don't, because it's more likely that someone who spent a lot of money on a high-end receiver has also replaced their older peripherals. Personally, I could live with only one composite, one component and one s-video connector and that would be more than enough (although it wouldn't be for someone who still had a Betamax player, a VHS deck, one or more Laserdisc players and some game machines with analog video, in addition to HDMI sources). I'd probably only wind up using one of them and that only to support an old VHS deck. (But that's just me.)

04-23-2011, 02:08 PM	#5
solarrdadd Blu-ray Prince Top ranked HT gallery Member since:Jul 2008 Location:Virginia Home Theater Gallery:255 4K collection:209 Blu-ray collection:1344 DVD collection:4 Blu-ray reviews: 42 Trading Score:316	last night before going to bed i turned on the receiver with the remote app from my bedroom on my iPad2 and set the volume and selected it to play all from my NAS so that i could run a little bit of a stress test and also make sure the app was working properly. my girlfriend told me this morning that i left some music playing in the basement. i said that's great news cause i turned it on from the iPad while laying in bed to performe the test. she thought that was kinda cool! while it wasn't an incredibly loud volume (and i don't listen to things at incredibly loud volumes either) i did test for 2 things. one was that the unit would fail or quit from a fault of running for more than 6 hours straight. the second was to see how hot the unit would be from being on at a volume that i would be using real world for an extended period of time. well it passed both test with flying colors. it was almost barely noticable temp wise and considering it was on for 10hrs non stop and the fact that it's an Onkyo and in the past, they did run hot, this was a good thing. they have come a long way in how they build and heat sink their amp sections. yes, i know it's a small amp section but i'm still happy to see how cool it actually is here at 10am EST considering i turned it on yesterday at 11pm! so far, everything is working out just fine. i can see from some of the post that some of you are not happy about the unit with your reasons given; i respect them of course. as an owner of the unit, and my needs for my small secondary HT it is more than enough and it's got all the features i could want and need in it for it's intended use. i still highly recommend this unit to anyone. price to performance, dollar for dollar, so far i see this unit as incredible buy. glad and proud i went with it. this is todays Onkyo!

04-24-2011, 06:15 AM	#6
Hillside Trece Banned Member since:Nov 2010	Great feedback and input, Solar! I for one totally respect your decision to go with the 509; it's not that I don't like it, just from surface glances at the images you provided, it's just that I don't know what to make of their new design for the faceplates and chassis yet -- it does, to me, in some ways scream "Sony AVR" and that's NOT a good thing. On the other hand, I love the way this new look appears on Onkyo's high-end stereo separates, which they have just launched...

04-26-2011, 05:23 AM	#9
beefytwinkie Blu-ray Guru Member since:Oct 2008 4K collection:13 Blu-ray collection:459 Trading Score:6	That new design looks nice! I like it. Looking into getting a cheap budget receiver for my computer this summer. Thanks for all the input in this thread, guys.

04-26-2011, 05:55 AM	#11
beefytwinkie Blu-ray Guru Member since:Oct 2008 4K collection:13 Blu-ray collection:459 Trading Score:6	I was looking into at least getting 5.1 for my computer. I needs to know where the zombies are coming from! I was looking at the Yamaha RX-V371. It's only 229 on Newegg. That's not too shabby. Maybe I'll even grab a speaker set. Something like the RM75 set. I have a PSW10 to go with it. I have to stop typing now. I'm close to buying the darn thing just thinking about it! Damn you guys!

04-26-2011, 06:26 AM	#13
beefytwinkie Blu-ray Guru Member since:Oct 2008 4K collection:13 Blu-ray collection:459 Trading Score:6	Cool! The P-3000R and C-7000R look damn sexy. I'd love to put them side by side with an Emotiva ERC-2. And that's another thing I want... I've never actually listened to just a stereo receiver. I bet they sound great since they have all their components just dedicated to putting out two channels. I'll have to stop by an audio store some time and demo some of these new receivers. So much new stuff coming out.

04-26-2011, 10:42 PM	#14
solarrdadd Blu-ray Prince Top ranked HT gallery Member since:Jul 2008 Location:Virginia Home Theater Gallery:255 4K collection:209 Blu-ray collection:1344 DVD collection:4 Blu-ray reviews: 42 Trading Score:316	hillside, i wasn't calling Onkyo Brand "entry level" i was referring to the TX-NR509; it's considered an entry level receiver. i own the PR-SC5507P Pre-Amp and i can tell you there nothing entry level about it so no, that was not a statement against Onkyo. I love onkyo!

04-27-2011, 01:23 PM	#16
solarrdadd Blu-ray Prince Top ranked HT gallery Member since:Jul 2008 Location:Virginia Home Theater Gallery:255 4K collection:209 Blu-ray collection:1344 DVD collection:4 Blu-ray reviews: 42 Trading Score:316	belive it or not, if you have a cd/blu player that has "volume" control built into it (Oppo 83, 93 & 95) and said unit has stereo RCA outputs you can buy say a 2 channel amp (Emotiva UPA-2) you can use those stereo outputs, connect them directly to the amp IC inputs and connect a pair of speakers to that and you have a beautiful, super powerfull 2 channel system! i've tried it with my UPA-2 and my 93 for a test and it works like a charm. now you've got a dedicated 125wpc ( 125wpc @ 8ohm & 185wpc @ 4ohm) 2 channel amp, your player (Oppo) that you can use to play everything including networked music from your pc or NAS, blu-ray audio, SACD, DVD-a & CD's and you can control the volume of everything with the Oppo remote (yes it has a volume control on it!) if you wanted to use the mentioned amp with a different player that doesn't have a volume control feature built into it, no problem, the emotiva amp UPA-2 has a built in adjustable gain control knob on the back of it that will allow for manual adjustment to the volume output the the speakers from the input source so you simply set said knob to a level that your happy with and your good to go. you will simply have to adjust it to change said level of sound. that would make a hellova 2 channel system, the emo UPA-2 & oppo 93 and for under $900 shipped--hard to beat that

04-29-2011, 08:33 AM	#19
Hillside Trece Banned Member since:Nov 2010	Thank you for the explanation -- indeed, the only component I use in my HT is the Oppo BDP-83, so this could work I suppose... BUT... I don't like the idea of losing bitstreaming of the advanced codecs via HDMI from the 83 to my Onkyo 605, and needing to go through the audio setup menu of the 83... Let me ask you this: If just the stereo outs of the Oppo are being used (analog RCAs) to feed, say, the front two channels of an amp like the Emotiva, how would this work with the rest of the multichannel speaker arrangement? In other words, I still would have three other speakers -- the center channel and the two surrounds -- so these would remain connected to the Onkyo, correct? Just the RTi12 mains (in my case) would be seeing power from the Emotiva... But how would this work?

04-29-2011, 09:49 PM	#20
solarrdadd Blu-ray Prince Top ranked HT gallery Member since:Jul 2008 Location:Virginia Home Theater Gallery:255 4K collection:209 Blu-ray collection:1344 DVD collection:4 Blu-ray reviews: 42 Trading Score:316	it's getting deeper than i thought and way off thread topic. i will say this in closing, it will work for simple 2 channel audio or for multichannel as long as the oppo analog outs supply the IC for the amp. mixing audio between the bitstream via hdmi to a receiver for some channels and the analog outs to a seperate amp for certain channels might cause timing issues between the channels and other potential issues. you know they say lossless is supposed to be lossless (i'm not saying it's true either) but you would still be getting lossless audio from the analog output of the oppo as long as its set to do the decoding onboard. other that that, you should look for answers on your subject matter by either doing a search here at the site or create a thread for it as other may have answers as well as questions about what you want to know. i'd like this thread to get back on track with the TX-NR509 receiver. i hope i helped somewhat. best of luck. if you do find the answers you need from someone who is using such a setup or if you create a thread for it, please PM me so i can check it out.

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