Which is better: entry-level receiver or older top-of-the-liner?

[reubelim]

Hi: Have my eye on the Onkyo 605 receiver to go with my Panasonic HD-ready 50-inch plasma tv and Pioneer up-converting dvd player. I also have a blu-ray drive in an HP Pavilion notebook which I connect directly to one of the Panasonic's 2 HDMI ports. Question is, should I go for the Onkyo (HDMI ports, HD sound processing) that I can afford or for a bit less should I get my friend's Yamaha AX-1 receiver which is an older model without HDMI or the newer HD sound processing but which has more power and seems to have other very impressive specs befitting a top-of-the-liner of a few years back? I am also eyeing my friend's B & W 604s and center to go with my existing AR-15s (to be used as rears - I now use them for fronts), small Yamaha sub and Sherwood surround speakers, and I have heard I would be better off getting a more powerful receiver like the AX-1 rather than the 90 watts per channel from the Onkyo. Right now I am using an old Yamaha entry-level receiver (claimed 70 watts per channel) which does have DTS and I have to crank up the sound a bit to drive the AR-15s and the Mission center I now use. I use my setup for movies primarily, perhaps because the sound as of now is a bit thin for music, but I do want to also listen to my music on a new setup if I could. Would also appreciate an opinion on whether I should get the older B & W 604s (these are the old ones) or just get the newer good models I can afford, which would have to be bookshelf size. So many questions...be well all!

[crackinhedz]

Onkyo 605.

Get the HDMI and a warranty.

[musicman1999]

The only advantage the Onkyo has is decoding the new formats, in every other way the
Yamaha will be vastly superior, i would get a Bluray player with analog outs and plug into the big Yamaha.It should however sound better, when new it was close to 10 times the price of the entry level Onkyo.

bill

[CRMA]

get the 605, you cant go wrong.

[Chevypower]

To answer the general question. Older top of the line receiver would definately be better for over-all sound quality, but newer entry level may be better for compatibility on newer products, such as DTS-HD, Dolby True-HD decoding (but the actual sound processing may not be as good), another factor is HDMI connections that can upscale to 1080p, with 24 frame compatibility. These are features older top-of-the line receivers may not have, it seemd not long ago, the best receivers only upscaled to 1080i through component.

[crackinhedz]

If you wanna keep to the Yamaha line...look at the Yamaha RX-V663.

[Sonny]

605 or better is what I'd go with.

[cawgijoe]

To save money you can get a refurb.....that's what I did years ago with my Denon DCD-3300 which is still going stong today....no problems, no issues:

http://www.ecost.com/Detail/Receiver.../40650016.aspx

http://www.ecost.com/Detail/Receiver.../38607351.aspx

The Onkyo 605 is $280 and the 805 is $569

[reubelim]

This is a great place for newbies like me, obviously everyone here wants to sincerely help others set up the best home theater per their needs and budget. Think I am really leaning towards the newer receiver but will take some time to finally decide on just what model. Take care all.

[red_5ive]

I have a Yamaha RX-V1 (I believe is the same as the AX-1). I can say for certain that the 605 does not compare in overall sound quality. I also have the Yamaha RX-Z1 flagship, which was the successor of the RX-V1. If you like the new Onkyo line and can afford it, I'd recommend the 805 for sure. After having owned an 805 for a couple of months it gave even my RX-Z1 a run for the money (the Z1 was $2800 new 5 years ago, 805 you can get for $799 or less if you shop around), and in many ways I liked the 805 over the Z1.

So personally I'd go with musicman1999's suggestion or get an 805.

[chasarms]

I think I would prefer the newer technology over the better SQ. The convenience and functionality of HDMI is one of the better things to hit the tech world in long time (not counting blu-ray of course!!)

Also, will the old receiver support 7.1?

I am in the same boat right now. Currently I am using a Yamaha (RXV1200). It sounds great, but things have come a long ways since then. I really want a full HDMI set up.

FWIW, I ordered the Onkyo 805 just a few days ago. I can't wait for it to get here. I am also considering a new set of speakers as well. I thought there was enough difference in the 605 and 705 to justify the expense. The extra HDMI may come in handy and the THX.

Then when I found the 705 as a refurb at http://www.accessories4less.com , I also found the 805 with free shipping which made it less than a hundred bucks more than the 705. I thought it worth it, if only for the Burr-Brown and the extra power.

I got the 805 for 649 shipped. That may have been less than I paid for the Yamaha. I don't mind the refurb, they offer the same warrenty as a NIB. That site is an Onkyo authorized dealer. The 705 is 529 plus about 30 bucks shipping.


Update:

Had to change my order to the 705. Turns out the 805 is not only 20+ pounds heavier, which I could have lived with, but it is also more than 3" deeper. My new cabinet will not accomodate it. So, on Thursday, I will have a 705!

[reubelim]

You know what, the prices mentioned are really low compared to those here in Manila (Philippines). For instance, the 605's lowest brand-new price here works out to $850. I guess I will have to order outside, choosing among the models suggested. Since I will have to make do for a while with my old Yamaha RV-620 5.1 receiver (which at least has DTS), would it make a video-quality difference if I just use the on-board component jacks to connect the receiver to my 1080i (is that correct?) Panasonic 50-inch (it is the PV70H) or stick to the current direct HDMI connection from my Pioneer DV-600AV DVD player to TV? The reason am asking is would really like to see my receiver control menus on-screen like I used to with the analog connects, but I won't go back to this if I would have degraded picture quality. Learned so much browsing this site, before I relied on technicians who just slapped my system together. Would be great if I could max out the capabilities of my old system till I get the new stuff. Meanwhile, I will probably start moving up by getting better speakers, or again, is this the way to go? Cheers!