Onkyo Introduces 3 New Entry level HTiBs

[aramis109]

While I've never had an HDMI passthrough receiver, my understanding is that it does nothing with it. You can possibly get audio from your TV, but not the receiver. If in practice its actually different than that, then so be it, but that's not what I was lead to understand about it.

[fighthefutureofhd]

if in fact my receiver is hdmi passthrough then i don't know what to say. cause i get sound out of my speakers from my receiver. i would assume it's from my receiver. it's not from my tv or blu-ray player. in fact i played superman:doomsday last night and there was booming sound coming out of my seven speakers.

[Skyline]

For the sake of another perspective, I have an Onkyo HTiB system paired with my blu-ray player. My receiver doesn't have HDMI pass-through, so I'm stuck using the optical digital out for my audio.

While the tech-geek in me knows I'm listening to lossy audio, my ears don't know the difference, and I'm perfectly satisfied with my current setup. If you're only wanting to spend the funds on an entry-level system, then my guess is that your ears will never know the difference, either.

If you're an audiophile that can detect the subtle differences, then that's cool. My guess in general, though, is that you'll be happier in the long run by spending a bit more on your system in the first place.

I guess it's kind of like the 720p v. 1080p debate all over again, isn't it?