Receiver dilemna

marantz

I say the Onkyo. Can't be beat for the money. Just don't close it in, or sit anything on top of it. They're known to run kinda hot, if you do that. The 707 should be a fine receiver. It has pre-outs, if you should ever want to add an amp. It's 4 ohms certified, so you can drive higher end speakers. It even has a phono input, in case you have a turntable. What kind of speakers do you have?
Good luck with whatever you decide on.

Front hdmi inputs are going to start showing up in all receivers pretty soon. Just makes sence to start providing them there as comcorders, video games, etc. have hdmi now. Onkyo seems to be the first to start doing it.

I recently setup a Denon 1610 for my brother and the remote and manual are not the best I've seen and it seemed more difficult to setup. Maybe that's because it was my first Denon insallation. But once it was up and running the performance was quite impressive for a $329 receiver. It's paired up with a set of Boston Acoustics CS series speakers and a Dayton/HSU 10" sub and I can't believe how good it sounds.

The Onkyo 707 is more expensive because it's a step higher up the line than the 1910. A more direct comparison to the 707 would be the 2310 (MSRP $849). But Onkyo's are discounted much more than Denons are so you can find the 707 for a price closer to the 1910.

Others to consider are the Pioneer 1019, Yamaha 765/1065, H/K 1600/2600 and Marantz 5004. But Audyssey is the buzz-word right now so most people seem to opt for the Denons and Onkyos or the Pioneer Elites (like the vsx-23 but a bit out of your price range).

I'd get the 707 if you can find it for the right price but the 1910 would also be an excellent choice. Just buy them from an authorized dealer to protect your warranty.

Denon is very good equipment too. The worst thing about a Denon is their remote, and they have their own language for some things too. Onkyo is easier to setup and use. I've setup several older Denons for people, but haven't done a newer one yet.

If you don't mind the waiting game, Amazon may run a good sale sometime on the Onkyo. The thing about Amazon is the sales don't run long. It may run for one day, or it may even run just for one hour. You need to check them frequently, if you're looking for a particular item to go on sale. Amazon is an authorized dealer for Onkyo, so you'd get the full warranty. Not sure about Denon. You can check Denon's site to see if Amazon is an authorized dealer for them.

again sounds like you like onkyo why ,
the issues with heat etc.

features is nice but doesn't best sound have anything to do with your set up.

onkyo is slightly not as good as denon

what speakers are you using that matters too

just solid installs 'v e done that depending on speakers sound amazing

onkyo Ive done too and they are close in sound but still not a denon

plenty of bite in sound with proper speaker matching and cables

i personally prefer marantz and nad

both are durable
 whats speakers you using
i find denon sounds very good with many brands too

vince
theaudioguy.ca

I can't knock onkyo but they're lower lines don't use burr brown dac's
midfi denons do

I also feel there is a bit of a difference in sound quality between brands but it's not a make-or-break issue compared to price, features, etc. FWIW, I like Marantz, Pioneer Elite, and older H/K's. Denon is also very nice sounding. I used to think Onkyo's had a bit of a digital sound quality to them but the latest versions of Audyssey can really smooth things out. But this is  probably all in my head. 

As for Marantz, it appears they bypass Audyssey when sending audio via HDMI. A big no-no to me.

Rotel and NAD are way out of his (and most others around here) price range. The new NAD 785 is near the top of my wish list.

As I said, Denon makes very good stuff. I like them. Until I bought my Onkyo 805, I really wanted a Denon 3808ci. Put a Denon and Onkyo side by side, with the same features, and the Denon will cost a good bit more, unless you've found it on a very good sale. I have a Denon 2803, but gave it to my stepfather to use. An older receiver, but great for his purposes.

The biggest difference in sound is going to come from changing speakers, not receivers. Receivers in the same price range will not have much difference in sound, if any at all. You compare a $2000 receiver with a $300 receiver, and you'll surely notice a difference. Compare a $2000 Denon and a $2000 Onkyo, using the same speakers, and you probably won't notice a difference. If you do, it's probably more in your head than anything. Kinda like those people that swear they hear a difference between $150 Monster cables, and $10 Monoprice cables. They want so bad to hear a difference, to justify spending that much, that they do (but not really).

If you like the Denon better, for whatever reasons, go for it. You are familiar with how they setup and operate, and don't need to worry about the POS remote, so you'll probably be happier in the long run. But, if you're not scared to try something new, and get more bang for the buck, then go for the Onkyo. I don't think you'll go wrong either way..........
Good luck!

BTW...........
When I turn everything on with my Harmony remote, I probably hear 5-6 clicks from everything turning on. I think it's the receiver's and tv's way of letting you know it's doing what you ask of it. If you hear less clicks than usual, you know something probably didn't do right in the sequence of things, and you may have to push the "Help" button on the remote, so it will finish. My wife is bad about setting the remote down on the table, behind something, as soon as she pushes the WATCH TV button, and then wonders why the tv or cable box didn't come on. I don't think the clicks are a concern, unless they're talking about different clicks.

ok nick fine you don't like my feedback curious what speakers your using because they are Ed's right....

 #1 when it comes to most important part of any system.






theaudioguy.ca

Hi, My father has an Onkyo and it is okay. But, their customer service is the worse in the market. My father had the receiver for 1 and half year and he never set it up for HDMI connection. I got him a BD and a nice set of HDMI cable but the receiver HDMI connectors were dead. I do not have any experience with a Denon receiver, but I will go to a store and try to compare them before I buy any of them. Good luck. Juan

he he

I'm a slow typist. I just spent over 45 minutes typing line by line comparisons between the Onkyo 707 and the Denon 1910. The only advantage the Denon had over the Onkyo was Multi-Channel Analog Inputs. Before I could click on the "Submit" button, the page with all my typing disappeared! (it really pissed me off!) Sorry, but I'm not doing it again. Go here: http://www.us.onkyo.com/model.cfm?m=TX-SR707&class=Receiver&p=f and also open a new page to here: http://www.usa.denon.com/ProductDetails/4858.asp
and compare them line for line, and you'll see. You get way more for the money with the Onkyo.

BTW.........
On the Denon page I linked to, you'll need to click on "Detailed Specifications", to get to the page to compare features.

http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers/denon-avr-1910-black/4505-6466_7-33650441.html

Here is the cnet review for Denon.

http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers/onkyo-tx-sr707/4505-6466_7-33747455.html

Here is the Onkyo.

According to Cnet Denon has better image, and Onkyo has a good sound.

Juan 

links

Try Cnet for comparation.

I did link, if you'll read the post...........

Wow! I don't believe this! I came back, after watching some tv, and opened Firefox again to get back online, and the page I lost was suddenly back! Very strange! I think I'm in the Twilight Zone tonight!

I've copied it and going to paste it below. So, here's the comparisons I did. You can double check them on those links I put above, and see for yourself........... See what I mean about slow typist. 45 mins. just for that little bit. Of course, that included looking at both sites too.

Onkyo 707-------------------------100 watts.............Denon 1910----------90 watts
Channels--------------------------7.2......................................................7.1
THX certified---------------------------------Yes...........................................No (if it matters)
4 ohms certified----------------------------Yes...........................................No
Burr-Brown DACs--------------------------Yes...........................................No
Phono Input----------------------------------Yes............................................No
Audio Inputs (Opt./Coax)---------------3/3.............................................2/2
S-Video I/O----------------------------------5/1.............................................1/0
HDMI I/O-----------------------------6 (5 rear + 1 front)/1.............................4/1
Analog to HDMI upconversion--------Yes............................................No (just to component)
Multi-Channel analog Inputs-----------No.............................................Yes
Analog Pre-Outs---------------------------Yes (7.2)....................................No

Sorry the layout is so screwed up.
These are the big differences. There's smaller differences too. Check their sites. In this list, the only advantage the Denon had over the Onkyo is Multi-Channel Analog Inputs.

You can also go to retail sites like Vanns.com and Onecall.com and use the Compare feature. Just click on the "View All" tab in the upper right-hand corner of the Receivers page first.


As you can see from Ed's post, the 1910 is really more comparable to the 607 than the 707. The 707's MSRP is $300 more than the 1910. Street prices are a lot closer. That's why Onkyo's are known for giving bang-for-your-buck.

Here is the info for both unit, and if you want more click on link.

Yes.

That's more like upscaling. (like upscaling dvd to near HD quality)
Upconversion (upconverts s-video or component signal to HDMI) so you have only one cable to the tv, instead of several.
People get upscale and upconvert mixed up all the time.

It does appear to do analog to hdmi.


1) M/C analog Inputs are for hooking up devices with internal decoders like SACD/DVD-A players. This allows the device to do the decoding instead of the receiver.

2) 4 Ohm certified is a big deal if you have 4 Ohm speakers. If your speakers are 6-8 Ohm as most of them are then it's not needed. But it will give you the option to buy them in the future if you wish. Burr-Brown DACs are nice to have (as are Wolfson) but not essential. A feather in the cap so to speak. Most probably couldn't tell the difference but it does emply better sound quality.

3) I believe so. See page 88 of the manual. Speaking of manuals, I always suggest you download the manuals of each receiver you are considering and give them a good going over. You can learn a lot.

4) Onkyo fans would still choose the 707 and I probably would as well. Their just doesn't seem to be enough additional features in the 2310 that I would use to justify the extra cost. The main ones that I can see are 15 more wpc (hardly noticable), detachable power cord, phono input, PC setup, ethernet input and rs-232 port. Others may find those worth-while but I wouldn't. The 1910 would be my Denon choice. 1910-vs.-2310