Decent replacement for an Onkyo 805 (1 Viewer)

Time to replace my old Onkyo 805. Worked great for several years before I had problems with it, and they've steadily gotten worse. Would like something that's not too much of a step down in power. Problem is I keep reading the older Onkyos of that age came much closer to meeting their rated specifications than receivers do nowadays. So, problem is, while I can google comparisons for today's receiver, there's not really anything to help me to compare it to what I have now. I have a DVDO iScan Duo, so video-related features and number of HDMI ports doesn't really make much of a difference to me. Thought about looking for a used 805 since I don't particularly need all that many features, but it doesn't look like there are too many available and kind of hesitant about buying a used Onkyo of that era given what I hear of their reliability issues (of which it seems I've witnessed first hand). Any suggestions? I do everything from Blu-ray, TV/Netflix, games, and music. Not driving anything special, Infinity Primus P362 fronts, PC350 center, P163 rears and a Polk subwoofer. Can spend up to $900 USD but I'd really rather keep it closer to $600-$700. Any input is appreciated. Thanks!

Are your problems HDMI related? If so there are people who sell "fix-it" services for $75. Otherwise I'd recommend the 818...which should be around that price when it comes time for the replacement to show up in April.

Well, the receiver frequently cuts off (moreso on some content than others, and often when listening at higher volumes). Doesn't seem HDMI related. There was one point a while back where the problem was severe (couldn't even listen to anything at higer than -20dB), but I re-did and cleaned up my wiring with banana plugs and it went back to happening only occasionally. Now it's happening much more frequently and I've already tried re-doing the wiring again. The 818 is within my budget if I buy it new from a third party vendor on Amazon. I was actually looking at the Denon 3312 which is in the same situation and price range, albeit I think a model year older. I've never tried Denon and don't get much from store demos; aren't they a bit more known for their audio fidelity? And the Onkyos still reliability risks? Really don't know, which is why I'm asking these questions here. EDIT: Or the Pioneer Elite SC-61, maybe? Bit more expensive there but had someone recommend it to me.

Onkyo reliability is always going to be "suspect". They own the market. Oknyo CS is, at the moment, a joke. Integra is a different animal. Yeah, same company...but totally different ownership experiences. There is more of a difference between Onkyo and Integra than there is with Denon/Marantz and Pioneer/Elite. Once you hit that price realm, there is no "wrong choice". I would still give the edge to the 818(its replacement should arrive April-May) over the 3312/3313(the XX14 should start arriving March-April). You could even go this old...other than "some" network functionality...there is almost no difference...and the 809/808 still have 8channel analog input(the new 818 does not). http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/ONKTXNR808/Onkyo-TX-NR808-7.2-Channel-3-D-Ready-Network-A/V-Receiver/1.html My bad, 808 sold out...

But here you go... http://www.ebay.com/itm/Onkyo-TX-NR808-7-1-Channel-135-Watt-Home-Theater-Networked-AV-Receiver-/230931839980?pt=Receivers_Tuners&hash=item35c49c3bec I currently have... DTR 7.8 DTR 5.8 SR707 NR1008 All bought used. Matter of fact the 1008 was bought "non-functional" with the issue that Onkyo created a re-call for. I "know a guy" who did the re-call work for me, during lunch, for $60 and a pizza. I paid $150 for it. The seller "could have" gotten the re-call done himself...but his excuse was(cause I asked) "I don't own repaired stuff".

Well, I know upgrading at this time of year is a bit peculiar. I don't really plan to wait for the new models - I wouldn't be able to afford them until they price drop (much later than I want to upgrade), and while they might drive the price down on current models they're all out of stock except at third party vendors who always seem to be iffy on price trends. And I'm ok spending an extra $100-$200 if it means I can actually use my home theater instead of waiting. If it's an Onkyo I think I'd prefer to buy new, just based on all the problems I've read people having with them. I usually like to buy new anyway. It's something I'll definitely think about though.

The 805 was a serious over-achiever when it first came out. You're not going to get the amp section untill you get to the 3007/8/9. But Sam knows more about Onkyo's than I do. If I were considering an Onkyo I'd definently get a refurb from Ac4l.com and get the 3 or 5 year extended warranty. New doesn't mean no problems either, whatever you buy. The Elite SC-61 is very similar to the regular Pioneer 1222 which is about $550 on Amazon and Newegg. It might not have as powerfull of an amp section as some Onkyo's but those Infinity's shouldn't be too hard to drive, even though there are reports of the P363's (nearly identical to the P362's) being closer to 4 ohm. Pretty much any $600-$800 receiver should be O.K. Just look for the features you really need. The Marantz 8002 would be real high on my list too, even if it's a few years old and a bit on the expensive side of your budget. Maybe the last true Marantz receiver. http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/MARSR8002/Marantz-Sr8002-125w-X-7ch-THX-Home-Theater-Surround-Receiver/1.html

Well, the thing about the Onkyo was I find myself pushing it up to +10 dB sometimes to get it to a comfortable audio level (though it varies highly depending on what I'm listening to). Figure if I'm pushing the 805 that much I better find something that's not too much of a drop off? Or would it actually not make a difference with my speakers? (EDIT: Speaking of Ohms, I don't know if it's relevant to what I just said, but on the 805 there's only settings for 4 and 6 Ohms. I've had it on 6 because it's... closer to 8? It's been so long I've completely lost touch with anything audio-related) The Denon 3313CI is actually well within my budget if I order it refurbished via that site. I did not realize that at all.

If you can live w/o 3D... http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/item/ONKTXNR3007/Onkyo-TX-NR3007-THX-Ultra2-Plus-140w-x-9.2-Network-Receiver/1.html

Don't need 3D in a receiver at all. All devices are hooked up through my DVDO, which will pass a 3D signal on to my TV and send a separate audio signal to the receiver. After shipping and adding a few more years on the warranty, that's about $950 for the 3007. A little wary about the no sound issue I'm reading about. Then I thought, maybe the Denon 4310CI. It looks decent and is cheaper. But it seems that one might have some issues that are even more scary? Probably getting caught up a bit much reading reviews on Amazon.

Quit reading Amazon reviews. Besides...most people who post failure problems are the same people who don't realize stuff comes with a warranty. Like the 1008 I bought. He had already replaced it with an 809. It was sitting there in the corner, on the box. I asked what it was doing there and he said "it doesn't work". Of course I asked what didn't work..."Non-responsive to the remote and cycles through the inputs." To wit I told him all about the recall. He said he didn't care, I offered to buy it when I said it was an easy repair...and free if you wanted to mail it. He was going to throw it in the trash. It still had 6 months on the warranty...besides the recall. I was there to design a multi-zone Crestron system. I took $150 off the bill.

Usually I just look for patterns in Amazon reviews regarding technical issues. That's about all I use them for. If there's a pattern and many people are reporting the same issues... it kind of throws up a red flag, and at least I can try to google the issues for more concrete information if there is any (easier than trying to dig through 400 page owner's threads for half a dozen different models). I got a history of having to use warranties multiple times and thinking about that frustration and headache always scares me But yeah, you're right, that's what they're there for. EDIT: So, if it were Onkyo 3007 vs 818, am I going to be missing anything by getting the 3007 since it's an older (albeit higher-end) model? Also how does it compare to that Marantz 8002 someone mentioned earlier?