onkyo tx-ds797 question about lack of bass and treble nobs and sound issues (1 Viewer)

[Todd smith]

Hello onkyo owners!

I am looking to purchase either this or the denon 3802 and am leaning toward onkyo at this moment. However, I noticed in a review that I read that there are no bass and treble nobs. Does this mean that there is no bass and treble adjustment? If there are bass and treble adjustments how do you adjust them and can they be adjusted while playing whatever source you are using?(cd, dvd, etc..)

My second question is about the sound drop out issue. Is this only with this brand and model? Are other brands doing the same thing?(denon and others) Is this being solved? Would this be a reason to avoid this receiver? These questions may sound stupid but I am anal.

Thanks for help!

 

[Dalton]

Todd,

I have the 797. You can change Bass and Treble through the onscreen display. I am sure there is a way to do it without bringing up the display but at this time i don't know how because i rarely adjust those settings. I'm sure someone else can offer some input on this. I am using the 797 as a pre/pro until my Outlaw 950 arrives and have only good things to say about it. It does suffer from the dreaded audio dropouts on Pearl Harbor,JPIII,Atlantis, and the Beastmaster. All of these except Atlantis have DTS tracks so the dropouts aren't really a big issue for me. On Atlantis I just use the Dolby Digital decoder in my dvd player. I have read that the audio dropouts should not be a problem in the future because Dolby is supposed to correct the issue because the problem lays in the DD encoding on the discs, not a hardware issue. Good luck.

Take Care,

Dalton

 

[Todd smith]

The musicality of these receivers seems to be very subjective. Obviously I need to go listen to all of them for myself before I decide, but the reason I was leaning towards the onkyo 797 over the denon 3802 is because I have read from 4 particular customer reviews on audioreview.com who did head to head comparisons of the two (two customers did head to head in their own house) and all four claimed the onkyo BETTER musicaly and overall soundwise then the Denon. Again I know I need to listen for myself, but to say one is musically weak compared to another seems in this case to be subjective when onkyo 797 owners are choosing this model over the 3802 for music. I am sure If I look at the reviews for the Denon that those people did comparisons with the 797 and ultimately chose the 3802. So, am I correct in thinking that cd-music-stereo sound between these two receivers (797&3802) is subjective as to which one is better? Or is it set in stone and the general feeling that the 3802 is musicaly a better receiver than the 797? By the way, I apreciate all the feedback and think this forum is awesome!

 

[Dalton]

I have owned several receivers from Marantz to Denon to Onkyo and Kenwood and the Onkyo is second only to Marantz for music. I really can't say anything bad about the Onkyo for music, however I am using external amplification instead the 797's onboard amps. Breck, the 787 IS NOT the 797, i have heard both in my home and they are not the same receiver. You can't just go by what other people say, in the end let your ears be the final judge as should always be the case.

Take Care,

Dalton

 

[Todd smith]

Well I just read another review that did not agree with your thoughts. the 797 got the c-net editors choice award, 8/10 and they had nothing but good things to say about this receiver as far as music is concerned. I read the same review on the 787 that you quoted, but the 797 is the 797and not the 787. They are two different receivers. This all brings me to my original thoughts which are that this is subjective, but the overall feedback that I have received is in favor of the onkyo over the denon as far as music. What do you all think of that statement?

 

[Todd smith]

I completely agree with you there! I think all the research and time will pay off with a more satisfied purchase, at least I hope!

 

[Jason P. Brett]

Todd, I have a 797 and run it in stereo for music listening using the "Direct" mode (which bypasses all the signal processing)into a pair of B&W DM603S3's. I haven't noticed that it's bass shy, as some of the others have mentioned. I think it sounds great for both home theater and music. If you can, try it in your own place with your own speakers and get your hands on some of its competitors as well. It's an excellent receiver, but it's not the only fish in the pond.

Jason

 

[Stephen Houdek]

I too have the 797 and its anything but bass shy. I get all the bass I want through my JBL S312's. Of course having 12" woofers makes a difference. It may be a different story with 6.5" bookshelves. I don't yet have a sub and am quite satisfied with HT bass as well with the 312's set to large.

I'm very satisfied with my 797 and would recommend it to anyone.

 

[Randy Schissler]

Todd,

I recently got the Onkyo 797 and it sounds great.

I too was trying to decide between the 797 and the Denon 3802. The sound between the two is very similar and I think you would be happy with either one. So what you should base your decision on are what features are most important to you. You should go to their respective websites and read the owner's manual for each receiver. Then you can really see what each receiver can do.

Also, evaluate the remote. I hated the Denon remote and loved the Onkyo remote. Saying that, I have since found a couple things I don't like about the Onkyo remote, but not enough to change my mind about it.

--Randy Schissler

 

[Scott Simonian]

If you are using the "Direct" mode, the signal does not go through any bass management. So essentially, you are running the fronts full-range and there is no subwoofer output.

This is why it seems "bass-shy".

 

[Aaron Holbrook]

I can't say anything for the onkyo 797 but I just did an in home test of a denon 1082 (3802), a marantz 7200 and an Integra 7.1, Integra is basically the 797 but supposidly it's made better, and I for one think it's quite a bit better at least for build. As far a music goes the denon and the integra blew the marantz away. Oh and I have Paradigm montior 7's, mini monitors and a cc-370, paradigms are a little bright them selves so a warmer reciever does these speakers well. Anyways the Denon and the Integra were very close to each other in 2ch stereo where the denon was a little more pronounced in the midrange and the Integra was a little better in the low treble. They both sound fantastic. A couple advantages of the Denon over the Integra is denon has the 7 full powered channels where the Integra only has 6 and the integra does not have PLII or ES Discret. I ended up keeping the Integra but It was a toss up between it and the denon.

 

[ChrisAG]

Funny how opinions can differ. I had a Marantz SR6200 for a while but returned it due to defects. While shopping for a different brand to replace it, I had an Onkyo 797 in my home for a week. I liked the HT response, the bass management controls, and the remote, but it was definitely a step down from the Marantz when it came to straight music listening in 2-channel (both regular 2-ch. and in Source Direct). Since CD listening is important to me, I returned the 797 and waited for Marantz to work the bugs out. I have a new 6200 in my home and couldn't be happier.

BTW, the Integra 7.2 has been out for some time and has DPL-2.

 

[ChrisAG]

Matthew,

A good 2-channel amp would definitely help, but some of the sound characteristic comes from the D/A processing of the receiver (preamp). Marantz receivers have been praised as decent preamps when hooked up to Rotel, etc. amplifiers. I'm not sure where the weak link is with the Onkyo.

The Integra 7.2 isn't that much different than the Onkyo 797. The only things I can name are gold connectors, detachable power cord, and longer warranty. However, some people seem to think that they sound better than Onkyo.