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Onkyo HT-S780 7.1-channel home theater audio system Black
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Worth Considering
(4 out of 5) by David Rolfe on Jan 26, 2006 (Pasadena, CA USA)The spirit of my comments may also be applied to the cheaper ($299 vs. $499) Onkyo HT-S580 system as well, and also I see there's an intermediate Onkyo HT-S680.
I'll let others comment on their subjective reactions to this system versus other systems. Those comments are extremely important; however I don't feel qualified to offer contrasts, because I haven't carefully compared the systems. Instead I'm going to offer some broad observations, and you can get other insights elsewhere.
With multi-channel sound becoming common, I became interested a sound system that could render it, but I wanted a flexible system that was neither expensive nor junk. After surveying the turf, I gravitated towards the Onkyo boxed systems. Here's why:
First of all, I did not want a system that included a DVD player. It struck me as a bad idea to tie the sound system to a specific DVD player. I figure a DVD player, being mechanical, will have a shorter lifespan than a receiver. And I'd like to be able to upgrade my DVD player with a recordable unit or BluRay or whatever. So it's best to buy a separate DVD player, rather than a boxed system with an integrated DVD player. Let's focus here on decent audio rather than extras.
It would also be preferable to have a theater system where the individual components are not tied together. That is, I'd have the freedom to use different speakers or the like. It makes the system more flexible if the components can stand on their own. By way of contrast, I had looked at some of the Panasonic systems, such as the HT-15 or HT-17. I rather liked the look and convenience of these systems (e.g., integrated speaker stands); however I noticed that the speaker amplifiers resided in the subwoofer enclosure. There's nothing wrong with this, and in fact you might even prefer it: Your controlling pre-amp box is smaller and generates less heat, while the clunky amplifiers are set off in the corner. But this means you don't have the option of upgrading your subwoofer unless you're replacing the sound system entirely. (Of course, the logical extension of this idea is to buy separate components in the first place; however being a newbie to the theater idea, I was tempted by the all-in-a-box package.)
I'm amazed to see how cheap some of the low end home theaters are. For under $100, you can have 5 speakers, a subwoofer, and a receiver or maybe even a DVD player. Wow! Of course, these cheapest systems look sort of like toys. The speakers are tiny and have only a single driver, and the power isn't high. They probably won't produce great audio. But the price is very appealing. My worst concern is the cheapest units have cut so many corners that they'll fail soon, and the entire system will be trash.
So my eye was drawn to the Onkyo systems, which offered separate components that appear respectable. Note that the receiver included as part of this package can be had as an individual component, the Onkyo TX-SR503 (retail $299). I liked this receiver; it felt solid and its control scheme and buttons struck me as relatively intuitive. And the 7.1 speaker combination is also sold as a package, SKS-HT530, for retail $279. The subwoofer is a solid unit, with 230 watts and a 10-inch down-firing woofer (when buying a subwoofer, size matters). The front and center speakers are 2-ways, each with 2 midrange drivers and 1 tweeter; the rear and surround speakers are also 2-ways with a single midrange and tweeter. The speakers and subwoofer are in wood cabinets, larger and heavier than the plastic that's more typical. This perhaps makes them more "real" but less stylish. The whole package (made in Malaysia, by the way) seems a good deal, by price per pound if nothing else. Onkyo includes a 2-year warrantee, which is encouraging; nobody else offers more than a year.
I agree with others who note that upgrading to heavier speaker wires is a good idea. No point in paying for the Monster brand name; wire is wire as far as I'm concerned.
Bottom line is you end up with a respectable small audio system that should give you decent surround sound, and you can later upgrade or replace the individual components if you choose to.
I'll let others comment on their subjective reactions to this system versus other systems. Those comments are extremely important; however I don't feel qualified to offer contrasts, because I haven't carefully compared the systems. Instead I'm going to offer some broad observations, and you can get other insights elsewhere.
With multi-channel sound becoming common, I became interested a sound system that could render it, but I wanted a flexible system that was neither expensive nor junk. After surveying the turf, I gravitated towards the Onkyo boxed systems. Here's why:
First of all, I did not want a system that included a DVD player. It struck me as a bad idea to tie the sound system to a specific DVD player. I figure a DVD player, being mechanical, will have a shorter lifespan than a receiver. And I'd like to be able to upgrade my DVD player with a recordable unit or BluRay or whatever. So it's best to buy a separate DVD player, rather than a boxed system with an integrated DVD player. Let's focus here on decent audio rather than extras.
It would also be preferable to have a theater system where the individual components are not tied together. That is, I'd have the freedom to use different speakers or the like. It makes the system more flexible if the components can stand on their own. By way of contrast, I had looked at some of the Panasonic systems, such as the HT-15 or HT-17. I rather liked the look and convenience of these systems (e.g., integrated speaker stands); however I noticed that the speaker amplifiers resided in the subwoofer enclosure. There's nothing wrong with this, and in fact you might even prefer it: Your controlling pre-amp box is smaller and generates less heat, while the clunky amplifiers are set off in the corner. But this means you don't have the option of upgrading your subwoofer unless you're replacing the sound system entirely. (Of course, the logical extension of this idea is to buy separate components in the first place; however being a newbie to the theater idea, I was tempted by the all-in-a-box package.)
I'm amazed to see how cheap some of the low end home theaters are. For under $100, you can have 5 speakers, a subwoofer, and a receiver or maybe even a DVD player. Wow! Of course, these cheapest systems look sort of like toys. The speakers are tiny and have only a single driver, and the power isn't high. They probably won't produce great audio. But the price is very appealing. My worst concern is the cheapest units have cut so many corners that they'll fail soon, and the entire system will be trash.
So my eye was drawn to the Onkyo systems, which offered separate components that appear respectable. Note that the receiver included as part of this package can be had as an individual component, the Onkyo TX-SR503 (retail $299). I liked this receiver; it felt solid and its control scheme and buttons struck me as relatively intuitive. And the 7.1 speaker combination is also sold as a package, SKS-HT530, for retail $279. The subwoofer is a solid unit, with 230 watts and a 10-inch down-firing woofer (when buying a subwoofer, size matters). The front and center speakers are 2-ways, each with 2 midrange drivers and 1 tweeter; the rear and surround speakers are also 2-ways with a single midrange and tweeter. The speakers and subwoofer are in wood cabinets, larger and heavier than the plastic that's more typical. This perhaps makes them more "real" but less stylish. The whole package (made in Malaysia, by the way) seems a good deal, by price per pound if nothing else. Onkyo includes a 2-year warrantee, which is encouraging; nobody else offers more than a year.
I agree with others who note that upgrading to heavier speaker wires is a good idea. No point in paying for the Monster brand name; wire is wire as far as I'm concerned.
Bottom line is you end up with a respectable small audio system that should give you decent surround sound, and you can later upgrade or replace the individual components if you choose to.