Home > Consumer Reviews > Onkyo TX-SR876 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black)

I have had this receiver for several weeks now. I was a little leary about purchasing this unit as it was being used in a room that does "double-duty" of being a place where I listen to high-end analog and digital music along with occasional use of a home-theatre. The primary purpose is music reproduction and I was tempted to go with tube-style amps and other gear in support of my vinyl record collection. But since there are always compromises in this area (space, money, etc) I decided to take a chance with this Onkyo. All I can say is WOW. I run 5.1 channels with bi-amplification on the front speakers (my one concession to music versus video). The sound reproduction is excellent. I have done a lot of comparison shopping and looked at a lot of different systems and I would have had to spend over $4-5K on hybrid tube amps to get sound better than this.

In terms of home theater, it is even better. It performs as advertised. Set-up was a breeze and the audessy is a pleasure to use and instantly "balanced" my room. For home theater use, it is incredible. Ground-shaking lows, booming sound when appropriate yet the most subtle sounds (such as dialogue at a low level) is outstanding. Some reviewers complain about it running hot. I have mine outside of any cabinet (top shelf of a component stand) and have run it for hours at 75-80% of max volume with no problems.

My two complaints are: The remote as the buttons are a bit hard to read in dim light (even with the back-lighting) and it only has 3 digital optical inputs. Given I use seperate CD and DVD players, along with a Laser Disc and other digital sources, I had to use the alternate digital cable connects. Not a big deal, I just expected more digital optical inputs.

In summary, if you are looking for a leading-edge video processing unit that has outastanding home-theater characterstics at a low price, then this is definitely it. Throw in the fact that it processes music far beyond the expectations one would have for solid-state receiver (especially at this price point) and you really have a great unit.

If you do decide to buy this, please note the dimensions and weight. This is a large, heavy receiver. And given the heat concerns of other posters, I would make sure it has plenty of "breathing room".

Shipped from OneCall, packaged nicely. Built very solidly, as all Onkyo AVR's have been that I've purchased. Overall, very happy with the quality. Be aware that in order to use the Powered Zone 2, you must have analog input for the device(s) you wish to listen to. (For example, I want to listen to my AppleTV which has my iTunes library on it outside by the pool. Even though I connected it to the Onkyo 876 via HDMI for the best quality picture and sound in the main living room, I still had to connect the two with standard RCA audio cables as well in order to listen in Zone 2. Not a big deal, but not necessarily intuitive given the huge capabilities of this unit. Don't let it discourage you.)

This receiver is far more complex than my old Onkyo purchased 15 years ago. The features are first rate, the audio is superb (very clean)and while the manual isn't that detailed it is better than some I have seen. The learning curve to dig through the onscreen menus and find the settings is steep but they are all in there. Read the manual carefully.
The difference in audio quality coming from high def DVDs out of my Toshiba A30 and Panasonic BD 35 is astounding. Sound is everywhere now and well balanced. Unless you've heard it you can't explain how good it is.


This big fellow does get warm (not cook an egg hot)though mine is out in the open. Take a look at the power supply and you'll understand why it generates so much heat.

Setup was a breeze. The unit even comes with labels for your speaker cables. The Audessy setup was quick and easy, though I found it was only a good place to start. Had it for two weeks now and found it to be everything I hoped for.

Current system is a Panasonic 50" plasma, Toshiba A30 HD DVD, Panasonic BD 35 Blue Ray, matched Infinity studio monitor speakers (new Aperions on the way).

UPDATE:
Have had this over a month now and confirmed that the 876 was by far the best choice for me. I demoed the Denon 3808, that has a slicker setup menu but far fewer useful features for a lot more money. This receiver I will have for a long time. I looked at the 906 at a local shop and couldn't justify the difference. Even though it's not supposed to be worthwhile now, the THX is a great feature also. In case you are stuck on what to do, you can't go wrong here.

I bought this unit (SR 876 B) having read horror stories of 806 and blue dot issues.
Unit had burr and brown DACs like 805 which was the last bench mark.
Unit arrived in great shape from amazon. Worked excellently for 46 days.
Just past the 30day limit on almost any return policy period the center channel started making a periodic sound. It was mixed in with whatever was being played through the center channel. The sound was pink noise of duration 15-20seconds then repeating every other minute. It was loud enough not to be bearable.

Called onkyo support. They were very unhelpful. They seemed to make it an owner/user error to an amp error. Like robots - they request the customer to reset the unit. Like that will help a bug in the analong section (most likely a failed capacitor).

Unit ran very hot when used.

Onkyo support requested me to call amazon and arrange for a return. Amazon support was very helpful - however was not able to arrange for an replacement. Waiting to see if I can complete a return.

Now the price of the unit has shot up. No choice but too look for another brand.

After doing tons of research I decided that this was the best A/V receiver in the $1000 range. I am happy with my decision. I thought I had a good sound system with my Yamaha HTR 520. When I listen to tunes on the 876, I hear things I've never heard before. I get new pleasure listening to my old favorites. The sound is beautifully clear. HQV made me choose this over the 806. It works well, a little bit better at upconverting than my Oppo 981HD DVD player. "Lord of the Rings" DVD really looks like HD. However, it does not do a lot for my SD Dish signal. Other reviewers have commented on the heat. It runs hot, but not so hot that I'm worried.