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| Hi all, I was looking for HT/ HTIB. I live in Apt complx, so power is not very important i guess. But sound reproduction is. my budget is around $700 and want to buy DVD + AV reciver + 5+1 speakers. at frys (bay area) i see Yamaha YHT 500 is $600+tax Onkyo S650 is 500+tax please suggest which is better. when i listed to them in those big showrooms of frys electronic. both felt the same. but Onkyo has S-video intput/output. and yamaha does't. is that important? if you have any other suggestion please let me know. http://www.onkyousa.com/show_model.cfm?class=minisys&m=HT-S650 or http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/HTIB/HTIB_500_1.htm or (outside option) http://www.goodguys.com/adtemplate.asp?invky=777141 |
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Anonymous | Onkyo you refer to does not include a DVD player; Yamaha does. The YHT500 is a YHT300 with a DVD. Compare the Onkyo650 to the YHT300 for an apples to apples comprison. |
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harsha nagaraju | Hi, Thanks, but I know Onkyo S650 does't have DVD player. so i was thinking of buying samsung DVD player for $90 at costco. so money wise there is not much difference between them. infact i am ok spending as much as $750, if i get a better one. but here Yamaha YHT 500 AV reciver dose not have s-video inputs, where as onkyo has. so how much will that s-video I/O matter? Thanks Harsha |
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| Hi Harsha, I have the Onkyo on order (soundcity.com $499, no tax, no shipping). I've done a great deal of research, and I've learned much. I've read of more than a few cases where people have gotten home with Kenwood, Yamaha, Bose, and Sony systems costing sometimes twice as much, and they've returned them in favor of the Onkyo HT-S650 within days. Three major things to look at: 1. Onkyo has better inputs/outputs of any HT receiver in its class (tons of s-vid!). 2. You'll never get good sound out of speakers in plastic cabinets. The Onkyo speakers all have heavily-reinforced wood cabs. 3. The larger midrange drivers that Onkyo uses eliminates that "tinny" sound you get of other HT speaker systems. The only two dings I've found about the HT-S650: 1. The volume curve is not linear, so the lower volume settings are too quiet to hear. 2. The speaker wire that Onkyo ships with the system is trash. People have reported drastic sound quality improvement by using better wire. I just went today and bought 200' of 14ga OFC. Cost me $28 for 200'. Cheers, Jim |
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Anonymous | For me S-video inputs are important because my TV has only 1 input and I have at least 3 devices that want to go there (digital cable, ps2, dvd, maybe dvr). So that would push me towards the Onkyo. I have not compared the two against each other, but I think the Onkyo seems to be very popular and everyone seems to like the sound. I was impressed with the Onkyo's sound, but the speakers seemed too large for my small apartment. However the large speakers is maybe part of why it sounds so good. |
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Po | I cannot comment on the Yamaha system but I recently bought the Onkyo system and I have found it to be outstanding. I didn't think that sound quality could be so good for such little money until I went and had a listen for myself. After listening I asked myself "Why am I saving for $1000 speakers when for $500 I can get a good receiver *and* speakers that sound excellent?" I couldn't think of one good reason, so I bought the Onkyo system. If you do get the Onkyo, immediately throw the speaker wire that comes in the box away. Buy decent speaker wire and a decent subwoofer cable and you will not regret it. I don't think I will ever go to a movie theater again. The sound in my living room is better. |
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| Just a suggestion for the bits and bobs to go with the HT-S650: I ordered my optical cable and sub cable from Parts Express (www.partsexpress.com). Also picked up some mounting brackets for the surround speakers (already have brackets for the front channel speakers). Part # - Description - Price 180-948 - DAYTON OPTICAL CABLE 6' - $9.50 181-644 - DAYTON SUBWOOFER CABLE 25' - $14.40 182-130 - MINO50 UNIV SPKR BRACKETS - $17.50 As mentioned earlier, I picked up the 14ga OFC at Synergy Datacom (www.syndat.com) for 14 cents per foot. Nice cable. Stranded 14-gauge conductors (red and black jackets) inside of a yellow PVC sheath. Perfect for stud wall and attic installations. |
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Fred | Will a progressive scan DVD work to its full capability through the HTS-650's or the HTB-505's receiver? |
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Anonymous | Onkyo HTS-650 is the only choice unless you have $2500.00 to spend. |
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Anonymous | Fred in regards to your question, I currently have the Onkyo DVCP500 which is progressive setup to my HTS650 and my Toshiba 50H71 and all I can say is that I do not miss going to movie theaters. I also have all better cables connections so sound and picture are excellent. Definitely recommend Onkyo for the value dollar you get. |