I'm looking to get a new Onkyo receiver and trying to find as much quality power as I can without spending extra for features.
I've been looking at the HTiB receivers and was told that they are rated to have more power than the seperates that they look identical to.
I did a search and only found 1 post where a guy tested both and found this to be true. the specs seem to back this up too (the power consumption is higher and its heavier)
since when was there a difference between htib recievers and regular recievers? onkyo doesnt make separates so i am quite confused as to what you are talking about. what i can say is that the power ratings for onkyo are not accurate, period. they are not completely honest with how they test the power output. so in reality a 100 wpc onkyo reciever is really like 60 wpc or something around that. i have heard that onkyo's higher end stuff is a bit better, but i would rather get an HK.
Dave, take power specs on HTIB systems with a grain of salt. Some of these are rated as high as 700W which is an absolute joke. At a reference volume(near max) you will be lucky to get 25-30W RMS(continous)per channel. This will most likely be at a high rate of distortion(thd) which will likely be in the neighborhood of 3-10%. HTIB systems have the most "fudged" specs in the business. You best bet is to buy a receiver,even if it is an inexpensive one. This will still be much better in terms of sonics, a much lower THD,and far more current capabability, which is what drives speakers. Even an decent entry model receiver like the HK 135,which is available online for less than $300, when paired with decent but inexpensive speakers, will sonically "blow away" the majority of HTIB systems. E.Ramsey
Thanks for all the info guys. But I can't afford the HK right now. Though, if I had the cash, I wouldn't hesitate.
Because of my budget constraints I can only afford a receiver around $200 and any money I save can go towards better speakers (which I know is pretty important). Personally, I like Onkyo which is why I've been looking at the low end Onkyo Receivers.
I can get the tx-sr302 for about $150 its rated at 65 watts per channel and looks identical to the HTiB receiver in the ht-s570 package that costs $200 but comes with speakers and a sub. There's some differences in the specs like: weight, power consumption, and output power.
If there's a difference in power, I'd be happy to spend the extra cash and use the speakers and sub till I can upgrade.
Do you guys know if there is actually a difference between the two receivers. I dont know much about receivers and the CC salesman told me they're the same, but a lot of other people seem to think theres a difference.
do you already have speakers or are you shopping for them also? when do you anticipate your next upgrade? how important is it to get good quality now as opposed to some time later when you have more money? if you just want some ht system for your room for now, i would go with the HTiB.
If I got the HTiB, I would probably save up for better speakers and get them in a few months. If I got the receiver, I'd probably get slightly lesser speakers now.
But if I can find out whether the HTiB receiver is actually more powerful, I think I would definitely go that route.
look up Harman Audio on eBay, they often have the HK-130/135 for $150-200 with full direct HK warranty. Infinitely better than any HTIB receiver, hands down.
As for your speakers, since you're on such a tight budget right now just buy a cheap pair of $100 bookshelves like the Polk R15 or Fluance SV-6, which you can move to surround duty later on when you have the cash to buy some decent fronts and sub. If you can spare $150 then get the 10" Dayton sub from partsexpress.com to go with it.
Much better to build your system one step at a time than end up with a crappy HTIB setup that you'll be dying to upgrade as soon as you unpack it.
Thanks for the advice. I've been looking ever since Eric mentioned it, but I can't find it for less than $250. I've had some bad experiences with used electronics and dont want to go that route.
Anyone out there know anything about Onkyo receivers. I know its a HTiB receiver, however it's not the usual crappy HTib receiver. It's either just as good as the standalone entry-level receiver or better.
I understand your concern but this is not some shady obscure eBay seller, this is HARMAN KARDON themselves...that's how you get the fully original HK warranty even for these refurb units! Plus from what I've read they are VERY good about defective returns/exchanges and warranty service. That's why this is one of very few places I would ever CONSIDER buying refurb myself.
As for Onkyo receivers, I had their 601 receiver for about 2 weeks after which I returned it for a Marantz 5400. I loved the Onkyo's ease of use/setup and good looks, but there was something missing in the sound, esp. for music which is about 80% of my use.
If you're dead set against the refurb HKs then I'd recommend trying the pure-digital Panasonic SA-xr55 which is $250 from jandr.com on pre-order right now, it should be availabe by the end of this month. The pure-digitals have gotten many rave reviews, some users even claim to be selling off their thousand dollar separates for them. Go to the avsforum.com and do a search, there's one monster huge thread on them.