Onkyo TX-SR706 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black) Reviews

• 706 vs 806/905. A nice receiver package in ~500$ range

  
  By A3F43PAJZLOE3I on 2008-10-27
  It is hard to rate products like this. It is a super duper feature packed product. You get a lot of bells and whistles. Integrated amp has three main parts,
  
  1) Power supply
  2) Pre-amp, processor
  3) AMP
  
  1) Power Supply: 4/5 stars
  It is quite noisy and doesn't have very good isolation. There is no easy way to connect a external ground. Also the power rating for the entire unit is very deceiving. 100+ W while driving only the main two. In 7.1 it is probably 20 W per channel. 80x and 90x have far better power supply than this puppy. That is the main reason they are so heavy. There is also no easy way to replace the fuse to a noise free one.
  
  2) Pre-amp, processor: 5/5 stars
  Number of input connections, hdmi control, all the DSP and format support. Wow Wow... there is no other receiver in this price range that handle it all. Dolby True HD, DTS, LPCM, TOS Link any thing you ever want is available here.
  
  One minor complaint is input impedance. It is quite low for a active pre-amp. It will require a nice sturdy analog source to provide the full punch. Be careful if you plan to use IPOD as AUX source. IPOD wants 100 ohm+ at all frequency range to provide linear output. You are better off using Onkyo dock. Phono inputs are OK at best.
  
  If you are looking for 4 HDMI inputs, DSD processing, 1080 up-scaling you wont find another one in the ~500 range. This one is feature packed.
  
  3) Amplifier: 3/5 stars
  
  Amp gain relies of a big negative feedback circuit. The dynamic slam is very meager with fast music. Especially when you play SACD driving all the 5 channels. It does fare well when i connect only my two fronts. To get the best power, i just connect my two fronts in bi-amp mode. The bass seems lot clear and music flows more naturally. It is easy to hear the difference in clarity when you just hook only the front two, rather than all 7 channels. 706 is strictly for speakers with 8 ohm+ rating. If you have speakers with odd phase shifts, every thing will sound mushy.
  
  Similar to the pre-amp, the amp is not linear. There is a lot of coloration going on. The sound is not natural. I use my creek audio and neutral NAD as comparison, sounds come very different with Onkyo. It is pleasant but you do hear other artifacts that the Amp has introduced.
  
  Also the bass seems to vary a lot. For movies I have to turn the bass down. For music I have to increase it. I never had this problem with NAD integrated and other amps. The sound is very rounded, you loose some of the low and high end. It probably has a 60-16K range.
  
  Negative feedback loop also affects the bass extension. On a large explosion that lasts for few seconds the feedback just builds upon itself and makes it too loud. In music bass is fast and tight, feedback is not fast enough to provide the punch.
  
  Another big complaint is the channel isolation. It is less than 20 db. So stereo image seems to float. Sound transition from speaker to speaker is never crisp and clear. Sound always seems to leak to rest of the speakers in the system. It is not ideal for SACD or DVD-Audio.
  
  Over all rating for the entire unit: 4.5/5 stars
  
  For this price, you cant ask for more. It is a good unit, you are getting lot more than you pay. This amp is clearly meant for HT Movies. Dont try to use it for 2 channel music.
  
  If you have more money to spare, I would suggest getting a 90x with toroidal transformer. It has much more smooth sound. Dont get fooled by numbers. Music is art, not technology. You need a amp that can be fast, responsive and color less. 905/80x also uses draws more power and they run quite hot. They isolate more nose, if you have other noisy sources connected to the main line.
  
  A simple analogy is a automobile, dump truck and corvette both have 500 Hp. Just power rating and numbers are not enough. Dynamic slam, agility are also important for a amplifier. 905/806 is a huge difference in performance. If you are looking for stereo only amp, look at Creek Audio 5350SE. But if you have a strict <600$ budget there is nothing better than 706.
  
  

• All I can say is WOW

  
  By A20Q8IQFLICLVY on 2008-09-30
  I recently bought the SR706 receiver from ABT. I wanted to get it from amazon, but I was a bit suspect with the two reviews so far. I had planned to get the 705, but with this new model out and the upgrade to 4 HDMI's in, I couldn't pass it up. I also purchased the KEF 1005.2 speaker set, which is a 5.1 set-up. All I can say is WOW. This receiver is absolutely amazing. The sound is crisp when I listen to music and enveloping when watching a movie. The mic set-up worked flawlessly, although i did not run it for two weeks because my speaker stands were on back order, and I wanted to wait until I had the speakers mounted where I wanted them. The receiver runs a bit warm, but its nothing warmer than my previous denon receiver. Highly recommend.
  
  

• Wow!

  
  By A2ZHT9A4OBXHE4 on 2008-10-21
  I bet I read opinions for 3 weeks before I decided on the Onkyo TX-SR706. For 99% of home theater users, this will MORE than do. Coupled with my Harman/Kardon HKTS 18 speakers system w/powered subwoofer, it will seriously rattle the windows and provide good balance at the same time. Mesh that with the Panasonic TH-50PZ800U and a Panasonic DMP-BD30 Blu-ray player and we're talking serious home theater.
  
  Currently, I have a 5.1 audio set-up (even though this product has the capability of 7.1). The Onkyo TX-SR706 has the very latest in audio technology with Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD. If you want the very best performance, match it with a Blu-ray player that can also decode Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD....and you'll need a 7.1 speaker system for the very best sound reproduction.
  
  Yes, the Onkyo TX-SR706 does heat up and get pretty warm, so allow for good ventilation and you should be fine. Some had complained about a loud fan. Mine has been virtually silent.
  
  There are plenty of HDMI connections on this unit. More than I need. HDMI is the ONLY way to go these days. Ugrade to HDMI quality and do yourself a favor.
  
  Some have complained the illuminated dial screen is green. If the product is excellent, I don't care what color the screen is.
  
  In conclusion, unless you are investing half a year's salary in your home entertainment system with 8 rows of seats, and someone to take tickets, the Onkyo TX-SR706 is an outstanding choice.
  
  

• great specs...but didn't deliver

  
  By ATZ0MCF2J8TG1 on 2008-09-05
  It was off to a bad start from the very beginning. The Audyssey mic was dead right out of the box. It was almost impossible to reach any of the Onkyo customer reps to obtain a replacement. The mic arrived in my mailbox 4 weeks after I purchased it (1 week after gave up and returned it).
  I had this thing hooked up to orb audio's people's choice 7.1 system, the sound i must admit is absolutely amazing. The video on the other hand is another story. While playing DVDs the upscaler injected tiny blue specks in dark scenes which I find hugely annoying. I though it was the connection at first but after replacing and adjusting the hdmi cable the problem still remained. It also couldn't have been a cable issue since Blu-ray playback works just fine. Called Onkyo and left a message, to my surprise... no reply. Maybe I got got a dud but after this ordeal I think I'll give Denon a try.
  
  
  

• At least it didn't run hot

  
  By A3CGE73MRR1UL8 on 2008-09-17
  As per the previous reviewer, I also had a bad Audyssey mic, and thus couldn't use the auto room setup. Onkyo customer service insisted that it was because I had my system bi-amped and wouldn't work under that setting. I doubted it, and undid the bi-amp, and of course same problem. My brother came over w/ his Denon mic, and surprise, it worked. But that said, under manual mode, sound was good, remote decent and it did not run hot. Granted my unit was not in a enclosed case, but open. In the end< returned it and getting a Onkyo 876 delivered in 2 days. Gotta love this Amazon Prime thing!
  
  

• Furman Elite-20 PF i Ultra Linear AC Power Source
• Premium HDMI v1.3 Cable (2M/6ft.)
• Furman IT-Reference 20 i Discrete Symmetrical AC Power Source
• Furman Elite-15 i Linear Filtering AC Power Source
• Monster Cable IDL100-2M Interlink Datalink 100 6.56-Foot Low-Loss S/PDIF Style Digital Coaxial Cable

• HDMI Cable 2M (6 Feet)
• Onkyo DS-A2X Remote Interactive iPod Dock
• Panasonic DMP-BD35K 1080p Blu-ray Player
• Cables To Go - 40315 - 2M (6.5ft) Velocity HDMI Digital Video Cable (Blue)
• Iron Man (Single-Disc Edition)