Worked great for one week, then failed, May 7, 2010

The sound from my ten year old Onkyo TX-DS474 was now inferior and I had read very good reviews of the Onkyo SR 507, so decided to pre order the brand new SR 508. It arrived from Amazon on April 29th. I used the built in equalizer to set up the speakers, connected the receiver with brand new HDMI v1.4 cables and connected it to my Dish satellite receiver, my Panasonic BluRay DVD player and my Panasonic HDTV. The sound was excellent. Whereas before we had to turn up the volume too loud to follow dialog on some shows, or else it was not clear, with the SR 508 the sound was so much clearer that we could keep the volume much lower.
After about three days I noticed that although I would assign the input as cab/sat, the receiver indicated ipod (now no ipod dock was connected to the receiver) but the sound still came through from the satellite box. Strange but no problem. Then exactly one week after receiving the receiver, in the middle of watching a show, the picture and sound went blank. No pushing of different buttons on the remote would make it work. My first reaction was a bad HDMI cable, so I changed it. Nothing. I switched to the DVD player, but again blank. So then I hooked up the satellite box and the DVD player directly to the TV by separate HDMI cables, turned on the TV speakers, and the TV works again. Obviously the SR 508 suddenly failed and would not even work as a pass through. I am returning the set to Amazon for a replacement. If the replacement works fine for a reasonable amount of time, I will update this review.
I chose Onkyo partially because of its RIHD feature in conjunction with Panasonic. In my experience that only works so-so. Turning on the BluRay DVD player did switch the receiver directly to DVD. But turning it off does not switch back automatically to cab/sat. Turning off the TV also turns off the Onkyo, but not vice versa. You still have to turn on the Onkyo receiver separately.
One unexpected problem with the receiver is that the zone 2 input works only with an analog signal. On my DS-474, I have set up output B to speakers in my screened in porch to be able to listen to CDs or TV there. The B speakers work with digital. Now all my signal inputs for zone 2 are digital, so it appears that the zone 2 feature is useless. Bummer!
I should specify that I am not at all techie, so there may be work arounds that I don't know!

Update#1: The unit failed Thursday evening, I requested a replacement online from Amazon on Friday noon, it arrived at my house on Saturday at about 2pm. I'm sure everyone would agree that that is outstanding customer service from Amazon. I have now (Sunday) installed the replacement unit and again it appears to be working great. Provided it continues to do so, I will add a second update and change my rating to four stars. I remain disappointed that the zone 2 is not digital, hence not 5 stars.

Update #2: Four days after installing the second receiver, it also failed in the same way. However, at the bottom of the "Troubleshooting" page in the user manual, I found the following comment: "The AV receiver contains a microcomputer for signal processing and control functions. In very rare situations, severe interference, noise from an external source, or static electricity may cause it to lock up. In the unlikely event this happens, unplug the power cord from the wall outlet, wait at least five seconds and then plug it in again."
That worked and it has not locked up again in the last ten days. However, I certainly take issue with the "rare circumstances" and "unlikely event" and I can't imagine any special event that may have caused it. My receiver is in a cabinet with the plug behind it, so unplugging is quite inconvenient. This said, the sound from the receiver is really clear so, if this problem does not recur frequently, I will be happy with the purchase. I'm changing my rating from one star to three stars.

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Best bang for the buck!!!, May 17, 2010

I bought this to replace my Sony receiver I purchased from Amazon 3 years ago (almost to the day). While there was nothing "wrong" with my Sony receiver, I quickly realized once I plugged the Onkyo in, that my surround speakers were not being utilized as they should be.

While I am not an audiophile, I do have some quality speakers, and I do like having a quaility sound while watching movies (and playing Xbox). The sound is so clear and crisp with this receiver. Further, the set up with the 4 HDMI inputs made my stereo cabinet so much cleaner, and I got rid of all of my YRW and RBG wires. I am sure I could have invested another $300 and really got some really high end equipment, but honestly, the Onkyo is worth it. The funny thing is, I spent the same amount on the new Onkyo as I did on the old Sony, and the difference is just amazing.

The on-screen set up is great. It makes customizing the inputs and the equilizer so easy. And the speaker test really lets you know what where you need to place you speakers. What else can I say about this product? Honestly, this is the best purchase I have made in a long time. I think the 4 HDMI inputs alone make this a must-have over any other receiver similarly priced. I almost bought another Sony instead of the Onkyo (mostly because I have never purchased anything other than Sony receivers), but I am glad I made the switch. Now that I have experienced Onkyo, I think I have made a life long switch.

If you have any hesitations about buying this product, please feel free to send me a message, and I will try to answer your question before you buy. And if you have never bought an Onkyo before, try it first, and I am pretty sure you will like it (I would almost guarantee it). If not, return it to Amazon. They are really good with returns. But I doubt you will even want to return it once you get it set up.