Great AVR, January 19, 2010

By rprice54 "rprice54" (USA)

I researched my AVR choice for months, read plenty of reviews, both pro and consumer, and settled on this one. There are several home theater forums as well that were very helpful- although realize that on any internet forum you tend to concentrate those who are having problems with the unit. People who don't have problems don't tend to say as much- and that goes for any product.

For me, this thing works like a champ. I chose this over the 1007 for 1)better video processing (Reon chip), 2) independant power supplies (video/aduio/etc), and at the time, I found it for a great price, only a bit more than the 1007. It also has Dolby Dynamic volume, which the 1007 doesn't have- but I use the audyssey dynamic volume anyways. The backlit remote is nice too- although not a reason to buy this over the 1007. At first, I wasn't sure if the Reon chip was worth it, my projector suppossedly has the same chip, but I can tell a big difference upconverting my Dish 720p. The image looks much better when I let the Onkyo do the upconversion as oppossed to my projector. Likewise, it does a better job with DVD material compared to my BR which also upconverts DVDs, just not as well as the Onkyo.

There are plenty of comprehensive reviews about all the many, many features this unit has. I'll let you research those. Compared to other brands, this seemed to have the most bang for the buck. No other 9.2 recievers in this price range. Few THX Ultra certified recievers in this price range. More HDMI inputs than anyone else. I currently have a 5.1 setup with high quality quadrapolar surrounds, and to be honest, I don't think I'll be getting rear surrounds any time soon. I will probably add height next. From everything I've read height makes more of an impact than rear surrounds.

Plenty loud, plenty of headroom. Customizations out the wazoo. Audyssey microphone automatically sets up the unit for you. Mine runs warm, but after a full length movie with the sound cranked up it's not hot by any stretch.

I don't use the net features, can't comment.

So far I use it with my dish 622 box (HDMI), panasonic BR (HDMI), sanyo DVD (component), macbook (HDMI), airport express (optical) and hooked up to a samsung plasma (HDMI) and epson projector (HDMI) without any problems.

Internet capabilities, March 13, 2010

After my Outlaw Audio 1050 broke, I researched and got this receiver. The pros are:

1. Superior audio amplifier - I listen usually from low to moderate levels and the quality is noticeable still after a few months. I'm using Dynaudio speakers.
2. Several HDMI inputs - Easy switching, using the receiver as the central control point.
3. Additional zone - I pipe the music into the garage below my living room.
4. Internet radio - You can enter in stations into the unit's webserver, provided that you've connected it to your home network. See image I uploaded.
5. Streaming mp3 - You can play back mp3's and other formats from your Windows Media computer if you've got sharing enabled. It can search for playlists as well. I'm using a Windows Home Server HP EX490 1TB Mediasmart Home Server (Black) which always streams music. My computer, however, uses iTunes. I use a couple programs to synchronize music between computer and Home Server, and automatically convert nightly from iTunes playlist format to Windows Media format. This enables playlists on the receiver (as well as Xbox 360 and PS3).
6. Automatic update of firmware via Internet.
7. Works well with Harmony One remote Logitech Harmony One Advanced Universal Remote [Amazon Frustration-Free Packaging]

A few cons:
1. No switching outlets, which means it won't turn on pieces of equipment with it. I bought a power strip that will detect when the unit turns on and then in turn power on ambient lighting and a couple wall warts. Smart Strip SCG3 Energy Saving Power Strip with Autoswitching Technology
2. Old mp3's cause the unit to stop dead in its tracks. Not so good during a party. mp3's from (say) 10 years ago will cause the unit to close the connection to your streaming server. Only a power on/off will restore it. You'll have to (say) use iTunes to convert the offending song to mp3 again. Delete the original and that will take care of the problem. Took me a while to figure out this issue since it could have been the server, the unit, the connection, the router, etc. Maybe a future update will take care of this.
3. Audible clicking when a new digital stream happens, be it from a new HDMI source, new streaming song, etc. Not a big deal, but I wish they had used quieter relays.

Having said all that, this unit is awesome and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it.

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Onkyo knocks it out of the park!, April 22, 2010

Below is a review of the TX-NR 3007

My System:
DVp-602ci Video Processor
TX-NR3007
PDP-6020 Pioneer TV
Midrange V2s Tower Speakers (2)
Mirage S12 Powered Subwoofer
Mirage V2s Omnistat satellites (4)
Mirage Omnistat V2cc Center
Dish VIP 622
OPPO BDP 83

SETUP:
First let me say the setup was harder than I thought. The quick setup quite (paper hard copy supplied) was a lifesaver. For those of us that are a bit older, the speaker connections can be hard to see. I would have preferred to have the speaker inputs color coded better like the TX-SR705 (this replaced that one). From start to finish it took me about 90 minutes. My suggestion to anyone purchasing the "NR" models is to connect the speakers and then go right to the speaker set up. I saved myself a lot of hassle by reading this forum first. You must use the supplied microphone and SET UP THE SPEAKERS FIRST. The GUI is helpful but not necessarily intuitive. It took some playing around for me to get to the correct menus and set up everything to my taste.

VIDEO
I use a Denon DVP-602ci. That system uses the Realta T2 Chip. I already had a nice picture for HD sources and a good picture for SD sources. The Reon VX chip took my picture to the next level. It is not so much dramatic as it is 'refined". I am using the low settings for all noise reduction settings. Basically I feed 1080i from the cable box to the processor and output 1080i from the processor to the receiver. The racier is set to 1080P. The processor is the hub for noise reduction and the receiver does all the scaling and de interlacing. The combination is incredible. Besides no video noise at all, the picture is just more crisp and clean with what appears (I am sure it is not the actual case) deeper black levels and contrast. I am extremely picky when it comes to video. The ISF night/day modes work well too. I switch between them and the low noise reduction settings with ISF set to custom. I also tried the picture without the Denon processor in the mix. While the combination is the best it still puts out a really good picture. I was very skeptical of the implementation of the Reon VX on a receiver. It seems to be a good one.

SOUND
My speakers sounded okay with the 705. This is another level all together. Onkyo has moved away from booming sounds. It is much more balanced and refined. The Audyssey EQ system works flawlessly. NO LOUD COMMERCIALS. All HD codes are properly processed. I also have not had any clicking noises (so far tg). The other thing I like is this receiver has much more gradations for volume. It makes it much easier to dial in the perfect volume without going up or down too far.

In a nutshell the TX-Nr3007 is 9.5 out of 10 for me!