Onkyo TX-NR708 review
In 2010 Onkyo released the TX-NR708 7.2 surround sound receiver featuring 110 watts per channel. There are four models above (5008, 3008, 1008, and 808) and four below (608, 508, 308, 270). The Onkyo 708 represents a well built, feature packed, powerful home theater receiver at a reasonable MSRP of $899 USD, although you will be able to find it at amazon for $549.00.
This unit really brings Onkyo’s mid range lineup into the next generation of home theater offerings, and it provides a complete package. There are seven HDMI inputs, which all you to put all of your various devices such as PS3, Xbox 360, Bluray, cable box, satellite, and IPTV devices into the receiver, and then output to the TV via one hdmi cable. The included remote control allows you to easily switch between the devices based on the assigned input you provide them. The Onkyo 708 also provides front USB and HDMI inputs, which allow you to easily hookup your ipod or portable music player to the receiver or hookup an HDMI device such as a laptop or digital camera.
The Onkyo 708 includes on screen setup and menus which makes setting up theater system a breeze. I was able to do it in less than 5 minutes and without the complications of scrolling through tiny receiver screen menus. A great feature set of this new generation receiver is the online component, now by connecting a standard ethernet cable to your receiver, you can access Sirius internet radio, pandora, and a few other lesser known services. You can also access shared drives on your network which makes playing music stored on your computer or NAS drive a breeze. Finally, the internet access provides the receiver very accessible firmware updates without the need for complicated installation procedures. Just tell your receiver to download and update and walk away, the rest of the procedure is automated.
The front USB panel allows one to hook their Ipod up to the receiver and browse the ipod’s contents via an on screen menu on your tv. Speed is relatively quick and responsive, and the quality of the audio is as good as an mp3 can be. I really appreciate having the easy access USB panel, and its powered which is another great feature when playing from your ipod for an extended period of time.
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If the HDMI switching and other features mentioned above are not compelling enough, its important to also be aware of the new codecs supported by this unit and what they offer to the listener. With the release of Bluray both Dolby True HD and DTS HD Master Audio have been released as a new “lossless” audio format that allows for higher resolution audio. While CD’s are typically released with a 16 bit sample depth with a 44.1 Khz sampling rate, Dolby True HD and DTS HD Master Audio support all the way up to 24 bit sample depth with 192 Khz sampling rate. What this actually translates to is up to the studios, who must release bluray movies and audio discs with sound tracks encoded in these formats. When studios undertake the effort and expense to master these audio tracks with a high resolution mix, the output from this receiver to your speakers will be unmatched.
One example of a bluray disc taking advantage of the higher sample depth and rates is the Dave Matthews & Tim Reynolds live at Radio City Bluray released in 2007. The Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds bluray features 5.1 Dolby TrueHD and is my go to concert disc for the bluray format. My B&W CDM floor standing speakers are rated for 50-150 watt at 8 ohms. This unit outputs at 110w per channel, and although I was concerned that would be underpowered, I found that I actually am able to keep the volume at a much lower point then I had with my prior unit. This unit has plenty of power to drive the high’s and mid range frequencies clearly, quickly, and concisely. I have been truly amazed by the increased clarity and detail presented with the lossless audio format, and feel as though this unit along with the new audio codecs has really brought new life to my speakers. I feel as though I can hear each guitar string individually singing, and the complete range from low to high is engulfing, you feel as though you are really actually at the concert. Listening to older DVD’s and CD’s just do not live up to the clarity and experience of the high resolution audio mixes. Unfortunately there are not enough of these high resolution mixes for concerts and albums out there yet, although the number is steadily growing and certain artists push the format more than others. My hope is that one day studios will begin to re-release classic albums with higher resolution mixes from the original recordings. This was recently done to a certain extent with the Beatles re-release in 2009, although remastered at a higher resolution the full sampling rate recordings have yet to be released. Although the Beatles albums were released on a USB key with a lossless audio format in higher resolution then was released on the cds. The Onkyo 708 will play the Beattles USB stick by plugging it into the front USB port and following on screen menus similar to the Ipod interface.
I highly recommend this unit as a very affordable yet robust and powerful home theater receiver that will bring you up to date with support for the latest codecs, and allow you to benefit from the higher resolution mixes on most bluray movies and ever increasing collection of bluray concerts and audio discs.
The Onkyo 708 is available for $549 from Amazon.com
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