Onkyo TX-SR608 Receiver Review
The Onkyo TX-SR608 7.2-Channel Home Theater Receiver is amongst Onkyos more recent efforts in the entry level AV receiver market, and while this bit of kit may be classed as “Entry Level” features and quality wise it is far from it. The Onkyo TX-SR608 has become a very common site in just about any AV vendors show rooms and with good reason, it is an extremely good model for all but the most demanding consumer.
Looks wise the TX-SR608 is pretty much what we’ve come to expect from onkyo receivers, slightly blocky in look with a simple but ergonomically sound front plate and a solid and trustworthy feel to the enclosure itself. Connections wise the unit is very well specified for something in the entry level price range. I/O includes basic Audio and 1080p Video Processing via HDMI (1 Front/5 Rear Inputs and 1 Output), HDTV-Capable (720p/1080i) Component Video Switching (2 Inputs and 1 Output), Front-Panel Audio Input for Portable Devices, Front-Panel Auxiliary A/V Input 4 Digital Inputs (2 Optical and 2 Coaxial), 4 A/V Inputs and 1 Output, Video Output (Monitor), 2 Audio Inputs, Color-Coded, Banana Plug-Compatible Speaker Posts a Headphone Jack and finally a universal Port for Single-Cable Connection of Optional Onkyo Dock for iPhone™/iPod® or DAB+ Radio Tuner. Now as I see it this is a serious amount of I/O, some oversights on the Onkyo TX-SR608 are that this model doesn’t support Ethernet, USB or Bluetooth, but I really think that these are niggles rather than genuine complaints for a unit at this price range.
Check Current Pricing on Amazon
Onkyo have also made this unit pretty easy to get to grips with in my opinion, considering the plethora of available features. If you like to tweak things you will not be disappointed, but at the same time you never feel like you might need a doctorate in astrophysics to get to grips with it, the nicely designed setup and configuration menus see to that. The audio handling and playback quality is extremely good on the TX-SR608 some nice features include volume control handling which stops you getting blasted form your seat when you first turn the unit on and also the unit s maximum volume and Audyssey Dynamic Volume settings which ensure you get a pleasant and listenable experience throughout your film or program without having to constantly adjust settings to make voices easy to hear or stop loud music passages drowning out other parts of the audio track. The units handling of HD audio is extremely good and during my testing I was constantly surprised at just how much presence it had, a couple of times having to remind myself that this is a sub $500 unit. All in all sonically very adept and as good as many older units with almost double the list price.
Check Current Pricing on Amazon
I found the video imaging on the TX-SR608 to very capable, bright and realistic, sharp as one needs and with very solid blacks and darker hues where needed. One or two other observers have said that they have seen occasional frame drops when handling 1080p 24fps sources but this is not something I experienced during testing, never the less if you are a plasma owner perhaps testing this unit with a similar screen before purchase would be advisable. All in all I was very happy with this units performance and would happily recommend it to anyone in the market for a sub $500 unit.
Manufacturers Details
Product Features
100 Watts per Channel at 8 Ohms, 20 Hz¿20 kHz, 0.08%, 2 Channels Driven, FTC
THX Select2 Plus Certified
HDMI (Version 1.4 to Support 3D and Audio Return Channel) with Deep Color, x.v.Color, LipSync, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio
HDMI Video Upscaling to 1080p with Faroudja DCDi Cinema
Audio and 1080p Video Processing via HDMI (1 Front/ 5 Rear Inputs and 1 Output)
ADVANCED FEATURES
THX® Select2 Plus™ Certified
HDMI® (Version 1.4a to Support 3D and Audio Return Channel) with Deep Color™, x.v.Color™, LipSync, Dolby® TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio™, DVD-Audio, Super Audio CD, Multichannel PCM, and CEC
Dolby® TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio™, Dolby® Digital Plus, DTS-HD High-Resolution Audio™ Decoding
HDMI Video Upscaling to 1080p with Faroudja DCDi Cinema™
Audyssey DSX™ and Dolby® Pro Logic® IIz for New Surround Channels
Burr-Brown 192 kHz/24-Bit DACs (PCM1690) for All Channels
Three-Stage Inverted Darlington Circuitry
Jitter-Cleaning Circuit Technology
Audyssey 2EQ™ for Room Acoustic Correction
Audyssey Dynamic Volume™
Audyssey Dynamic EQ™ for Loudness Correction
Powered Zone 2 and Zone 2 Line-Out for Playback of Separate Source in Another Room
Overlaid Graphical On-Screen Display (OSD) via HDMI
2 Parallel Subwoofer Pre Outs
Analog RGB Video Input (D-sub, 15 pin) for PC
AMPLIFIER FEATURES
160 W/Ch at 6 Ohms, 1 kHz, 1 Channel Driven, IEC
WRAT (Wide Range Amplifier Technology)
High-Current Low-Impedance Drive
H.C.P.S. (High Current Power Supply) Massive High Power Transformer
Optimum Gain Volume Circuitry
Bi-Amping Capability
PROCESSING FEATURES
Advanced 32-Bit Processing DSP Chip
4 DSP Modes for Gaming: Rock, Sports, Action, and RPG (Role Playing Game)
Music Optimizer™ for Compressed Digital Music Files
Pure Audio Mode
Direct Mode
Double Bass Function
Non-Scaling Configuration
A-Form Listening Mode Memory
Theater-Dimensional Virtual Surround Function
CONNECTION FEATURES
Universal Port for Single-Cable Connection of Optional Onkyo Dock for iPhone™/iPod® or DAB+ Radio Tuner
Audio and 1080p Video Processing via HDMI (1 Front/5 Rear Inputs and 1 Output)
HDTV-Capable (720p/1080i) Component Video Switching (2 Inputs and 1 Output)
Front-Panel Audio Input for Portable Devices
Front-Panel Auxiliary A/V Input
4 Digital Inputs (2 Optical and 2 Coaxial)
4 A/V Inputs and 1 Output
Video Output (Monitor)
2 Audio Inputs
Color-Coded, Banana Plug-Compatible Speaker Posts
Headphone Jack
OTHER FEATURES
Crossover Adjustment (40/50/60/70/80/90/100/120/150/200 Hz)
A/V Sync Control Function (Up to 200 ms in 10 ms Steps)
Tone Control (Bass/Treble) for Front L/R Channels
Display Dimmer (Normal/Dim/Dimmer)
Sleep Timer (via Remote)
Battery-Free Memory Backup
RDS (PS/RT/PTY/TP)
40 FM/AM Random Presets
RIHD (Remote Interactive over HDMI) for System Control
Compatible with RI (Remote Interactive) Dock for iPod
Preprogrammed RI Remote Control
List Price: $599.00 (Check Current Pricing on Amazon
January 11, 2011
В· 
Aiki В· 
3 Comments
Tags: Onkyo, Onkyo Home Theater, Onkyo Receiver Review, Onkyo Receivers, Onkyo TX-SR608 В· Posted in: Receivers
3 Responses
Reach a new level of Sound in Home! | My recommended sites - February 21, 2011
[...] a look to the new and the best Channel Home Theater Receiver, theВ Onkyo TX-SR608. This is the best update for the Onkyo Company, this product is available in all show room and is [...]
Onkyo TX-SR308 | HiFi Reviews - March 1, 2011
[...] Onkyo does best. Their design teams have experience of building these products in spades (see the onkyo tx-sr608 or tx-nr808 as examples) and the expertise gained in designing these flagship models has certainly [...]
Onkyo TX-SR308 Reciever | Hi Fi Reviews Blog - March 7, 2011
[...] does best. Their design teams have experience of building these products in spades (see the onkyo tx-sr608 or tx-nr808 as examples) and the expertise gained in designing these flagship models [...]
Leave a Reply