Would Onkyo or Yamaha be a better receiver for my polks?

Polkie918

I cannot decide between the yamaha 663 or the onkyo 606 receivers.....

here is my setup

csi3 center
rti8 fronts
fxia4 rears
and a velodyne sub



would one sound better for this specific polk speaker setup?

does anyone have either receiver?


thasnks

rdb2001

I have had both hooked up to my polks. I now have the onkyo 606 and I was using a Yammy v463 which is now for sale. The yamaha did well but the sound really opened up when I hooked up the onkyo. WOW is all I can say. I think the yammy are good receivers but I think onkyo tops them. Just my opinion.

rdb2001

Polkie918 wrote: »

I cannot decide between the yamaha 663 or the onkyo 606 receivers.....

here is my setup

csi3 center
rti8 fronts
fxia4 rears
and a velodyne sub



would one sound better for this specific polk speaker setup?

does anyone have either receiver?


thasnks

Also at the, both are in the same price range, onkyo is actually cheaper online. The onkyo has alot more features than the yammy. Onkyo has built in HD decoders where as the v663 dont. I think that right there is enough to cancel out the yammy v663 IMO. Hope this helps. Also what is you your budget, you probably can get the 706 for what the yamaha is costing. You would be able to add amps for the Future and new egg has it 479 shipped right now.

Polkie918

well I looked online....amazon has the onkyo 606 for only $319 right now with free shipping...and the yamaha is on EBAY brand new for $365 but ebay anbd microsoft have a 30% off deal goiong so in 60 days I would get back $109......the 30% off would work with the onkyo on ebay too.....so with the great deals right now id like to stay around $350 or less....

rdb2001

Polkie918 wrote: »

well I looked online....amazon has the onkyo 606 for only $319 right now with free shipping...and the yamaha is on EBAY brand new for $365 but ebay anbd microsoft have a 30% off deal goiong so in 60 days I would get back $109......the 30% off would work with the onkyo on ebay too.....so with the great deals right now id like to stay around $350 or less....

Would you buy refurbished. I have had good dealings with refurbished products but some dont use them.

rdb2001

If you do, shop onkyo has the 606s shipped to your door for 260 but I think the best deal they have is the 706s shipped to your door for about 375 both are refusrbished models though. I think you will be happy with onyko.

apphd

rdb2001 wrote: »

Also at the, both are in the same price range, onkyo is actually cheaper online. The onkyo has alot more features than the yammy. Onkyo has built in HD decoders where as the v663 dont. I think that right there is enough to cancel out the yammy v663 IMO. Hope this helps. Also what is you your budget, you probably can get the 706 for what the yamaha is costing. You would be able to add amps for the Future and new egg has it 479 shipped right now.

Sorry but this is wrong. The 663 does have HD decoders.
"High-performance Home Theater Receiver features full support for HD audio formats," http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/productdetail.html?CNTID=567571&CTID=5000300

With pre outs that the 606 doesn't. That is a pretty good deal on the referb 706 though.
I have the 663 and am very happy. It doesn't have it all but for the price I think it is one of the best bang for the buck AVRs out there.
OP I can't comment on how it would sound with your speakers as I do not have any of those and am running with a 5 ch amp.

I would seriously consider the 30% off deal on the 663 and a used amp or the referb 706. I hear that you can pick up some good deals from Onk direct if you keep watching them. Good prices and an extra 10% off by joining Club Onkyo. The prices and supply changes a lot so you have to time it right.

rdb2001

apphd wrote: »

Sorry but this is wrong. The 663 does have HD decoders.
"High-performance Home Theater Receiver features full support for HD audio formats," http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/productdetail.html?CNTID=567571&CTID=5000300

With pre outs that the 606 doesn't. That is a pretty good deal on the referb 706 though.
I have the 663 and am very happy. It doesn't have it all but for the price I think it is one of the best bang for the buck AVRs out there.
OP I can't comment on how it would sound with your speakers as I do not have any of those and am running with a 5 ch amp.

I would seriously consider the 30% off deal on the 663 and a used amp or the referb 706. I hear that you can pick up some good deals from Onk direct if you keep watching them. Good prices and an extra 10% off by joining Club Onkyo. The prices and supply changes a lot so you have to time it right.

I stand corrected. I dunno where i saw that it did no have it at. Thanks for correcting me. I still think at the price he would be best served getting a 706 from onkyo IMO. Thanks

Hilbert

I have 663 and like it. OTOH quite a few posters at club Polk seem not to like Yamaha sound. Have never heard Onkyo, or anything but Yam, so can't comment.

However, I do strongly advise get something with pre outs. A separate amp is most effective upgrade you can make. You'll probably want one eventually.

Like next month.:)

wutadumsn23

I just recently bought the 806 and it is awesome, I love Onkyo receivers and think you will be happy with either the 606 or 706. Get the one best suited for your needs/wallet.

McDavidL

rdb2001 wrote: »

I have had both hooked up to my polks. I now have the onkyo 606 and I was using a Yammy v463 which is now for sale. The yamaha did well but the sound really opened up when I hooked up the onkyo. WOW is all I can say. I think the yammy are good receivers but I think onkyo tops them. Just my opinion.

I have the Onkyo TX-SR606, it replaces my Sony STR DE-1775 which is also for sale. But I agree the Onkyo 606 is the best receiver I ever had. The sounds are just awsome.

Polkie918

whats the difference between the 606 and the 706? thanks

Face

Off the top of my head, the 706 has preamp outs, unlike the 606.

Polkie918

is that it? then what if I decided just to spend a bit more and get the onkyo 806? wouldnt any of those pretty much be futureproof?

Montoya

Returned the yamaha in two days my two year old onkyo sounded way better. My brother in-law did the same thing and got a onkyo 806.

wutadumsn23

I second the 806, it is pretty much all you could ask for. I love mine and am learning new things about it everyday. It has all the bells and whistles you cpuld want/need and you can get it shipped for around $600. J&R has it right now for around that price w/ free shipping, but they are temp. out of stock, lol. A quick froogle search brings up more options (see link attached) hope this helps.

http://www.google.com/products?q=tx-sr806&hl=en&scoring=p

mantis

I'm gonna tell you about how I feel about both companies.

Yamaha's for years have been very solid. Excellent dynamic and good sound quality. Over the years they became alittle shrill and not as good as they once where. I'm not as much of a fan anymore. But the still put out a pretty good product.

Onkyo I never liked. I felt they sounded terrible, over the years they have done some stupid stuff. Now unlike Yamaha, they have Improved. They are a good custom company and do a lot of things right, Still pure sound quality I would take the Yamaha.

I would personally look into the Pioneer Elite vsx01tx. I feel this is the best budget receiver out there. Fantastic in every way.

cc16177

I happen to work somewhere where I sell both receivers... and the way it's set up you can A/B the receivers hooked up to any of about 15 pairs of different speakers with the same source on any of about 10 receivers. I have tested the 606 and 705 against the yamaha line from the 363-863 as well as sony 520-920 denon 589-989 and harman kardon 154/254/347 and my favorite has been either the 606/705 or the denon 889/989. That is in pure sound quality alone, as far as features are concerned I have really only spent enough time with the Onkyo and Denon line to say that I prefer Onkyo out of the two.

I bought my dad a sony strdg1000 for fathers day but only because I got it for $275, otherwise I would have definitly bought at least the 606 if not 706.

curved

I say go and listen for yourself - you may or may not like the way some sound. I would look into Pioneer and Denon as well.

nm4710

cc16177 wrote: »

I bought my dad a sony strdg1000 for fathers day but only because I got it for $275, otherwise I would have definitly bought at least the 606 if not 706.

Funny you should mention that...in my quest for a reasonably-priced receiver I tried out quite a few (this was last year)
Onkyo 605 and 805, Denon 2808, Sony STR-DG1000, and HK 245. The Onkyo 805 had the most power...also the most heat and most issues. Denon sounded good, but honestly not appreciably better than the rest. HK has the best sound but was an older model w/o HDMI audio. Sony (I got it on the cheap like you) sounded great and had a ton of features for the price. I knew I was going to add an external amp anyway so the 805's power advantage was negated. I still own the HK and the Sony. Sold the Onk 605, returned the Denon 2808 (so many cool features...but none made it sound better), and had borrowed the 805 from a buddy. Wish I had tried the Yamaha.

Long story short, these receivers sound way more similar than they do different. Go for the one that has the features you need at the price you want to pay...odds are you will end up upgrading it later anyway...esp if you hang out here.

MLZ

Do they both do room equalization equally well? That is one feature difficult to judge at a store.

BjornB17

Polk RTi series and Yamaha would sound deafeningly shrill when paired together. Go Onkyo or HK

LandShark

I have the 705 and it kills the Sony DE895 I did have. It's the best receiver I've ever owned and the ease of use is child's play.

ben62670

I really liked the HK sound over Yammi hands down.

Polkie918

I think im gonna go with the 606 for $319 shipped from amazon...great price....but ive heard people complaining about a humming sound when connected to a ps3? I watch alot of bluray movies......

Kex

ben62670 wrote: »

I really liked the HK sound over Yammi hands down.

+1 IMO, although I still own a Yamaha. The Yamaha is not a mistake by any means, but h/k just brings out something more from the Polk speakers I own (and I own quite a few). If I were choosing between the Yamaha and Onkyo mentioned by the OP, I would probably just flip a coin, or decide on looks alone. I would expect them to sound very similar. I would strongly consider avoiding the Onkyo 606 though, in favor of the 706, because of the absence of pre-outs, unless it was a really good deal. For $400, in any case, I would vastly prefer the h/k 245 over either one (check current pricing on amazon.com).

cc16177

Polkie918 wrote: »

I think im gonna go with the 606 for $319 shipped from amazon...great price....but ive heard people complaining about a humming sound when connected to a ps3? I watch alot of bluray movies......

Like I posted before I work somewhere where I sell these receivers on a fairly regular basis. I have sold probably 20-25 606s in the last 3-5 months... probably 5-10 of which were to people with PS3s, and I have had no complaints. And trust me, if there were complaints to be had I would be the first one to hear them haha

Erik Tracy

BjornB17 wrote: »

Polk RTi series and Yamaha would sound deafeningly shrill when paired together. Go Onkyo or HK

Not out to poke anyone in the eye, but categorical characterizations for a whole line of avrs seems to me a bit strong.

I own a Yammy V1800 avr and one review stated:

Out of the box, the sonic character of the receiver is warm, laid back, and easy to listen to, which is a tribute to the attention that Yamaha pays to the internal signal path and the overall construction of the chassis.

My personal experience with this avr and Polk RTI4s, RTIA3s, and LSI7s is that the V1800 is an admirable performer for its size and budget.

I can say that between the RTI4/A3s and LSI7s, the RTIs are 'brighter' (whereas the LSI7s tended to sound 'dull' - to me)- but I'd be reluctant to say that my V1800 and RTIA3s are "shrill"

But, that's just me....

bigaudiofanatic

Onkyo absolutely onkyo they are IMO a better company than yamaha.

BjornB17

Erik Tracy wrote: »

Not out to poke anyone in the eye, but categorical characterizations for a whole line of avrs seems to me a bit strong.

I own a Yammy V1800 avr and one review stated:


My personal experience with this avr and Polk RTI4s, RTIA3s, and LSI7s is that the V1800 is an admirable performer for its size and budget.

I can say that between the RTI4/A3s and LSI7s, the RTIs are 'brighter' (whereas the LSI7s tended to sound 'dull' - to me)- but I'd be reluctant to say that my V1800 and RTIA3s are "shrill"

But, that's just me....

I was implying the "budget" receiver that he was considering, not the $1300 receiver that you are talking about But sorry, i should have been more clear