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PICK ONE... ONKYO 805 or MARANTZ 8001

I'm trying to decide on a new (to me anyways) receiver.

I've narrowed it down to these two:
MARANTZ - SR 8001
ONKYO - TX SR 805

About the only big deal I see bwtween them in their feature set is the 805 has better video flexibility & the HDMI 1.3 thingy. THEIR POWER RATING IS ABOUT EQUAL AND ALL i WOULD NEED.

The HDMI 1.3 does seem attractive for multi ch. high res audio playback via a single wire bundle, BUT not having heard anything through one, I'm skeptical on it's performance level and would think the Marantz the more musical of the pair... albeit the need for RCA cables for SACD.

The onkyo is also cheaper.

Any other thoughts or experiences here on support or performance, would be super and greatly appreciated.
blindjim
sogood51
2,157 posts
 
I saw the Onkyo 805 at J&R Music World on sale at $799...no tax, and free shipping.

The system I setup a few months back, (mentioned above)...had Onkyo 805, Oppo digital sacd/dvd audio/video player, Sanyo projector, NHT Classic 3's and 2's for speakers, Hsu subwoofer...it sounded (and looked) very nice.

Dave
blindjim OP
3,092 posts
 
Sogood51

Thanks much.... What you did is about what I'll be doing too... but different speakers & sub.
tgrisham
1,291 posts
 
And, to add to the fray...I love my 805. Oppo 970HD, HD-RPTV, Hsu sub, VSA fronts, assorted amps. I only use it for video processing and it works perfectly. There is a one second delay in decoding a video source. Usually not noticable, but when watching a bowl game my OTA HD signal would occeasionally cut out (I live 50 miles from the transmitters) and each time it came back, the Onkyo took a second to present the audio. Frustrating, but as I understand it only the ultra expensive processors are quicker. For my purposes, the Onkyo is perfect. BTW, I do not use in internal amps, and it doesn't get very hot in my rack. $799, free shipping and 30 day return from J&R, where I got mine. Have fun and enjoy!
blindjim OP
3,092 posts
 
805 owners... the only in depth review I could find on either the 805 or 875 said they were bright up top... is that your experience?

They also mentioned the video delay not catching immediately and/or the consequent lag of audio via the HDMI path.

...and given the above, the Marantz becomes more attractive... hmm.
cruz123
586 posts
 
I haven't noticed any brightness or video delay (I'm not really sure what you're referencing in regard to video delay). The only audio lag I have noticed is when watching a TV show that is broadcast in Dolby 5.1. Most commercials are not broadcast in Dolby 5.1, but rather have 2 channel audio. The 805 has a momentary lag while switching from Dolby 5.1 to two channel audio (PLII in my case). The lag is probably 1 second or so. Frankly, I hardly even notice it as i don't pay close attention to commercials, but it is a big deal to some. I'm also not sure how seamless other AVR's handle the switch, so if this is a bothersome issue for you should probably audition before buying. Otherwise, I don't have any audio lag issues either with TV or other sources. Some have reported lip sync issues, but the 805 does allow you to compensate for that if it shows up. Sync issues can usually be blamed on the broadcast source - TNT-HD for example was notorious for lip sync issues for a while, but it mostly been resolved. I haven't had any sync issues while watching dvd, blu-ray, etc.
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