Home theater a/v receiver. I have narrowed it down to two, but which should I choose?

Question

I have narrowed down my a/v receiver search to the Onkyo tx sr805 and the Yamaha rx v1800. Pros and Cons:

Onkyo tx sr805

Pros:

THX certified

price $800

Cons:

Does not upconvert video

only has 3 hdmi inputs

only has 3 optical digital inputs

Yamaha rx v1800

Pros:

Does Upconvert video

has 4 hdmi Inputs

has 5 optical digital inputs

Cons:

not THX certified

price $1200

I would also like to add that I would make use of 4 hdmi inputs and 5 optical inputs. I just cant seem to decide if that and the video upconversion is worth four hundred more dollars. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

Answer 1

The Onlyo is going to give you better sound.  How many HDMI devices do you have?  No receiver that I know of does anything but "pass-through" for the video.  The DVD player does all of that.  And with the declining interest in HD-DVD format, it looks like BluRay will be the format.

I have an "upconvert" DVD player, and am not overly impressed...  I'm waitng for BluRay to come down to realistic prices...

Answer 2

You're better off with the Yamaha receiver, it is more expensive yes but it still meets the requirements needed for THX certification, Yamaha just didn't pay THX to certify that particular model of receiver which would have added another couple hundred dollars to the price tag.

So take away the THX Surround mode and certification and that onkyo receiver would still be the same quality just a few hundred dollars less.....Lots of receivers have the quality needed to meet THX certification, most of them just don't pay THX to have the right to put that little logo on their product.

If you would make use of the 4 HDMI inputs and 5 Optical inputs then definitely go for the Yamaha receiver.