Hey everyone, I've been looking at upgrading to an AVR for a 5.1.4 home theater. Budget is ideally less than $2k CAD, but could stretch it a bit if it's actually beneficial. I've been eyeing either the Onkyo TX-NR7100 ($1800 CAD) or Onkyo RZ-50 ($2200). The biggest difference seems to be the higher power output to the speakers and the addition of pre-amp outputs.
In general it's quite a jump in price from 5/7.1 to 9.1 and higher, and these two Onkyo options seem to be the most reasonably priced for their features. For comparisons, the 9.4 Denon 3800h goes for $2250, and 9.2 4700h is on sale currently for $2520. I've also read there have been some issues with the HDMI 2.1 ports on the Denon products but this may have been fixed with more recent versions?
My LCR speakers are 2x in-wall Polk 265-RT and 1x Polk 255C-RT, surrounds are 2x OWM3, rear Atmos are also 2x OWM3, and front Atmos are 2x Micca R-8C. A bit of a hodgepodge of speakers but due to room size and couch placement, ceiling joists spacing, and general appearance requirements, this is what we settled on.
Would anyone be able to weigh in on whether or not the pre-amp outputs are worthwhile or give their experience with these amps or any alternatives? Thank you kindly for your help!
5 Comments
CCatMan@lemmy.one · 2 pts · 2y
The preAmps on the denons are good. Now sure about the Onkyos. Honestly, your setup is going to run fine with the internal Amp, so don't stress about it.
Geospizinae@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 2y
Thanks for your feedback!
LordOfTheChia@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 82d
You should check the AudioScienceReviews site for the RZ-50 vs the 3800h.
As a long time Onkyo fan, I ended up picking a Denon Receiver for my "big" basement home theater that was very well reviewed for its use as just a preamp.
Craigslist provided most of the the cheap but good amps (Crown amps) that I use to drive the speakers. Also eventually bought an outlaw 5 (or 7?) channel amp for the tweeter and midrange while using the Crown (class D) for the woofers. Now I need to upgrade my basemenet electrical.
Separate amps (even cheaper crown or outlaw ones) can be a big step up from any receiver internal amp.
Also note that onkyo built in amps changed a fair bit after the release of the RZ line. To me the TX-NR and earlier 700/800 and up amps were top notch.
The new ones are still OK.
Another thing. Some 7.1.4 receivers limit which channels you can use for your first amp when in 7.1.4 mode. The TX-RZ50 makes you use your first external amp for either the surround back or height 2.
Something to keep in mind.
I'd go with the 3800h or the RZ-50 for upgradeability. I do have the RZ-50 driving a set of Definitive in-walls and I've been very happy. It replaced a TX-NR 906 which also worked well but eventually had HDMI issues.
Edit: oof, just noticed the date on the post
FunderPants@lemmy.ca · 1 pts · 2y
Did you ever sort this out? I'm getting into a home theater setup myself and would love to read an answer.
Geospizinae@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 2y
Nope, not yet, still reading and looking over options. I'm leaning towards the NR7100 but haven't pulled the trigger yet. I can follow up once I get things set up and running though.