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| Brand: Onkyo
Category: CE
Buy New: See price in cart
New (6)
Rating:  156 reviews
Sales Rank: 71
Color: Black
Media: Electronics
Batteries Included: Yes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 24.9
Dimensions (in): 14.8 x 17.1 x 6.9
MPN: TXSR606B
Model: TXSR606B
UPC: 751398008092
EAN: 0751398008092
ASIN: B0015S8PGW
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 awesome January 6, 2009
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This reciever exceeded my expectations! It is easy to set up and an amazing deal for the money.
 Great value a/v receiver January 5, 2009
Onkyo is well known for their low-cost receivers. The TX-SR606 is no different. With four HDMI-in ports it's not short on available connections. The 606 can decode HD audio formats too, so this receiver is up to speed for a conversion to Blu-ray. My only complaint relates to presentation--the GUI could be a little more attractive. But as far as function goes, this receiver is outstanding for the price
My experience with the Onkyo TX-SR606 January 2, 2009
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I have the Onkyo TX-SR606 set to 5.1 mode playing through an old (and discontinued) set of four Boston Acoustics Micro 90 speakers, a BA Micro 90c center speaker, and a BA sub-woofer. Connected to the Onkyo HDMI inputs are a Panasonic DMP-BD55 1080p Blu-Ray player, a DirecTV HD DVR tuner, and via RCA jacks, an Apple Airport Express for playing Internet radio broadcast from my computer. For video, I have the HDMI output sent to a 46 inch Panasonic Viera TH-46PZ85U 1080p Plasma HDTV.
Before moving the Onkyo to it's final location, I unpacked the unit, and did a quick connect to the speakers, just to be sure that I didn't get one of the units that others on this site report has a hum. No hum, only perfect silence. I then ran speaker wires through the walls, mounted and connected the speakers and all audio and video components.
Setting up the Onkyo was very straight forward. (Running 16 gauge speaker wire for the back speakers through wall and the ceiling is a totally different story.) The labels on the back of the Onkyo are easy to understand and seem logically placed. There are very few options that need to be done with the remote, but those that needed adjusting were easily set.
Upon powering the unit for the first time, it's necessary to balance the speakers. I followed the recommended automated process, using the microphone that's included with the receiver. Set-up was a breeze. Within 15 minutes, the system was perfectly balanced (for my taste). The unit automatically adjusted the treble/bass/mid tones based on the speakers that are connected, and adjusted the gain of each set of speakers based on their placement in the room and the room's acoustics. Although there are options for refining all balance and tone settings, I didn't feel the need to do anything beyond the automatic set-up.
For my first experience, I decided to watch and listen to the Blu-Ray version of The Dark Knight. While this disk is visually stunning, the sound produced though this receiver is out-of-this-world! My home video watching/listening experience was forever changed. The highs, the lows, the mid-range sounds blew me away! Ironman was next, followed by the new Blu-Ray version of Sweeny Todd. The sound from this receiver is better than most theaters, the HD picture (passed through the receiver) is perfect, and the popcorn is a lot cheaper. One of these disks is Digital Dolby, and the other two are Dolby TrueHD. All are equally stunning to hear!
Next, I turned on the DirecTV player. The Digital Dolby sound played perfectly, and the video pass-through worked as it should. I experienced no sync problems between sound and video. The resolution of DirecTV, at this point, is only 1080i, so the picture is not as sharp and crisp as the Blu-ray player's 1080p resolution, but the sound is excellent. DirecTV promises 1080p resolution shortly.
Finally, I switched the Onkyo to the Apple Airport input (I used the CD inputs), logged on to AOL Radio with my iMac and broadcast music wirelessly to the Airport using Airfoil. WOW! Even the sound from the Airport is better than I imagined possible. All 5.1 speakers respond, providing some incredible music. Rock on Garth!
Through the Onkyo remote control, I set the receiver's version of Panasonic's VIERA HDMI component control to ON, which allows me to use the Panasonic remote to turn on/off the TV or Blu-Ray player and the Onkyo automatically turns on/off and sets itself to the correct input. Volume on the receiver is also controlled through the Panasonic remote. I almost never use the Onkyo remote since all components can be controlled through the Panasonic remote. I keep the Onkyo remote around because the receiver does not automatically switch to the CD input (RCA jacks) when I use the Airport so I have to set that input and adjust the volume using the Onkyo remote.
The Onkyo TX-SR606 produces the finest sound I've ever heard in a home unit. It is capable of playing all of the current sound formats, is easy to set up and easy to control, and with 4 HDMI inputs, there's space for future expansion.
Now, I think I'll go make a martini and watch AND LISTEN TO another movie!
Feature-PACKED for the price! December 30, 2008
11 out of 11 found this review helpful
It wasn't until I purchased a Blu-ray player (Sony PS3) and Epson Cinelite 1080P projector when I realized I needed to purchase a new receiver. I was looking for something I could connect all my game consoles (PS3, XBox360, Wii), my Mac Pro, and my Karaoke system.
I first bought the lower-model Onkyo TX-SR506 (then later returned... keep reading to find out why), thinking it had all the inputs I needed and HDMI output for my requirements. Since this review is for the TX-SR606, I won't go into too much detail on the features of the TX-SR506. However, since I'm sure some of you will be comparing the SR506 to the SR606, I will quickly tell you what the TX-SR506 LACKS that may help you determine whether or not these missing features are necessary for your application. The SR506's HDMI ports are video pass-through only, meaning it does not carry Audio signals with it. Next, the SR506 will only output video to the same medium as the video signal it receives so if you have equipment using different types of connections, it has to use that same type of connection as an output from the receiver (e.g. component video input can only be displayed using the component video output, composite in to composite out, hdmi in to hdmi out, etc...). No coversion of video inputs to another type of output will be performed. So expect to have multiple cables output to your LCD/plasma/TV/projector's video inputs. Finally, only 4 total video devices can be plugged into the SR506 at any given time... yes, I know the photo of the SR506 shows an abundance of inputs but you can only program one input type (HDMI, component, S-Video, or composite) for each of the four video inputs (DVD, CBL/SAT, AUX, VCR/DVR).
Now enter the TX-SR606, full of the features that the TX-SR506 lacks! Both the SR506 and SR606 do an impressive job in ease of setup and sound output quality but that's pretty much where the similarities end. The FOUR HDMI inputs (yes, an impressive FOUR inputs over the SR506's TWO) of the TX-SR606 also carries digital audio signals. This keeps the optical/TOSLink/digital-coax digital audio inputs free for devices you may have that do not have HDMI audio -- another major flaw I found with the TX-SR506 when I had it (since it didn't carry audio through HDMI, I had to resort to using up both optical audio inputs for my PS3 and XBox 360 and had none left for the optical audio output from my Mac Pro and my Karaoke system).
Next must have feature about the SR606 is that all non-HD video inputs (going into the component, s-video, or composite inputs) are automatically upconverted so you can view everything using the HDMI output. The upconversion of these non-HD devices is upconverted to 1080i. 1080P upconversion would have been nicer but look at the affordable price on this unit! If you really need the 1080P upconversion, consider the Onkyo TX-SR706 model -- which will set you back another $200+ but is THX-Certified. And quite honestly, when you take a 480i/480p signal and upconvert it, you won't see too much of a difference between upconverting it to 1080i or 1080P (alright I know that statement is open for the screen size vs. viewing distance debate but remember your source signal is 480i/480p to begin with). Even if the upconversion feature isn't really a necessary feature for the size of your screen, the fact it processes and converts non-HDMI video inputs to be displayed with the HDMI output means you only need one cable going to your LCD/plasma/TV/projector and you can keep the TV on just one of its input modes (no more switching from Input1 to Input2 to Input3 when going from DVD to game console to Tivo/DVR).
With the SR606, you can customize all the video source inputs and audio source inputs to suit just about any setup needs you may have. For example, I have the video and audio for my PS3 and XBox 360 going into the HDMI input ports on this receiver (this unit has an impressive 4 HDMI 1.3a input ports) so I set up the receiver so that it knows to process video and audio signals for my first two devices through the HDMI port. My Mac Pro's secondary video (primary video is plugged into my 30" computer LCD screen) is plugged into the 3rd HDMI input on the SR606 receiver using a DVI-to-HDMI cable to provide full 1080P output and the audio is plugged into the SR606's optical/TOSLink digital audio input. I then have it programmed in the receiver so that it knows to process video from the HDMI3 input and audio from the optical1 input for the third device. Finally, the video for my Wii is plugged in to the component 1 input and my Karaoke machine is plugged in to the component 2 input while audio for the Wii is plugged into the standard 2-channel RCA-style input and optical 2 input for the Karaoke machine. Again, you can mix and match your audio and video any way you like and just tell the SR606 how you have it set up. It's very flexible. And the Wii and Karaoke gets upconverted to 1080i through the HDMI output while the PS3, XBox 360, and Mac Pro maintains its 1080P resolution via the HDMI inputs.
Since it's upconverting the video signal from your non-HDMI video devices (component, s-video, composite), you will see the volume level on your screen when adjusting volume for these devices. This leads me to the only gripe I really have about the SR606. If your device uses one of the HDMI video inputs, the receiver will not display the volume level on your tv/lcd/plasma/projector so you'll have to just look at the LCD display on the receiver itself for that information. This, however, does not warrant any deductions in my rating for this feature-filled receiver.
Another thing worth mentioning about this receiver (that you may have already gathered from reading the product's technical details section here on Amazon) is that it has a TrueHD and DTS-HD decoder for the ultimate in 7.1 HD surround sound quality offered in many of today's Blu-ray movies! Isn't Blu-ray one of the reasons you're looking at this receiver in the first place? :) Impressive feature to have in a receiver at this price point! Now is the price difference between the TX-SR506 and this TX-SR606 really starting to look more and more worth your while!? Go ahead and close that TX-SR506 product window/tab now and add this TX-SR606 to your shopping cart. You won't regret it.
Overall, at its attractive price point and the rich-list of features it offers, the Onkyo TX-SR606 easily deserves the full 5 stars! Check out my other reviews and you'll see that I don't just easily give out five stars to stuff I own!
Excellent Home Theater Receiver for the Money December 29, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
When we decided to purchase a new Hi-defn LCD TV to replace our old std-defn TV, it became apparent that my old 5.1 AV receiver needed an upgrade as well - to take advantage of the HD signals. After reading a number of reviews I decided on the Onkyo TX-SR606 as it had everything I needed at a fairly low price point. As usual Amazon beat everyone on price and (free) shipping.
Then I got it, set it up via HDMI, and used the included microphone to configure the speaker output (which is very cool by the way!). I am astounded at the difference in sound compared to my old AV receiver. What an upgrade!
All in all, I'm very happy I bought this receiver. It has easily exceeded what I expected.
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