Onkyo TX-NR905  Receivers

 

The smooth black surface of the TX-NR905 does little to belay its high performance. But behind its simple exterior the TX-NR905 Home Theater Receiver has high-resolution Dolby and DTS audio decoding as well as 1080p video up-conversion for all sources. Other great features are an Ethernet connection, which enables users to access network audio content as well as Internet radio stations.

There is also a USB port for connecting MP3s or other data from an external drive. Additionally, there is even an Audyssey auto-setup routine with a microphone that can self adjust to individual speaking voices to maintain high quality audio. There is even THX Ultra2 post-processing for those audiophiles.

The only downside with the machine are the buttons feel too small for the device. Overall though it is great. The craftsmanship is superb, with the device weighing in at 39 kilos. But this is what you should expect when all of the audio inputs are gold-plated, the bus plate is brass for grounding and the four isolating feet are made of cork.

 

The four HDMI inputs and two outputs are not beaten by other brands and they are all version 1.3 a compliant. This means that you will have full compatibility with 1080p video and bit stream multichannel audio. Other hardware features are the Silicon Optics HQV Reon- VX video processors which is capable of upscale S-video, composite and component sources to 1080p. Plus, with two HDMI outputs, one for your TV and another for your projector, the TX-NR905 can simplify the system cabling.

Being able to connect to your network might not be essential, but having it is really great. And is almost certainly a must have on high-end receivers such as this one. Being able to connect makes this truly the home entertainment center that it should be. However, connected PCS must be running Windows Media Connect for successful connectivity.

One unfortunate aspect of this unit is that when playing internet radio stations there is a huge quality gap with compressed MP3 files that become glaring with a high end system like this. Furthermore, unlike more expensive units, Onkyo has not included a built in wi-fi for audio streaming.

Therefore, you will have to run an Ethernet cable between the receiver and your home network to take advantage of all the connectivity features of this unit. Past users of Onkyo will also notice that on this unit Onkyo has made huge improvements with its most recent user interface.

Not only do you get a sleek piece of hardware with the TX-NR905 that looks great, but you also get superb performance with certain craftsmanship. While this is certainly a high end price for this unit, there is also a high end performance that is certainly in accordance with the unit’s price.