Sony STR-DE898 vs Onkyo

[dennykyser]

After hearing nothing but negatives about Sony, I am unsure about my Circuit City purchase last week of the Sony STR-DE898. I thought it was the most bang for the buck $299.00 with 3 year replacement warranty but dont want to find out a year down the road I should have spent a little more to get better quality.

I am sure I can exchange the reciever since I just purchased it 3 days ago and the next step up would be the 90W Onkyo TX-SR603X $434.00 or the Onkyo TX-SR703 which would really be strething it at $759.00.

What do you guys sugest, I will have to exchange there I am sure so not as many options as I would like.
Do I upgrade now so I dont loose any $$$ or do I just do as planed and spend the $$ to replace my cheap speakers?

[L.J.]

Depends on what your needs are. The Onkyo 603 does offer a few more digital and component in/outs, auto setup and a few more bells and whistles. Flexibility is important when choosing a AVR.

[joel2762]

Well, I know for a fact that you won't get the rated power output from it, I've seen tests before..

But anyway, i've had my Sony STR-DE585 for a few years now and I must say it's fine for my area.
Obviously Onkyo would be a lot better, but that's more money..

I really like the layout of all Sony recievers. I like how they function. There is always a subwoofer mix, even just listening to music with Pro Logic II turned on. I don't know how many models don't do this, but I know of a JVC reciever that will never turn the subwoofer on in Pro Logic II mode unless you have some speaker set to 'small' mode.

Make sure the speakers you want to upgrade to are compatible with the Sony (ohm rating) and if you're using a smaller room, you should be fine.

Mine is in a 10 x 12 room, driving (2) Polk R15 bookshelves for mains. They are rated at 100 watts, and even though tests say that the Sonys dont put out the power they're rated at, My sony can make the Polks crackle. I have a Quest center channel which I plan to upgrade, and two Acoustech Labs rear speakers along with an 8" subwoofer.
Not a great system for big rooms, but for this size, man it wails! High quality, high power for the room. Sounds great and can really go plenty loud for this room, and beyond :P

I don't see why you shouldn't keep the Sony. Mine's functioning perfectly. Just be sure you have enough inputs/features you want.

[Wireworm5]

After hearing nothing but negatives about Sony, I am unsure about my Circuit City purchase last week of the Sony STR-DE898. I thought it was the most bang for the buck $299.00 with 3 year replacement warranty but dont want to find out a year down the road I should have spent a little more to get better quality.

I am sure I can exchange the reciever since I just purchased it 3 days ago and the next step up would be the 90W Onkyo TX-SR603X $434.00 or the Onkyo TX-SR703 which would really be strething it at $759.00.

What do you guys sugest, I will have to exchange there I am sure so not as many options as I would like.
Do I upgrade now so I dont loose any $$$ or do I just do as planed and spend the $$ to replace my cheap speakers?

I have the Sony De-975. I replaced it with a Yamaha because it couldn't power my Paradigm speaker adequately. If you are using speakers that are easy to drive then I don't think the Sony is a bad product. I don't know if your model has the equalizer mode but I thought that on mine when this function is used it sounded pretty good. I also liked the Cinema soundfields, and the lower bass freq where slightly better than the Yamaha.
In my opinion however I think that spending the money on a good quality av receiver is the way to go. Even cheap speakers will sound better and you can probably live with it till you have the cash for better speakers. Also get something that has pre-outs so that in the future if you choose to upgrade to a power amp you can use your receiver as a pre-amp. If I remember correctly the Sony doesn't have pre-outs. Even if you don't plan on spending a large sum of money on home audio, I think you should plan your purchases so that you can upgrade without having to scrap what you just spent your hard earned cash on. This is where I wasted a lot of money when I started out. Thinking that an entry receiver is good enough. Then down the road you get more serious about audio and you end up spending more money to replace what you should have bought in the first place.

Just my .02 cents

[dennykyser]

I am leaning torwards the Onkyo TX-SR703 that way I will be done with the reciever and can move on to speakers.

[BadAssJazz]

I am leaning torwards the Onkyo TX-SR703 that way I will be done with the reciever and can move on to speakers.

My first HT receiver was a Sony. I kept it until I could afford to upgrade to Onkyo. No regrets. Sony is great with features, but Onkyo is better with performance in my experience.

[L.J.]

I am leaning torwards the Onkyo TX-SR703 that way I will be done with the reciever and can move on to speakers.

Compare the 603 and 703 if possible. If the 603 more than meets your needs and offers some flexibility, save yourself some money.

[Eric Z]

I agree with LJ- first check to see if the 703 os worth the extra cash. When you're talking $700+, you're moving into some nice receivers so be 100% sure you do your research. If I was in your boat, I would check to see if the 603 will do the job. Then if you need something more than the 603, take a peek at some Yamaha receivers (RXV657 and 757). I think CC's return policy is pretty good- 30 days with a receipt. I would just hate it you got the 703 and spent the extra $320 over the 603 and you really wouldn't benefit from the "extras." Then you can use that $320 toward some nicer speakers (eventually).

Good luck and let us know what you decide.