Build Quality, Excellent Sound Quality, clean sound with low distortion, beautifully simple design. And the universal remote.

The remote is a little small, but hey, can't have everything.

WOW! This is a awesome reciever. I bought it December 24th, and have been in love since. I hooked up my DVD player with the Coaxial Digital outputs and the sound is incredible. I can't think of a reason to go with Optical Outputs. The sound of this unit is incredible reproducing the slightest sounds on a movie. Some of the best movies to test out on this receiver is U571, Titantic, Pearl Harbor, and The Fugitive. This reciever picks up everything and properly places them in the correct corner of your room.

I am not sure why some of the complaints have been underpower, because I have not had the problem they have. I have a 500 Square Foot room and this receiver will have you covering your ears. I also have a 120 watt sub hooked up and it works great with the system.

I recommend this unit to anyone who is looking for a great home theater system. Skip the $500-$900 units and go straight for this one. You will never be disspointed!

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Kenwood, Sony, Technics, Yamaha

onkyo quality.excellent digital surround reciever

none

it is an excellent surround sound reciever at an affrodable price.onkyo 's wide range amplifier technology gets the job done!!!

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denon

Low Distortion/noise interference at High Volumes, Handsome appearance, unusually exceptional Onkyo quality not found in other low priced receivers on the market, Value for money.

Late night function not found on the remote. It is on the front panel only.

From my initial impressions of my new receiver, i new it was just oozing quality and reliability. they say 'they dont make em like they used to', well Onkyo's DS494 objects otherwise. The sheer weight of the receiver is a whopping 12-14kg. If you delve deeper by looking inside the air vents, you know it is literally crammed like sardines with high quality components, the stuff that John West doesn't reject.

The DS494B Australian model is actually 80Watt/channel, probably the reason why it is a little more expensive than the US 55watt sister. I assume other than this, both models are exactly the same on all accounts. For me, 80watts of true power and quality is more than ample, as opposed to similarly priced 'loud' 100 watt Sony's, Pioneers, etc, that just dont deliver the experience that my little baby does. I've read in other similar Onkyo product reviews that it lacks bass. Well i think this is not necesarily true, as i have turned the bass up full, plus if you're listening to music, change your sound mode to 'music', and vuala, you hear that luke warm harmonic music sound that we all love and crave and worship. There really isnt a problem at all in regards to bass.

Reliability and security. Well Onkyo's 5 year manufacturer's warranty is testimony to that.

Functionality and Options are perfect for a home cinema experience. Not too heavy, not too light. It's just right. Connected to my receiver I have: Toshiba SD1300 DVD (Through Optical), Panasonic stereo VCR (RCA), Panasonic 51cm Flat Screen TV (RCA. I only bought this TV 4 months ago, and it doesnt even have S video ports. Damn. My dvd experience would be just that much better. In hindsite, dont buy a TV if it doesnt have SVideo or SCART), My Computer, and my dreamcast (through my VCR). After all this, there is still room for a Turntable, a Mini Disc player or Tape Deck, another video game system or VCR, etc. Basically in terms of functionality, you have enough ports to please any home theatre consumer.

Weaknesses:
If it wasn't for this slip up, i'd have to give the Receiver a perfect Score. The Late night Function is exclusive to Dobly Digital encoded sources. The concept behind this is if it is late at night and you're watching a movie with the volume turned down low, you may find it difficult to hear the background atmoshpere/ambience such as Traffic/Birds/people talking in the background etc. The way to get around this is through the use of the Late night function. This basically smoothes out all the volume levels, by decreasing the volume levels of the main people talking etc, and increasing the background noise. The effect of this is at low volume levels, you can still hear an overall cinematic experience. Now the late night function is not accesible from the Onkyo remote. Usually late at night you're all rugged up with your girlfriend feeling all cosy and warm and tingly on the inside, with butterflies flapping around in your stomach. The last thing you want to do is get out of this comfy situation from your bed or the sofa to press the late night function on the receiver which by all rights, should be located on the remote anyhow. Unfortunately, it is not.

Lastly, the remote itself is only standard. It has the exact same template size and shape as my Toshiba DVD player. Weird. It is a little ugly looking, but is quite functional overall. Plus it has WRAT technology which means it can act as a universal remote if you have an Onkyo TV and DVD player connected to it. Unfortunatley I dont, instead i have to resort to 4 different remotes by my bedside table.

Final Word:
I thought my previous Sony receiver was good. The Onkyo blows it away. And even if I had more money to spend on a Receiver, I honestly dont think i would need to. thank you Onkyo for an awesome product.

Rating: 5

less weaknesses: (0.1)

Overall Rating: 4.9

For this price Range, you simply cannot beat it.

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Formely used a Sony STR DE415 Pro Logic.