Good sound.

FAN. Poor CD sound.

I've had the ONKYO TX-DS555 for over a year now. It's a good unit but the only thing is the fan that keeps going on making me thing that the unit is overheating. Anyone having the same fan issue? But oveall the sound is excellent.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer

Amps, overall sound, build quality, value

Occasional fan noise, no s-video switching

I bought this receiver in September '99 for $330. At this price, this receiver cannot be beat. Absolutely wonderful sound on both stereo music and 5.1 movie soundtracks. Amps have no problem producing clean sound at high volumes. Currently I am using this receiver this speaker setup: Paradigm Monitor 7 mains, Paradigm CC-350 center, Paradigm Atom rears, and JBL sub. I would recommend this receiver or its updated version, the 575, to anyone in the market for a sub-$500 receiver.

I give it 4 stars overall, but only because I believe 5 star ratings should be reserved for reference level products only.

Similar Products Used:

pioneer 508, kenwood 307

+Very clean sound without distortion at all volume levels

-What an excuse for a remote. Tiny little buttons

Great receiver, good power. Clean sound at all volume levels. I mainly use it for listening music in stereo. Do not own a Digial source yet. Watch a lot of movies in ProLogic mode and loved it. Waiting to get a DVD player. Used the product for about 9 months now, and love it.

Similar Products Used:

Aiwa, Sony

Very easy to use, great remote., sound is great for the price

none

This receiver is fantastic for the price. Highly recommended

Good sound overall

Fan noise

I can't disagree with what has previously been written, especially regarding getting one as an open box discount. I've been very happy with mine. I do agree that the fan is quite noisy if you are sitting next to the unit, however when playing music, I've never noticed it.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer, Yamaha

LOOKS, EASY TO USE, GOOD SOUND QAULITY

LACK OF POWER NOT ENOUGH PROGAMABLE BUTTONS

GOOD QAULITY , BUT WOULD EXPECT BETTER FOR THE MONEY.
SUCH AS HIGHER THD THAN YAMMAH,LUXMAN,GENRAL AUDIO.
OVER ALL NOT A BAD UNIT. EXCEPT FOR 200$ TO MUCH.

Similar Products Used:

YAMMAH,MARANTZ,SONY,LUXMAN,GENRAL AUDIO

If you can live w/o S-Video and are going to swap the remote, I would give the Onkyo TX-DS555 4 stars. The 555 has a modest 70 watts of power, but loudness was not an issue. I could not detect any clipping or distortion near the end of "Jerry Maguire" when all the football players were crunching into each other. There was no noticeable hiss from the speakers. The receiver has 3 digitial inputs (1 digital, 2 coax). You can control the hall size, reverb and decay of the 5 included surround modes. It was neat listening to them the first time, but I doubt I will be using them. The back was a little crowded and I had some difficulty connecting the 14AWG speaker wires. I had to strip some the wire away to fit into the binding posts. There are 5 analog L/R inputs and a 5.1 channel analog input to add an external decoder for DD/DTS. Using the digital input, music was slightly warm, and it sounded more detailed than when I used the analog inputs. The controls are relatively easy; it took me about 3 days to get comfortable with it. A jog dial controls most of the features, and you press an "enter" button to confirm. I hated the remote; it was horrendous. Other than the large volume buttons, they are about 55 tiny buttons of the same size. You can only choose preselected stations from the remote. Tuning must be done through the front controls. As noted in the 666 reviews, the volume control on the remote is a bit too touchy. Contsruction does not feel as solid as some of the high-end receivers. I bought this at www.shop4.com for 411.96 shipped and it came in less than 2 weeks.

I purchased this unit *despite* the somewhat mixed reviews in this column. So far, I'm very happy with it, particularly the level of adjustment available on the surround modes (courtesy of the Motorola DSP?), and the apparent power reserves. I must say: before this, I was using a Sony Dolby Pro-Logic receiver with 80 watts/ch x 5, and it was not nearly as powerful-seeming as the Onkyo. I believe it's because like all Onkyo's, this unit has a high-current amp. The Sony does not.
I wish that the remote had a bit more learning features (after all, if it is going to go to the trouble to learn my other remotes' codes, it should learn them all!), but other than that, the Onkyo has the look, the feel, and much of the sound and features of a high-end reciever costing hundreds more.

I purchased this reciever through SoundCity (1-800-432-0007). $445.00 delivered in 1 week. Excellent sound quality. I didn't know my Kenwood Home Theater speakers could sound this good! I compared this with the Sony STR-DE925 and the JVC RX884VBK. The Sony and JVC have alot more bells and whistles, but I was looking for sound quality and performance. I definitely got it with the Onkyo. The DSP sound fields all sound great, especially the Dolby digital. Very clean sound with no distortion in all modes. The speaker setup and surround modes are customizable. When first plugged in, you must set the system up by telling the reciever what you have for a speaker setup and placement. For example, I have a powered sub woofer and small sattelite speakers. I had to enter that info into the reciever, and that turns on the line output for the sub woofer, and does'nt send the small main sattelite, center, and rear surround speakers any more bass than they can handle. The result is clean, crisp sound from all speakers with no distortion at all. The DSP sound fields are fully adjustable also. On the downside, the remote is terrible. It is not comfortable to hold or use. Way too many unnecesary small buttons, and the volume control is touchy. The manual isn't all that great, either. It doesn't explain the initial setup or the functions very well. Overall, an excellent reciever, though. It is one of the few I could find that have a tape 2/monitor function(for using an external graphic eualizer). I found while shopping that some manufacturers no longer have that capabiliy. For those who have never used an external equalizer, I highly recommend it. You'll enjoy much improved sound quality from most any system. A good EQ can be purchased for around $100.
Here are some places I have found to shop and check out different recievers:
(I don't have the complete web address for most, use a search engine)
www.imall.com/stores/soundcity/inc
comparenet
Onecall
Shop4.com
Ubid
Theweb-shop
video-direct
wholesale electronics
also, check out manufacturers websites for detailed info on specific models
Good luck!

I purchased the Onkyo TX-DS555 receiver and have had many happy hours use. Its features include DD decoding and 3 digital inputs (2 coax, 1 optical). The 70 watts RMS power with 0.08% THD over 20hz to 20kHz to all five channels gives this amp some quality talk. Its controls and remote are simple and fully featured. Adjustment and setup parameters (speaker distances, surround modes, etc.) are detailed and easily to use. The Onkyo TX-DS55 is an all round great amp.
The only draw back of any significance I found was the rear fan. The fan comes on when the speakers are drawing a far bit of current (eg bass and mid-range spikes) and can be heard if followed by a period of silence. Also if that period of silence is long enough (say between CD tracks) you hear it start and stop and then start again. This might not be a problem if stored in a cabinet. I have a web page where I have a full review and details of the Onkyo TX-DS555 at http://www.alphalink.com.au/~awd/ on the My System page.