Solid Construction, Learning remote, looks great, conservative power rating, discreet channels and separte a/v circuits

heavy, big

After doing a lot, I mean A LOT of research, I finally decided to upgrade my home theater system. We first bought the onkyo 494 reciever which was great. I immediatley saw and heard the difference a high quality reciever made. The only thing that the 494 didnt have was enough digital inputs, so we decided to pay a little extra and get the 595.
If you have any doubts about this reciever, I would go to good guys or someplace and just look inside this one and others you are concidering. Look at the heatsink, the onkyo is one solid metal block as opposed to a thin metal board with thin metal fins bolted on. You can see also that the capacitors are much, MUCH larger than other recievers at this price range. This makes a huge difference in sound and power handling. Very clean signal. Also, each audio and VIDEO input is on its own board which reduces any bleedover from your other sources which ends up giving you a much cleaner sound on each separate channel. If youre an audiophile, you have to get this reciever. The Sony and Kenwood recievers I tested were really crap. I would much rather have 75 CLEAN watts than 100 dirty watts. You can tell the difference. Onkyo really made this one like their top of the line recivers.
The Remote is really cool, I wish it had back light like their old model but Im sure its to conserve battery life. You can program macros so you can turn on your tv, sat, dvd, reciever all with a few buttons. you can even turn everything off with one button which is so cool. I even programmed the remote to close our blinds when we turn the tv on. A dream come true. I love showing it off.
This reciever has 4 digital inputs, 2 optical and 2 coax. Perfect for when I get my Xbox and PS II. Check out the first scene in Saving Private Ryan and you will be in love.

I got a really great deal at bestpriceaudiovideo.com which makes it even nicer but honestly, I would have paid more. I hope they didnt hear that. :)
Thanks to my wife for agreeing to get it. Thanks monkey. I love you.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo 494,
Kenwood,
sony

Power, clarity, bass, features, build quality, DPLII

Preouts, stereo isn't that amazing

As mentioned in many other reviews, when I first took this receiver out the box I was highly disappointed with the lack of power. However, after having read the manual and playing with channel levels/intellivolume - as well as experimenting with the volume knob (also mentioned earlier is that it gives 70% of volume in the last 20% of the dial) - I got it playing very loud crystal clear. It drives my 4 ohm MB quart speakers with no hassle at all. I do find it a little bright though, but a lowering of the treble made everything perfect.

DPLII is amazingly better than DPLI, and DD/DTS sounds tremendous on this amp. I did find that my Yamaha has a more natural and warm sound in stereo though, but not so much that it would influence my choice.

I read the 'Jon of Perth' review, and I agree the Yamaha 620 did have more features (as well as having less at the same time), but here in South Africa where home theatre components are expensive, the Yamaha 620 was 20% more than the Onkyo. Also, did you maybe get a dud?

Similar Products Used:

Old Yamaha DSP590 and new Yamaha 520

Clarity, power

Lack of warmth, very poor sound when using simple two speaker stereo setup, no bottom end

I searched around for a few months to buy a new receiver and during this process looked at Denon, Marantz, Yamaha, Sony and Onkyo. I finally settled on the Onkyo but regretted this decision within 24 hours of purchase and have since returned the unit in exchange for the Yamaha RX-V620 which I love (see my separate review).

I don't want to diss this product too much but I thought that some points are important, particularly if you are currently just running a simple two speaker setup at this stage with a view to expanding later on (as is my situation). I had my previous Kenwood KR-930 for over 12 years and only retired it due to a ground hum that it had developed. Comparing the old faithful to the Onkyo was a disappointment. The Onkyo, whilst possessing unbelievable clarity, far beyond anything else in the price range, lacks any warmth and has no bottom end at all.

I have no doubt that this amp is designed to be run optimally with a full speaker setup and would kick in this case but for my two JBL fronts at the moment it had nothing, even when I punched the bass up to +10dB. Whilst I intend to grow my speaker set in the next year or two I am not in a position to do this now and did not want to have to wait until that time to get a big sound at low to medium volume.

The sterile sound was also a concern to me, almost too clinical. The purists would argue with me but that's fine, I'm not a purist and I like some warmth in an amp.

Bottom line: if, like me, you are more of a music listener than a home theatre person or if you are currently running a simple speaker setup, this may not be the amp for you. Check out the Yamaha, it is awesome!! (and incidentally has a few extra features) Also, see if your seller will bring the gear to your place to listen/compare in your environment. The guys at Surround Sounds were fantastic, check them out if you are in Perth.

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood, Yamaha RX-V620

All.
A fine high-end sound for a receiver in it's class

Nothing significant, maybe the absence of stereo pre outsubwoofer(only one pre out sub)

I am very pleased with my choice, the ONKYO .Before I buy this one I was a Marantz fun, buzzing around that Marantz is a great choice, and looking for a SR 7000.When I find that SR7000 is about 1500 USD, I was in very much doubt. A friend who own a hifi store tells my about the ONKYO and with WHAT HIFI in hand (bearing in mind that is ,,one of the best in it's class''), I was able to hear it. I can tell you , it was ,,love at first sight''. In few words I now own a 595 and I am very pleased with this, not having regrets about any Marantz...

Similar Products Used:

Marantz SR 4000

Ultra clean sound even at high volumes, Surround sound MP3! (Pro-Logic II) Nice learning Remote, 5.1 in is nice.

little stuff. No front jacks, no stereo sub out, no component video, display to bright at night even when dimmed...

I almost got a 575x when they were discontinued, glad I held off! Very nice Super clean sound, (technics was a lot louder including static) now if only i can sell off this stupid technics! fills my 14x12 room never need to go above 60 volume anyway (except to impress).

Similar Products Used:

Technics SAGX-760 (old crappy pro-logic) not very similar!
I did do some comparisons. (like Harman Kardon)

Very nice, clean sound, easy-to-use, high-current design provides plenty of power.

Not all remote control functions work as they should.

The TX-DS595 has the features that nearly everyone will want in a Dolby Digital/DTS home theater, and includes ProLogic II that does an admirable job of synthesizing 5.1 surround from stereo sources (including VHS and TV). I'm very pleased with this piece as the heart of my home theater system, and I also use it to listen to DVD-Audio where it again does a great job (although DVD-Audio uses the D/A converters in the player, not in the receiver).

The sound is very clean and musical, not brittle and thin as so many units in this price range tend to be. The relatively high-current amplifiers in the TX-DS595 have plenty of continuous power (it's 75W/ch continuous 20Hz-20kHz) and headroom for anyone using even moderately efficient speakers. I recommend this high-quality receiver to anyone who is not in the $900+ market where you get 6.1 or 7.1 capability and THX circuitry certification.

My surround set-up:
TX-DS595
Panasonic A7 DVD-A/V
Vandersteen 2C fronts
Polk CS-245i center
Polk RT-25i satellites
Polk PSW-250 sub

(My stereo setup is Audio-Research SP-8 pre, Bryston 3B-ST amp, and Vandersteen 3C's).

Similar Products Used:

Tested Yamaha, Denon, H/K

Excellent Sound and lots of Volume with no distortion

Presently in short supply - had to tavel to several Circuit City locations to find one - should be corrected soon

I had purchased an Onkyo TX-D5575X and had it hooked-up to a new Bose Accoustmass 6 Speaker System. I was disappointed with what appeared to be a low level of volume. I found-out the DS-595 was out with Pro-Logic 2, etc. and was able to get a credit on my 575X. I can tell you that the DS-595 is MUCH more powerful with the same speakers, set-up and controls are easier, and its a really slick machine. I'm very happy with it. I would not buy a 575X at this time - the enhancements on the DS-595 are more than worth the relatively small amount of additional cost. I have a mild complaint in that my Bose Speaker Sysytem doesn't have a powered Sub-Wofer - but I didn't want to spend $1200 for the top of the line Bose Sysytem and I like the very compact size of the Accoustmass 6 system. Overall, excellent sound and very good price vs. features.

Similar Products Used:

Onkyo TX-D5575X

Nice number of inputs, great sound, nice interface, user friendly, good power, Dolby, DTS

may have to many sub menus you have to go through to set-up system. Monitor out only a RCA

Great sound. Onkyo uses high current to push the speakers so if your speakers are inefficient don't bother. The 75 x 5 seems inept for a big sound but Onkyo's 75w is like 150w in others. The out for the TV is an RCA only no S-Video. Great system for a student or for your first one. Helpful features like Late Night and sleep.

Similar Products Used:

Denon

Clarity, re eq, pro logic II, ease of setup.

none to speak of

When I first brought my new amp home and pluged it in I was
initially not impressed in its lack of power, but after a
little bit of experimenting with channel levels and turning
the knob a bit more I discovered a lot more power!. Strange
that Onkyo produce amps that have 70% of its power in the
last 20% of the dial, apart from that though this amp is
awesome. It does a great job on DD & DTS and pro logicII is
real bonus! Another handy feature is its all channel stereo,
If your in the market for a cheap well performing amp you
must demo this amp as it will not dissapoint.
I can remember years ago when laserdisc was all the rage I
would never have given Onkyo a second look but now im happily converted.

System:
Laserdisc Pioneer CLD-D925
DVD Sony DVPNS300
VCR Sony SLV-EZ70 MAIN SPEAKERS POlK RT2000i
CENTER POLK CS350LS
SURROUNDS POLK LS/FX

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood KRV990D