By: Joerod

ONKYO TX-NR818 3D 4K (upscaling) RECEIVER REVIEW

I can't remember the last time in May I had a higher end Onkyo model here to Review. Sure the new 818 is supposed to be mid level but it has the makings of a higher end model. Having just had the Denon 4311, Sony 5700 and Onkyo 3009 I can easily make that claim. So what makes it achieve a high end status? The most obvious is the Audyssey MultEQ XT32 calibration. I have become so spoiled I have a hard time checking out any Receiver that does not have it. Sure it does not do two individual subs but honestly I have a hard time telling the difference. I still get the same excellent, detailed results just like I did from the 3009. And I still claim to this day the 3009 and Integra 80.3 (pre-pro) have helped produce the best sound I have heard to date. Now I have to add the 818 to that list! So what else makes it high end? How about the Video Processing capability? It has the same "good stuff" the 3009 has. That is the HQV Vida 1900 chip and the Marvell Qdeo 4K upscaling chip. I can't stress enough how terrific the results are on my Sony VW1000ES 4K projector. These Receivers/pre-pros have the best VP section to date. I usually use a DVDO VP but lately I have been using a Darblet (Reviewed here) with my 818 with jaw dropping results. DirecTV has never looked better. Images below show just the 818 working without the Darblet. There are enough image adjustments to help even the pickiest videophiles dial in a stellar image. Another cool feature is the added DTS Neo: X! I am liking it more and more. I really can't wait to get more people's opinions on it and having it included in the 818 I expect many. How about the three-stage inverted Darlington circuitry and 192 khz/24-bit DACs? And I would be re-miss if I didn't mention Onkyo's new InstaPrevue which shows what else is on the other HDMI inputs. This is very helpful for my Wife Jaclyn. If she wants to go from Netflix TV show watching on a Blu ray player to a show on DirecTV it is a simple push of a button to find which input has what. That is a really cool feature I hope others follow. And how could I almost forget the ability to do nine speakers with the help of an external AMP? Of course you have to assign either Height, Wide or Back to it but that is not a big deal. I am using a Parasound A51 AMP to do my Heights for the purpose of this Review. Everyday use it is powering my Center, Fronts and Heights. I let the 818 do the Rears and Backs.  I will point out that for most large size rooms the 818 will handle them with ease. It is rated at 135 watts per channel at 8ohms (160 watts at 6ohms) and packs quite a punch. I run my 818 at 4ohms! Reminds me of the legendary Onkyo 805 model a few years back. The Music Streaming capability is second to none. Oh we also get MHL (for Smart Phones) and an iPhone/iPad Remote app. Not to mention the ability to Advance the sound as well as Delay it! This is very helpful with many cable and satelite channels. This is an option unheard of at this price point! Last but not least is the Independent Block Construction. This separates the AMP and Preprocessor circuitry. So how does this mid level priced "high end" Receiver sound? Read on...

Their new InstaPrevue. Each live source would be displayed down below in the thumbnail boxes. No more calls asking about what input is?  Easy!

Starting up the 818 I was overwhelmed at how easy the new GUI is (pics above). It is even easier now. And finally Onkyo has listened to me and added Game 1 and Game 2 default inputs. Most people I know have at least two game systems hooked up in their main room. I use both a PS3 and a Xbox 360. I have the capability of running a Wii but we keep that upstairs most of the time. I did do something that caused a slight delay in getting the image to my projector. I am used to hooking up Onkyo Recievers in my sleep. The HDMI OUT MAIN is to the right now and the SUB is to the left. Could have happened to anyone! Ha. I will also state that the Streaming capabilities are tremendous. You name it they have it (pic below). I read a few mentioned it takes about 14 seconds to completely turn on. I seriously hope this is not a complaint by anyone. By the time you get everything else up and going and I am sure the 818 will be ready. The remote is pretty much the same as it has been. Home and Set Up buttons will lead you to do most of your bidding. The Display button (pic above) shows exactly what you have coming in and out for both Image and Sound. I like knowing what I have going and at a touch of a button makes life easy. Also in a pic above I show the Mic Stand (tripod from Walmart which can be had for pretty cheap). I have always had best results running Audyssey with the Mic at ear levels. And I can't stress enough how important it is to let it do as many positions as possible. For some reason the more info the better results. I usually do all eight positions on most Onkyo models. Be creative! As for soundmodes you also can pick one of the THX modes. There are also eleven Onkyo DSP modes. Let's just say there are enough options for everybody and for whatever content you are watching or listening to. 

4K Upscaling on the 818 actually works pretty good. And depending on your TV and its specs it will do either 3840 X 2160 or 4096 X 2160. I was not a big fan of it on their last gen but the newer models seem to do a much better job at it. I like that progress. 

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TIP: Make sure you tell the 818 you plan to use an AMP otherwise it won't recognize your extra channels...   

Love all the these options! Should be something for everybody...

Here are some of the image adjustment options. Love Mosquito and Edge for DirecTV! Gamma +1...

As you can see the Video Processing in the 818 is second to none. This is just with sports. Regular TV shows like Dexter and The Big Bang Theory also look astounding. Same for the watching movies on DirecTV. I pretty much feed the 818 1080i from DirecTV and let it send 1080p to my projector. I tweaked it a little using the picture adjustments but not much. Mosquito NR and Edge Enhancement help a lot without hindering the image. I also like Gamma plus 1. Different displays will vary...

Blu ray soundtracks are the 818's sweet spot. The movie Gone (we really liked it) is very front heavy but there are a few instances where the Rears and Backs come to life. We literally jumped out of our seats. I have to again emphasize how much we love the Height sound. If you read my previous Onkyo reviews feel free to skip the next few sentences. Height sound really brings to life rain, helicopters or bullet flying action scenes. I get asked more and more lately about setting up rooms with Height speakers. I would seriously take Height speakers over Backs any day of the week. So my default for Blu rays is Height sound. We have been playing around a little bit with DTS's Neo: X but that is mainly with DirecTV. More on that shortly. Safe House also made my room come to life. The 818 handled its awesome soundtrack just like the other high end models. Sound was well placed with utmost clarity and authority. The Center speaker really amazes me lately. I am using BG Radia speakers (Reviewed here) which do help quite a bit but I can't take anything away from the 818. The Grey Blu ray also was ear candy! Hearing a wolf's howl in different speakers throughout the film left the hairs on my neck standing up. Not to mention my dogs were upset as well! As for DirecTV we are using DTS Neo: X for movies and shows. It really was made to work well with eleven channels but does excellent with nine as well. I also like Height with movies too. For sports I am still liking Audyssey DSX. Hearing the QB bark out the signals perfectly puts you in the game. While checking out baseball I could hear "peanuts" from vendors and fans yell at the pitcher in a crystal clear fashion. I do like to "cheat" a little by going into the Set Up menu and increasing Height speakers from Mid to High level. I also increase the soundstage for DSX. Not enough to overpower the soundtracks or the game of course. By now if you are not doing Height speakers you are missing out. There is not a better way to make you feel like you are live at the game! Even watching an episode of Seinfeld proved impressive. The voices were in the room! The laughing studio audience was all around me. I was using DTS Neo: X. Whether we are watching TV, Blu ray or playing video games sound is high end first rate!

So of course there is always room for improvement somewhere. We can't have everything at this price level. Close though. Besides having the ability to do separate sub calibrations (SubEQ) with Audyssey (which still is not a deal breaker by any means) I really want to see Onkyo do Wireless capability. Of course since they don't have a Blu ray player yet with it that might be pushing it a bit. There is still the higher end models they will be releasing in a few months so here's to hoping. 

On the much brighter side of things the Onkyo TX-NR818 Receiver is the absolute best AVR available today around the $1,000 range (unless you can find a 3009 with SubEQ for 1300ish). There is nothing out there that comes close to its features. Of course it helps that the 818 has excellent execution of those features. It truly is a mid level priced "High End" Receiver. Hats off to Onkyo for bringing High End to this price range! Onkyo says, "High End performance starts here" and I couldn't agree more with them. So will you...

EQUIPMENT USED FOR ALL OR PART OF THIS REVIEW:

SONY VPL-VW1000ES 4K 3D Projector, Sony BDP S790 3D 4K (upscaling) Blu ray player, Darblet, 

OnkyoTX-NR3009 pre-pro, Onkyo TX-NR818 Receiver, DirecTV HR24 500, Xbox 360, PS3, Simplay EDGE GREEN Video Processor, Monster Power HTS 5100, Oppo 93 Blu ray, Panasonic BDT 310 3D Blu ray player, MonsterVision 3D glasses, Sony 3D glasses, Parasound HALO A51 AMP, Antec Component Coolers, Vutec SilverStar 120.5" screen with a Carada Masquerade Masking System. BG RADIA CENTER CC-220 & FS-420s (Left and Right), Pinnacle Speakers- Heights BD500 OWs, Surrounds Super K555s and the KLCR for surround back. Subwoofers- Pinnacle Dig 600, plus four MTX Lolita Low Profiles. 7.6 Sound! Remotes: Harmony 1100. Monster M1000 Ultimate HDMI cables top to bottom. And a Monster 35 foot HDX Hyperspeed HDMI cable.

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Thanks for reading, be back soon. Take care...

New iPads, new cellphones and electronics? Can't we just have one month where everything we have is good enough? - Jerry Seinfeld

Click above to read more about the 818 at OnkyoUSA.

Up next, time for some fun in the sun. Be back end of Summer early Fall...

Jaclyn and Dexter

   Summer Break!!!

    Dexter is going for the Gold this Summer!!!