Excellent!
My previous receivers all have been lower end models so I was chuffed to obtain a higher end receiver to review. When I brought this into the house the first thing I noticed was the weight. The Onkyo TX-NR828 is a very substantial receiver. The listed weight is 33 lbs and I was not able to fit this over the TV as with my previous ones.
I next did some research on the internet before writing this review. The NR828 is a new A/V receiver, it replaces the TX-NR818 from just a year or so back. Almost all the negative reviews I've found on the internet, including the ones here are ones which compare the NR828 to the NR818. Certain features which were heretofore available in the NR818 are no longer in the NR828 and replaced with some other features. The changes I believe come about because of product rearrangement and price adjustments on Onkyo's part.
For myself, coming from lower end receivers, the higher end NR828 literally had a ton more features. Basically, you...
Lots of features, but is it competitive?
As luck would have it, my basis for comparison is the similarly priced Yamaha RX-A830 7.2-Channel Network AVENTAGE Home Theater Receiver, perhaps one of my favorite receivers built. For reference, I tested both receivers using the same speakers in the same room with the same audio sources.
Out of the box, the Onkyo is a heavy monster, weighing in nearly ten pounds higher than the Yamaha. While an old rule of thumb seemed to dictate that the heavier a receiver was, the better the components were, Yamaha seems to suggest that their hybrid power supply makes for a lighter receiver. Whether or not one's inherently better than the other, I couldn't really say. I do know this, though: the Yamaha puts out much less heat. With the Onkyo being considerably larger (as well as heavier), this made airflow a concern for me.
Port-for-port, jack-for-jack, the two are really close. The Onkyo has an extra...
Not an upgrade of its predecessor
I am a former owner of a TX-NR818. I have received this newer model, TX-NR828, in replacement of my old unit which could not be fixed. When it worked, it worked great I have to say (you can check my review).
This did not turn out to be good thing because, based on specifications, the 828 model is an obvious downgrade of the 818 (in general it appears to be the case of the whole 2013 line of receivers when compared to their 2012 predecessors).
This is a legitimate marketing choice of Onkyo: reduce features, specifications and price at the same time, but I am not sure it will pay off for them. For the prospective buyer who was thinking to purchase the 818 and can no longer find it anywhere, I would overlook this 828 and stretch the budget for a 929 (when released).
I resisted the temptation of leaving it untouched inside the box and gave it a fair try. I am now on day 5.
Sadly, all I was forecasting turned out to be true. The sound quality does not really hold...
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