Customer Reviews

Onkyo HT-RC180 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Network Receiver (Black)

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I've owned a lot of electronics, all makes and many models. I had not upgraded my core system for many years, and knew it was time for a change. I'm a fan of Onkyo (I have another Onkyo AV receiver in the living room) and was looking for one with network connection and more power. Man does this deliver. The quality, feel and look is all top-quality. This may be a 7.1 system, but it powers 10 speakers, two subs, and three different zones/rooms! That's 11 speakers plus two subs (13 total.) Remember that Frasier episode from a few years ago where he purchased a new soundsystem, and his living room looked like a speaker Stonehenge. Seemed farfetched at the time - but now it's clearly possible. If you use full sized speakers you would have a draw-dropping first impression. As it is, I have 11 speakers and one sub, varying sizes and makes - that's impressive enough.

The sound? Wow. I played Aero by Jean Michelle Jarre - a 5.1 audio DVD. It knocked my socks off. The audio resolution and depth were amazing. The receiver also has numerous listening modes - so many it takes over two pages in the manual to list them. Different Dolby modes, THX and many more. There's a diagram on the front panel that displays the speakers that will be used by each mode. As you change them, the speaker display changes - pretty simple. Want only two speakers? Four? Eleven? Simple.

So here's my experience, from unpacking to turn-on.

Packaging: Extra-heavy duty. Double-thick box, form fit foam. The box will take a lot of abuse in shipping. See my included photos.

Unpacking: Typical anti-static and foam wrap, tape and scratch protection. Heavy unit - will take two people to unpack unless you are comfortable moving heavy weight.

Installation: I find it easier to make a temporary platform at around the same height as the shelf the unit will sit on - I've always done this. In this case, two storage boxes put it at about the perfect height. This way I can attach all cables and simply slide the unit in place. When we're talking this many wires it's a big help. The RC180 includes a manual (thick!), quick start (handy!) and a sheet of decals to mark your speaker cables. At first I thought - "yes, like I'll need these!" Man did they come in handy! The labels were a real timesaver. Again, see the photos.

My BluRay player uses a network connection, and so does this unit. I had a single network cable in the room, so had to add a hub to split the connection. I can't use wireless in the home - it's an older building, lath/plaster/steel mesh. It works like a Faraday cage, and kills signals. The RC1800 uses a wired connection anyway, as does my BluRay player. If you already have a wired connection in the room, keep in mind you may need a hub to add more outlets.

It took around an hour to hook everything up, from unpacking to sliding the unit in place.

BEFORE I put the unit in place, I ran the speaker test. This allows you to verify correct placement. Again, it came in handy. I had the upper left front and upper right front speaker connections swapped (there are SEVEN speakers in front - Two Upper front, Two front, Two wide front, and one center!) Fixed that, then slid the unit in place.

Turned it on again, verified all the AV connections. You can customize pretty much all the connections. For example, I have my DVD set to use component in 1 and digital audio coax in 2. My VCR (yes, I still have a VCR) uses the VCR input, and I have the TV set to use optical in 2. This allows a lot of customization and personalization. Next I named all the inputs, so the display shows whatever text I want.

Then I ran the Audyssey setup. I love this system. My other Onkyo uses it as well, and it's great. The RC180 uses a more advanced version. It tests the standard three listening positions, and has an additional optional three positions for more fine tuning. I only needed three. This took around 15 minutes to run. It tests every speaker, including the subwoofer, then writes the data.

Next I customized the remote control. It's a universal remote with some cool options. There are programmable shortcut buttons (my music, my movies, etc.) as well as the standard controls for all your devices. It's interactive - you follow on-screen prompts (it uses your TV for the display.) Basically you enter the first three letters of your make, perform a search and select the make from an amazingly comprehensive list. You also select the category of the device - VCR, DVD, etc. You then go through a train and error selection process of codes. You're instructed step by step. My DVD took three tries for the correct codes. The BlyRay and VCR did it in one. After you are finished with that, you can program the shortcut buttons (My Movies, etc.) With one button press it will turn on selected devices, press play, etc.) Works perfectly. I press MyMovie and the TV turns on, the Onkyo turns on, the BluRay turns on and plays.

My only gripe is the net connectivity - the remote control takes a lot of getting used to, as the functions for net use are counterintuitive. The unit has built in support for several web based radio services. One of the included services, vTuner, is free. The others require a subscription (Sirus, Pandora, Rhapsody.) The instructions for vTuner setup were problematical. You're instructed to go to a URL and use the unit's MAC address to register. vRadio won't accept the MAC address - they want a unit ID. The vRadio instructions for finding the unit ID are not even close. Basically the Unit ID and Mac address are the same thing, but vTuner won't take it. Still fighting that. You can use vTuner without it, but you won't have favorites, playlists, etc.

Update: Figured it out. They do indeed want the MAC address - however, without any spaces, dashes, colons. Just the letters and numbers as one long string. Find the MAC address under the network setup - ignore the instructions from vTuner.

Streaming from your computer? The RC180 automatically detects the computers on your network with media servers running. I have three PC's running Windows media player - it found all three of them. I'll add more details on in-house media streaming in the future - I need some more hands-on to make an honest evaluation. My main PC is based on Windows 7. The instructions for connecting to the media player are for Media Player 11 (Vista / XP), not Windows 7. Windows 7 uses Media Player 12 - so you need to use the DLNA instructions, not the Windows Media Player instructions. One big mistake I made was attempting to connect to my computer before allowing access to the Onkyo. This stuck the Onkyo in a loop while it kept trying to connect. Eventually it gave up and I was able to get it all to work. You really need to create playlists to make it easy to use.

From what I see so far, I can't use my iTunes library. The Onkyo requires DLNA compliance, and iTunes is not - that's why you can't use iTunes with many devices over a network, including the PS3.

Followup: I can't stress how important a great center speaker is. I had an anemic speaker with a 4" woofer. It was basically a spare JBL studio speaker - great quality, but it was rated at 50 watts. I replaced it with a BIC center speaker that has two 6" woofers and a large horn - and handles 175 watts ( BIC America DV-62CLRS 6-Inch 2-Way Center Channel Speaker ). Wow! What a difference. With the old speaker, the Onkyo would not go past 70% volume - the Audyssey setup detected that feeble little speaker and limited the maximum output. Really annoying, since the rest of the speakers were pretty decent, but any more volume and that speaker would have been so much scrap. The center is mainly used for voice, but don't overlook it! Now I can crank to 100%!

More followup: It detects and streams audio from my Iomega StorCenter Pro ix4-200d 2 NAS (A network storage devide.)

"My name is Anthony and I was a Home Theater in a Box junkie, but I have seen the light of a dedicated receiver and her name is Onkyo".

The last two surround systems I purchased were Home Theater in a Box (HTiB) types. I figured who wants to waste time and money looking for separate components. That worked fine for me for a few years, but then I outgrew the stingy inputs most HTiB systems have...

In comes the Onkyo HT-RC180, a receiver with more inputs than I hope I'll ever need, and the ability to hook up more speakers than I have room for. Some may see this as overkill, but for me it's a luxury to know that I'll always have room to grow. The Onkyo's connectivity highlights include 5 1080p HMDI ports, 2 component videos, 3 optical audios, 3 digital coaxials, and a phono input. You can connect up to 11 surround sound speakers and 2 powered subwoofers to the unit as well. Alternatively, you can run stereo output in two other rooms, or zones. However, if you wish to keep running 7.1 surround in your main room, the other zones must have separate amps. Finally, it supports speakers from to 4-16ohms.

The design of the Onkyo is nothing special. It's basically a large and heavy black box (see my included photo). But it's a well built box, with a solid feel and a heavy aluminum front panel. The door on the front feels sturdier than some car doors. Lastly, there is a large and bright display that is easy to read from across the room.

The remote is very sophisticated as well. It can be programmed to turn on the TV, Receiver, and DVD player all at once and switch over the necessary inputs. There are three buttons on the remote labeled "My Movie", "My TV", and "My Music", which can be programmed in this manner. The remote is universal and can be programmed to operate almost any device. Currently, it controls my Panasonic TV, Panasonic DVD-Recorder, LG Blu-ray player, and iPod using an Apple dock. I was very impressed that in worked with the iPod dock. Programming the remote is simple, and is usually done via the receiver's on-screen menu which actually beams the codes into the remote (see my included photo), or, if the code is not found, by pointing the remotes at each other and programming it that way. The remote is a nice size and built well, but could stand to lose the piano black finish that attracts fingerprints (see my included photo).

You'll notice I haven't mentioned sound quality yet, and that's because I don't consider myself an audiophile. I'm an electronics guru with a love for good quality sound. I'm a guru on a budget though, so I re-used the 5 surround sound speakers and wires that were included with my Panasonic HTiB system (the center speaker has two woofers and a tweeter and is rated 320W, the left/right front speakers have two woofers and a tweeter and are rated at 190W, and the left/right rear have one full range speaker and are rated at 90W, so they are decent speakers). I had to buy a powered subwoofer though, and purchased the SONY SA-W2500. Initially I was looking forward to the connectivity options the receiver would offer, and figured the sound quality would be a marginal improvement. Boy was I wrong! Even using the same speakers, save the subwoofer, the sound is so much more detailed and clear. It really envelops you. Nothing sounds muffled or compressed together, nor does it sound too spread out and "surroundy". I'm hearing instruments and subtleties I never noticed before, and this is true no matter what the source. I find music sounds best using the Dolby Pro-Logic II Music setting. (Note: the music I listen to on the receiver is from my iPod in the Apple dock using a mini-plug to RCA stereo connection. The songs on the iPod are all 256kbps AAC, and 99% of them were burned off studio CDs.) The Onkyo supports multiple surround sound methods, including Dolby True HD, and dts-HD Master Audio, and there are 4 buttons on the remote labeled "Movie/TV", "Music", "Game", and "THX", you use these buttons to toggle through the various surround modes available for each type of source.

All my video sources are running through the Onkyo as well and I've noticed no degrading in quality, or any connection problems, when using it with my Panasonic 720p 32" LCD TV via HDMI. I have the LG Bly-ray player hooked up using HDMI, the Panasonic DVD recorder using component video, and the Nintendo Wii using composite video.

The Onkyo has an on-screen menu that is chock full of options. From customizing the speakers, to the video signals, to the remote, and even allowing you to tailor the mute volume and the volume the receiver defaults to when you turn it on. Moreover, the menu system is easy to navigate, with large fonts and bright graphics.

The FM/AM tuner works well and pulls in a decent signal. The receiver is also Sirius satellite and HD Radio ready. To use either service you will need to buy the required modules. Using the Ethernet port on the back you can stream Internet radio services such as Pandora and Rhapsody (unfortunately, the receiver is not near an Ethernet port, so I'm unable to use this feature).

Also included with the Onkyo is the Audyssey MultiEQ system. It consists of a microphone that you plug into the receiver and place in up to 6 locations in the room and it will calibrate the receiver and speakers to take into account the number of speakers, their size, optimum crossover for the subwoofer, and the room's acoustic properties.

Lastly, make sure you're up to the task of setting this up; picking the cables and speakers, running the wires, and customizing the setting. The manual is over 100 pages for a reason, make sure to read it.

All in all...An investment piece that should serve you well for years to come.

P.S.: I realize this is a long review, there is a lot to cover, and if you'd like to know something I have not mentioned feel free to leave a comment and I will do my best to answer it.

12/07/2009 Update: The Onkyo's maximum sleep time is 90 minutes. I would prefer a longer sleep timer than that.

03/26/2010 Update: Still enjoying this receiver. No problems thus far.

12/17/2010 Update: I still use the receiver almost every day and have not had any problems with it. It works well.

The Onkyo HT-RC180 has lots of features, plenty of speaker connections, incredible sound and a sturdy, heavy case, all of which would suggest that this is a quality product. Indeed, upon initially opening up the box and setting it up, it blew away my Sony STRDG820 7.1 Audio Video Receiver - Black, even with the same pair of cheap Sony SS-B3000 speakers. The sound was crisp and the definition was unlike anything I'd ever heard. I'm certainly no audiophile, but the difference was that noticeable -- this thing cranks out some really nice sound. Music sounded fuller, and movies -- even without a center channel -- sounded convincing and clear. The video quality wasn't any different on my 56" Samsung 1080p DLP, but that's to be expected. Sound quality and features is why you buy a more expensive AV receiver, generally speaking, and this thing delivers in spades. I can only imagine what it would have sounded like had I been able to test it with a full 7.1 setup (alas, it died before my other speakers came -- more on that later). Features such as the media server streaming and the ability to use up to 13 speakers make the Onkyo HT-RC180 a fully-loaded AV receiver. The media streaming was a bit awkward to navigate with the remote -- if you have an Xbox 360, a Playstation 3 or a dedicated media streaming hub, they'll do the trick much better -- but it functioned fine, and connected to my network without hassle via the ethernet port on the back of the unit.

Despite its great performance, I would not recommend the Onkyo HT-RC180. Why? After just a month of use, it broke. One day, with only 2 bookshelf speakers connected, using the auxillary jack in the front with an iPod, the unit shut itself off and the standby light started blinking. After an internet search, I learned that this is a somewhat common problem with Onkyo receivers, something called amp protect (or circuit protect) mode. The unit will no longer power on, even with no speakers attached. Considering the load this thing was handling when it died, I find its demise to be rather suspect, and an indication of questionable build quality. A call to Onkyo was fielded by someone in the USA -- a positive -- who was very nice, but only suggested that I take it to an Authorized Onkyo Service Center. There is one such place in PA -- more than 200 miles away from my location -- and the customer service representative indicated that I would have to pay for shipping to the service center myself, even though the unit was still under warranty. This receiver weighs over 40 pounds, so even shipping/packaging within state would be forty or fifty dollars. Since Onkyo proved unhelpful, I called around local service shops to see what their estimates would be on repairs, and I was quoted around eighty to a hundred fifty dollars. For a month old product that retails for $700, I find paying extra money so soon hard to swallow.

I may have just gotten a lemon, but the internet posts I've seen indicate that I'm not the only one who has had these types of problems with Onkyo products. I was disappointed, given that the sound quality was impeccable, and Onyko had a pretty solid reputation. Unfortunately, the build quality and service they provided for my HT-RC180 left a lot to be desired. I would highly suggest that you check the location of service centers in your area or buy an extended warranty from the retailer if you do end up purchasing an Onkyo product. I understand that not every unit is perfect, but in such instances, I expect the company to bend head over heels to fix the problem. Onkyo did not do this in this circumstance, and, as such, I would seriously consider purchasing another brand of AV receiver, especially since there are some good offerings from Pioneer and Denon in the same price range.

UPDATE 12/23/09 UPDATE
I've had my replacement receiver for roughly a week and everything is working well. My system sounds great - right now I'm only driving a 5.1 speaker set up and this receiver handles it with ease.

The internet streaming capabilities of the receiver are very enjoyable. Pandora streaming is very easy to set up, and once you've went through the somewhat tedious process of entering your login information by way of remote control, the Onyko provides a great user experience.

One complaint concerning the DLNA capabilities - Windows Media Center [along with other media servers I've tried such as TVersity] require you wade through a relatively deep directory structure which can make it painful to search for and stream specific music stored on your local network. If you plan on using this feature my advice is to build a number of playlists on your computer. This way you need only navigate to one file to begin streaming your music.

In order to keep the complete review at a reasonable length I'll stop here.

Please note that, after receiving a working model that I was able to run the firmware update on, I have increased my rating from 3/5 to 4/5. I am satisfied with this purchase.



Original Review:

I received my new Onkyo HT-RC180 a few days ago and proceeded to set everything up. I finally got to the point where I could run Audyssey Thursday [12/10] evening and, after successfully doing so and toying with some of the features such as Pandora and DLNA, I believed I was 'mostly' finished with the setup. I figured that everything from here on out would be fun stuff such as tweaking settings and enjoying the receiver and so forth... But then I decided to attempt a firmware update through the included Onkyo 'NET' functionality.

The first time I ran the firmware update, after the firmware download was complete but before it could finish writing the new firmware state, the console displayed a mysterious 'Error!!! 3 - 14' message. I immediately went online to look for information. It turns out that updating this model's firmware has been problematic for many people. A number of people were apparently lucky - simply rerunning the firmware update after unhooking all HDMI connections has reportedly worked for some.

Fair enough I thought, I'll attempt a second update. I can't get the receiver to respond to any input following the first attempt so I'm forced to pull the power plug to force a reboot.

Once the receiver has rebooted, I attempt the firmware update again. An oddity - the remote no longer works, so I have to use the receiver's front console to run setup. Another oddity - the option to run a firmware update under the Setup => 'Hardware Settings' doesn't appear until about 30 seconds after the receiver has been powered on. This is more confusing than it sounds as the 'Hardware Settings' option under Setup is always present and it takes only a few seconds to navigate to where you know from previous experience that the firmware option should be. It would be very easy for someone to simply think this value had vanished and there's certainly no reason to think new items would be added to the list in a few more seconds.

Anyway, I finally attempt the second update. This time, after the download has taken place, I see a flash of text that goes by too quickly to interpret which is then immediately followed by a new error code of '3-4.' The console is not locked, I can back out of this error code and attempt to run the firmware update again.

During this second consecutive run, no error message is displayed - instead after the firmware download completes, 'VPS Setting...' appears on the console and never changes - the update is apparently caught in an endless loop.

I let the 'VPS Setting...' run overnight and, come morning, the situation had not improved. Each time I attempt to repeat the firmware update, I fall into the same pattern where the first attempt sees an immediate error after completing the firmware download ('3-4' error code) and the second attempt, after backing out of the first, locks at 'VPS Setting...' and requires the plug be pulled.

This pattern may be repeated over and over again depending on how much of a masochist the user is.

So this morning, I call Onkyo support and explain the situation, and the tech on the other end immediately tells me to return the receiver as this product has no USB port and therefore no other way to manipulate the firmware.

Amazon has already shipped me a replacement that is due to arrive Monday, I've unhooked and boxed up and shipped off the old one, and hopefully this doesn't happen to me again Monday evening.

If anyone else goes through this and sees the same pattern of futility, hopefully this review may be of some help and lead you to cut your losses sooner rather than later.

The Onkyo HT-RC180 is an excellent addition to a home theater setup. I've wedded the receiver to a 42-inch 1080p Vizio, Polk Audio RM705 5.1 speakers, a Tivo HD, standard DVD player, and Wii. This unit is a beast. As another reviewer mentioned, it is about the same height as a DVD box and is over 17 inches deep. I had to purchase a new TV stand to accommodate it, but it was worth it.

The unit comes with a beefy manual, but I'd recommend tackling it piecemeal instead of working through the whole thing. Here's what I did to get up and running in about 90 minutes and then the tweaks and observations I made over the next few days.

What To Set Up Immediately

1. Use the quick set up guide to aid in hooking up the cables. It's pretty straight forward and he back of the unit is well labeled. The receiver is very heavy and easy to drop, so I set mine on a chair adjacent to my stand, attached the cables, and then slid it into place.

2. Once you've hooked up all the cables, immediately plug in the microphone and use Audyssey to calibrate your speakers. It can calibrate for 3 to 6 seating positions and takes about 15-30 minutes depending on the number of speakers and seating positions you're calibrating for. I calibrated for my 3 primary listening positions and that worked well for my 5.1 system.

2. Next program your remote. In a separate manual, Onkyo has included remote codes for most TVs and components. Use the instructions in the main manual for how to actually make this happen. You'll also need to assign the HDMI inputs (if you used them) to the proper remote buttons. It's all pretty straight forward.

At this point, you should be able to start enjoying your media. It took me about 90 minutes to be up and running with my system.

What To Set Up Later

1. The "My Movies", "My TV", and "My Music" action buttons at the top of the remote are infinitely handy (I wish there was a "My Games", too). I have them setup to turn on the appropriate components with one touch. And turn them off with one touch. Definitely explore this feature. It's a time save for sure.

2. Hook the Onkyo up to your home network. My network wasn't adjacent to my home theater. I moved it and ran an Ethernet cable from my router to the receiver. I now have the built-in Pandora interface running on my system. All of the Pandora functionality is there and displays beautifully on my TV screen. It's free, but I'll likely upgrade to the yearly paid service because this far surpasses using the radio and I see myself using it a lot. Unfortunately the Onkyo will not interface with iTunes as is, but you can set it up to stream Internet radio with vTuner (there's a rather tedious online interface) and it has Sirius capability.

3. Once you're on the network, you can go into the settings and update your firmware. It was a quick download, but the writing of it took a while. It took my system 30 minutes or so (your mileage may vary).

4. Further audio adjustments. I've been making minor tweaks to the audio post-Audyssey calibration and my Polk Audio speakers sound great with this receiver. I've gotten the subwoofer to sounds perfect, not "boomy", and the system really sounds alive. Try tweaking everything for each of of your inputs. It may take some trial and error, but I now have high-quality (and appropriate) sound from all of my components.

General Observations

1. My Wii looks better with the receiver's up-sampling than it ever did hooked directly up to the TV. Sounds great too. Very impressed.
2. I love that the Onkyo automatically adjusts to the correct audio settings for the media you are watching/listening to and displays that information.
3. Single remote! I finally have a decent remote that even works well with Tivo.
4. The display of the unit is really clean and doesn't glow in a bothersome way.
5. It runs relatively hot, but is doing well in rather tight accommodations. I'll update this review if I notice any overheating.
6. The 5 HDMI inputs are really handy. My 2-year-old Visio TV only has 2 and now that no longer matters.
7. I generally just love this unit. The sound is great. The video is great. The remote is well designed.

This is truly a beast of a receiver. While a lot of companies have been shedding pounds off their receivers and reducing their size, I'm glad to see Onkyo putting out this HT-RC180, which reeks of quality and good taste. Aesthetically, it's sharp and modern...and again, fairly big. Obviously some may prefer a smaller form factor or a unit giving off less heat, but this receiver rocks.

The features list is amazing for the price. You can set up to 3 zones with this one receiver or you could go for a full 11.2, though the receiver is rated for a 7.1 system at 110W per channel, so 11.2 may be too taxing. The inputs include a ton of composite, 5 hdmi, but only 2 component, 2 optical audio and 2 digital audio. It also has thx certification, audyssey, front composite inputs, headphone jack, pre-amps, excellent video processing, sirius antenna, video pass through for no lag, input assign, etc.

The only gripe I have (besides the industry standard 2 component inputs) is that it will make a loud click when my hdtv channels broadcast a commercial in sd. This is only minorly annoying though.

The remote is practical and attractive. It can take a while to figure out where everything on the remote is because there are so many buttons, but it's extremely handy. You press a button to designate which input you are controlling so you can operate the power and settings on (most) other devices almost like a universal remote.

Compared to my Denon AVR2310CI 7.1-Channel Multi-Zone Home Theater Receiver with 1080p HDMI Connectivity, it performs equally well. Both have more than enough power for my 5 Definitive Technology Mythos line of speakers (I also have an Epik Sentinel subwoofer). However, the onkyo is capable of a full 11.2 surround setup, so I didn't expect 5 speakers to show any strain. The biggest difference between the two for me was the remote control. The Onkyo has a far superior remote (and front panel buttons), which makes any task relatively easy. Also, the onkyo has slightly better menus, gets much hotter, and offers a few more inputs. It also was a bit more powerful and very slightly cleaner sounding. The Denon seemed to have better video processing and more audyssey measurements. If the two were priced the same, I'd favor the onkyo slightly, but you can probably find the denon cheaper if you try.

UPDATE: After going through the relatively simple setup for the universal remote functions, I have been even more thrilled with the HT-RC180. I also see that the price has come down a decent amount, which makes this probably the most competitive mid-grade receiver. While it still clicks annoyingly every time resolution changes on my cable, I feel the RC180 deserves 5 stars now. You may want to check dimensions before you buy though as it is fairly large for a mid-grade receiver and you'll have to have some room for cables behind the unit.

I have been installing my new home theatre (5.1 plus an outside pair and a line out to another amp) for two weeks since receiving this Onkyo RC-180 receiver so now I can speak to the limitations of this unit.

Most importantly, zone 2 and 3 are only available for analog input sources (even the tuner is not available for output to those speakers.) So now I will have to switch my cd input from optical back to analog in order to listen to anything from those zones - no cable/no internet radio/no standard radio. What is the point of having a network receiver that only outputs to the front speakers?

Otherwise, the sound is excellent. The features are great, but the limitations on the output reduce the most important function of this unit - speaker amplification - to a limited home theatre use.

Be warned when purchasing an Onkyo unit that you will have hassles if you need to go through their support department. I purchased a unit this past weekend and it was missing the remote. I followed their support process and here are some things to note:

1) I sent a support query about the missing remote. The query included the location and time/date of purchase as well as the serial number (their form requires it).

2) Onkyo replied a couple days later asking me to FAX the original receipt and include the serial number. Note that I had already included the serial number in the support query that they had replied to.

3) A couple of hours later, they wrote back and said they had received my FAX but not the serial number. Note that I had already included it in correspondence to them twice now.

4) Silence for a couple of days.

5) I pinged them in e-mail and no reply

6) I called them today to ask the status. I first got a very rude guy who condescendingly told me I needed to FAX them some information. I said I already had. He then rudely told me to talk to the original woman I've been speaking to and transferred me. I got her on the phone and she acted if I was interrupting her day and mumbled something about how she had already received all of my information. I asked so what's the status? She said "It's been shipped! I just said that!". No, actually you didn't.

Some people may assume I'm one of those demanding rude customers and they were reacting to that. I can assure you I am not. I deal with vendors every day as part of my normal job.

Anyway, YMMV. Just note that you might have a festive experience if you need to interact with their support department.

This receiver is a fantastic buy, whether you're evaluating it on its own merits or comparing it to others in its price range. If you're setting up a 3D Home Theater and have the TV or projector for it, this receiver won't meet your needs as it isn't 3D compatible. If not, the value here is impossible to beat.

First, on its own merits: the sound this receiver pushes is fantastic. It has Audyssey MultEQ with up to 6 locations, which automatically customizers speaker and sub levels for the ideal sound across all the locations that you test. It's Ethernet ready, so you can hook it into your network or use Internet radio like Pandora directly through the receiver. It has Dolby PlIIz sound decoding if you want to try front height channels, along with the other sound decoding that you'd expect (DD Plus, TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio).

Side note: the 7.2 means that it has 2 sub outputs, but they're the same signal, so it's basically a a 7.1 system with an internal Y-splitter. This isn't a dig at the receiver, as that's what you're pretty much always going to see on a system with 2 sub outputs until you move to a much higher price point. It's a nice bonus to have it be 7.2 if you want two subs (and you do!), as you don't have the extra clutter of a splitter plugged into the back and you're not really paying more for that feature anyway, but it's not a requirement that should make you rule out 7.1s in your comparisons.

Second, compared to other models in its price range, this receiver is impossible to beat. Just a quick look at two comparable Onkyo receivers - the Onkyo TX-NR708 7.2-Channel Network A/V Receiver (Black) and the Onkyo TX-SR608 7.2-Channel A/V Home Theater Receiver (Black) - shows you what a steal this receiver is. The 608 is a new release, and the 708 is, as of the date of this review, still a preorder.

The 608 is a bit cheaper, but it doesn't have Ethernet - meaning that you can't hook it up to your network or stream Internet radio directly through your receiver, and you'll have to deal with taking the receiver in to a dealer or using a USB thumb drive anytime you need to update the firmware. That lack of Ethernet is something you'll see with most receivers in this price range. The 608 also only has Audyssey 2EQ, meaning that automated speaker customization can only optimize for two locations rather than 6. That's another limitation you'll see with most receivers in this price range. There are a few other missing features, and the 608 is a bit weaker at 100W instead of 110W, but those are the main missing items that were dealbreakers for me.

The 708 is extremely similar to the HT-RC180 but costs a couple hundred dollars more (and isn't out yet). It doesn't upconvert video from component inputs, which may or may not matter to you.

The main gain you get from the 708 (and the 608) is the ability to work with HDMI 1.4a for 3D video. As noted above, if that's what you're after, the HT-RC180 isn't for you, and you'll want to go with something like the 608 or 708. However, if you don't have or plan to have a 3D TV or projector anytime soon, this feature may be irrelevant to you, as it was to me. I opted to save some money by going with a receiver that doesn't do 3D video, as it's still a pretty limited/fledgling technology and if I get a TV or projector that can do 3D in the future, I'll evaluate 3D-capable receivers at that time.

Notes in conclusion: If you don't need 3D video, you won't find a better receiver for this price. For reference, my system as a whole consists of two BIC America F12 12-Inch 475-Watt Front Firing Powered Subwoofers for subs, a Jamo S406 5-speaker system, and a Jamo C400SUR Black Concert series surround speaker pair to make the system a 7.2. The sound quality overall is amazing for both movies and music. You won't be disappointed.

I reviewed the instruction manual before purchasing this because zone 2 and 3 audio are important features for me. I read the manual to say that you can have 7.1 in the main room. But if you activate zone 2, then the main room will drop down to 5.1. That makes sense because you're now powering two speakers in a separate room so you drop two speakers in the main room (7 to 5). If you activate zones 2 and 3, then the main room drops from 5.1 to 3.1. Again, that makes sense.

However, after getting this, it doesn't work quite that way. It's not based on activating or powering zone 2 or 3. Rather, it's about hooking up speakers for zone 2 and zone 3. If you even plug in speakers for zone 2 and 3, then you cannot get more than 3.1, even if zones 2 and 3 are not activated. I didn't "get" this from the manual.

The receiver is very beefy, and it puts off a lot of heat. Make sure you have enough space around the receiver to compensate for the heat.

With all the options it has, it's not the easiest thing to use. But I don't believe this is any harder than any other 7.2 receiver. The remote control was easy to program. That did not take very long.