Customer Reviews

Onkyo HT-S5100 7.1 Channel Home Entertainment System (Set of Nine, Black)

5 star:		(89)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

This system is insanely incredible.

I baught this system with both eyes open. I knew the HDMI connections were video pass-through only. I knew the connections available weren't up to snuff with the 'bigger boys' (Onkyo 606 and on). But I didn't care... The quality I get for the price tag is a complete steal.

In this package, you get 7 speakers and a beasty powered subwoofer (290 watts). The receiver has 2 HDMI inputs and 1 output, 2 component ins and 1 out, 2 optical inputs and I believe 1 coaxial. There are a bunch of extra connections for VCR's, DVD players, game consoles, etc.

Now, for quality....
This system is LOUD!!! I owned a sony htib before this and they're child's play compared to these. After some manual calibrating, I popped in the HD DVD version of 'Transformers' and... WOW!! I was hearing stuff I didn't know was in the sound field. Music is very crisp and clear. You could hear every instrument during jazz or acoustic sessions. Games are unbelievable on this setup.

The calibration mic setup didn't sound too good to me. It was a bit flat for my standards. But, to each his own, right?

One last thing, for people who say, 'this system runs too hot', gimme a break. IT'S SUPPOSED. For the amount of things the receiver does, be happy that it doesn't blow up. Just be sure have it in a property ventilated area and you're good for 20 years.

Overall, I highly suggest this system. It even comes with an iPod dock. Oh... and be sure to upgrade to 16 guage or lower wires. The ones supplied are crap. =]

Yeah, it's a 7.1 system in the sense if you have a decoded 8 channel analog output you can get a full 7.1 surround as it was intended.

But, for any other source, there's no real 7.1, end of story. Optical and coax inputs can only handle encoded formats with more than 2 channels. So any Dolby True HD or DTS HD Master 7.1 sources you may have will not work over optical or coax. Sure, you can get 5.1 through them and setup the Onkyo to "fill in" the missing speakers, even though you actually have the data for them on your source. That's not what you want, though.

The reason is the HDMI Pass Through, which, ironically is touted as a feature. The only way to get 7.1 digital audio is over HDMI, and this Onkyo receiver cannot process HDMI audio of any format. It simply passes it through to the TV, acting like an HDMI switch. Your TV ultimately demuxes the audio: displaying the video, and sending the audio back to the Onkyo through an optical or coaxial audio cable.

So, unless you have a standalone Blu Ray player with 7.1 analog outputs or a PC with a 7.1 surround sound card and are going to use the analog outputs (over 4 mini stereo to RCA cables), keep on looking for a receiver that decodes HDMI audio rather than passes it through. You simply cannot get 7.1 audio from this over a PS3 or a cable box. Blu Ray movies would need a standalone BD Player, and not a cheap one that only decodes to 5.1.

On the other hand, if you were looking for a 5.1 system, this is a pretty good 5.1 system. The speakers are pretty nice, and the subwoofer is more than capable. It has no problems playing 5.1 through optical and coax sources, and has 2 of each, which is plenty for most people. And you get a free HDMI switch with it, if your TV is short 1 HDMI input, that's a good $150 savings over a seperate HDMI switch.

If you intend to use this with a DVD player using coax or optical connectors, then this system will be great. The is my current set up and I like the quality of sound and the ease of set up.

But my praise ends there. With the understanding that this unit has HDMI (plastered on the box and on the receiver), I was confident that I would be able to plug the Sony S-350 into the HDMI port and be able to enjoy the lossless format from Dolby. Regardless what the Circuit City sales guy had to say, this system is NOT capable of playing lossless formats. This was confirmed when I called Onkyo technical support.

As an alternative, I thought that I could buy a Blu Ray deck that has analog outputs. I would then connect it to the analog inputs on the receiver. Though you would think that the lossless formats would work, Onkyo technical support insists that it will not produce what I am looking for.

In sum, I suggest that those who are looking to migrate to Blu Ray should consider the HTS-6100 and be ready for the future.

Let me say I think the HT-S5100 Onkyo Surround Sound System is a great product with great sound at a great price, but it is critically important that a person know what its capabilities and limitations are in order to avoid disappointment later. I would like to thank all of the people who provided reviews of this product before me. Thanks to the excellent and relevant information they provided I learned the strengths and weaknesses of this product and was able to determine whether or not I could engineer work arounds for its limitations before deciding to buy it. I will now describe my home theatre setup to better illustrate my points.

My home theatre setup currently consists of a Mitsubishi 65" DLP projection TV, ,a Blu-Ray disc player (which I bought specifically to deal with the limitations of this Onkyo system [see below]), an XBOX 360, and of course the Onkyo HT-S5100 Surround Sound System.

Some important things I learned from other reviewers and I feel compelled to share with others considering this system are:
1. The most significant limitation of the HT-S5100 is that it DOES NOT decode any signals through the HDMI interface. The HDMI connections on the system are pass throughs only! If you have a DVD or Blu-Ray player, video game system, cable box, etc. and you use HDMI cables to connect those components you will NOT be able to directly connect those components and get the audio to play through your surround sound system via the HDMI cable! You will have to engineer work arounds (i.e. optical, coaxial or analog audio hookups) to make things work, but with the right know-how and components it isn't that big of a deal. Since previous Amazon reviewers of the Onkyo HT-S5100 were thoughtful enough and thorough enough to make me aware of these HDMI shortcomings, I engineered my work arounds before I bought the system. One thing I did was purchase a Panasonic BD55 Blu-Ray Disc Player at the same time that I purchased the Onkyo HT-S5100. You see, the Panasonic BD55 has built-in audio decoding for all the new high definition audio formats and it can convert those signals into 7.1 analog signals and can output them through the 8 standard analog connectors on the back of the Blu-Ray Player. That way I was able to run plain, old analog audio cables (but keep in mind you need 8 cables!) from the 7.1 audio out ports on the back of the Panasonic BD55 to the 7.1 audio input ports on the back of the Onkyo HT-S5100 Surround Sound System and it works great!! I am still able to use an HDMI cable from the BD55 Blu-Ray Disc Player to send the best quality of video to the TV and I get full 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound (depending on the movie's audio) via the analog inputs on the Onkyo HT-S5100 and the sound is excellent!

For the XBOX 360 I use the HDMI interface on the XBOX and connect an HDMI cable from it to an HDMI input on the back of my Mitsubishi DLP Projection TV. Then I connect a coaxial audio cable from the COAXIAL AUDIO OUT on the Misubishi TV to a COAXIAL AUDIO INPUT on the Onkyo Surround Sound System and that works great! The Mitsubishi TV takes the audio fed from the HDMI cable from the XBOX and runs it out through its coaxial audio output into the Onkyo.
The two solutions I presented here allow me to still use the superior HDMI outputs from the Blu-Ray Player and XBOX for Video and/or Audio even though the Onkyo cannot decode any signals through its HDMI connections.

One last point, I agree with previous reviewers who suggest ditching the tiny gauge speaker wires that come with the HT-S5100 and instead opting for good quality 16 gauge speaker wire purchased separately. A system that sounds this good deserves decent speaker wires!

I was originally intending to buy the Onkyo receiver and/or the 5.1 speaker system but then ended up buying this one. Excellent buy at the price, when I ordered the system earlier on. Easy to set up, the automated speaker calibration works cool and it indeed helped. I did not use the speaker wires provided with this system but instead bought 14 and 16 gauge wires from the local Frys instead, since in some cases the length of the wires exceeded 20-30 foot when run through the walls. The only problem as many folks have stated here is that the receiver becomes hot but so far I have not been witness to system shutting down automatically as a few of them have observed here. The speakers (all 7 of them) are not that heavy and can be easily placed on the wall. Overall, we are extremely happy with the system so far.

Not knowing much about home electronics, I was a little reluctant to purchase any Home Theater system. I installed this Onkyo HT S5100 in my new sixteen seat four tier theater and am very happy. I am using two larger front speakers from a different Onkyo system, and the new front speakers are doing a wonderful job placed in the back of the theater. I am sure they would sound great in the front also. Do not let the so called experts persuade you from the 7.1 to the 5.1 system. Even though movies are usually formatted in 5.1, the extra side surround speakers you get with a 7.1 system give that extra sound where it is needed. It is worth the few extra bucks you will spend. When I opened the box and took out the sub-woofer, the back said it was 165w and not the 290w I was expecting. I did write Onkyo about this, and they gave me some mumbo-jumbo about dynamics and RMS. All that matters is when I got it hooked up, this sub will vibrate the marrow in your bones. Final word - Before I installed the Onkyo, my theater was awesome to look at. After I installed my Onkyo, my theater is a place to watch movies.

I just received my Onkyo HT-S5100.

AUDIO: this unit was listed head-and-shoulders above the others in Consumer Reports, but reading the Amazon and other reviews cinched the sale. The HT-5100 has phenomenal sound, the bass can rattle your bones, and the surround sound is just amazing! FIVE STARS!

GOOD AND BAD OBSERVATIONS:

1. My heart froze when I opened the gigantic box and saw two empty slots in the Styrofoam packing. It looked like someone stole two speakers in transit! I was just about to look up the UPS store to return it, but dug deeper. It was just a "filler" area on the top/side of the box. Phew!

2. The subwoofer is freaking huge--you could use it as a footstool. The amplifier is no lightweight. Too big to fit on top of my blu-ray; too hot to enclose in a cabinet.

3. You will probably need a HDMI and an optical cable. Uh, one dumb mistake. I'd never used optical cables before. There are tiny, almost invisible silicone covers on the tips. I wasted two hours tracking down the problem--DOAH!

4. The audio calibration microphone is a great way to verify operation and balance those eight speakers in about ten minutes! It is REQUIRED the first time you set up your system: no calibration, no sound. Also, the HDMI MUST be assigned: no assignment, no video.

5. The speaker wires are lightweight and color-coded. 16-guage wires would probably be better, but I didn't notice any warming or sound drop-off, so I'm keeping it for now. If you do buy heavier wire, make sure you buy the color-coded stuff.

6. The iPod docking station is sweet! Solid, well-made, nice heft and HDMI input.

7. The speakers have a "keyhole" type hanging system that lets them hang from screws set in the walls (screws not included). You don't need to buy the expensive hanging arm systems unless you just want them.

If you're looking for a complete solution, this is it. For the price, this delivers some of the best sound available in a complete receiver and speaker package with 7.1 sound! I had it recommended by two different people, one who went to a store and heard it side by side with other systems, and one who is a major audiophile and who has read many reviews on different systems. I didn't have to do any research, but I did go and listen to a few systems before buying, just in case. The system didn't dissapoint. And set-up was very easy. Being a technician, I didn't need help setting the unit up; however, if I was less technically inclined, the color coded wires and easy quick set-up diagrams would have been very helpfull. If you are new to audio and looking for the best 7.1 system under $800, or if you are a seasoned audiophile looking for a good system without a high price tag, this is the stereo for you!

I bought this system with the full knowledge that this receiver does not decode 7.1 HDMI, Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD. Where this system really shines is it's outstanding sound quality. Why purchase an AV system that will be obsolete before it's delivered?. The receiver has 7.1 analog inputs for preprocessed signals from your blu-ray player or other 7.1 preprocessed sources. A perfect match to the new inexpensive soon to be released Sony, Panasonic and Samsung Blu-ray players W/7.1 loss-less Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS, DTS-HD decoded analog outputs and BD/BD live w/Ethernet connections for on the fly updates to help fight off obsolescence. I would buy this system again today in a heartbeat!

Really simple to setup. 2EQ audio calibration works wonders... The sound became more clearer and very crisp after the calibration. If you plan to upgrade your existing dvd player to a blu-ray in the near future then DO NOT get this system! You will loose out on Dolby True HD and DTS Master Audio decodings(True 7.1). Better get a THX certified system capable of decoding these HD formats!
The receiver runs really hot!!!You need an air conditioned room to keep it running longer. I purchased a $6 small fan from Target and it keeps the system running very cool. If any of the speaker wires gets short circuited or if the system becomes very hot then automatically the system shuts down to protect the circuitry and there are instructions in the manual on how to reset the system...pretty neat feature.
Also you need speaker stands especially for the satellites and the front speakers. you can get Gemini I and II speakers stands from circuitcity or bestbuy. Not very expensive...Goes great with the black speakers!

Overall very good entry system and so far the best sound you can hear from this set is a DTS ES 6.1 Discrete (Lord of the Rings)based DVD. The DTS decoding is amazing!!!
Also if you connect your cable box to the receiver, try using digital optical out and then use DTS Neo6 (I found this to be better than Dolby PLIIx) DSP setting. The surround effect is really very good.
Iam very happy with this system so far...