57 of 57 people found the following review helpful:
Lots of bang for the buck, great sound
I really, really like this unit. Installing it took some time, but the sound and video switching was well worth it. Instead of having a dozen different cables running to the HDTV, I only have one - the HDMI cable.
When you install it, set aside a few hours - this has nothing to do with this particular model - just that there are so many darn connections. I...
Remote Operation Can Be Hard To Deal With
This receiver works well but it does generate alot of heat. I use it with Onkyo speakers and the sound quality is fairly good. I figured the sound quality should be better than what I hear. My biggest problem with it is getting a single remote to run my system. I presently use two Harmony remotes with my system and it alway seems the receiver is the problem child. My...
This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
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I really, really like this unit. Installing it took some time, but the sound and video switching was well worth it. Instead of having a dozen different cables running to the HDTV, I only have one - the HDMI cable.
When you install it, set aside a few hours - this has nothing to do with this particular model - just that there are so many darn connections. I hooked up my BluRay player, DVD player, VCR and CD player, as well as nine speakers and two sub-woofers. Running the cables and positioning the speakers was the most time consuming. I had no reason to use the zone 2, so used the additional two speakers as upper fronts. I did not want to go out and spend a ton of money on speakers - I used what I had on hand. If you're like me, you have a collection of speakers that build up over the years. I used two tall Fishers for the front, a studio monitor for the center, a pair of low-power cheapies from an old stereo for the front uppers, a pair of old Sony's for the surround, and a pair of wall-mount for the rear uppers. They were a variety of 6 and 8 ohm pairs. The system handles the combinations just fine.
Looks: Classic Onkyo hi-tech, black and glossy.
Buttons: Minimal buttons - all functionality can be accessed via the front of the unit as well as the remote.
Connections: All you would ever need. Many are assignable.
Menu: You can use the minimal LED on the front of the unit, or the more interactive display on your TV. Since the unit acts as a video switch, it overlays information on the screen. Info on the Volume, video or audio source, etc.
Setup: Read the manual! Some menu features are counter-intuitive. For example, when setting up the speakers I had zone 2 active and set it to assign it to front uppers. The rear uppers were dead. Turns out that zone two had to be active, but not on, and I should not have assigned positions. Then all nine speakers worked. There are a lot of features hidden away in the manual that you would not discover by just looking at menu options. The Automated speaker configuration with the included microphone - Cool. Position the speakers where you want, plug in the mic, and go. The unit detects the mic being plugged in and automatically brings up the correct menu. The menu's take you through the process. With nine speakers and the two subs it took about 15 minutes. I kept erroring on center channel detection. It turns out that I had a blown tweeter - the auto configuration would not let me continue until I replaced the speaker. Apparently is could not detect the frequencies it expected. After I replaced the speaker, I had to re-run the test. The automatic setup is a three step process, and it stopped after step 1 when I had the bad speaker. After it was replaced, it went through all three steps.
I used the manual setup first just to confirm that I had all the speakers in the right place. A tone is sent to each speaker and the on-screen display shows the speaker location on the generic diagram (the diagram automatically changes depending on the speakers you have connected.)
Sound quality: Amazing - especially considering I have a hodge-podge of makes, models and quality.
Speakers: Supports 8 plus two subs. Will default to stereo or 5.1 - it detects what you have attached. The more speakers you have attached, the better the experience. However, if you have less than the maximum number of speakers, there are plenty of options to enhance the sound, virtually change speaker position, and more! So even if you have only two speakers, this is still a great unit - it's worth it for the video switching alone! The sub-woofer outs are unpowered, like most sub outputs are today. You really don't need two subs unless you really, really want to crack your plaster.
Build: Weighs a ton - lots of copper and a huge heat-sink. Runs hot, but considering the total output, that's to be expected. Install in a cabinet or shelf with plenty of air circulation.
I never even considered the fact that I would dump all those cables running to the TV - Instead of HDMI's, three different video's, plus audio, I now have a single HDMI and an audio out (I'm running the TV audio out to the Onkyo,) plus cable and power. Four wires instead of dozens. A lot cleaner.
In summary - I've not seen a better value for the money. Enough inputs for 99% of the population. Easy setup, lots of interactive tools and on-screen help. Great sound, lots of power, modern styling.
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This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program(What's this?)
When it comes to great sound quality at a low price, you can't go wrong with Onkyo, they make some of the best receivers that are always at a fair price.
The HT-RC160 is very easy to install, just plug and play... Well, more like plug and connect and connect and connect and connect... and play (it's lots of speaker cables, you know?) even easier if you have the Onkyo speaker set since they're color coated and all you have to do is match the speaker cable to the receiver, either way is easy enough for anyone to figure out. This Onkyo receiver also comes packed with a super technology called "2EQ automatic calibration system" which does exactly what it says, all you have to do is plug the included mic into the unit, follow some onscreen instructions and in about 10 minutes it will be done calibrating your sorround sound system, it pretty much sends some audio signals from each speaker and determines the distance between the audience (that's you) and each speaker, to give you the best home theatre experience possible! Of course, you don't have to let this machine do the work for you, you can always calibrate it yourself or tweak the auto calibration settings later on if you want.
It comes with 5 HDMI inputs, which is very good at any price range I would say, if you need any more than that, I would have to ask you... Why are you even looking at this unit? you can probably afford the pricier model! Check out the HT-RC180 (you'll still get 5 HDMI inputs though)
Sound is without a doubt the sweetest part of this deal, it's clear, it's loud and it's all around you! You'll have a good time watching any action movie. I do have to warn you that your family will have to go through the annoying process of dealing with YOU! Specially during the first few weeks of owning this unit, while other people are watching and enjoying the film, you'll be checking for sound clarity and and playing around with all of the sound options, trust me, I was doing that until one of my kids said "it sounds good already dad! you should watch the movie now" (I guess he said that because the unit mutes about 1 - 2 seconds between changing from one sound setting to the other)
Once you're done playing with your settings and get to know your unit a little better, you'll stop messing around with the options so much and you too will start enjoying the movie! After all, that's gotta be the main reason why you're looking to buy or upgrade your receiver...
As you can tell by the images, this receiver is a llttle on the bulky side, but don't let that put you down unless you're planning to carry this thing around in your backpack everyday, once you set it up, it will stay there for quite some time. Onkyo units are not known for being slim and sexy, they're known for delivering quality at a great price, this is just another example of what Onkyo can do for reasonable price, you'll be glad you went with Onkyo.
It does get a little hot but with proper breathing space, it should be fine, besides, what machine doesn't get hot nowadays? I used to freak out over things overheating but then I realized that pretty much everything I touch feels hot, the TV, the PS3, the 360, the toaster... Oh wait, scratch the last one... Just let it breathe and relax.
I'm really glad to have this product... I would definitely recommend it to a friend who is on a budget and wants something worth more than what he's paying for!
I hope that this review helps you make a better buying choice...
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This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
I bought the Onkyo HT-RC 160 to replace a Yamaha that I liked very much but did not have HDMI inputs. This receivers 5 HDMI inputs should handle most applications and switches flawlessly between the various inputs. I chose the Onkyo primarily because the current Yamaha remotes are ridiculous - who can really navigate that many tiny buttons? I love that I could re-name the various inputs both on the receiver and on screen; now if only one could re-name the remote labels. One thing I don't like is that after selecting an input, you have to search for the receiver to control it including, turning it off. The receiver button should be in a prominent location. So should the mute button. Another problem is connecting speaker wires to the extremely closely spaced terminals. (Yes, banana plugs would take care of that, but I have not had success connecting the plugs to the speaker wires. Another minor problem occurred with the excellent speaker setup. I have an old surround sound setup. As such, I have two speakers mounted on the wall above the front main speakers, but no speakers on the side wall, and speakers on the back wall. The Onkyo set up did not recognize this until I reconnected the front wall speakers to the side surround terminals. Then the setup was very easy and produced great sound from my mix of speakers. Overall, I am very pleased with the Onkyo HT-RC 160.
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This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
I bought this receiver to replace an aging Sony STR-DE925 that had finally gone to the big home theater in the sky. I recently bought the Klipsch Quintet 5 piece speaker system to go with my 10" Velodyne sub. I was disappointed with these speakers on the Sony, but when I hooked them up to this receiver, I was blown away with how great they sounded together. After running the speaker setup procedure, I was absolutely amazed by how great the surround sound worked. It is so much better than the Sony, it is like a whole different movie watching experience. I only have the 2 surround speakers hooked up right now (5.1). I can only imagine what the 7.1 must sound like. Also, don't worry about the power on this unit. 80 watts is enough to drive these speakers to the point where I could not even turn it up all the way and stand in the same room!
Besides the sound quality, the real reason I bought this receiver was the HDMI upconvert feature that it offered. I wanted to run just 1 HDMI cable to my 52" Samsung LCD instead of the 5 sets of cables that I had with the Sony receiver (HDMI DVD, HDMI Cable, Component Wii, Component PS2, and Optical cable from TV to receiver). This receiver definitely meets this requirement, but not without some issues. When I had the Wii and PS2 running directly to the TV before I bought this receiver, I was extremely happy with the picture quality and smoothness during game play. Now however, with the component cables hooked up through the receiver and the signal being converted to HDMI, I have noticed some degradation in the smoothness of the picture during play. Most of the time, the picture looks great, but from time to time the movement on the screen becomes choppy. I really notice this when we play Guitar Hero with more than one player. I think the amount of different movement on the screen is giving the receiver a bit too much to process at one time. I have tried changing the upconvert feature to "pass through", put it does not seem to make much difference. I don't know that this is a deal breaker as far as this receiver goes, but I had hoped for better performance.
Other than that, I really like the receiver. It was relatively easy to hook up and set up through the on-screen programming. However, assigning the HDMI and component inputs and getting them to work correctly was not all that intuitive. Overall, the receiver is easy to use once it is hooked up. I do wish the remote had an "all off" button on it or some ability to run "power on" macros to make turning all the components on and off a bit easier. But generally speaking the remote is able to control all of my components without an issue. I don't know that it would be worth getting a universal remote for another $100-200 just to have this ability.
If you are looking for a good home theater receiver for a great price, look no further. If you want to have only one cable running to your TV and you play a lot of high action games on the Wii or PS2, you may want to look at something that is better at upconverting component cable input signals. I don't know how well this would work with a PS3 or X-Box 360 that already had HDMI output, but I would imagine it would not be as much of an issue since the signal could truly be "passed through" with out being converted to a digital signal.
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This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program(What's this?)
I already own the Onkyo TX-SR606 Home Theater receiver so I was thrilled to be able to review this one. Audio buffs will already know how impressive the TX-SR606 is but how does the HT-RC160 rate? Well to me this is a better receiver. I was certainly more impressed with the video switching. I have always had an issue with the TX-SR606 because it seems to have stability problems when switching video but there are no problems with the HT-RC160. The sound on both is very similar and this is compatible with all the modern formats such as DTS-HD and Dolby TrueHD. The beautiful thing about Onyko is that they make true receivers and they don't make glitzy gimmicky ones. Yes this is a home theater receiver so it needs more buttons than a standard receiver/amplifier but Onyko still stay true to the foundation of all quality home audio. An audio buff friend of mine once said to me 'a good receiver should only need a volume control'. Of course this one needs more than that because it is designed for home theater but it isn't over the top.
Connecting this receiver up wasn't a difficult task for me because the connections are similar to the TX-SR606 but I would say you should put some time aside. Similar to another reviewer, I found that this receiver will run any speakers. I have different make speakers in each area but this receiver matched everything up. As far as video, you wire everything to run through the HDMI output. So connect all your gadgets into the necessary inputs and this will switch it. This receiver has 5 HDMI inputs which is more than enough for any modern equipment such as a Blu-Ray player, X-Box 360, Playstation 3 etc. The only thing you really have to do is match up everything up once it is fully connected which you can do via the on-screen set up.
Overall I love this receiver, the sound quality is excellent and the video switching is flawless. I can't fault it in any area and if you want to go with a company who build true audio then you can't go wrong with Onyko.
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This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
While current Onkyo receivers are not quite as solidly built as their predecessors (thinner gauge metal case - no doubt due to slimming profit margins and lean economic times), performance is still high and construction still beats most of the competition.
This current model has dropped 10 watts/per channel in favor of the extra height channel. Hence, the 7.2 designation rather than the previous model's 7.1. Since I don't want to bombard my living room with yet another pair of front speakers I am currently connected for 7.1 channels. That said, it would have been a great option to be able to switch between these two channel configurations so that I can regain the extra power headroom. This may make little practical difference, especially when using a high-powered active subwoofer, but it does give a little bit more peace of mind.
Other users have commented on the very hot operation of this receiver. I don't think this is a problem. True, the receiver becomes uncomfortably hot to the touch but there is a disclaimer on top of the unit already stating that this is normal for the receiver. For a receiver in this price range, I can see why. The unit has to run so many channels in an enclosure no larger than its 5.1 and 6.1 predecessors. If this was a high-end receiver, it would probably contain a larger enclosure and/or a cooling fan in addition to the heat sinks. But I'm already grateful for the heat sinks and the silent operation without a fan. Turn the receiver off and you'll notice that the heat does not linger for long.
I wish this receiver can determine which surround mode to switch to a bit faster than it does. I often miss the first second or two of video after the unit determines which sound mode to switch to. Admittedly, this is a minor point. On the other hand, it is impressive that this receiver can decode practically any surround mode under the sun, including the latest flavors of uncompressed 7.2 surround formats. In fact, I was surprised to find out that it can handle the raw DSD data from my SACD collection.
On the video front, this receiver could use at least one S-video jack to better accommodate old video sources like S-VHS VCRs. While sources connected to the composite video inputs undergo up-sampling and de-interlacing via the internal Faroudja video circuitry (not the greatest) then passed through the receiver's HDMI port, nothing is done to eliminate or even reduce moire effects. So if you connect your S-VHS VCR through this receiver and watch a video clip of distant pinstripes or crosshatches, then you'll see a distracting rainbow effect. I bypassed this connection altogether and connected my S-VHS VCR directly to the display's S-Video input and the result was a moire-free picture that looked crisper and cleaner (visibly very, very close to DVD quality) than when connected through the receiver. Most users will not care about this issue but it's important to people with fairly large S-VHS, ED Beta, or laserdisc libraries.
Overall, I can't complain. It's a great value.
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This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
This Onkyo receiver is a great value for the quality and features. As an owner of a previous Onkyo receiver, I was excited to see what type of improvements they have made to the product over the past few years. First and foremost, the sound quality is excellent when paired with a set of Polk RM85 speakers.
In addition, Onkyo has made it incredibly easy to tune the receiver to your listening environment with the Audyssey functionality. You simply plug in the included test microphone into the front of the receiver and an on-screen guide will instruct you where to place the microphone in the room. It's important to put the microphone at ear level for the best test results. During the process, the receiver will emit various test sounds via individual speakers and analyze the result. Overall, the tuning takes 15-20 minutes, but it's well worth your time to get the best audio possible for your room.
Additional improvements to the product include the ability to remember the listening mode and statically configure the mode depending on the audio source. This is important because you don't want to be listening to your Blu-Ray movies in All Channel Stereo mode - kind of negates the purpose of having such a good receiver, doesn't it? I routinely have this problem with my old Onkyo, so this feature was a welcome improvement.
Finally, as previous reviewers have pointed out, the receiver emits a lot of heat, so be sure to have adequate ventilation in your A/V cabinet or closet.
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This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
I had a Panasonic receiver that slowly started to malfunction and then fail. It wasn't worth the price to send it in for repair. I looked at many websites checking out reviews. Onkyo consistently came up as one of the top manufacturers of receivers and many other people have been impressed. Now I am on a budget and was not looking for the top end receiver. The RC160 met all my needs, and it was a screaming deal on Amazon. Everywhere else I looked, this receiver was going for close to $500 dollars. I ordered it and selected the Free Super Saver Option and when all was said and done, I got it for $317 four days later. There is way more venting on this unit then my old one. It is also quite a bit heavier. This one gets hot, so keep it in a well ventilated area. The one thing my old receiver had over this one was the fan on rear. This receiver has no fan.
I threw everything at this receiver and spent an entire day playing with it. It puts out a nice solid crisp sound and all my devices were hooked up with little or no problems. One big thing, READ THE INSTRUCTIONS. The manual isn't the best written or laid out, but it is to your benefit to read it thoroughly and then again upon setup. Things can be confusing with the manual handy and without it, you could get very lost and bewildered (especially if you have a lot of devices). The other small gripe I have is the remote control. Not the most user friendly or well featured. All in all, great buy and I am happy with the product.
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This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program(What's this?)
This receiver is one of Onkyo's entry level products. You can pay $1500 for an Onkyo home theatre receiver that connects to your home network and has enough power that you can probably weld with it. Onkyo also makes all-in-one home theatre systems, which aren't a bad way to go either...just look at the reviews they get. This receiver is a step up from doing an all-in-one system because you can select best of breed components and build a better sounding, albeit more expensive system.
I'm replacing my older Denon AVR1200 receiver with this Onkyo HT-RC160 receiver. The Onkyo compares very favorably in both clarity and power. Because the Onkyo is so much newer is has some niceties like HDMI ports. I was able to easily connect my Blu-ray player and Dish Network HD Tuner/DVR via HDMI, and then run only one HDMI cable from the Onkyo to my HDTV. One thing I didn't expect is that I was also able to connect my Wii via RBG cable to the Onkyo, and the Onkyo easily converted it to HDMI and let it share the connection with the Blu-ray and DVR. So I literally only have 1 single HDMI cable connected to the back of my TV now, and nothing else. This is a bonus for anyone who wants to wallmount their TV without having to fish a whole huge bundle of cables through the wall. The Onkyo will also upconvert video to 1080i, but only if it comes in on an HDMI cable. I would have been thrilled out of my mind of this had upconverted my Wii from 480P to 1080i.
Switching between the 3 inputs that all share the one HDMI cable is very easy on the provided Onkyo remote. The remote is actually quite nice. Not too many buttons. Fairly intuitive. Easy to program. I was able to program my Sharp Aquos Blu-ray (code 32907), Sharp Aquos HDTV (code 10093), and Dish Network VIP722 HD DVR (code 01775) in about 5 minutes time. Unfortunately the remote doesn't provide controls for the DVR portion of the Dish Network receiver, so no starting recorded shows, pausing live TV, etc. from the Onkyo provided remote. The remote also doesn't light up, and can not "learn" from other remotes. I think this disqualifies this remote from the more complex home theatre setups. At this receiver's price point I honestly didn't expect a full featured remote...in fact I expected a lot worse than what I got. Plan on buying a Logitech Harmony remote or something like that if you have a true home theatre.
Other nice features of this receiver are the easy to understand instruction manual, a color coded sheet of stickers that you can use to mark all of your cables, and the Audyssey microphone. The Audyssey attaches to the receiver, and you place it in the center of your room after everything is hooked up. The receiver will actually listen to what you have and determine the proper settings for each speaker so you have optimal sound. Unbelievable! If the Onkyo is attached to your TV via HDMI you can press the "Setup" button on the remote and manage everything using a very nice menu driven system displayed on your TV. It lets you adjust the sound, input speakers distances and characteristics, etc. Gone are the days of buying a surround sound receiver and then you're on your own to make it work. Onkyo has made it extremely easy with the menus and all of the instructions and diagrams in the manual.
The only downsides I can see on this receiver are the heat output, which I measured at 115 degrees on top of the receiver during light use, and the basic remote. The upsides are numerous and greatly outweigh any issues. I highly recommend this Onkyo receiver if you want big, full featured sound for a price that doesn't break the bank.
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This review is from: Onkyo HT-RC160 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Theater Receiver (Electronics)
After spending a month trying several different receiver configurations, using two different receivers I broke down and bought this unit. Wow -- I am in love. If I had known that this receiver was an option 4 weeks ago I would have saved a while lot of heartache. Please read some of the other detailed reviews in here, they helped me tremendously. Also read the manual - it helps. I was not actually planning on buying a receiver for HDMI switching, and recently bought a high quality used reciever off of of craigstlist as an upgrade since many people are moving to these newer models. I also wanted to power a 2nd set of speakers in another room. Most receivers (even zone 2 capable) won't actually power another set of speakers, it just has outputs for them. This Onkyo reciever powers my extra set of speakers, and lets me listen to 2 different sources in two rooms. NOTE: there are restrictions about what dual zone sources you can use in the 2nd zone since the receiver won't process two digital signals to both simultanously, but for instance I use this receiver to listen to CDs in one room, and watch TV in the living room. You also have to choose between powering a 2nd zone vs taking advantage of the 7.2 speaker capability so that you aren't asking the reciever to drive 500 speakers at once. But I digress, a 2nd zone is just one of the great features. What this reciever offers was greater than I could have hoped for. Sound quality is superb, and not only does it do everyhting I wanted and more, I am still discovering additional features. I don't write many reviews on products, only for the rare products I really love or really hate. This one is a love story. Good work Onkyo.
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