Local Price seems to be around $1500. I ordered yesterday & says it will be delivered on Friday
The black version is about $30 more. Great amp for a great price.
I plan on pairing it with Q Acoustics: 7000i 5.1
http://www.intl.onkyo.com/products/av_components/av_receiver…
CamelCamelCamel.
be aware that onkyos have a habit of the HDMI board failing. There is a warranty extension for that part only in place in which onkyo italy will repair your unit, but you would need to return it to them. Amazon will only help in the case the amplifier falls under the original factory warranty, not the warranty extension program
The failed part will be replaced with the same one that will eventually fail too.
They have not rectified this issue in their newer units so you may find yours may end up being effected too.
The Australian distributor WILL NOT assist in repairing grey imports or selling you parts, either under warranty or at your cost.
Thanks good warning, I decided it was worth the chance.
I bought the 636 from https://www.computeruniverse.net/en/ (when they used to sell Onkyos) and paired it with the Q Acoustics 7000i.
Very happy with the results in my small lounge room, and no HDMI board failures (I think they corrected it for the 626 model)…
If you're after a Denon, check Computer Universe. Their shipping is a lot more reasonable than Amazon and they knock off VAT. Hence, a X2200W runs to about $815 shipped…
For the love of god do not buy Onkyo.
Google Onkyo hdmi issues.
Cancel your order while you can! I've been burnt to the tune of $1400 on an older amp and the issue still exists after 8 years as they kept using the same hdmi board.
Edit: beaten by above post.
Most of the newer amp manufacturers are actually pretty crap in comparison to older models.
Yamaha, of which I am a fan, also seem to have a recurring issue with either a poor quality input selector, or a cheap $1 capacitor that breaks down near the power transformer, rendering the whole unit useless.
It's like they've built in obsolescence into making units fail, but of course after warranty and where you have to pay $400-500 to repair (vs say $700-800 to buy new). They'll never admit it, but I reckon its a massive rort.
I've owned an older Yamaha 2 channel amp that blows modern units with similar (or even inferior) stats, that is still going strong after 25 years.
Cheap Chinese crap, compared to Japanese quality build construction and components of the past.
It's sad… but these days it's actually worth buying the extra retail warranty ASSUMING your unit will fail soon after factory warranty expires. Junk.
Yep bitten by the same hdmi failure. I would steer clear. Moved to a Yamaha amp which has been fautless for years.
Despite the warranty issue above, it's still $700 off the local price and about $500 off the best HK price, so….I'd be tempted. This is my amp at home and it's very nice, despite looking like something from 1996.
as long as you keep in mind u would need to replace it in around 3yrs (due to the HDMI board failure).
Except Onkyo (claim to) have fixed the HDMI board. My 636 has been going strong for 15 months without issue, and I have not seen reports of the X2X, X3X and X4X suffering such failures (unlike the X09 and X1X series which were notorious for such failures).
The bigger issue is that the EQ system is worse than Denon's Audyssey job…
I have the TX-NR609 that I bought from Amazon Germany quite a number of years ago. I experienced the HDMI board issue, but it was nothing a simple heat gun couldn't fix.
A simple reballing with a heat gun fixed it. It's been working a treat since I took the heat gun to it a year and a half ago.
@skysky: That's the exact same deal I bought mine from :)
Could you please tell me what the "fix" is in plain english? ;) I'm not hardware savvy…I'm a software guy…
hah I also bought from that deal the same model…
mine died few months ago with HDMI issue replaced it with a Denon but got $40 for failed unit on eBay now I think I know why :)
Basically, the issue is that one of the DSP chips on the HDMI board has bad solder joints, causing contact issues between the circuit board and the chip.
Because these chips are all surface mount, they are soldered on the board using a method called Ball Grid Array, whereby the little balls of solder are placed, it's then heated (melted) and once cooled the solder "sticks" the chip to the board.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ball_grid_array
The issue is when these contact points fail, so taking a heat gun to it melts the solder slightly and "re-sticks" the chip back on the board..
There are lots of tutorials if you just google. Some people use different heat sources.. For example, some use hair dryers, some people use halogen lamps.
Here's an example.
im not sure they have fixed it. The above amps just aren't old enough to start carking it yet
Either way, this isnt the first time they've f'ed me. I bought an onkyo net-tune amplifier back in the day which they decided to discontinue use of the servers… rendering the internet radio function useless.
@skysky: thanks mate, I saw your youtube link. So do you just point the heat gun on top of that DSP chip? Wouldnt it be too hot for the chip? how far away should I point the heat gun?
BTW is this what I should buy?
http://www.bunnings.com.au/ozito-2000w-variable-temperature-…
Whether to buy a heat gun is totally up to you. Do a google search and you'll find that people have had success with just a hairdryer (must be a pretty powerful hairdryer!). But any cheap heatgun should do the trick.
If you're using a heatgun, once you've identified the culprit chip, it's best that you shield all other components around the chip to avoid melting the solder on the other components.
I simply took a large piece of foil, folded it up several times and covered the whole board. Then I cut a hole in the foil to expose the chip only.
There are many examples of this floating around on the web. Just search.
Needless to say, DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK! Apart from potentially destroying your unit (by melting things you shouldn't be, or overheating the chip and destroying it), Amps are high power devices. You could risk electrical shock.
If you're going to do it, I would suggest that you have the amp unplugged for a few hours (or longer if possible - just to be safe), to allow all the electricity to dissipate from the capacitors etc.
Here's an example with a hairdryer (replace hairdryer with heat gun):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOAxD0VneDo
More info:
http://www.avsforum.com/forum/90-receivers-amps-processors/1…
@skysky: Thanks skysky, I think I will just try the hair dryer first. But how do I work out which is the culprit chip?
I had an Onkyo brick itself during a firmware upgrade. Fortunately I was able to do an in store swap. Not sure I'd risk dealing with international warranty for such an item…would have been a major hassle although Amazon at least are generally fairly helpful.
I had my onkyo from the germany deal above brick itself in first week during FW update, Amazon DE where amazing sent me a new unit within in days, and because cost of returning faulty unit was expensive they said keep it!
The Good/ The fully-loaded Onkyo TX-NR646 delivers cutting-edge technologies such as both Dolby Atmos and DTS-X surround formats, in addition to AirPlay, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Its sound quality is excellent for movie replay with exciting sonics and class-leading dynamics. Its superb connectivity includes eight HDMI inputs (one front, seven rear) and two outputs in addition to a phono input.
The Bad/ The Onkyo TX-NR646's Dolby Atmos height channel capabilities are limited to only the front-left and -right channels, not the surround height channels, and the receiver is only DTS:X "compatible" until an update is released later in 2015. Its external design is generic and bulky, and the user experience isn't helped by its terrible remote and an ancient menu system.
The Bottom Line/ Considering the Onkyo TX-NR646's generous feature set and superlative sonic skills, it's one heck of a value.
http://www.cnet.com/au/products/onkyo-tx-nr646/
I not sure if only being limited to only the front-left and -right channels for Atmos makes any difference
"the user experience isn't helped by its terrible remote "
That made me laugh. The TX-DS595AE we have has an incredibly poor remote so I can relate. Definitely wouldn't want to be without a Harmony remote…even a basic one will make life a lot simpler once your past the initial configuration.
I dont even really understand atmos. It looks like just another speaker setup, except that the speakers are weirder.
Surely we're past the point of "moahr speakerz!"?
Atmos speakers either face up and bounce sound from the ceiling or or in the ceiling so give over head sound.
Surely we're past the point of "moahr speakerz!"?
Atmos is a bit different. I'm all in favour of it. There's more discussion in this previous deal
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/214176#comment-3100441
Atmos is much more noticable than going from say 5.1 to 7.1.
Keep in mind that this particular receiver is only 5.1.2 Atmos - no pre-outs to expand later.
Agree with this review entirely. The only thing I'll add is that, while it only supports front channel Atmos, I have a feeling Dolby Atmos isn't going to take off anyway. The fact that you need to buy all new speaker hardware for it is a massive downside for casuals and diehards alike. I think more important is the DTS-X compatibility which I hope will really take off!
EQ system is different to Audyssey and I don't necessarily think it's worse…
I'm definitely getting more out of my speakers with this amp than I was with my far more beautiful Marantz, which is a surprise.
Agree with this review entirely. The only thing I'll add is that, while it only supports front channel Atmos, I have a feeling Dolby Atmos isn't going to take off anyway.
It might not take off, but it's not going away. It's basically needed for modern cinemas and adding it to Blu-ray once you already have it is cost-free.
The fact that you need to buy all new speaker hardware for it is a massive downside for casuals and diehards alike
You don't need new speakers, just additional speakers. You can get made-for-atmos speakers, but there's also add-ons you can get.
https://www.google.com.au/search?q=atmos+speakers+add+on+fro…
Okay cool, thanks for the info. Does DTS-X achieve a similar result without the extra speakers though? The point still stands, people still aren't going to buy those add-on speakers because they look ridiculous.
@carlscott1982:
DTS-X is essentially the same as Dolby Atmos.
Just tech from two competing companies.
@KentT:
DTS:X does not need extra speakers and if you add them it does not care where they are, unlike Atmos which requires certain speaker placement
@willoz:
Atmos needs height speakers. Using DTS-X without height speakers you won't get nearly the 3d effect these things are capable of.
And while you can place DTS-X speakers anywhere you want, there will obviously be "recommended" placement - you won't get a great experience with six speakers all stacked in the back left corner - and I bet that recommended placement will match the Atmos setup just about exactly.
Any receiver you buy will likely support both formats.
You still can get it for a similar price at Amazon Italy … or check Amazon Spain … 520 EUR shipped (so around 796 AUD … even a bit cheaper now).
![Onkyo TX-NR646 AV Receiver 7.2 - Dolby Atmos - DTS:X @ Amazon Italy [~AU $809 Delivered]](https://files.ozbargain.com.au/n/87/221387.jpg?h=12d10861)
And don't forget that 10 euro coupon someone posted on another thread for Amazon IT