another newbie with lots of questions

[enormo]

Originally Posted by Robinson_A

The Onkyo 805 receiver is my receiver of choice at the moment. I don't have a lot of insight as to the Pioneer gear but I am waiting for their cost no object receiver to hit after CES. But for $800 or less (if you shop smart) the Onkyo 805 will do everything you need and more. Plus it sounds amazing. Check out the review here:

http://www.avrev.com/equip/onkyo_txsr805_receiver/

The 805 sounds like a great reciever but I dug around a bit and one knock on it was that it doesn't actually upconvert signals to 1080p.

Namely here:
http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers...tag=prod.txt.1

and specifically here:
http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers...3126&tag=uolst

Are these sources correct? Could you help clarify?
Thanks!

[enormo]

Originally Posted by enormo

The 805 sounds like a great reciever but I dug around a bit and one knock on it was that it doesn't actually upconvert signals to 1080p.

Namely here:
http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers...tag=prod.txt.1

and specifically here:
http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers...3126&tag=uolst

Are these sources correct? Could you help clarify?
Thanks!

I'm really new to AV stuff so excuse me if I'm way offbase:

I read that the 805 will convert signals to 720p if the video signal processing is turned on. You can turn the signal processing off and it will just pass through the video signal. So it would seem that you would want any 720p or greater signal to be passed untouched through the 805 to your HDTV and let the HDTV handle the signal.

In the case of a standard analog signal (e.g. standard def satelite broadcast) you should have the 805 upconvert that to 720p to get a cleaner picture than just passing directly to the HDTV.

BTW... if there is a good AV primer that covers these sort of topics feel free to drop me the link.

My situation: I'm looking to buy a 50" 1080p plasma. I will be buying a new non-HD DVD player. My wife and I will still watch plenty of standard def TV shows from our satelite service (I've heard stories of standard def signals looking terrible on HDTVs). I also watch sports that ocassionally come in 720p and 1080i varities. How does the 805 help us with the video signals in these different situations?


Thanks!

[enormo]

Originally Posted by enormo

I'm really new to AV stuff so excuse me if I'm way offbase:

I read that the 805 will convert signals to 720p if the video signal processing is turned on. You can turn the signal processing off and it will just pass through the video signal. So it would seem that you would want any 720p or greater signal to be passed untouched through the 805 to your HDTV and let the HDTV handle the signal.

In the case of a standard analog signal (e.g. standard def satelite broadcast) you should have the 805 upconvert that to 720p to get a cleaner picture than just passing directly to the HDTV.

BTW... if there is a good AV primer that covers these sort of topics feel free to drop me the link.

My situation: I'm looking to buy a 50" 1080p plasma. I will be buying a new non-HD DVD player. My wife and I will still watch plenty of standard def TV shows from our satelite service (I've heard stories of standard def signals looking terrible on HDTVs). I also watch sports that ocassionally come in 720p and 1080i varities. How does the 805 help us with the video signals in these different situations?


Thanks!

Found an all but comprehensive breakdown on the 805's video handling capabilities:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...9#post10721189

A big part of the equation that I was missing was the method of input. Component vs. HDMI. The thread is a thorough if not long winded assessment of the 805.

[tsatterca]

Ok, so as a A/V novice and just got the 805.. To clarify. If my HD Sat is going HDMI into 805 and then out HDMI into 1080i HDTV, is the signal getting downgraded to 720?? or is it passing through ok as 1080i?

reading the reviews concerns me..

[enormo]

Originally Posted by tsatterca

Ok, so as a A/V novice and just got the 805.. To clarify. If my HD Sat is going HDMI into 805 and then out HDMI into 1080i HDTV, is the signal getting downgraded to 720?? or is it passing through ok as 1080i?

reading the reviews concerns me..

From what I understand, if the 1080i signal is going into the 805 via HDMI it will not be downgraded. If the signal was going into the 805 via component hookups and it comes out of the 805 through HDMI then it would be downgraded to 720p.

Check out this thread for a bunch of info on the amp
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...2#post10721372. It's a lot to wade through but it's a pretty thorough hands on discussion.

Also check out this post from the same thread: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...6#post10728626 it gives a pretty good breakdown of what output you'll get on the other side of the 805 from different input sources.

Finally, here's a thread about a frequently reported audio delay problem http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=875039. Many people are reporting audio latency to the tune of 50ms. Apparently there are three processing chips in the 805 each slowing down the delivery of the audio by ~15ms. From what I can glean the severity of the lag depends on the source. For most DVD sources and Sat/Cable sources the delay isn't noticable. But there are certain channels and shows where it rears its ugly head. It's also problematic for video games where audio queues drive the gameplay (read: Guitar Hero) For most people the latency does not seem to be an issue but a few have returned the unit because it's affected their particular usage scenarios. I'll probably still end up getting one. Personally, I can not tollerate lips and voices not syncing up. Takes me out of the movie going experience. But 50 ms??? Seems like it should be negligable.

[tigeraudio2007]

Originally Posted by enormo

The 805 sounds like a great reciever but I dug around a bit and one knock on it was that it doesn't actually upconvert signals to 1080p.

Namely here:
http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers...tag=prod.txt.1

and specifically here:
http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers...3126&tag=uolst

Are these sources correct? Could you help clarify?
Thanks!

The Onkyo 805 can input an output 1080p via HDMI. If you are using component video input you can input 1080i via component and yes it will output via HDMI at 720p, but hey let's not be too picky: 1080i vs. 720p seriously now. I don't know why the Cnet review would talk about 1080p via component cable. Outputting devices (ie: HD DVD, cable, satellite, Blu-ray), none of them allow for 1080p via component cable. While it is possible, the CEA has nixed the ability of 1080p over component because it would be too easy to violate copyright. Nevermind us legally abidding consumers that would like our HD equipment to work instead of losing the HDCP handshake.

it sounds like you are fine as both of your sources are connected via HDMI.