Upper Saddle River, N.J. – Onkyo will
expand its selection of A/V receivers (AVRs) with HDMI 1.4a connections with
the July shipment of three mid- and upper-mid models at suggested retails of
$899 to $1,399.
The three models will join three
lower-priced models already shipping with 1.4a inputs and outputs at $299 to
$599.
In AVRs, HDMI 1.4a connections
support 3D broadcast content in the Side-by-Side Horizontal and Top-and-Bottom formats.
They join HDMI 1.4’s requirement to support Blu-ray disc and game content in
frame-packing formats.
The new AVRs are the $899
TX-NR708 and $1,099 TX-NR808, shipping early July, and the $1,399 TX-NR1008,
shipping at the end of July.
They and the three new models
shipping earlier this year are the brand’s first AVRs with HDMI Thru, which
simplifies home-theater connections by letting video content pass through to a
connected TV while the receivers are in standby mode. All six models also
support HDMI 1.4a’s Audio Return channel (ARC) function.
All three new models are
networked models certified as Windows 7- and DLNA 1.5-compatible, bringing the
opening price of a networked Onkyo AVR with Internet radio capability to $899
from $1,099. Like last year, the networked models deliver networked access to
vTuner-supplied Internet radio stations as well as to the Internet music
services Pandora, Rhapsody and Sirius Internet Radio. The new models, however,
add access to the Napster, Mediafly and Slacker Internet music services.
The three models are also the
brand’s first with iPhone/iPod-compatible front-side USB port to select songs
from a connected iPhone or iPod for playback through the AVRs. As with last
year’s models, the trio features a back-panel connection for an add-on Onkyo
dock to play iPod/iPhone-stored music and video through the connected AVR.
Features common to all three new
AVRs include THX Select2 Plus certification, 1080p video up-scaling of all
video inputs via Faroudja DCDi Cinema technology, and the Dolby Pro Logic IIz
and Audyssey DSX post-processing technologies. The former delivers two
front-height channels, and the latter adds height or front-wide channels, or
both.
The three models due in July and
one model introduced earlier this year are also the brand’s first AVRs with RGB
PC inputs, and like the three AVRs introduced earlier this year, they are the
brand’s first with transparent graphical OSD, which enables adjustment of AVR
settings during a viewing session.
The TX-NR808 and TX-NR708 are
7.1-channel models, and the TX-NR1008 is a 9.2-channel model. The latter adds
ISF video calibration controls for independent optimization of each connected video
source.
In multi-room capabilities, the
TX-NR708 delivers powered zone 2 or zone 2 line out. The TX-NR808 provides
powered Zone 2 as well as pre-outs for zones 2 and 3. And the 9.2-channel
TX-NR1008 deliver 5.1-channel surround sound in the main room plus powered
stereo audio from two different sources to zones 2 and 3.
From Internet radio or MP3-player
sources, the AVRs will play music in the MP3, WMA, WMA lossless, FLAC, WAV, Ogg
Vorbis, AAC and LPCM formats.
