Table of Content
- Klipsch Reference Cinema System 5.1.4 with Dolby ATMOS
- Pro-Ject Phono Box S3 B Phono Preamplifier and X2 B Turntable Review
- BenQ TH690ST Projector Preview
- What We Are Watching: Winter 2022
- ANTHEM MRX 740 Home Theater Receiver, A Video Review
- VIZIO 20" 2.0 Home Theater Sound Bar w/ Integrated Deep Bass SB2020N-J6
The system consists of an A/V receiver, five satellite speakers, a powered subwoofer, color-coded and pre-cut speaker cables, and a subwoofer cable. The front left and right speakers have additional speakers on top of the cabinets that perform as Dolby Atmos height channels, bouncing sound off your ceiling. The speaker package includes a pair of Dolby-enabled front speaker units that are actually two separate speakers in one chassis. They have separate inputs for the height channel and front channel. Also included are a standard horizontally oriented center channel and two satellite-style surround speakers. The subwoofer looks okay, though the blue glowing LED would annoy me after a while had I not been able to place it out of view.
The colors on the back of each speaker matches the color on the receiver’s rear panel and even the colors of the speaker cables, so you’d have to be very careless to hook up the speakers incorrectly. As you would imagine, the front channels receive the bulk of the work. Next I put in Roger Waters’ The Wall mixed in Dolby Atmos as well.
Klipsch Reference Cinema System 5.1.4 with Dolby ATMOS
This is where color-coding is such a nice touch – it is easy to ensure you have the proper connections for each speaker with just a quick look. The included guide gives a nice visual and textual description of speaker placement. The front Dolby-enabled speakers should be about ear height for best imaging performance.
Best of all, the Onkyo sub didn’t try to reproduce bass beyond its means. When manufacturers try to do too much, they just make a muddy mess. Theo Nicolakis There are two pairs of spring-loaded terminals on Onkyo’s front left and right speakers, because the speakers on top of the cabinets reproduce the height effects in Dolby Atmos soundtracks. This home theater in a box includes just about every modern feature you could want in a budget-priced system. Gravity was released with an absolutely amazing Dolby Atmos soundtrack, and has become one of my go-to test discs.
Pro-Ject Phono Box S3 B Phono Preamplifier and X2 B Turntable Review
Delay is resolved so that everything arrives at your ears at the same time. The result is cohesive reproduction of object-based soundtracks. I had the opportunity to see this movie in the theater as well as review it as part of another, much-higher-end Dolby Atmos setup. Consequently, I knew this movie well and felt it would be a perfect test.
Most people will find listening to music on the Onkyo system to be a highly satisfactory experience—especially music with good bass lines. The system imaged well and presented a well-developed soundstage. Nevertheless, there was persistent image smearing–especially when I wanted to focus in on individual instruments during songs. The HT-S7700 is a real winner for the first-time home-theater buyer and technology novice. It’s a solid, feature-rich package that delivers a thoroughly enjoyable and satisfying movie experience at home.
BenQ TH690ST Projector Preview
The system is perfect for a small to medium sized living room and will be easy for anyone to get set up and running in under an hour. Once again, Onkyo has delivered a quality yet economical product that I can gladly recommend. The Onkyo HT-R693 A/V receiver included in this package has seven HDMI inputs and two HDMI outputs, so you can support both a TV and a video projector without needing to swap cables. But only one HDMI input and one HDMI output is compatible with the latest version of digital copy protection—HDCP 2.2—that you’ll find in 4K UHD video-playback devices, such as Ultra HD Blu-ray players. Like one of their standalone receivers, it comes with an included setup microphone and an easy user interface setup routine.
The small surround speakers are supposed to be just above ear height. Finally, Onkyo recommends placing the subwoofer between the front and center channel speakers for the best performance. Onkyo aims to dispel confusion while delivering solid performance with its $899 HT-S7700 HTIB package. The HT-S7700 delivers a full 5.1.2-channel Dolby Atmos experience without requiring you to install speakers in your ceiling .
After allowing some time for the speakers to “break in,” I fired up the setup routine and was pleased to find that it nailed everything accurately. I did not have to make any adjustments to the crossover levels or distances. Because of the Dolby Atmos-enabled speakers, the front part of the room plays much larger and deeper than you might expect given their size. While those speakers were no substitute for discrete, in-ceiling speakers, they did contribute positively to the overall experience.
The HT-R695 includes both wired and wireless connections, and is very easy to configure. As I have the luxury of a network drop in my cabinet, I opted for the wired connection. I found that a firmware update was waiting for me the first time I fired the receiver up, which completed in about 30 minutes. Aside from internet-based firmware updates, the network functionality also allows for control via the Onkyo Remote smartphone app, and network streaming audio services such as Spotify. As I have discussed at length in previous Onkyo receiver reviews, the Onkyo remote control app is fantastic.
The height channels also performed wonderfully, and unlike during my testing with the demo disc, I felt that they blended without calling attention to themselves. Power your speakers like never before with Onkyo’s unique Dynamic Audio Amplification system. Music lives and breathes thanks to accurate, noise-free signal processing and hi-current power that dynamically controls your speakers for authentic audio reproduction, filling you with emotion. Onkyo says it designed the HT-S7700 to be one of the easiest HTIB systems to set up, and they deliver on that promise.
To be clear, I am not saying that these speakers are a failure, or that you can’t hope to enjoy Dolby Atmos in such a setup, just that it is not exactly the same as with a full system. In fact, despite this difference, they still sounded pretty good with the demo material. AccuEQ equalizes the surround-sound to suit the room acoustics for crisply focused sound, while AccuReflex aligns the phase of upfiring height speakers with sound coming from your other speakers.
It is fully compatible with this unit, making it my go to method of control once the network was set up on the receiver. Setting up a home-theater-in-a-box system has become a relatively simple task. Onkyo has done an excellent job with their quick start guide and color-coded wiring.
On the surface, the HT-S7700 packs in a ton of features where it counts. Set this up in an hour, used the included mic for calibration, was blown away by what I had been missing. I'm sure you could spend thousands and get something even better, but for the price the Onkyo system is great. Our magazine, which began with the publication of the SECRETS Primer, is available exclusively on-line and offers to our readers an extensive information resource about home theater and high-end audio. SECRETS of Home Theater and High Fidelity was launched in 1994 as the first major publication offering serious audio/video journalism on the Internet.
Speaker - Frequency Response
Onkyo’s receiver offers strong home-networking features, thanks to Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and ethernet connectivity. The free Onkyo Mobile App allows you to control the entire system from your phone or tablet, and you can stream audio directly from your networked mobile device, computer, or media server. The receiver also supports popular streaming-audio services such as Spotify, Pandora, SiriusXM Internet Radio, Slacker, Aupeo, and TuneIn. This system can decode a variety of audio codecs, including FLAC, ALAC, DSD, and MP3. Backed by 70 years of experience building high-grade audio components, the HT-S7800 amplifies accurate, noise-free signal processing with high-current power for dynamic speaker control. Onkyo's dynamic audio amplification delivers massive power at 170 W/Ch (6 Ohms, 1 kHz, 0.9% THD, 1 Channel Driven)/ 100 W/Ch (8 Ohms, 20 Hz–20 kHz, 0.08% THD, 2 Channels Driven).
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