This is a review on Onkyo 3305, where the receiver is HT-380, based on the TXSR308. I've stated the difference below, but essentially it's the same amp power, same digital circuitry, the same specifications and even the same look! The only difference that I could find was that 308 has a dedicated sub pre-out.
I had been researching for a new AV receiver/Home theatre amp for some time now. For the last 6 year, I had been using my trusty old Panasonic DVD home theatre system. Sadly that had to go, as it didn't support many of the latest file formats and had no HDMI support. So, started looking at all the usual suspects from Samsung, Panasonic, LG and Sony. I happened to see this in Currys and then again in Richer Sounds, and started doing some more research on the Onkyo 3305, 5305, 6305, TXSR 308, TXSR 508, TXSR 578 and TXSR 608 receivers. My initial budget was £200 and then the more I read, the more I just kept on increasing by budget, till it went all the way to £750 ! This was because I was planning on coupling the amp with either Tannoy SFX, Jamo or KEF or Boston Acoustics 5.1 speaker packages. Of all the amps in the this budget price range, Onkyo's seems to have the best reputation among many expert reviewers as well as among people in avforums, etc.
As I live in a semi detached house and since I am not that keen on getting an ASBO, I finally settled for the 3305 one. And, I couldn't believe it when I saw this at £249 at Currys. Jumped in and bought it, and saved a whole lot of money !
Connecting all the wires etc was very easy. I didn't use the bundled cables, as I just used the older ones on my existing home theatre system. Tired out FM first. Excellent clarity. Of course, you really cannot compare the accompanied speaker with a proper bookshelf speaker system, but the little speakers did a wonderful job. I then extended the FM wire antenna across the wall, and the reception was even better. The sound is crystal clear, with no distortion. Did the same with AM, I connected the AM antenna over the window sill, and the reception is pretty good, though not as good as the FM channels.
The amp in this package, HT-R380, is modelled on the 308, but without a sub pre-out, while 380 has an inbuilt channel to power the sub. The speaker system is clearly labelled for centre, front right, front left, surround right and surround left. Both the fronts and centres are magnetically shielded. If you are into listening FM channels or Audio CD's, I would strongly recommend getting a separate bookshelf speakers (either Tannoy F1 or Mission MV2 / MV4 or Pure Acoustics, something in the range of £100) and connect them to Speaker B setup. This Amp has two speaker delivery output: Speaker A (takes 5.1) and Speaker B (takes another 2) speakers. By default, you connect the accompanying speakers on Speaker A. And you can connect your existing bookshelf speakers to Speaker B setup. (By the way, you can play both speakers together, but Speakers A gets reduced to 2.1). The subwoofer is passive. I had my reservations about this, but then I couldn't actually feel any great difference between this one and powered ones when tried with the 308. Since the cone is down firing, it really helps in bringing out the low frequency and rumble.
Next connected my Blueray and tried out Iron Man 2. The scene where Robert Downey Jr and Don Cheadle fights with Mickey Rourke was so outstanding and realistic, that my wife came running down from upstairs thinking something has fallen off the wall or something ! It literally was like standing in the middle of a big gun battle or firework display ! No distortion, just plain quality HD sound. I am usually a big critic, but this was wonderful. I think I ended up watching that bit around 5 times that day :p. And I still demo that part to my friends.
I now have only a Wii, and the sound is reasonably good, though nothing great to write about. Tested games like Call of Duty, Resident Evil, Ferrari, Conduit etc. The audio was fed from the TV to the Receiver via an optical cable. No distortion and excellent sound.
And finally, I would agree with pocket-init's review. This is an excellent buy for the money. You would hardly find an AV receiver package thats better in this price range. Of course if you need more oomph and higher amp or 7.2 surround or 6 HDMI ports, then I would recommend going for the 608 receiver. Other wise this is just fine for a typical home or flat. Mind you, even though the system is small, the box with which all these items comes bundled in is big. Highly recommended !
