Onkyo TX-8522 100 Watt Stereo Receiver

The difference in sound quality produced by my Onkyo TX-8522 receiver is noticeable as compared to the similar 2.1 Channel Stereo unit that this one replaced. I like the larger heat vent grill on top which correlates to the unit staying much cooler. I have had the set a few weeks; so long term performance quality is unknown.

Overall, I am initially pleased with my choice. When it comes time to replace my 5-disc CD player, I will certainly look at Onkyo.

Our old system with two speakers gave out. Looking online/eletronic stores, this stereo receiver was a steal. My wife and I was a little recultant to purchase a refurbish product, but glad we did, because we saved a lot of cash. The turntable unit, cassette unit, and CD player has it's own ports, and button. The sound quality is great, and could not be any happier. I recently visited a local electronic store and found the same item for twice the price we paid. Great product, and would highly recommend the stereo amplifier.

i have been an onkyo fan for years have swithed to kenwood, sony, and yamaha, and came back to onkyo, their quality is excellent and it out performs the competition hands down. i have it connected to and onkyo cd player and to boise speakers, the sound is fantastic. the fm radio even sounds superb. there is no comparison in sound quailty with the sony receiver i had before the onkyo, the onkyo wins hand down. you will not be disapointed

I inadvertently ordered the wrong product, went online followed the instructions on returns and printed the appropriate form with barcode for ups dropoff. it was returned to me and had to make some phone calls to get this item out of my possession.
too frustrating for me.

I bought my Sony stereo at Circuit City 13 years ago after the 6.6 earthquake in L.A. smashed my old one. I don't think it even has a model number, just a generic all-in-one component-with-speakers deal. But it's served me well all these years.

Now, having moved to a house instead of an apartment, I could finally crank up the music without worrying about crabby neighbors. I think the extra volume blasting was the final nail in the coffin of this poor old guy. He'd been gradually losing clarity all this time, I'm sure, and the dual tape player's wheels just spun around like tires in mud. So when one day the volume dropped out and adjusting the EQ's no longer made a difference, I knew it was time to bite the financial bullet and buy a new stereo.

But shopping in the new millennium for a receiver that was dedicated just to listening to music was a frustrating task! I was overwhelmed by the proliferation of plasma TV home theater setups and stacks of bookshelf/surround sound speakers. Doesn't anybody just listen to music any more without having to have their eyeballs glued to a big screen TV??

I did entertain the notion of getting a monster 1970s Marantz receiver with the hypnotic blue lights and all those wonderful KNOBS but I was worried about old wiring and blowing things up. Plus a mint one is real pricey.

Then I came across this Onkyo TX-8522 and it seemed like a real good deal for under $250 at 100 watts per channel. Another plus was that it was already set up to get XM satellite radio. I was a bit worried about the lack of EQ settings, it having only bass and treble, especially since I was used to having 5 EQ levers to play around with.

I decided to go with the floorstanding 3-way JVC Stadium speakers and the Onkyo DXC390 6-disc CD changer -- another good deal. I ordered everything from Amazon on Friday with just standard shipping and UPS showed up with all my stuff at noon on Tuesday! Luckily I had been forewarned that I'd need my own speaker wires and I had a roll of it stashed away in a drawer. The instructions and diagrams were easy to read and follow.

After carefully hooking everything up I turned the power on. The first thing I noticed was how clear the FM radio stations came in, even without thumbtacking the wire to the wall as suggested in the manual. Lucky for me, as I'm surrounded by trees. I liked the way it automatically found listenable stations that you could preset into memory.

The second thing I noticed, however, was the absence of mid-range. Kind of a bummer. Although I was prepared for this, I thought naively that somehow maybe the speakers would magically make up for this lack (ha ha). But I'll just have to make do until I can get around to getting a USED Onkyo 10+ channel equalizer -- I'm very disappointed to find out that Onkyo no longer carries EQs! Why? Why? I'd much prefer a new one. But I think people's ears have disintegrated from listening to iPods and TV surround sound and the fine tuning of EQ's are becoming a relic of the past...

I also hooked up my old Technics SLBD20 turntable. I thought I'd need a grounding wire for it but there was just a barely perceptible faint hum. (I do have a wire for it but couldn't get the damn grounding screw loose in the back of receiver...need smaller screwdriver...) And I've got to say that listening to my old vinyl records on this system sound great! Especially an old school classic like Alice Cooper's Love it to Death.

So I think my ears are gradually becoming accustomed to the new sound (but I still hanker for that EQ). Especially compared to my old system, I must say that the clarity of sound is like looking out a huge, freshly washed window that hadn't been cleaned for a long time.

Overall, I must say I'm extremely pleased with the quality of this receiver for the price. I saved time, hassle and almost $200 buying online through Amazon -- including shipping -- compared to shlepping around to Best Buy and Circuit City, neither of which had both JVC and Onkyo brands in their overstocked home theater selections.