Onkyo TX-RZ30 AV Receiver Review

[Miker 1102]

I disagree that "context" is necessary. Amir's reviews test the capabilities of the AVR. What you end up doing with it is up to you. If it helps you decide that it's better off as a prepro, more power to you! Just be thankful the info is available for you to make this decision! Criticizing someone for making the info available and then failing to give a hand-holding conclusion is not very consumer-centric!

I agree with this statement. I think what you do with Amir's review is up yo you. I do not always agree with Amir's conclusions for his reccomendation. I think this amp is the best
bargain for new avrs in home theater right now. I hope I am still here to see the next Gen of these tested. Onkyo could absolutely undercut Denon now if they could do full ART for like 1250 to 1500. Every asr guy would stop talkikg about the limiting on these amps and see them for the home theater hero they are.
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[Miker 1102]

I am fascinated that this entire thread seems to have been dedicated to comparing the Onkyo RZ30 that streets (with DIRAC Live) for $800 and the Denon 3800 that streets (with DIRAC Live) for $2,150. The reality is that these are different products for different people. And yes one of them can do DIRAC ART... but just that license cost the same as the Onkyo RZ30 at $799.

View attachment 547943

My situation is probably not too far from standard. I have an older 5.2 speaker setup and want to upgrade to a receiver that will handle .4 Atmos, has independent sub-outs and I might also want to play with DIRAC Live. My system, in this house, in this room will never be more than 5.2.4. and the speakers are 8 Ohm with +99 dB Sensitivity.

For someone like me with a 5.2.4 what does the $1,350 extra for the Denon 3800 buy me?

On the other side of the equation that same $1,350 would buy a Buckeye Hypex NCx252MP 6-Channel Amp to run all the bed layer speakers
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I agree with you. I also think that once onkyo releases the 31 all of this talk will change. I expect 1k difference between the amps. There is not. The only thing them would be Auro for me because I love the upmixer. It is by far my favorite.

 

[valerianf]

Owning a RZ30 since 1 year, I precedently complained about a lot of distortion in the high frequencies that I did not had with my Yamaha Avr. I finally found the culprit: my Amazon Fire stick 4k first generation. Time to time it had difficulty to detect properly the Dac of the Avr. But the root cause of the distorsion was that it was sending a digital level way too high bringing distortion.
I bought the latest Amazon Fire stick 4k and all became normal : no more distortion and I had to turn up the volume knob of the Avr.
Well, I will buy a RZ31 for my vacation home in Europe, when available.

 

[antcollinet]

But the root cause of the distorsion was that it was sending a digital level way too high bringing distortion.

Seems unlikely since the digital level it sends is what is encoded in the program material. The fire TV stick has no digital volume adjustment of it's own. Even if it did, it would only be able to reduce the volume, not increase it.

Time to time it had difficulty to detect properly the Dac of the Avr.

So perhaps there was faulty digital signalling between the stick and the avr - which if causing data errors might possibly be perceived as high frequency distortion - in a sort of "crackle" resulting from dropouts etc. Not sure how else the fireTV could bring high frequency distortion.

 

[Miker 1102]

Owning a RZ30 since 1 year, I precedently complained about a lot of distortion in the high frequencies that I did not had with my Yamaha Avr. I finally found the culprit: my Amazon Fire stick 4k first generation. Time to time it had difficulty to detect properly the Dac of the Avr. But the root cause of the distorsion was that it was sending a digital level way too high bringing distortion.
I bought the latest Amazon Fire stick 4k and all became normal : no more distortion and I had to turn up the volume knob of the Avr.
Well, I will buy a RZ31 for my vacation home in Europe, when available.

I am really interested in what the 31 is going to be priced.

 

[motleypixel]

I just bought this amp from someone for $600 who included the Best Buy receipt showing $1099 before tax 3 months ago. He said he had issues with DIRAC and his mid-ranges dropping out. He said he also read some reviews about it online. I think he read this post and then bought the Denon 3800H. He's been trying to sell this AVR for 3+ weeks, started at $860 on fb marketplace. He finally found a sucker, albeit a happy sucker

 

[motleypixel]

Figure I could ask here, even though it's a review. I currently have a simple 5.1 chl system where my center, SR/SL are 6ohm 89db sensitivity speakers but my L/R are restored tower Phases Technology PC1000's that are 4ohm 91db sensitivity. I could probably get away with connecting the L/R with the AVR on 6ohm setting but I do have a pair of mono block amps.

I can connect the mono block to the L/R pre-out correct? I just don't know how to handle these situations:

- Watching a movie over HDMI requiring the full 5.1 sound (simple, but putting this first as a basic use case)
- Playing a 5.1 SACD from my Oppo BDP-105 over HDMI (using all speakers/SW)
- Listening to any other (including just stereo SACD from the Oppo over HDMI) stereo only music using only the L/R PC1000s. (no SW required nor desired).

Thank you.

 

[peng]

Figure I could ask here, even though it's a review. I currently have a simple 5.1 chl system where my center, SR/SL are 6ohm 89db sensitivity speakers but my L/R are restored tower Phases Technology PC1000's that are 4ohm 91db sensitivity. I could probably get away with connecting the L/R with the AVR on 6ohm setting but I do have a pair of mono block amps.

That does not tell the whole story, you need to also consider the impedance and phase angle vs frequency curve, and your seat to speakers distances, how loud you listen, in SPL from your seat, not just a single 6 ohm or 4 ohm. If you don't have such additional info, then tell us your volume setting when you listen loud. On all else being equal basis though, 6 ohm 89 dB sensitivity vs 4 ohm 91 dB is just about equal in terms of how easy or difficult the speaker loads are to the amplifier.

I can connect the mono block to the L/R pre-out correct? I just don't know how to handle these situations:

You absolutely can and should do if the mono amps are more capable than the AVR amps.

 

[motleypixel]

That does not tell the whole story, you need to also consider the impedance and phase angle vs frequency curve, and your seat to speakers distances, how loud you listen, in SPL from your seat, not just a single 6 ohm or 4 ohm. If you don't have such additional info, then tell us your volume setting when you listen loud. On all else being equal basis though, 6 ohm 89 dB sensitivity vs 4 ohm 91 dB is just about equal in terms of how easy or difficult the speaker loads are to the amplifier.

You absolutely can and should do if the mono amps are more capable than the AVR amps.

I don't have a lot of AVR experience, that said, I think it's trivial when it comes to times I want to just listen to stereo L/R from my PT PC1000's. Seems just like a speaker output setting to activate or the AVR handles just simple stereo signal to these speakers. That said, I still want to use the mono block for the front L/R when in movie or 5.1 SACD listening.

When it comes to phase/freq/spl/etc. It will be a learning curve, but I fully intend to use the DIRAC Live license using a PC Windows laptop and U-Mik 1 for 5.1 surround sound tuning.

Yes the mono blocks are Fosi V3s driven from 48VDC power supplies.

Thank you.

 

[peng]

I don't have a lot of AVR experience, that said, I think it's trivial when it comes to times I want to just listen to stereo L/R from my PT PC1000's. Seems just like a speaker output setting to activate or the AVR handles just simple stereo signal to these speakers. That said, I still want to use the mono block for the front L/R when in movie or 5.1 SACD listening.

When it comes to phase/freq/spl/etc. It will be a learning curve, but I fully intend to use the DIRAC Live license using a PC Windows laptop and U-Mik 1 for 5.1 surround sound tuning.

Yes the mono blocks are Fosi V3s driven from 48VDC power supplies.

Thank you.

The thing is, if you don't listen loud, sit not too far, such as less than 3 meters, you may be able to leave the impedance setting alone. If you use the 6 or 4 ohm setting, you may starve your speakers (in terms of current) and therefore not getting the best of them.

 

[Tre2023]

Onkyo receivers do not have an actual 8 ohm setting and the “6 ohms or above” setting would be the one to use as the “4 ohms” setting limits power in an effort to limit heat.

If you have additional amps, by all means use them. If you want two channel signals output only from the Front speakers when listening to music, you will need to select the “Direct” sound mode as it disables ALL signal processing and only channels present in the source material will be output to corresponding speakers without an assist from Dirac.

 

[EWL5]

Onkyo receivers do not have an actual 8 ohm setting and the “6 ohms or above” setting would be the one to use as the “4 ohms” setting limits power in an effort to limit heat.

If you have additional amps, by all means use them. If you want two channel signals output only from the Front speakers when listening to music, you will need to select the “Direct” sound mode as it disables ALL signal processing and only channels present in the source material will be output to corresponding speakers without an assist from Dirac.

View attachment 558920

It's believed the 4 ohm mode is equivalent to the power you would get when the AVR falls into "limp mode".

 

[Alice of Old Vincennes]

Just about all speakers measured by Amir are 4 ohm regardless of manufacturer specifications.

 

[peng]

Just about all speakers measured by Amir are 4 ohm regardless of manufacturer specifications.

Seems like a popular claim, imo it is only “true” in a grossly exaggerated sense.

 

[Alice of Old Vincennes]

Seems like a popular claim, imo it is only “true” in a grossly exaggerated sense.

I guess Amir disagrees. I direct response from him when I made distinction between 4 and 6 ohm speakers.

 

[peng]

I guess Amir disagrees. I direct response from him when I made distinction between 4 and 6 ohm speakers.

As I said, gross exaggeration, understandable because manufacturers have been claiming the 8 ohms specs, without referencing to existing standards. So, I think Amir’s comments on the 4 ohms thing is understandable, even justifiable. 6 ohm probably is closer to reality, this being a science oriented hobby forum. I actually think the single point impedance is somewhat like single point SINAD measurement, without seeing the vs frequency curve, the single value of 4, or 8 ohm nominal spec based on the old IEC standard is almost useless. That's because for example, a so called 8 ohm nominal speakers that has the curve showing just one dip to 4.7 ohm in the range 30-40 Hz is easier for an amp, than another 8 ohm nominal, but with dip to 6.5 ohm in the range 30-300 Hz. In this case, by definition (old IEC), the first speaker might be rated 6 ohm nominal, yet it would be easier to drive than second speaker that would be 8 ohm nominal, on all else being equal basis. So while I would agree with you and Amir to a large extent, I think the whole 8 ohm, 4 ohm nominal thing is a mess, and besides, how about 5, 6, 7 ohm nominal, we rarely, if ever see those numbers cited. Anyway, I must stop, it is not the scope of this thread, but maybe someone would start a thread on this topic.

 

[SfcDiego]

I bought an Onkyo TX-RX30 to replace a Marantz SR7013 whose HDMI monitor and zone outs had died. I read and viewed many positive reviews, then I found this thread two days after purchasing.
What I liked about the Onkyo for the price was the three year warranty, full range Dirac Live, independent sub outs and a legible screen size. I'm using it with a 20+ y/o Rotel RMB-1075 in a 5.1.4 set-up. Working through all the menus and options for my TCL TV and a Sony Ubp-X800 was time consuming but well worth it. The Dirac Live didn't work with the supplied puck through the receiver, but I did get a great result with a UMIK1 and laptop program.
The end result is a better than anything I've had in my Theater/Music room. YMMV.

 

[Power Pop 23]

Onkyo USA is currently selling 'refurbished' samples of the TX-RZ30 AVR for $799.

They come with a 90-day return period and a 1-year warranty.

TX-RZ30 Refurbished | Onkyo

The Onkyo TX-RZ30 AV Receiver delivers ultra-wide bandwidth and boasts the latest technology like built-in Dirac Live, THX and Dolby Atmos for the home…

onkyo.com