Kenwood VRS-N8100 Audio/Video Control Center with Network Function Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)After 7 years with my old Kenwood 1080VR, I was in the market for a new receiver to take me through the next several years of technology. This VRS-N8100 Networked receiver does just that. Its all digital processing delivers amazing sound and the ability to stream media files from your PC or home network is a great addition.
PROS:
- Sound performance is great, while auto-detecting all the major surround audio signals
- Network capabilities ... allows you to take advantage of your PC media files without the need for a media hub
- Extremely easy on-screen setup process!!!
- 4 digital audio inputs (2 opt, 2 coax) are completely assignable via the on-screen setup
- Composite, S-video, and component video ins and outs ... HDTV ready
- Fully 7.1 compatible with LB and RB pre-outs (Surr Back speaker outs)
- Slim attractive design
- Many gaming and headphone options to enhance game play
CONS:
- Could always have more inputs, but the slim design limits space. I had plenty for my setup, but it is fewer than other high end models.
- I didn't see this one coming ... but the remote now controls both the old 1080VR (which is powering speakers in other rooms) and the VRS-N8100 simultaneously. I don't know if there is a way around this.
In all, you will be happy with this receiver. Just with my 5.1 setup and Dolby Digital movie, I could tell a substantial difference in sound quality over the 1080VR Dolby Digital. Maybe it's the ease that you can adjust the speaker settings or the state of the art digital processing. But what is for sure is that this little receiver packs a lot into its small frame.
I highly recommend the VRS-N8100 as a truly future-ready receiver, already!

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The digital age has brought new forms of entertainment to your computer screen, but it certainly has not overshadowed the surround sound home theater experience. The Kenwood VRS-N8100 Audio/Video Control Center with Network Function seamlessly merges your entertainment system with your home computer. The rear-panel Ethernet connector lets you stream audio and video files from your computer to your home theater system. With the VRS-N8100, your entire family can enjoy the multimedia digital files stored on your computer through the sound quality of your home entertainment system.
Kenwood has thought of all the possibilities with this control center. Plug a game console into the front-panel game audio/video input (complete with a digital audio connection) and the VRS-N8100 will detect when you turn on the game console, and automatically select that input and the proper surround sound processing. The Single Zone Dual Source function lets you listen to your game's sound through headphones, while the rest of the family can enjoy music through speakers. Plus, this function features Dolby headphone processing that creates a totally out-of-the-box 5.1-channel surround sound effect through any pair of ordinary stereo headphones, so you won't have to sacrifice sound quality to play your favorite games. And the included universal pre-programmed remote control is ready to go with Xbox and PlayStation2 codes. With the Kenwood Control Center, your family can quit fighting over the home theater, and everyone can enjoy the system at the same time.
Of course, the control center is also a great general receiver with plenty of inputs for a wide array of components. When you watch movies, the VRS-N8100 puts you right in the middle of the action with Dolby Digital EX and DTS-ES 96/24 surround sound, and Dolby Pro Logic IIx transforms ordinary two-channel stereo music sources -- CDs, cassette tapes, and radio -- into a 6.1-channel surround sound experience. The PurePath digital power amplifier delivers 130 watts to each of six channels, so your games, movies, and music will really rock the house. And with the ADI SHARC 32-bit DSP processor, high-resolution digital volume control, and rigid chassis construction rounding out the VRS-N8100's features, you can rest assured that this control center will deliver accurate performance at all signal levels.
What's in the Box VRS-N8100 control center, remote control, and user's manual

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Onkyo TX-NR807 7.2-Channel A/V Surround Home Network Receiver (Black) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I've had the Onkyo TX-NR807 for about a month now. It replaced a 10 year old 70W Yamaha Dolby Digital surround receiver. I listen mostly to Jazz vocals, some light pop, and the occasional action movie. My priority is two channel (stereo) music, secondary is surround for movies. Other set-up details: Infinity main and center speakers(see below), small Paradigm surround speakers, Rotel CD running analog outs, Denon DVD, Windows Media Player on PC as music server. Overall satisfaction is high.
Before buying, this unit was demo'd in a showroom against a comparable Denon. The sound was similar on Def Tech floor stand speakers and both performed well. The Denon had a slightly warmer sound, which many prefer. The Onkyo had slightly better clarity, albeit a bit on the brighter side. The issue with a brighter sound is that it can be fatiguing for longer listening periods. This was a problem I was having with my current setup. Tough choice, but I decided to try the Onkyo as clarity is important to me. I like to hear the subtle parts of the music. The Onkyo, after discounts, was also about $500 less.
At home with the Onkyo, immediately I could pick up more details in the music and noticed better mid-range and bass. Not unexpected given I was going from 70W in the old receiver to 135W.
However, after listening for a while, I realized the better sound coming from the Onkyo was now actually revealing limitations of the speakers that were less evident with the slightly muddier sound of the old Yamaha. The vocals were a bit tinny and I was still dealing with the issue of the sound being too bright, although this aspect was a bit improved from the Yamaha. At this point I also looked around the room and realized it may be partially to blame for the brightness. High ceilings with bare walls cause a lot of reflections of high frequencies. There were three viable options: 1) Spend a lot more on a surround receiver or separates in an attempt to get clarity and less brightness ($$$), 2) try room treatments to tame the brightness (costly and usually unattractive), 3) try new speakers. I opted for 3 as the old Infinities were probably outgunned by the new receiver anyway (and I really wanted new speakers).
One of the high-end stores in the area sells B&W speakers and I'd always wanted a set. They have an overnight demo program so I lugged home a pair of mid-range 3-way B&W's to try out. With the B&W's I could hear even more detail in the music, the mid-range was richer, and the bass fuller and cleaner. They did exactly what I thought I was looking for. They made the music very detailed and they were very fast. For those who don't hang out in speaker review forums, this means they respond to changes in volume very quickly. For instance, each snare drum strike might be individually discernable, a cymbal brush stroke may consist of individual strands of the brush hitting the cymbal instead of a constant "whoosh". However, I discovered that after listening for more than 1/2 an hour at a time, that level of detail resulted in a feeling of having my head inside a drum rather than sitting in the audience. The vocals were also a bit harsh. Detail fatigue. So it turned out what I thought I was looking for wasn't what I really wanted.
The B&W's went back and I ended up with Wharfedale Opus speakers for mains and center. These use fabric dome (rather than metal) tweeters and mid's. With these I gave up some of the speed and a tiny bit of clarity, but gained beautiful vocals. They also tamed the brightness. I can listen to these for hours and just smile. A great fit for me when paired with the Onkyo.
Now that the music criteria was taken care of, it was on to movies. I had not really considered the Audyssey calibration tool that comes with the Onkyo to be very valuable. After all, I had managed to set up the surround on the old Yamaha manually. What a pleasant surprise. After running the Audyssey calibration, the surround timing and levels were vastly improved. Note that minor tweaking may still be appropriate. For instance, I needed to manually adjust the level of one of the main speakers by about 1 decibel because the Audyssey settings resulted in slightly off-center results when listening to two channel sources such as CD's.
One of the other criteria I had for a receiver was its ability to stream music stored on my home computer and preferably also from Pandora. Although I knew the Onkyo would do both, I got lucky here. It turns out the Onkyo is the only receiver in this range that will stream music stored in lossless formats. For those who may be lost at this point, music downloaded or ripped from CD's is usually compressed in a manner that removes some of the information (lossy compression). When listening on an ipod you may not know the difference, but on a nice home system there is a difference. Music can be ripped from CD's in a lossless format. However, only the Onkyo will use all the information. For instance, the Denon says it will play lossless formats, but in a small footnote it tells you the streaming software on the computer has to compress the music in a lossy format (192kbs max) in order for the receiver to accept the stream. Not good. What this all means is that I have now burned CD's on my computer in full resolution (no lost information) and can access and play them on my Onkyo receiver with easy on-screen menus. No more swapping CD's for quality sound. No more messing with ipod docks playing compressed music. In case you are wondering about sound quality of the streaming, I've compared the quality of the full-resolution streaming (which uses the Onkyo's digital to analog conversion) with the analog output of the Rotel CD player noting almost no discernable difference. Very good. Actually, excellent. Pandora streaming also works flawlessly.
In summary:
Advantages
- Great sound quality for this level of receiver
- Technologically ahead of competition. Onkyo tends to throw in lots of bells and whistles.
- Lossless streaming!
- Easy to use considering all the features
- Pandora
- Audyssey works well (most at this price have the same or similar)
- Price, especially if you find discounts
- Ability to bi-amp speakers (unit also seemed to run cooler after I did this)
Could be better
- No surround pre-ins for outboard processing (it does have pre-outs)
- No video or picture streaming from home computer or internet
- Sound character slightly on the bright side
Hope this info helps any prospective buyers.

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The TX-NR807 brings together the very latest mid-range home-theater functionality and adds one major upgrade: networking capability. An Ethernet port on the TX-NR807 allows it to receive and output audio files playing in real-time on your PC. Alternatively, you can bypass your PC and enjoy a direct connection to streaming internet radio stations such as Pandora and Rhapsody. Naturally, the TXNR807 also handles all of your high-definition audio and video sources—courtesy of six HDMI 1.3a inputs—and upscales any video input to 1080p via Faroudja DCDi Cinema. This powerful THX Select2 Plus Certified receiver also comes with Audyssey DSX and Dolby Pro Logic IIz, two new surround-sound formats that expand the spatial dimensionality of games and movies. Meanwhile, Audyssey room-correction and equalization technologies help ensure a convincing and detailed audio performance, regardless of the volume level or the shape of your room. An intelligent customizable remote controller puts the finishing touch to what is another benchmark-setting all-round performer from Onkyo.

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