onkyo vs. Marantz A/V recievers which better?

of course the bottom lines is you should put your ear to any under concideration as personal tastes vary. that said, I absolutely perfer the marantz sonics (I own and 8500 and love it) to any other reciever I've heard @ or near the price. I know there are units w/ some features which marantz sometimes lacks, base management on mine is limited and interface isn't as intuitive as some, but for me the sonics and video processing come first. thusly the marantz is the obvious choice.

Don't know much about the Onkyo but can definetely vouch for the Marantz.

I own the Marantz SR5600 precedesor of the 5001. 2 channel is a good as it gets for it price range, superb quality sound (read my review in audioreview). Yamaha/Denon might be slightly better for HT but they are not reknown for their hifi performance. For all rounder capability without paying silly prices, I would choose the Marantz.

I would choose Denon 3806 over the rest although Yamaha and Marantz are equally good. Onkyo and Harman Kardon are my least preferred out of the pack.

Three year warranty on the Marantz should tell you something. For 2-channel quality audio the Marantz is the better choice over all receivers but the Arcams IMHO.

I have the Denon AVR 3806 and I have no complaints. It produces solid two-channel sound and the video picture quality is very good. Rock solid performer.

I 2nd dawgbyte's response concerning Yamaha-thought I was
upgrading a few years back went from Harmon Kardon avr-85
to Yamaha-rxv3000-IMHO--there was no comparision in sound-
I sold the Yamaha--purchased a HK-avr7200-there is truth
to the high current sound that HK- promotes-highly recommended.Good luck.

I am now looking also at a Denon 3806 and Harmon Kardon avr645. How do these rate compared to the Marantz and Onkyo. I would greatly appreciate if someone could provide a link to any customer driven reviews on any of these models.

I would NOT second the Yamaha recommendation, as I've NEVER been impressed with their ability to create a transparent view into music. All of their HT products as well as their Integrated receivers have a veiled sound to me, which creates a separation and involvement with what I'm trying to hear.

Of the two choices you're interested in feedback on, I'd select the Marantz over the Onkyo.

I 2nd Ben's Yamaha recommendation. Go for the 2700 model and you'll be pleased.
Qualification: I have no business involvement, directly or indirectly with Yamaha in any way.
Good Listening!

don't before you check out the yamaha rx-v1700. In the same price range and extreamly versatile and feature rich. Upconverts everything to HDMI and theater processing is stunning. For a couple hundred more the rx-v2700 adds even more power, can bi-amp speakers, video scaling and more.