"THX Certified" Receivers

[brttlt]

Is this something I should look at as "Important"?
I found that the new Onkyo 700 that is runnign about $700 is "THX Certified"! That's one of the cheapers prices for a receiver with that certification that I've seen!
Is it I should really consider?

[Frank Z]

Thx certification is a "Hot Button" for a lot of people so don't be surprised by some of the comments that may be posted. THX has it's place in the HT arena and can really do amazing things to help with sound issues in some rooms. The RE-Equalization can be a big help in improving sound quality.

That being said, don't get tunnel vision and consider all equipment that is not THX certified to be inferior. There are quite a few manufacturers that do not submit their equipment to THX for certification for a any number of reasons. Many of these can and do meet or exceed the minimum standards for certification.

Take a look at http://www.thx.com/mod/products/homeTheatre.html. There's a lot of good info on the site that will help take the mystery out of THX certified products.

[RedBaronF2001]

Originally Posted by brttlt

Is this something I should look at as "Important"?
I found that the new Onkyo 700 that is runnign about $700 is "THX Certified"! That's one of the cheapers prices for a receiver with that certification that I've seen!
Is it I should really consider?

Think of THX Certification as the "Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval." It's nice to have, but not a must. Many quality components are not THX Certified. Many are.

That being said, I enjoy the THX Post-Processing feature on my Marantz (THX Select Certified) as it tames overly bright soundtracks on some of my dvds.

[snipsnapsappy]

There is a great new article about THX certification in the new issue of Home Theater. What has been said above is right on the nose. There are also different grades of THX. There is THX select, ultra, Ultra2, and maybe even others I do not know about.

The Onkyo is an excellent reciever, but do not count out the excellent recievers from Denon, Yamaha, and Harmon Kardon. The one thing about Denon, is that none of their recievers disappoint. They all have state of the art features and there is no big quality difference among their products. Yamaha has a low level line that they sell at Best Buy that most should stay away from while their higher end line is excellent. Denon products are just high quality across the board. The main difference is power ratings.

Also, if you check out Harmon Kardon recievers, you will notice that they seem underpowered in comparison to other recievers at the same price point. This is not true, however, Harmon Kardon recievers are just as strong as others in thier price range.

[tomdkat]

I agree with everything that's been said thus far and I've read the article in Home Theater magazine but unfortunately it doesn't go into much detail.

I want to see what that 200 page report they produce looks like.

Peace...

[Chromy]

I didn't realize that my receiver was THX certified until I had purchased it and was on the way home, reading the manual. I do use the THX processing as I prefer a less bright sound.

When looking at receivers, I looked at build quality and sound quality... the fact that the one that I selected had THX certification was incidental.

Chromy

[George McFly]

IMO, THX is nothing more than some fancy named gemmick to sucker in uniformed people, just like Superbit DVDs. I say go for the best hardware you can afford, THX certified or not

[palebluedot]

For those who aren't aware, DVDFile even has a great History of THX:
Part One
Part Two
Part Three

As I said back in 2002:

Manufacturers are basically telling you "we paid someone to tell us our stuff is ok...now we're passing the cost on to you...plus a little something extra since we know most of you will pay more for fancy little logos on your stuff."

A lot of what certifications and brand names are is psychological. Someone tells you this brand or this certification makes something better and you believe it is. Sometimes it can allow you to perceive differences that aren't even there.

It wouldn't be too far from the truth to say you could blindfold someone, play a song for them and say "this is from a standard major-brand receiver." Then play the same song for them and say "this is from a major-brand receiver that is THX certified." But in this little test you would only play the song from the exact same equipment. Psychologically your subject’s ears perk after hearing those three little letters ringing in their ear and thus they will probably hear things they didn't before. Same goes for the reverse, only this time their expectations diminish and they begin listening for the music's shortcomings--sort of like someone telling you a movie is bad before you go see it. Even if there's no technical benefit to THX, one could theorize it can still provide a better movie watching experience.

Of course when dealing in high-end AV equipment the technical benefit begins to blur. Most people who are considering a THX component have already made plans to spend a decent amount of money. So comparing, say, a THX Receiver with a $150 receiver is pretty pointless. For instance I don’t think anyone could rightfully argue that the quality of components used in say a $900 Denon AVR 3803 and an $1800 THX Ultra Denon 4802 are all that different. Sure the 4802 has 15 watts of higher power, the special THX “modes” and some extra input/outputs (most would say that alone isn’t worth twice the price--unless you just can’t live without that 12th analog audio input). But if you were blindfolded and no one told you which one was which, could you really tell the difference? Sure you can falunt graphs and charts showing peaks, valleys, distortion levels, power outputs, etc. But such things don't tell you if you can actually hear the difference.

Remember THX doesn't build components, it just tells people like Denon, they did a good enough job to gain their approval. Just because Denon didn't pay THX to aprove all their components, doesn't mean they wouldn't meet the identical standards.

In my opinion, THX is worth it, only if you can justify spending more for the “sensation” of a better experience. Of course I may be wrong...and thanks to all you great posters, I'm sure I'll find out.

[kpbarc]

Speaking of the Denon 3803 I chose it over the 4802 or is it 4803? because it was half the cost and I never got the impression that the 4803 was worth twice the money. If someone was looking to spend that much on a receiver, I would encourage them to look at other brands as well. For $900 the Denon 3803 was a great choice for my budget.

My famous 2 cents of spending money on technology is, you need to spend alot more money to gain only a little more quality the higher up the food chain you go.

I never think of the fact that the THX cerification is missing on my system, as long my equipment is "KPBARC certified" I am satisfied.

P.S. I love the Superbit I have compared 2 discs on my 55" mits split screen. One disc was Badboys Superbit VS the non-superbit edition of Badboys. There is a very obvious increase in picture quality in the superbit. There was a scene where the bed sheets appeared to be white on the non superbit, and they were actually lime green. And the DTS IMHO is a better sounding track, over the DD but that's a whole different discussion.

[Iguana Man]

Originally Posted by RedBaronF2001

That being said, I enjoy the THX Post-Processing feature on my Marantz (THX Select Certified) as it tames overly bright soundtracks on some of my dvds.

Is the "taming" from THX processing or the Marantz' tendencies? Tell me more, please!

I ask because I've heard that some receivers (Like Yamy's) are bright sounding, whereas Denons tend to enhance the lower end.

If it's simply the THX processing - cool. If it's a combination between receiver & it's THX processing, then I am even more interested in your thoughts.

[Chromy]

For receivers... THX is a standards certification process, but also involves some technology. A "THX" surround mode is a glorified DD/DTS/DPL/Whatever that has some additional processing on top of the signal. One of the processing techniques that is employed is a gradual rolloff as frequencies get higher.

From the THX site...

Re-Equalization removes the edgy "brightness" of cinema sound, accurately adapting movie sound for home playback. Timbre MatchingTM ensures a tonal match between front and surround speakers for smooth sound movement.

[kpbarc]

Arent the DVD's soundtracks mixed for home playback already?
They are not the same as what you hear in the theater they specificaly mixed and produced for home viewing right?

Is THX a sound option that some prefer?
It seems to me like it is one of those cinema surround sound options or a preset equilizer?

How many people out there love the fact that their receiver has THX and would not consider a receiver without it??

Keith

[RedBaronF2001]

Originally Posted by Iguana Man

Is the "taming" from THX processing or the Marantz' tendencies? Tell me more, please!

I ask because I've heard that some receivers (Like Yamy's) are bright sounding, whereas Denons tend to enhance the lower end.

If it's simply the THX processing - cool. If it's a combination between receiver & it's THX processing, then I am even more interested in your thoughts.

I believe most of it is the THX post processing.

Have a look here at THX's Web Site

I chose the Marantz because it was the best sounding receiver I came across for both 2-channel (most important to me at the time) and multi-channel. It has a neutral sound meaning it only reveals what it's fed and the soundstage created in 2-channel mode is impressive. It matches nicely to my B&Ws. Are there "better" receivers out there, probably.

[Iguana Man]

Originally Posted by RedBaronF2001

I chose the Marantz because it was the best sounding receiver I came across for both 2-channel (most important to me at the time) and multi-channel. It has a neutral sound meaning it only reveals what it's fed and the soundstage created in 2-channel mode is impressive. It matches nicely to my B&Ws. Are there "better" receivers out there, probably.

Thanks Frank_Z, Palebluedot, Chromy & RedBaron for the info.

Now on to you....Redbaron , I'll probably post a new thread about this, but I gotta ask now: Do you feel A/V receivers can be 'characterized' by their sound? I ask because you said the Marantz was 'neutral' and matched well with your B&W's.

(B&W's! what crap! -see my sig- just kidding!).

------------------------

Kpbarc - to answer your questions...I don't know if they are mixed for HT already... I don't know if I prefer THX processing because honestly, I haven't played around with it enough. I tried it a coulple times and heard 'some' differences, but I've gotten lazy and usually just leave the receiver on "Standard". Finally, I would definately buy a receiver without THX based on Frank_Z 's comments alone!

[Ruined]

Many "reference" soundtracks are already re-eq'd, for home use, yes - though many also aren't. THX processing is good for if you have overly bright speakers, amp, or room. That being said IMO it should play no role whatsoever into you buying your receiver.

tomorrow if i remember i can go a bit more in depth about the other crap thx does, i have to go to sleep now

[Iguana Man]

Originally Posted by Ruined

Many "reference" soundtracks are already re-eq'd, for home use, yes - though many also aren't. THX processing is good for if you have overly bright speakers, amp, or room. That being said IMO it should play no role whatsoever into you buying your receiver.

tomorrow if i remember i can go a bit more in depth about the other crap thx does, i have to go to sleep now

Uhh, it's tomorrow dude. WAKE UP!

Now ya got me thinking again, I "may" have bright sounding speakers (sometimes certain songs sound 'edgy'). Movies.....oh man, no prob there.

So just how far does THX go in making the sound better? Can it tame bright speakers? Can it tame a bad room? Can it win me the lottery?

Seriously. (and don't go telling me to change my room!)

[Ruined]

If you have a 'bad room' you are better off either tuning the room or buying an equalizer. I tried the former and it was both really expensive and really ugly if you want to go the full 9 yards. I'm going to see how the EQ route works instead now. Believe me though a room can make a WORLD of difference. In the two other places I've had my speakers they sounded awesome. In the room they are in now they sound like $1000 speakers (no offense to $1000 speaker owners ).