Onkyo TX-NR5007 early review: The Top Gun of AV receivers

If consumer electronics could fly F14As, have a game of volleyball, shower and grease themselves up for some back slapping, the Onkyo TX-NR5007 would have the nickname 'Maverick'

Ian Morris

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Ian Morris

March 4, 2010 5:29 a.m. PT

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Top Gun: a film men are bamboozled into thinking is really good by lots of exciting military hardware and Tom Cruise, before the aliens got to him. In fact, nothing happens at all of any note during the whole movie, except a lot of lubed-up men patting each other on the back. Well, the Onkyo TX-NR5007 AV receiver is the opposite. It's the real deal. The best of the best.

And so it should be, coming in at a staggering £2,000. But trust us when we say this thing goes as loud as an F14A Tomcat and it's sure to make your neighbours spill their coffee over their freshly pressed uniforms. Indeed, at 6 ohms, the 5007 can deliver 220W of power per channel -- you're going to have to be on very good terms with the people in your street. Just give them a ride on the back of your motorbike.

The THX Ultra 2 certified 5007 has support for every lossless codec imaginable and can handle the Dolby Pro Logic IIz system, which allows you to add an extra pair of front speakers to give extra 'height' to your audio. We've tested this feature previously, and honestly weren't blow away by it. We're told this is probably because the human ear isn't all that sensitive to the 'height' of sounds.

Video processing is elite too, with scaling hardware that uses HQV Reon-VX processing. You get a total of eight HDMI inputs, made up of seven rear connectors and a front auxiliary socket. There are also two HDMI outputs for feeding two screens. It's interesting to note that Onkyo isn't using HDMI 1.4 on this system, which means it won't necessarily be able to handle 3D. That said, anyone who cares about audio enough to part with two grand for this ballistic bad boy is probably old and sensible enough not to buy into the 3D hype machine.

The Onkyo TX-NR5007 is due to get a full testing by us in the very near future, so keep an eye out for a detailed look at the sound quality and performance of this superb machine. In the meantime, click through for more pics of the 5007 playin' with the boys.

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We promise, when you first get the TX-NR5007 out of its box, you won't know what the hell is going on. It's perfectly normal to sit in stunned silence and scratch your chin when you first hoist the AVR out of its box. Enjoy this moment: it's the last moment of silence you're going to get for a while.

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See what we mean? Once you crank this beast up, all you're going to hear is incredible movie soundtracks in their original, lossless form.

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An extra HDMI input at the front is designed with gamers in mind, and those who really can't face messing around at the back of the AVR any more.

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The volume dial has illumination too. This is so you can find it in a blind panic when your system is threatening to destroy your suburban community with its epic bass.

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Controls on the front are extensive, but for neatness are concealed under a drop-down flap.

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The headphone socket is also under the flap. We'd rather it wasn't to be honest, as ours generally gets quite a bit of use, and it's handy to have it accessible all the time.

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Vents. Lots of them. This is because the Onkyo gets rather warm.

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Saying the 5007 gets 'rather warm' is like describing the sea as 'moist' or the depths of space as 'chilly'.

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Seven HDMI inputs and two outputs mean this Onkyo is ready for all but the very most comprehensive home cinemas.

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As well as HDMI inputs for audio, the Onkyo has six digital audio inputs: three coaxial and three optical.

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Two subwoofers. Now that's just awesome. Please do let us know if your significant other allows you to have two subs -- we don't believe anyone in a relationship has ever managed to do this.

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In total, the Onkyo can drive three zones. The first being the main system, with the other two having the option of either amplified or unamplified outputs. Here you can see the unamped RCA outputs. Extra zones are handy if you want to hear audio in separate rooms of the house. Terrific for listening to music and TV while you're on the loo.