Onkyo HT-S3300 5.1 Home Theater Receiver ▷▷▷ Low Prices Cheap

If you’re looking for a future-ready receiver-and-speaker package that won’t break the bank, your search may be over. I was skeptical before ordering this system as I ordered Sony HTSS360 (another popular and high rated entry level system) before and its sound was nowhere acceptable as the speakers were weak and sub-woofer was doing all the job, creating a woofy and very narrow ranged sound.

When I saw the 2010 Onkyo systems, I initially pre-ordered HT-S5300 but it being not released yet gave me some time to research and take a close look at ht-s3300 as well. After looking at its specs, I decided to give it a try and I am glad I did as it saved me $200. I am also happier with smaller and less-intrusive speakers of ht-s3300 compared to 5300 and having two less speakers to wire across the room. Now let me try to give you some opinion on the system and its sound.

First I must say, it is good looking system with shiny black speakers and a boxy but classy looking receiver. Its sound is much better than I expected especially it being an entry level system. Instead of going over all its specs, I will try to answer most people would have in mind and also list the important pros and cons.

PROS:
-Has a HDMI repeater and do the switching, so you only need HDMI cables without extra audio cables.
-Supports all the new formats and it does pretty good job at decoding HD audio formats.
-I was initially hesitant about the audyssey audio correction system it is equipped with since it doesn’t have a microphone for auto calibration. However, it turns out that the audyssey system is factory calibrated to the specifications of the speaker set it comes with and it does pretty good job of acoustic correction. The only adjustment I needed to do was measuring the speaker distances to the optimal listening area and manually entering it to the receiver set-up. I also did some minor adjustment on speaker levels, but it is a matter of personal taste.
-On screen display is great to see the menus, volume level and setup options overlayed on the tv screen.
-All the necessary options are provided in the menus without going into unnecessarily detailed options. Pretty customizable yet easy to use and configure options.
-No background noise when not in use, or any sonic booms on power on/off.
-Speakers are surprisingly good for this price level, I am even impressed with the passive subwoofer as its power is adequate when paired with the other supplied speakers and it produces clean basses.
-Finally the sound is on par with systems I listened before which cost in the range of $400-$800. So, I consider this system a pretty damn good deal. I don’t think you can get anything for this price that would produce a better or even comparable sound.
-It runs cooler than the previous Onkyo receivers I have encountered.

CONS:
-it is 5.1 system, but it was actually a pro for me as I don’t like too many speaker around and I personally find 5.1 enough to create satisfactory surround effects. Most media out there is 5.1 anyway…
-It is not for large rooms, don’t forget it is 660W system and the subwoofer is passive with 130W output. My living room is about 15X15ft and its output is enough but for rooms that are considerably bigger, I recommend another system (perhaps ht-s5300).
-Only 3 HDMI input, so all the inputs are used up on mine. If I buy another device, I have hook one of them to component inouts.
-No video inputs on front side of the receiver, just a stereo audio input for connecting portable media players.
-No automatic acoustic correction, so it has to be done manually. If you upgrade your speakers then you cannot use audyssey function as it factory configured for the specifications of the speaker set it ships with. You have to turn off audyssey if you are using different set of speakers.
-The sub-woofer is passive, but I found its size and power is adequate for small/medium rooms. But if you are bass freak and you are not living at an apartment (otherwise, you will have angry neighbors), then consider ht-s5300.

If you are in the same boat I was and trying to decide between ht-s3300 and ht-s5300, I can confidently recommend ht-s3300 for $200 less as long as your living/entertainment room is small/medium size. But, ht-s5300 is no doubt a superior system with better speakers and a more powerful receiver with more inputs and I don’t see any reason for not choosing that over this if you can afford it and have space to accommodate its much bigger and 7 speakers (its center and front speakers are too big and intrusive for my taste and there is no way to hide its sub-woofer, I couldn’t even completely hide this systems sub-woofer).

I hope this was helpful. If you’re thinking about buying a top of the line entry/medium system, don’t hesitate to buy this unit.