SOTA processors also bang for the buck

I just bought an Onkyo PRSC 5509. It does just about everything a pre-pro can do, sounds great, and is available new for well under $2K. It includes Audyssey xt32 which AFAIK is the mother of all room EQ systems. I'd be reluctant to compare it with a SOTA pre-pro, because I don't really have any experience with such an animal.

My set up is 2.2 music only (2 x 12" Rythmik subs with either Ohm 100s or Maggie MMGs, depending on the moment), so I use none of the extensive array of included video features and, therefore, can't really speak to how well they work. The Onkyo replaced some high quality electronics (some combination of Theta Casablanca I, ARC LS-25 or Joule LA 100/III & NHT X-2, & Velodyne SMS-1, & Benchmark DAC-1 or Cambridge DacMagic) in my system. My goal was to streamlines boxes and the power-up sequence (which it did), without sacrificing too much SQ.

To my ear, it sounds notably better than the old set-up, which came as a very pleasant surprise.

I can confidently say the thing sounds pretty incredible.

Marty

The Onkyo PR-SC5509 (or 5508) and the Integra DHC-80.3 (or 80.2) are the equivalent high performance/value leaders, imho.

OTOH, there are huge values on the Denon AVR-4311CI these days. Use the built-in amps or use it as a prepro with an external amp. Fully competitive.

Kal

Hi Marty,

You purchased a PR SC5509 in the US?

Last time I spoke with the US distributor, they had no idea about the 5509.

Sorry, my mistake - the post should have read PR-SC5508. I think that continuously staring at computer screens during the +/- 18 months of research I did prior to this purchase have permanently damaged my ability to accurately recall model #s.

Marty

PS I haven't set-up my analog inputs yet,but on digital source material, the results continue to amaze and delight.

Thanks for the responses thusfar. How does the PR-SC5508 compare to the Denon as a preamp SQ wise. I have not had any experience with Onkyo/Integra products in the past but I gather there have been some reliability issues.
Thanks again