The Onkyo HTX-22HDX Home Theater System Review

So, what do you visualize when someone refers to an ultra compact home theater system? Obviously, you wouldn’t picture an Epson Perfection V700 Scanner, but do you picture something bigger than a scanner? Does it come with at least as many features as a modern car stereo? Can it sound better than the earbuds that came with your daughter’s MP3? I am pleased that this article is able to say “yes” to all of the three questions, assuming that we are commenting on the Onkyo HTX-22HDX.

This space saving home theater system is bigger than a bread box, yet much more space saving than the wall-mounted display it is equipped to support. The whole system consists of three pieces; a dual-duty AV receiver and subwoofer, and two front speakers that are made to emulate surround sound capabilities. People with huge AV tastes and really compact flats will be satisfied to understand that these three devices may be placed below your television while still leaving a place for other add-ons or your Audio-video collection.

The Onkyo HTX-22HDX has considerably more features than your normal car stereo. As a matter of fact, it could have more features than a few other home theater devices. The three HDMI ports will support 3D video as well as the normal selection of Blu-ray players, satellite boxes, ad infinitum. The receiver can manage typical HD platforms from DTS as well as Dolby, features four specific audio modes for gaming, and has a layered on screen display for instant setting adjustments. And as we know, features play a big role in all electronics whether your talking about an Epson Perfection V700 Scanner, or the Onkyo 22HDX receiver.

This compact home theater system sounds considerably better than your daughter’s earbuds, and most certainly provides an improvement compared to your old stereo system likewise. Onkyo’s proprietary Theater-Dimensional technology allows this standard 2-channel composition to perform just like a surround sound system, as a result your HD music recordings can still render the rich, detailed sound you have a preference for. The receiver/subwoofer unit furthermore includes outputs for extra speakers, if you just have to have more boxes to make you feel better.

While this product comes with enough features and AV quality to be deemed a home theater system, we have noticed a couple of factors which may or may not cause it to be unsuitable for some people. This system features no video upscaling, but neither do many systems in this price range. Despite the fact that the speakers might be extremely talented, they are fairly anemic by Onkyo standards, offering only 25 watts per channel to power a two channel system. There is no universal port, therefore you’ll have to do some re-engineering to hook your iPod to this device.

The Onkyo HTX-22HDX is space-saving, as advertized, plus it is definitely a home theater system, as advertized. Probably most importantly, Onkyo sells this compact, feature-packed collection of devices for under $400, rendering it a great deal by any measure. However, we cannot over-emphasize the need to look at warranties when purchasing any electronic devices whether it be for an Epson Perfection V700 Scanner, a HP Pavillion laptop or for a home theater system.