Onkyo HT-S9300THX Home Theater System Is 3D Ready And THX Certified

Onkyo's latest attempt to get us all listening to surround sound has emerged, in the shape of the world's first 3D-ready and THX certified integrated home theater system.  The Onkyo HT-S9300THX bundles an HT-R9800 A/V receiver with seven speakers and a 12-inch subwoofer; it has four 3D-ready HDMI 1.4a inputs, 1080p HD upscaling, and Audyssey 2EQ room acoustics correction technology.

In order to get their THX certification, Onkyo used a special dual-woofer array for the front loudspeakers and THX Surround EX.  There's also lossless Dolby and DTS high definition audio processing, Dolby ProLogic IIz height channel processing and various other audio-tweaking systems of Onkyo's own design.

The Onkyo HT-S9300THX Home Theater in a Box system will be available at the end of this month, priced at $1,099.  An iPod/iPhone dock is an optional accessory, as is an HD radio tuner module, and the whole thing is set up via Onkyo's new OSD.

Press Release:

Onkyo Debuts the World's First 3D-Ready & THX Certified Integrated Home Theater System

Onkyo, a brand renowned worldwide for quality home entertainment technology, has introduced the world's first THX® I/S Plus™ Certified (Integrated System) and 3D-Ready packaged home theater system. This type of system, popularly known as a "home theater in a box" or HTiB, consists of seven theater loudspeakers, a subwoofer for deep-bass sound effects, and an audio-video receiver that is fully compatible with state-of-the-art HD video players and video displays, including all the latest 3D technologies. It is compatible with the mandatory formats for 3D video broadcast content of "Side-By-Side (Half)" and "Top-and-Bottom" formats.

The Onkyo HT-S9300THX receiver has four 3D-Ready HDMI 1.4a inputs for connection to modern audio/video source components, and it can upscale video from any input source to the maximum 1080p HDMI output resolution. The system receiver includes lossless Dolby & DTS high definition audio processing, Dolby ProLogic IIz height channel processing, and numerous other high performance sound processing features from THX, Audyssey, and Onkyo.

"With 3D and THX, this package offers remarkable value," said Paul Wasek, Onkyo's marketing manager. "As one of the most enthusiastic suppliers of THX Certified components, Onkyo has long recognized the importance ensuring that our customers experience movie sound effects exactly as the producer and sound engineer intended."

"Our collaboration with Onkyo has produced an affordable, all-in-one home theater system with a sonic punch that puts most HTiBs to shame," said Graham McKenna, Director of PR at THX. "Designed for movie fans and gamers who crave multichannel sound, the HT-S9300THX delivers every bass note, sound effect and dialogue like it was captured in the studio."

The Onkyo HT-S9300THX was awarded THX I/S Plus certification based on THX's independent testing of the combined audio performance of this system's receiver, speakers, and a powerful 12-inch subwoofer. The specially designed front loudspeakers use a THX-developed dual-woofer array that optimizes the sound field for a sonic presentation that is remarkably close to that found in the best THX movie theaters. The system includes THX Surround EX™; THX listening modes for Music, Movies and Games; and THX Loudness Plus™, a sophisticated volume-control technology which maintains surround impact at low listening levels.

The HT-S9300THX also provides for easy surround sound speaker set up with Audyssey 2EQ room acoustics correction technology, and provides improved sound enjoyment with Audyssey Dynamic EQ and Audyssey Dynamic Volume processing. It includes Onkyo's proprietary Music Optimizer, which improves the sound of compressed music files for playback with loudspeakers, and four DSP modes for various gaming scenarios.

All video inputs can be upscaled to 1080p video, regardless of native resolution, via Faroudja DCDi Cinema™ processor, which also removes the jaggies during the video signal deinterlacing process, resulting in smooth progressive-scan video images.

The receiver employs Onkyo's new overlaid graphical OSD (on screen display) for seamless adjustment of settings while still viewing the program in the background. A proprietary rear-panel Universal Port can be used to connect an optional Onkyo UP-A1 dock for iPod/iPhone and UP-HT1 HD Radio tuner module. The receiver also includes Onkyo's HDMI Thru feature, which provides automatic source-to-TV switching when the receiver is in the standby mode. This allows children to enjoy programs using a TV's built-in speakers without the need to use the receiver's controls.

The HT-S9300THX will be available at the end of July with a suggested retail price of $1,099.