Onkyo ships home theaters with iPod, sat radio

Onkyo today removed the covers from two complete home theater sound systems that are designed as much to add support for portable devices as HDTVs and CD players. Both the 7.1-channel HT-SP908 and 5.1-channel HT-SP904 bundle the firm's RI Dock that pipes sound from most recent dockable iPods directly through the main receiver. Listeners can also attach a Sirius or XM satellite radio tuner to pick up their digital signals. The DVD player is also far more aware of portable formats, says Onkyo. Beyond scaling DVDs and other videos as high as 1080p, the disc reader can also recognize DivX and WMV clips and play music in AAC, MP3, and WMA forms.

HDMI 1.3 connections allow the receiver to output both a full HD picture and surround sound in Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD. Audyssey 2EQ calibration keeps the 90-watt satellites and 230-watt subwoofer generating a wide sound stage that accommodates listeners outside of the direct center. The two Onkyo systems should be available as of today at $899 for the smaller SP904 setup and $1,099 for the full SP908.