How does the Onkyo 875 measure up to the Denon 4806..?

My Onkyo reciever, when it blew up took out so many parts that I would have had to replace TWO BOARDS that cost more than what I paid for the whole unit.....

That's bad engineering IMO....

So now I'm looking at DENON, YAMAHA, ROTEL or CAMBRIDGE amps....

And I'm leaning towards Yamaha...
But I really want to find a reciever that really really PROTECTS itself from massive destruction when a channel shorts out.

It may not exist, but if a TECH can guide me in the right direction, believe me his word is worth millions over any salesman......

AM's right, if you want HMDI 1.3, then you don't really have a choice, Onkyo it will be. If you just want HDMI switching however, Denon 4806 does offer that. Although I agree going seperate would in general yield you better sound, I am not quite sure about going seperates with a 3K budget. Even with a higher budget, say 6K, I am still split between e.g. Rotel's+Anthem and a Denon 5805, and quite possibly the Denon is better. So if you want the latest specs now, go for Onkyo. If you can wait a little bit, I would prefer Denon.

It is not really clear what you mean by "accepts HD and BD".
I assume you mean HDMI 1.3 - 1080p video and all kinds of UNCOMPRESSED audio - LPCM, Dolby and DTS HD.
Onkyo and Sherwood Newcastle are the only companies offerring HDMI 1.3 receivers.
Onkyo models with HDMI 1.3 are TX-S605, TX-S805 and upcoming TX-S905
Denon announced HDMI 1.3 receivers - but I have not seen any...

My friend just purchased Onkyo 605 for $400 and uses it as a processor and amp for rear surrouns speakers. He bought a great 3-channel amp (Bryston) for front and center, and the system sounds AWESOME!

I agree with ROBERT - Don't spend $3k for a receiver - get separates.

Hi.Both Receivers are about the same when it comes to features. Sound quality is harder to pick. You really have to listen to both before you buy. If i was going to spend about $3000 i would not by a Receiver.For that amount of money you can get a separate Preamplifier Processor and separate Power Amplifiers which will give you a much better sound than a Receiver.The most important part of a Receiver is the Preamplifier .It has to share the power transformer with the Tuner and Power Amp. and it has to amplify the small signal from the source. A separate Preamp. has its on power supply and does a much better job of amplifying the signal to send to the Power Amps.
Anyway if you have decided you want the Receiver then either one should be fine.

the Onkyo 875 is superior to the denon in terms of sound quality for music and reliability. As for sound processing there about the same. I find onkyo to be much more reliable than denon i have never had any problems with my onkyo. in my opinion onkyo has a richer sound than denon too while denon sounds a little too flat. try both of them and go with what your ears tell you sound is a personal preference.