Buy the Onkyo TX-NR6100. Power is genuinely like-for-like on this page — 100W against 95W, both stated into 8Ω with two channels driven at 0.08% THD, about 0.2 dB — so the decision falls to what each row states, and the Onkyo states more of it: HDMI version 2.1, a 165W 6Ω rating and seven streaming services including its own DTS Play-Fi multiroom, plus three HDMI 2.1 ports and two height channels — both inferences in our data rather than manufacturer-stated figures — where our X2800H row records no HDMI version, no 2.1-port count, no height-channel figure and no 6Ω rating, and it tracks $99 under the Denon in the price row above. Buy the Denon AVR-X2800H if HEOS is already running in the house, since it is stated on the Denon row and absent from ours for the Onkyo, or if you want Audyssey MultEQ XT specifically — MultEQ XT and AccuEQ are different room-correction platforms, not two rungs of one ladder.
As tracked by Home Theater Builder: the Denon AVR-X2800H tracks at $999; the Onkyo TX-NR6100 at $900.How we verify this data →
A rarity on this site: two receivers whose power ratings were measured the same way, so the numbers can be read side by side — and $999 vs $900 in the price row above. That leaves the decision to what each sheet actually states.
Shaded rows differ · green dot = lab-measured · amber = manufacturer-verified · blue = retailer/community-reported · grey = estimated · “not stated” means exactly that
Reading the numbers honestly
The power figures here are genuinely like-for-like — 100W (Onkyo) against 95W (Denon), both stated into 8Ω with two channels driven at 0.08% THD, which is about 0.2 dB and nothing a listener places. So the comparison moves to disclosure, and the Onkyo row is the fuller one: it states HDMI version 2.1 where our X2800H row records a 40 Gbps bandwidth figure but no version at all, a 165W 6Ω rating where the Denon states no 6Ω figure, and seven streaming services against three. Two of the Onkyo's advantages here carry a provenance flag rather than a ranking: its three HDMI 2.1 ports and its two height channels are inferences in our data rather than manufacturer-stated figures, and our Denon row has neither field at all. Both rows' 40 Gbps bandwidth figures come from retailer listings as well, so they are the numbers to confirm before buying for a 4K/120 console. Room correction is a platform choice rather than a ladder — Audyssey MultEQ XT against AccuEQ, with a measurement microphone stated on both — and multiroom splits the same way, HEOS stated on the Denon against DTS Play-Fi inside the Onkyo's streaming list. Two honesty notes. The Onkyo states Alexa as an explicit No and records Auro-3D as a No that carries no source of its own in our data, where our Denon row has no field for either — and a no, sourced or not, is not a silence. And our TX-NR6100 row records a 65W power-consumption figure, which cannot be a seven-channel receiver's maximum draw when our X2800H row records 500W — read it as an unverified field, not a spec.
Compatibility · computed, not written
Checked against a bookshelf that dips to a stated 3.5Ω like the KEF LS50 Meta: KEF LS50 Meta
Can the Denon AVR-X2800H drive the KEF LS50 Meta?
Denon AVR-X2800H states a 4Ω-minimum rating; the KEF LS50 Meta dips to a stated 3.5Ω minimum, a little below that floor. Most receivers handle a marginal dip at normal volumes — it's worth watching only at very high output on an entry-level unit.
Can the Onkyo TX-NR6100 drive the KEF LS50 Meta?
Onkyo TX-NR6100 states a 4Ω-minimum rating; the KEF LS50 Meta dips to a stated 3.5Ω minimum, a little below that floor. Most receivers handle a marginal dip at normal volumes — it's worth watching only at very high output on an entry-level unit.
Computed from the catalog's normalized fields — the same fields the builder's compatibility engine reads. A missing field reads as "can't check", never as a pass.
Gaming & connectivity · answered from the spec sheets
Can the Denon AVR-X2800H and Onkyo TX-NR6100 pass 4K/120 through?
The Denon AVR-X2800H states 40 Gbps HDMI bandwidth — enough for full 4K/120; the Onkyo TX-NR6100 states 40 Gbps HDMI bandwidth — enough for full 4K/120.
The verdict
Buy the Onkyo TX-NR6100. Power is genuinely like-for-like on this page — 100W against 95W, both stated into 8Ω with two channels driven at 0.08% THD, about 0.2 dB — so the decision falls to what each row states, and the Onkyo states more of it: HDMI version 2.1, a 165W 6Ω rating and seven streaming services including its own DTS Play-Fi multiroom, plus three HDMI 2.1 ports and two height channels — both inferences in our data rather than manufacturer-stated figures — where our X2800H row records no HDMI version, no 2.1-port count, no height-channel figure and no 6Ω rating, and it tracks $99 under the Denon in the price row above. Buy the Denon AVR-X2800H if HEOS is already running in the house, since it is stated on the Denon row and absent from ours for the Onkyo, or if you want Audyssey MultEQ XT specifically — MultEQ XT and AccuEQ are different room-correction platforms, not two rungs of one ladder.
Amplifier powerEither — 100W against 95W, both stated into 8Ω with two channels driven at 0.08% THD — about 0.2 dB, and for once the measurement contexts match exactly.
4K/120 gamingOnkyo TX-NR6100 — The Onkyo states HDMI version 2.1 and records three 2.1 ports as an inference in our data; our X2800H row carries neither field, though both rows state VRR and ALLM — and both 40 Gbps figures here are retailer-sourced, so they are the numbers to confirm before buying.
Adding height channelsOnkyo TX-NR6100 — Two height channels on the Onkyo row, recorded as an inference in our data; our Denon row has no height-channel field at all.
Room correctionEither — Audyssey MultEQ XT against AccuEQ — different platforms with different measurement approaches, and a microphone stated in the box on both rows.
Multiroom already in the houseDenon AVR-X2800H — HEOS is stated on the Denon row and absent from ours for the Onkyo; the Onkyo answers with DTS Play-Fi inside its own streaming list, which is a platform choice rather than a gap.
Streaming built inOnkyo TX-NR6100 — Seven stated services against three — the Onkyo lists Spotify Connect, Amazon Music HD, Pandora, Tidal Connect, Deezer, TuneIn and DTS Play-Fi; the Denon lists Spotify Connect, Tidal Connect and Amazon Music HD.
A genuinely like-for-like power reading, which is rare on these sheets: 100W against 95W, both stated into 8Ω with two channels driven at 0.08% THD — roughly 0.2 dB, which no listener places.
The Onkyo row records four figures ours for the X2800H does not carry at all — HDMI version 2.1 (manufacturer-stated) and a 165W 6Ω rating (manufacturer-stated), plus a three-port 2.1 count and two height channels that are inferences in our data rather than stated figures.
Room correction is a platform choice, not a ladder: Audyssey MultEQ XT against AccuEQ, with a measurement microphone stated on both rows — nothing in our data ranks one above the other.
Three-state honesty: the Onkyo records Alexa as a manufacturer-stated No and Auro-3D as a No with no source of its own in our data, where our Denon row has no field for either — a no and a silence are different data and we never merge them.
A flag against our own data: our TX-NR6100 row records a 65W power-consumption figure, which cannot be a seven-channel receiver's maximum draw when our X2800H row records 500W — an unverified field, not a spec.
Only the Denon row states HEOS, and the Onkyo answers with DTS Play-Fi inside a seven-service streaming list against the Denon's three, while tracking $99 under it as priced today.