need your expertise

I am looking to setup a home entertainment system in a mid range budget.
I am thinking about getting the Onkyo new 706 system. I need some advice on the following:
1) Is this a good choice. Are there anything better in this range.
2) Would I be able to connect a laptop to this unit and use the HDMI output to the TV monitor/speakers. If the laptop does not have an HDMI output is there a way to connect the laptop?
3) How can I record the video to a hard disk from this unit? Do these units have a hard drive option to record video? If not is there a way to record from TV using this unit?
Thanks
Goal50

1. Good choice.

2. if your laptop has HDMI out, yes you can send directly to the receiver. keep in mind that these be fickle set-up's due to DRM. If your laptop has VGA or DVI out, you would run this to your TV and separate audio to your receiver. For DD you would need optical out feeding the receiver.

3. In simple fashion, no.

What speakers will you be hooking up the the receiver? What are you looking for as far as music/home theatre? The onkyo's are good bang for the buck, but we could recommend better if we had more information.

Pycroft

What speakers will you be hooking up the the receiver? What are you looking for as far as music/home theatre? The onkyo's are good bang for the buck, but we could recommend better if we had more information.


Pycroft

As far as speakers I already have the athena WS100 and Keipsh RX5 that I am planning to use as the base, and complete this configuration with purchasing the other missing components (base and center, etc.).