How lucky for you...I recently changed out receivers for a Pioneer
VSX-1020 and immediately fell in love with it. I can speak to you from
experience about Sony STR, Sony ES, Yamaha RX, and Pioneer VSX. That's
all I've owned for well over 15 years.
In both movies and music, I like the 5.1 surround sound experience. I
have four towers, a 12 " sub, and dual 6" driver center channel. Each
are made by JBL, Klisch, and Polk audio. In movies, I like bass that
rattles windows, knocks stuff off shelves, etc. In music, I like bass
that hits you in the chest and vibrates your body.
One thing I always do is go the the Website and download the user
manual before I buy the receiver. The manual tells a lot about how
difficult the set up will be and gives you realistic specs about the
product.
Sony makes a great receiver in their ES line. I personally got tired
of their STR series. But that was a few years back. I love the Sony
Cinema DSP C. It was complicated to learn, but I could do things like
"I want to sit in the third row of the theater over to the right." It
had great 5.1 sound in both music and movies. I went through three ES
receivers and I broke all of 'em. They run hot and overheat. That's
why I left Sony. They provide around 120-watt 6.1 output (more
channels now I'm sure) and a 140-watt 2-channel output. That's the
same with both Yamaha and Pioneer (a little more wattage for 2-channel
output). I don't really notice much of a difference in that amount of
power increase. I do notice the sound difference between 2.0 and 5.1.
If I were to buy a Sony today, I'd opt for the extended warranty. I
also liked it's volume setting. 0 was silence. 100 was full volume.
The remote controlled most of my equipent (had to program it) and cost
over $200.
After the Sony died, I bought a Yamaha RX-V861. I still have it...In
fact I'm looking to sell it. It's 5.1 surround is great. The only
complaint I had is what mircea commented about. It's a 1.3 hdmi
receiver, so it doesn't encode the bluray formats: DTS-HD or TRU-HD.
Therefore, I had to use a stand-alone decoder. In my case, my
Panasonic bluray or Home Theater PC. Also, when you buy a new
receiver, it includes video processing as well. On my Yamaha 1080P vs
1080i were a struggle. For example, I could hear the lossless
soundtrack on Avatar (decoded by my Panasonic bluray). However the
1080P (24) playback supported by both my bluray and tv, wouldn't work
through the Yamaha video circuitry. I'd get either 1080i or (if I shut
off the processing), I'd get 1080p (not 24). That's really a minor
annoyance. Audio on the Yamaha was great and clean. The newest models
support all formats. The latest Yamaha's are getting great reviews.
They're calling 'em the ARC angel ( for the new technology). The
Yamaha comes with a microphone and sets up optimal sound using its
YPAO. So set up is great and easy. However, tweaking on this one was
difficult to learn. I referred to the manual a lot. That's all been
changed in the newest models. In fact, I would have jumped on one of
these models, i.e., RX-767, if it were available earlier this year.
One other thing Yamaha created was front channel height... That's now
in all the receivers as Dolby Z! This Yamaha also supported iPod/
iPhone with an additional dock. Volume settings were different on this
receiver, too. -80db was silence. +16db was full volume. What I miss
about this receiver is it's 7.1 analog input/output abilities. The
remote controlled only the receiver (but came with it). The Yamaha
runs hot but doesn't overheat ... I could NOT break it.
Pioneer released the VSX line earlier this year and I immediately went
out and bought the VSX-1020 as soon as it was available in my local
store. I didn't expect it to fall in love with it. I thought I'd use
it for a month and then return it in hopes that the new Yamaha would
be out. But Pioneer has outdone themselves with this product. It's not
the ELITE line, but who cares? With 6 HDMI 3D ports, you have room to
grow. I'm not interested in 3D video today, but maybe down the road.
The video processor on this works great with my other bluray
equipment. No 1080P/1080i issues. The DTS-HD / TRUE-HD decoding is
great. I can't get enough of it. For now, bring on as many lossless
channels in bluray as you can! It comes with a microphone and set up
is a snap with it's graphical auto calibration MCACC (with THX option
though not certification). I do use these set ups and then I tweak for
extra bass. The GUI on this if more advanced than was on the Yamaha.
It will even let you place the mic in three different room positions
to maximize the sweet spot for all listeners in the room. It has Dolby
Z which adds front width (as well as heighth). It does all the latest
bluray as well as all the lossy surround choices. It has a slew of
features of come to expect -- though I didn't buy it for them. For
example, it will make annoying, loud commercials quiet. The remote
operates every piece of equipment in my room, including my old Sony
DVD player and Toshiba VCR! The iPod dock is built-in. The ethernet
port gives you access to free internet radio. However, it does NOT
support 7.1 analog input. That's gone for the possibility of 9.2
surround. I plan to use this receiver to upgrade to 7.1 and front
height speakers. It's volume settings are similar to the Yamaha: -80db
is silent, +16 is full volume.
I don't really get the volume adjust stuff anyway. To me, there's two
settings: below half volume (where my wife listens) and over half
volume (where I listen). All of these receivers sound great over half
volume. That's how I spend most of my listening. What blows me away is
how much technology we are able to own today vs. just 15 years ago.
The Sony ES receivers each cost twice as much as the Yamaha. And the
Yamaha cost twice as much as the Pioneer. And I'm enjoying the sound
through technology so much more at a fraction of the price.
Incredible. I don't know, maybe on my next receiver the company will
pay me to take it.
Hope this helps.
On Oct 26, 2:06 pm, grill <gr...@index.hu> wrote:
> I'm facing the possibility of buying a 3D capable receiver at an
> affordable price. My other extra need would be DSD decoding. I've
> looked up the following receivers selling at similar prices in
> Hungary:
>
> Denon AVR-1611
> Pioneer VSX-820 or 920
> Sony STR-DH810
> Onkyo TX-SR578
> Yamaha RX-V567 (RX-A700)
>
> At the moment I'm ogling the Onkyo and the Yamaha (A700 is not yet
> selling in Hungary). If you have experiences in any of these receivers
> or other advice please post it here.
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