Burr Brown D/A converter, stereo direct, illuminated learning remote, MOSFET power supply, almost future proof

a few small ones (listed in summary), produces lots of heat

Expensive, but well worth it. My Cerwin Vega towers & Bose Acoustimass 10 have been reborn!!! Only a couple problems with upgrading though. First, the remote wont learn from my Mad Catz PS2 remote. Second, to upgrade to 7.1, Pioneer (Elite) has no stereo amps with comparable specs (distortion, etc.) There are a couple of other small glitches. You can't use the "B" speakers & the sub output @ the same time. When using loudness, at volume level -7db the loundess cuts off & the higher frequencies suddenly get disproportionally louder (so I leave loudness off). Also, no access to tone control/loudness on remote. Input for laser disc should have been another digital coax. After months of listening to other recievers though, it's still the best in it's price range.

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Pioneer VSX-454

Must buy additional amp to enable the multiroom function. Limited sound control other tahn what is preprogrammed.

Had this unit about a week now, I bought it new on ubid.com for $729, $765 with shipping. I have absolutely zero buyers remorse. the sound is outstanding both in home theater and cd play. I keep finding new features that continue to impress me. The remomte control is awesome, i have eliminated 4 remotes because of it. I programmed my TV, CD player, Cable bax and DVD remote all into it. They didn't even have the codes ofr my cable bax manufacturer, but because the remove can "Learn" it accepted it. Great!

The sound is spactacular and ease of use and home theater effects are just excellent on this unit. If you can get this for under $800 I feel its an easy decision to make.

I went to my local high end home electronics shop and they sold me on it, i then found it online for, get this, $500 less.

I am very pleased with this unit.

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JVC

Cannot name source functions on front display

I have been pleased with the sound quality this machine has. It feels very open and not bright or over-powering. THX is a nice feature although I cannot tell any difference with it on or off while watching a movie. I can tell a difference while listening to "Eagles" DVD. This machine has a good reputation and comes very well built. I sent the Sony back because it had so many problems being written about it on this website. I had none with the Sony.

Watching "Twister" gives me goose-bumps. The opening scene is awesome! I think this machine handles dialoge very well. Some people have griped about the center channel sound but I have not had a problem at all. The center channel is plenty loud. All in all I am very pleased with this one!

The only weakness is the inability to label functions on the display. WIth the Sony I could name any component anything I wanted but I can't with the Pioneer. Only a small complaint.

Overall, very satisfied.

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Sony STR-V555ES

Sound, clarity, I/O capability, functionality

Runs too hot to rackmount

Love this receiver. The Pioneer Elite line has to be one of the top 5 choices if you have many components to control. Especially for the price. The VSX36-TX was the best choice for me value and functionality wise. I paid a little more than the Internet prices, but for the personal service I believe it was well worth it.

The only weakness I have found with this receiver is that it cannot be rack mounted due to it's hot running temperature. An internal cooling fan would be a nice improvement for this model.

With it's warm sound and precise clarity, this receiver is tough to beat for the price, and well worth every penny.

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Sony, Denon

Surround EX, pre outs for all channels

Back pannel a touch flimsy when using speaker plugs.

When DVD became the rage I wanted to up grade my system so I sit at home and watch all the latest movies. I was ammazed on how great Toy story 2 sounded. It was like going to the best movie theather without the sticky floors or smell of popcorn. I put the VSX 36 to the test, I invited a few friends over after I set it all up and they were in awe. A few of them even asked me if I could help them with setting up a home theater, as if I was an expert or something. Well needless to say, I am not an expert when it comes to home theater, but I must admit that I don't feel like I put together a bad set up for watching movies. As for music, my cds never sounded better. All in all, a great purchase.

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Rotel, Kenwood and various other receivers..

Accurate reproduction of both music and movies. Almost infinite variety of inputs. Good remote

Runs a little hot. Compatibility issues with 4ohm speakers

It came down to a Denon 3801 v. Pioneer 36TX showdown at United Audio. The Pioneer did sound different from the Denon in its reproduction of music (Pioneer warmer, Denon crisper), but I couldn't say that one was better than the other. However, the Pioneer was noticeably better in reproduction of movie vocals and soundtracks (check the opening scene in Saving Private Ryan). The Pioneer also had more hookup possibilities and frankly, I thought it looked better too.

Having had the unit for almost three months, I can say that I am very happy with my purchase. Vocal, music and other sound reproduction is superb. The remote is easy to use (at least in my opinion-my wife has a different opinion) and can be programmed to operate all of your other home theater toys. You can also tweak the receiver in an endless variety of ways to optimize the sound for your room.

At $800.00, the Pioneer is easily the best value receiver in its class-it has significantly more features than either the Denon or Harmon Kardon models I compared. I bought it from an on-line retailer for a price almost 400.00 less than United Audio was charging (by the way, United Audio would not budge on their price).

If there is a negative, it is the heat this unit generates. It does run very warm-you should definitely heed Pioneer's recommendation regarding space around the unit. The fact I have 4ohm main speakers (Jamo Clasic Four's) does not help the situation-if I had to do it over I would have bought the Pioneer Elite 37TX model-which is 6ohm rated. The 36 does have a switch where you can toggle between 8ohm and 6ohm ratings. I would note that the United Audio salesman stated over and over that 4ohm speakers would not be a problem with the 36 model-just one more reason why I won't be buying anything from United Audio anytime soon.

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Denon 3801, Harmon Kardon

Dollar for dollar, this is the best receiver that I have ever owned. I am using a set of Polk RT2000i, polk center, and polk surround speakers. Movies sound great, and so does Music for that matter. I find myself having to turn the volume down because I hear no distortion and I can stand outside and hear it loud and clear. My only gripe is that you don't have the old style volume knob so you know where 12 o'clock is. Oh well it still sounds great. I upgraded from an older Bob Carver set up and some JBL speakers. I must say that the VSX36tx puts my old set up to shame. I was skeptical at first, I have used receivers in the past and was dissapointed and switched to a seperate amp/pre amp set up, but Pioneer has made be believe that you can get good quality sound from a receiver. I might upgrade those old JBLs and use my Bob Carver amp for the Surround ex and then slip quietly into a few movies....

5 Channel Stereo, easy setup, learning remote, Burr-Brown DACs

No 7 channel amplification

I was looking for a receiver that would switch component video and had DTS-ES and Surround EX. If you have been shopping for a while, you know that the list is short, especially if you want to spend less than $1500.

First off the unit is a relative piece of cake to install. The menu system is one the clearest that I have come across so far. Bass management is excellent, with mulitple choices for crossover in case your speakers don't produce much bass.

The remote is a decent compromise for spending big money on something more expensive. It's no Pronto, but if you want to eliminate some of the clutter on your coffee table, it will get the job done.

The assignable digital inputs made setting up my Playstion 2 a snap and there are plenty of them to set up just about most equipment most people would have.

With the Burr-Brown DACs, just about anything fed to this receiver sounded excellent. Some cds that I have listened to many times in the past were much clearer than with my old receiver. This obviously includes DVD, which was great with just about any title. The rumble factor of Titan AE and The Haunting was definetly in effect... The ES and EX modes equally impressive

The sound modes aren't gimmicky like the usually are. Watching TV in 5 Channel Stereo and playing PlayStation in Theater 1 mode was very pleasing.

The unit runs warm, but not to the point that it has ever shut off. I have it sitting out in the open with nothing on top so it gets air.

The only shortcoming the system has is that it have 7 channel amplification. But I have an older receiver for that, so it is no problem. Keep this in mind if you have extra equipment around.

Finally, I am glad to see that Pioneer owners are adults and can give objective opinons without slamming those who don't cheerlead their favorite brands or don't like what they like. Isn't that the purpose of this site? If you want to know what I am talking about, go over to the Denon section. Good luck with whatever you end up buying.

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Denon, Yamaha receivers

price

cheap construction, remote

i bought this product believing all that was said about the elite line. i soon found out it was all hype,first of all the remote sucks i like a remote that you can do what you want it to and be done with it. to meny menues to go thru. sound wise it did not live up to my old sony. so i took it back and got a yamaha rx-v1 now thats a reciever it runs circles around the pioneer it does all that the pionner does but it does it much better.if you want a reciever to end all spend a little more and get the mother of all th yamaha rx-v1 peace!!!!!!!!!!

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str de945

I changed the speakers and it sounds even better. I wish I could give this receiver 5 and a half stars, but the scale only goes to 5. check it out for yourself. It is worth the price.