Pioneer VSX-1019AH 7.1 Channel A/V Receiver $383

[popmasina]

I wonder if you can use zone 2/b as pre amp out ?

[dondeal80]

I bought one on the recent Pioneer direct sale last week. Usually I love Pioneer equipment, but the manual and some other features made me curse! It took me literally 6 hours just to get the system running on the basics and I am no dummy. The manual needs some work!!

Enough said, the sound is beautiful compared to the Oynko it replaced.

There have been a number of sales of pioneer receivers going on including the elite; I am sure you all checked out the previous elite sale a couple of days ago. I expect more!

[Deltaron]

Does the video upconverting circuitry on the VSX-1019 really make any difference?

Comments I've read and people I've talked to said that unless you have a crappy HDTV (and I think Samsung and Sony LCDs are better than crappy) that the HDTV can upconvert (upscale) a 480i/p or 720p signal into 1080i/p just as well as your "average" receiver with video upconversion.

In other words, if you take a VCR with 480i composite output into a 1019 upconverted to 1080p through HDMI to your HDTV vs. the same VCR with 480i composite output straight into the HDTV (with the HDTV upconverting to use all 1080 scan lines), it should look the same either way.

Is this correct or does it vary depending on the HDTV and receiver? If it varies, then how do you know if it's worth paying extra for a particular receiver with video upconversion for a particular HDTV?

[popmasina]

dont expect good or great upscaling in this price range

[HokiePS7]

Quote from popmasina : you don't need same speakers, just buy same fronts, same backs same surround

That's really bad advice. It is critical that your L/R/C match....running the same driver/midrange or your sound will be seriously unbalanced. The rears don't matter as much. Ideally, all should match, but the front 3 are most important for timbre and tonal balance.

[The Kev Master]

The Kev Master just uses passthrough on the HDMI section as the doesn't need an external source messing with the signal. He would to note that if upconversion is needed, it should be done from the source.

[The Kev Master]

Quote from HokiePS7 : That's really bad advice. It is critical that your L/R/C match....running the same driver/midrange or your sound will be seriously unbalanced. The rears don't matter as much. Ideally, all should match, but the front 3 are most important for timbre and tonal balance.

The Kev Master agrees that having speakers from the same range is always the easiest but he did things the real SD way.

Fronts: Klipsch Synergy F2 - $200 for the pair (Best Buy returned unit)
Center: Wharfedale Zaldek - $30 NIB from CompUSSR
Effect: Boston Acoustics VRX - $150 from Magnolia HT Clearance
Surround: Polk Audio R15 - Free with R50 Purchase, and sold the R50 while making $50.
Subwoofer: Wharfedale Zaldek - $50 NIB from CompUSSR

[scooterp7]

Quote from popmasina : I wonder if you can use zone 2/b as pre amp out ?

No. It's a different signal altogether.

[barebones]

Quote from aerodynamics : How big is the room they're going into?

My room is 19' x 20' with the TV mounted above the fireplace in the middle of one of the 20' walls.

Quote from scooterp7 : Well, not so much. First and foremost, make sure the fronts and center match (timbre matched). I mentioned it before but I want to encourage people here with hi-fi or home theater questions to wade into the knowledge pool here : http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/index.php Barebones, go to that page, click on the Loudspeaker forum and search the forum for "Bose 901". Read a few threads and you'll find someone there in your EXACT predicament. You'll also learn there that Bose had a separate EQ for that speaker. A must have to make that paper cone speaker sound like anything. I recommend that you relegate their duty to the garage once you get HT speakers. Or if they are in good condition you would be surprised how much some nostalgic person will spend for them. That money can be used for something in your HT that actually sounds decent. You'll find plenty to read for help in that arena. Any questions are politely answered and the help, advice and direction offered is bountiful. Good luck.

Thnaks for the help

[barebones]

Quote from drdiaboloco : A good rule of thumb is that the front three speakers will be the most important when it comes to maintaining the model or brand, the rears much less so. Ideally you would have a L/C/R kit that is from the same manufacturer and from model lines designed to work together, but if you at least stay within the same brand you will accomplish much of what you seek. The surrounds (and rears, in a 7.1 setup)? Again, ideally they will be part of a lineup that is designed to work together, but if your use is primarily going to be movies you can easily get away with different brands. When you get into a system that will get a big workout with music sources, matching the "voice" of the speakers becomes much more important so you might want to keep that in mind. Also, work towards a good-sounding 5.1 system before you worry about the 7.1. You can always add the last two speakers much later in the game, or not at all for that matter. You say that you might go for a sub first and then work on your speakers, but I do wonder if you have a center channel at the moment... I personally would go for a center that you plan to match with L/R speakers later and THEN the sub (or even your L/C/R first and then the sub, if the speakers have enough low-end that you can wait out the sub for a spell). Just a first step in the right direction, ya know? And FWIW the sub is the LEAST important driver in the system to match with the rest. You don't need a sub to match ANYTHING and you can feel free to buy whatever your needs, taste and budget allow without worrying about the brand matching the other speakers. Just make sure that the sub's top end extends far enough to meet the other speakers' bottom end, only really a concern if you use very, very small satellites in your system.

Thanks a lot for the info, doing some center channel research now

[idyllhands]

Deal expired? No longer listing ANT as a seller.

[drdiaboloco]

Quote from barebones : Thanks a lot for the info, doing some center channel research now

Another thing about your 901's is that they are particularly unsuited to the L/R channels of a home theater system. Leaving aside the heated debate on the sound quality of 901's, they are not a good match for the fronts in an HT system because the bulk of the sound is reflected off the walls, not direct-radiated to your listening position. This creates the 901's classic "wall of sound", which works for music (according to some heh heh) but diminishes the directionality of the front soundstage mix of a movie soundtrack. If you plan to keep them in your system they should absolutely be relegated to surround or rear channels, where their sound dispersion is better utilized... Note that many surround speakers are "dipoles", which are meant to immerse you in the surround effects channels and don't have a tweeter firing directly at you. Whether this appeals to you or not is a personal preference, and I think most systems are the more conventional single-tweeter-more-or-less-aimed-at-you type.

For multichannel music, especially, the ideal system would have five identical speakers, but the reality is that few ever do this and at the very least utilize a dedicated center channel speaker. The most obvious problem of using a standard speaker as a center channel is that in most applications you'd want to put this speaker on its side for placement reasons, but the speakers are usually designed to stood upright... Not all, but many or even most have their tweeters designed to be in the plane that the upright speaker would place it in, and putting it on its side makes that plane vertical and reduces the "width" of the soundstage (but makes it very, very TALL!).

In any case, if you're looking at dedicated center channels the above doesn't apply, now does it? Good luck with your search.

[idyllhands]

I am assuming deal is dead...

[rds2]

Quote from Deltaron : Does the video upconverting circuitry on the VSX-1019 really make any difference? Comments I've read and people I've talked to said that unless you have a crappy HDTV (and I think Samsung and Sony LCDs are better than crappy) that the HDTV can upconvert (upscale) a 480i/p or 720p signal into 1080i/p just as well as your "average" receiver with video upconversion. In other words, if you take a VCR with 480i composite output into a 1019 upconverted to 1080p through HDMI to your HDTV vs. the same VCR with 480i composite output straight into the HDTV (with the HDTV upconverting to use all 1080 scan lines), it should look the same either way. Is this correct or does it vary depending on the HDTV and receiver? If it varies, then how do you know if it's worth paying extra for a particular receiver with video upconversion for a particular HDTV?

You are on the right track but the capabilities of the component that handles the video upconverting can affect the video quality dramatically, and some receivers do a better job than others.

As you indicated, a decent quality HDTV will most often do the best job. For HD / HDMI, it's often best to set the receiver to pass through the signal unchanged to the TV. For SD setups, what's best can vary depending on all the components and quality of your equipment (TV, DVD player, Bluray player, receiver, etc.). Even though it may hinder minimizing cable clutter by going with straight receiver / HDMI hookups to the degree possible (as can be done with this Pioneer receiver), I'd experiement with setup options on a case by case basis for your various components to determine what provides the best audio and video results (i.e., you can let the receiver do it, source component do it when available, and let the TV do it and see what provides the best results, but you might need to run the audio to the receiver separately in some instances).

Keeping the preceding in mind, this receiver got good cnet reviews as being among the best for video uponversion in this price range. If you haven't read the reviews, I'd suggest checking them out for more detailed info about it. Here's a link to their top receiver picks and reviews (this Pioneer is the editor's choice pick).

http://reviews.cnet.com/best-av-r...contentNav

[Benaorn]

Anyone else got their order canceled?