Pioneer Elite Receiver

The Pioneer Elite SC-07 is the little sister of Pioneer’s flagship AV Receiver the Pioneer Elite SC-09. Side by side the two units look very similar and both have the font LCD Video omitting snazzy on-screen graphics. However, whilst they may look similar the SC-07 is a fraction of the price of the SC-09 – costing just over $1500 at the time of review.

So what do you get for your $1500?

After connecting the unit up to my AV setup i thought id give the Auto Calibration a test run and see how it faired with the supplied mic. The Advanced Multi-Channel Acoustic Calibration System (MCAAC) did a fantastic job and to be honest, unless you are really picky or someone that likes to mess, you will find it sets the system up perfectly – a great selling point in my eyes.

Be careful if you do like to tweak here and there as it can get very complex with adjustments for an absolutely endless array of settings. If you really know what you are doing then a RS232 connection is available to hook up a PC. This will allow you do do even more with the receiver.

Internals

The Pioneer Elite SC-07 was built from the ground up with High Definition surround sound being the aim. It packs 140 watts of power that is generated through an excellant ICEpower Class D amplifier that will absolutely blow your mind. The sounds were crisp and clear with rich bass tones that gave a powerfull punch.

HDMI 1.3a is on hand to connect all your AV equipment although you do not get HDMI video processing from this receiver. It will however, upscale analogue video sources to 1080p.

An interesting feature is a Pecision Quartz Lock System (PQCS) that claims to reduce jitter when coupled with a compatible Blu Ray player. This is achieved by reclocking the HDMI audio signals. This appears to work quite well and the Pioneer Elite BDP-05FD would make an excellant companion.

Standard Fetaures

Standard features of a unit in this class include 7.1 Channel Audio, Dolby True HD, DTS-HD and 4x HDMI In 2x out. If you make use of satellite radio the receiver is XM/Sirius ready.

Conclusion

To sum up, the Pioneer Elite SC-07 is a great sounding, great looking and solid performing receiver. It cannot compete with the SC-09 feature-wise but the price reflects this. In addition, since the it has come down in price to around $1500 it is an even more attractive buy. Pioneer fans will undoubtedly love it!

The Pioneer Elite VSX 91TXH Receiver is a little outdated now but is an excellent choice for those wishing to put together a quality Pioneer audio system on a budget.

The Pioneer Elite VSX 91TXH Receiver is not as feature packed as some of its cousins in the Pioneer AV Receivers family, however, if you have just blown the majority of your buget on a Pioneer Elite TV or similar the Pioneer Elite VSX 91TXH Receiver would make an excellent audio partner. This unit would more than put you on until you have been able to save up those pennies for a newer, more feature packed AV Receiver.

The key features of this unit are:-

• 6 Input Chennels
• On-screen setup
• MCACC automatic speaker setup making setup and calibration a breeze
• 7.1 Channel Audio
• Great aesthetic qualities – it looks great in your audio rack

The only downsides to this unit are:

• The specs are not as great as some of its cousins – it is however much less expensive
• The instructions laid out in the manuals are a little sparse which can leave a newbie audio junkie having a little trouble
• The tone adjustments are a little fiddly and difficut to get spot on

Overall this is a great unit that is very easy to setup – even if the manuals are a little sparse.

If you get the chance to own one of these units then do so! They are an excellent receiver that will give you great sound quality on a budget.

The Pioneer Elite Receiver is in a league of its own when it comes to sound quality. The entire range of receivers offer best in class multi-channel sound and customizable room calibration that simply blows the competition away. Whether listening to music or watching your favourite movie, prepare to be completely submerged into an experience of pure, powerful and pristine soundscapes.

Each Pioneer Elite Receiver features power amps for seven channels – which gives you the 7.1 part of the product description. To ensure accurate sound reproduction the new Pioneer Elite Receiver power output devices are symmetrically mounted on heat sinks. In leymans terms this means the left channel outputs (front left, surround left, left rear surround) are mounted symmetrically to the right channel outputs (front right, surround right, right rear surround). This setup is essential for any A/V Receiver if it is to deliver accurate mult-channel sound reproduction.

There are several models to choose from the Pioneer Elite Receiver range with each unit priced to accommodate a different budget and meet differing audio visual requirements. All new Receivers come with a minimum 2 Years Elite Manufacturers warranty for that extra piece of mind.

The entry level system – the VSX-01TXH starts at around $600 USD / £420 GBP. This unit packs a punch with 110 Watts of 7.1 channel high-definition theatre surround sound. It has inputs for iPod, USB Drives and SIRIUS (Satellite Radio) in addition to your standard legacy audio connections and the Industry Standard HDMI connection control of all your other AV devices including rhe latest Blu-ray players.

If you have money to burn then you have got to check out the amazing SC-09TX. This baby weighs in at 70.5 lbs and a whopping RRP of $7000 USD / £4900 GBP with a feature list to die for. This is the flagship Pioneer Elite Receiver everyone is raving about. If you are interested in serious sounds and picture this model delivers – and then some. Features include 1080p upscaling, HDMI 1.3, MCACC audio calibration, DTS, Dolby TrueHD – the list goes on.

One of the nicest features of the SC-09TX is the revolutionary Direct Energy HD Amplifier that can deliver a staggering drive capability of 200W through the entire 7 channels simultaneously. Not that you would need to crank the volume this high as all the minute detail in audio can be picked up at low volume due to the advanced technology tucked away inside.