Pioneer Elite VSX-21TXH 71 AV Receiver

by Pioneer

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 17 x 16.6 x 6.8 inches ; 38 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 65 pounds
• ASIN: B002N4AQO6
• Item model number: VSX-21TXH
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #63,494 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: November 15, 2005

Product Description

Pioneer Elite VSX-21TXH A/V Receiver

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Receiver with a Few Minor Annoyances, December 28, 2009

By 

Jon Knowlton (Tucson, Az USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pioneer Elite VSX-21TXH 71 AV Receiver (Electronics)

This was my first receiver that I have ever purchased and am very pleased overall (4 months of ownership). Set up was a breeze and the auto calibration (MCACC) works like a charm. Originally I had cheap speakers hooked up to the receiver (still shopping for quality speakers) and the sound out of them was horrible... Well, I ran the auto calibration and it made my cheap speakers sound spectacular!!! I couldn't believe what I was hearing and was starting to wonder if spending hundreds on speakers was going to be worth it. I have listed some pros and cons below. The only reason I did not give the receiver 5 stars is due to the cons that I listed which seem a lot because I tried to explain them in detail. Overall I would defiantly buy this receiver again due to the fact most of the cons listed could be fixed with a software upgrade and a new remote.

System:
Receiver-Pioneer VSX-21TXH, Monitor-Samsung LN46B-530, Center Channel -Polk TSi CS20, Fronts-Polk TSi 200s, Surrounds-Polk Monitor-30s, Subwoofer-? (Came from a computer system 300-W, 8in. woofer)

Pros
1. The auto MCACC calibration (microphone included!)

2. Price!! Buy buying from a non-authorized Pioneer Elite dealer off of Amazon I paid half the price my friend paid when buying the VSx-23 receiver from best-buy. The dealer also had a warranty and good customer service.

3. Being able to assign inputs

4. The amplifier power (Cranked up the volume in a 5.1 channel setup to uncomfortable sound levels and did not notice any distortion

5. Looks, I like the glossy front....well as long as it is kept clean, smudges are very noticeable

6. FM tuner works great!!! All stations come in very clearly. I know that some of the receivers I had listened to in the past need huge outdoor antennas to pick up stations. I just used the antenna that came with the receiver (single wire) and now get all stations in my area

7. Video up scaling. Hugh difference from using the TVs up scaling.

8. Inputs, Had all the inputs I needed excluding the third component input (Wii, PS2, DVD, VHS, HTPC, iPOD)

Cons

1. I wish it had one more component input (I still have to use my component switch)

2. Remote is a little hard to use due to the location of the buttons

3. When trying to change audio parameters when listening to a source the silver round button stops working after one push. This problem is only intermittent and has been noticed when multiple sources are selected. If your trying to change the channel level of a speaker you have to push the buttons (receiver then audio parameter then the circular Arrows) This must be done for each arrow button push. Switching to another source corrects this problem but then you can't tell how your modifications effect the sound in real-time.

4. Cheap speaker binding posts. Not really a major con but before I had purchased banana plugs for my speakers I used the post and screwed them down. I thought I was going to break them.

5. I wish the connection to the computer was a USB instead of a RS-232. I have still not connected it to my HTPC but will once I get the right cable

6. TV control seems to only work when I push the TV source button on the remote even though the remote has a region of buttons dedicated to the TV specifically (Was told that I probably just have the incorrect TV code in my remote but I still haven't gotten to correct)

7. No HD Radio, I didn't know how much I would miss this feature until I bought a receiver and now listen to the radio hours each day.

8. Receiver has to be reset when using my Home Theater PC that is connected through a HDMI cable. The receiver does not send the signal to the monitor after I turn on the PC until after I switch the receiver to HDMI source the turn off the receiver and then turn it back on. If I don't do this then the receiver just says its looking for a source. This could be an issue with my video card (ATI4650) but I'm not sure.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars super reciever, November 22, 2009

By 

Michael J. Herr - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pioneer Elite VSX-21TXH 71 AV Receiver (Electronics)

this is a great reciever. you can custumize everything. change volume on every speaker. skip the inputs you dont use. as for the customer who cant stop it from switching to tv the he should plug his cable into the tv slot and change the name from tv to whatever he wants. Though i feel it could use 1 more set of component inputs. this is a top notch reciever. be careful when you buy it from a third party. they only give you 1 years warrenty compared to its normal 2 year warrenty the video upscale is great. its the same upscaler thats in the vsk1019hk and the vsx-23txh. the only difference from the vsx23 and vsx21 is 1 more hdmi video output and a front hdmi input and a 3rd zone. This reciever is not for the beginner hometheater enthusiest.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good HDMI switching and upscaling Receiver, January 5, 2010

By 

Joseph R. Norman "bnorman" (Sugar Land, TEXAS United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pioneer Elite VSX-21TXH 71 AV Receiver (Electronics)

I have been looking for a good HDMI switching receiver with at least 100 watts per channel for a number of months and I think that this one right now is the best for less than $1000. I really, really like it!

Pros:

While it does not weigh as much as the old Yamaha it replaces, it has the same channel watt rating but runs a little cooler (both are passively cooled).

The built-in set up program is pretty accurate but like most it needs a little tweaking before and after. It was recommended to me that you one, turn off the DRC before running the set up. Two, you may want to set the Sub to PLUS from the default. You need to check the speaker type after the auto setup as it appears to be pretty liberal about what it considers a large speaker to be. When you get it set right, then run the set up again (you may have to fix the speaker type each time but it seems the other changes will stay with you).

I was impressed with the clarity of dialogue on DVDs that I had some trouble understanding at a volume that would not blow out your ears during the action sequences.

If you think the sound is a little too bright, there is an X-curve adjustment which is unusual for this price point which you roll back some of the high end to match the room.

From what little I used the HDMI up scaling feature, it is quite good and may be better than some receivers for 2X to 4X the cost based on other reviews. On 480p to 1080i I saw zero artifacts on a 65" screen from my DVR with component cables and the input to the DVR was 480i via S-video - I thought that was outstanding!

Cons:

The number of HDMI inputs (four) is good but one of them is permanently dedicated to a BR player. You can use any HDMI device on it for audio and video of course but you can not reassign the audio input nor rename it like you can the other inputs. Not a big thing but a little annoying.

If you have a ton of stuff to connect, there are not many inputs in total to use. I have two Dish Receivers, a DVD player, a CD player and a DVR (and wanted to save the BR HDMI for that in the future) but I also wanted to connect my TV to the receiver for sound when watching over the air programing and about the only option left was to use CD-R.

With the Dish Receiver, I also have a problem switching from programing in HD to SD like those on Direct TV According to the front display the receiver recognizes it as stereo but there is no sound but I found a work around without using optical or coax. If I tune in a SD channel and it has no sound, if I switch momentarily to another device and back to Dish while tuned to an SD channel, BINGO there is sound! Strangely enough it will then switch from HD To SD and back all day with no problems until you turn it off.

The On Screen Display (OSD) for Setup is attractive, and easy to navigate BUT there are two other menus one for audio adjustments and one for video adjustments that are not shown on the screen. Those you have to navigate from the small led display on the front of the receiver which not easy to do from 11+ feet away. Also those menus are not nearly as intuitive as the Setup is.

There is no OSD for things like volume, tuner frequencies, etc. I was a little disapointed because I had read all the reviews I could find before purchasing and every one of them raved about the quality of the OSD but no one mentioned that the OSD only works for the Setup! I downloaded the manual and read it from cover to cover twice and it was still a surprise that you don't even get pong like OSD for volume, etc. I would still get this receiver but I think reviewers should qualify their remarks about OSDs as to what functions they cover if it not universal so there are no surprises. In retrospect a full OSD in this price range would be unusual and since it has a number of other features beyond many others at its price point, I guess they traded full OSD for other goodies.

In summary, this receiver is remarkable for its price and I would recommend it to any one.