Customer Reviews

Pioneer VSX-815K 7.1 Channel Discrete/DTS Audio-Video Receiver

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have this reciever hooked up to Klipsch Quintet II surround sattelites and the Klipsch synergy sub-10 in my dorm room. Basically it puts out enough power that i have been cited by not only the dorm's resident advisors but also by the cops, and I am still letting two channels go to waste. This is a very high feature reciever, even including an automattic accoustic calibration system and microphone, at a very low price. The bottom line is that you cannot find a better reviever in this price-range.

I recently bought the VSX-815 after doing a lot of reasearch in the budget reciever field. I came to the conclusion that this reciever was the best value for my money becasue it had many features. Some features that are most notable, are the number of inputs (both digital and analog), power handling, and customization options. I used the auto-matic setup, but found that much better sound can be achieved from tweaking the EQ settings yourself.

Some draw backs for potential buyers of this reciever would include difficulty of navigation through display menus, figuring out what the abbreviations mean on the menus, finding information in the manual (all of these problems would apply to the beginner home theatre addict). I didn't have much trouble settig it up myself, it just involved a lot of patience.

Here are a few things worth noting:

-When adjusting the EQ manually, it is hard to tell that you changed any sound qualities since all adjustments can only be done by listening to a static test tone.

-I would not recommend this reciever for those of you powering two sets of front speakers(A and B sets). There is no manual toggle switch to select speakers. Plus my recieve has a defect that makes the B set speakers sound less robust then the A set (I'm going to have to take it in for service).

-The remote is a bit daunting. Too many buttons, not enough space. I have to read the manual everytime I want to do something new, not very user friendly.

Don't get me wrong though. This is a good reciever. It outputs good crisp sound, has high customization levels, has large amounts of inputs, all kinds of decoders for surround sound, and is just a very solid performer. I'm satisfied with it, all but the gliches I listed above. I would recommend buying it for those who are looking for a well-priced entry level reciever that will last for a long time due to a wealth of features built-in.