Pioneer VSX-817-K Home Theater Receiver (Black)

by Pioneer

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 13.9 x 16.5 x 6.2 inches ; 20.3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 23 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
• ASIN: B000OW3592
• Item model number: VSX-817-K
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #109,449 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

The world of digital satellite radio entertainment charges into the home theater with this Pioneer VSX817 XM and SIRIUS Satellite Radio Ready 7-channel A/V Receiver. It comes loaded with Pioneer exclusives, like Phase Control for bass management, Sound Retriever for near CD-quality audio from compressed music files, and Auto MCACC with 5-band EQ and microphone--a calibration feature that fine-tunes each speaker to best suit your particular listening room. Enjoy the vast array of satellite radio's digital music and entertainment options in the comfort of your home theater with direct connectivity to the XM Connect & Play antenna and the SiriusConnect SC-H1 Tuner (both sold separately; monthly subscription required). Best of all, you can access your favorite satellite radio programming using the receiver's convenient on-screen display and the preprogrammed remote control. XM subscribers will even enjoy select music channels in 5.1 surround with XM HD Surround powered by Neural Audio. This high-powered receiver earns a well-deserved spotlight in any home theater.

Product Description

Pioneer VSX-817-K Home Theater Receiver, Black

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing value, great sound, September 2, 2007

By 

Matthew Mendoza "Good Person" (Classy San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pioneer VSX-817-K Home Theater Receiver (Black) (Electronics)

I've had this reciever for about 5 months now and let me tell you its the real deal! My friend and I both purchased the same set of JBL basic theater speakers to go with our recievers, the difference being he got a sony reciever and I went with the pioneer. Even on the same speakers my reciever has a sharp, clear, full (and in no way tinny) sound where as his is muddy and inacurate (just in case you're wondering we are using the same speaker wire.)
I dont think i've seen a reciever for this price range support this many different audio modes and settings, which can be frustrating except this Pioneer has a simple menu and can be sent to your tv making it even easier! So far I have my Xbox360 and HD-DVD player both hooked up by optical and various others (Tv,Zune) hooked up analog. I also have taken advantage of the XM HD that this reciever supports with good results. I noticed that the "XM Surround" setting is terrible so I always run it in DTS NEO:6 for a better listening experience.
I suppose the only downsides would be that is dosen't support HDMI but oh well, you can always just run it optical. They also dont include the really cool remote that I got anymore, you get this lame white one. (they've made the nice remote available only on the highest models, or if you can find the VSX-816K.)
One note for anyone looking to match this with HD-DVD players, dont worry that this does NOT support Tru-HD or DTS-HD it sounds amazing anyway, optical audio is all converted over to DTS. I tested this by running Batman Begins in regular Dolby 5.1 then switching over to the Tru-HD track, the difference almost blew my windows out! In closing, I would highly recommend this reciever for anyone and everyone who wants a product that can easily turn your living room into a movie theater and then over to a music hall without blending the two together!!

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pioneer Review, October 1, 2007

By 

E. O. Mendsen "New2it" (Lehigh Valley PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pioneer VSX-817-K Home Theater Receiver (Black) (Electronics)

Being new to the home theater game,I really don't have anything to compare this product to. I bought it because it had all of the features I thought I might need,at a price I could afford,AND,it was a Pioneer,a name I have come to trust over the years. As far as what I've been able to discern,the unit is quite "user friendly". I had it up and running in an hour or two. One problem I ran into,was trying to connect all of those speaker wires using the "bare wire into the lug,and tighten" method!! WOW...By the time I was done,I was well on my way to a blistered thumb and index finger!! This problem was quickly remedied by the installation of banana plugs on all speaker leads. Other than that,the connectivity was pretty straightforward. After getting into different methods of connecting different components,I did find that the unit could have used one more optical input,as I have three components that have this type of output. I am pretty sure this problem will go away when I step up to an HDTV! The only other issue I have with the unit,is that when using the 6th & 7th speaker outs for running a stereo pair out on my deck,rather than using them for additional surrounds,one has to turn the volume up until the 5 inside speakers are REALLY REALLY LOUD,before the two outdoor speakers reach a comfortable (audible!) listening level. This is a minor problem I have learned to work around though,and it would not stop me from purchasing this unit,had I had to do it over again!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great reciever for the money, March 25, 2008

By 

kbt3000 "kbt3000" (charlotte) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Pioneer VSX-817-K Home Theater Receiver (Black) (Electronics)

I bought this after upgrading to Polk surround speakers, Klipsch uprights, a Polk PSW10 10" sub, and a Yamaha NS-C225 center channel. This unit served as an upgrade from a Sony 5.1 50w per channel receiver. First things first, you may get a good sound out of the box, but with the Auto MCACC (this is customized with on screen guide) it shines bright. recognizing and customizing to the acoustics, component distance, and setup, this machine does more than some know. No HDMI, but honestly, if your looking at a "bargain" HDMI in/out compatible receiver, you should take your money and save it for a custom installer (or start reading sound & vision). I ran my Blu-ray HDMI to my LCD and out via regular RCA's to the VSX - it sounds amazing. As a reference disk, I used my sons Blu-ray format of PIXAR's "Cars" even with my 5.1 my friends (and son) were blown away at the detail and clarity especially the race and crash scenes. The output wattage is near perfect for my needs, even for my power hungry tower speakers. After Auto MCACC was ran (you place the microphone from the receiver to where you would sit, it does the rest) I added the SB PLUS option, spreading a little low end (bass) to all the speakers instead of only letting the Polk 10" handle it. Great choice, my Polk R15 shelf speakers serve their side surround purpose with great depth this way. I also added a bit more power to the NS-C225 center speaker, as this channel doesn't seem as bright (could very well be the speaker itself). Mind you I'm using a 5.1 speaker setup with a 7.1 receiver. This is a pretty advanced receiver, even for the relatively cheap price, it is the first piece of equipment I haven't used with my Harmony 880 remote because of the options ... now for the pro's & con's

)Pro's

Auto MCACC
7.1 channels
great options - both on the remote and on screen
ample inputs, and outputs to boot
great layout - gorgeous look, great blu glow matches LCD, Blu ray player
Its a Pioneer
price is fantastic

)Con's

runs a bit warm
a bit complicated for the girlfriend (and...)
doesn't work well with options on my Harmony 880 remote (with LCD)
no tickmark to see volume (but does show DBl)
no HDMI (not an issue at this price though)