gene c
Senior HTF Member
The refurbed 708 from ac4l always looked like a great deal on paper but lately there's been more trouble with them than there should be. I'm going to have to re-think recommending them so quickly. Or at least do so with caution. I really hope things are on the right track. As for receiver reliability I guess thats one reason why I've choosen to stick with Pioneer (Elite). Never had a problem with any of them. Any Pioneer model with "Advanced" MCACC will have the 6 presets. This should include all Elite models and at least the top two Pioneer models. Many higher-end brands don't allow their receivers (or anything else) to be sold on-line. But there's a list of Authorized Dealers on Pioneers website and some of these do sell at least the lower Elite models on-line. You could always call them up and ask if they could do a phone order and what their best price would be. I've heard places like 6ave.com and jr.com will "adjust" their prices to meet other e-tailers. There's also a company called UnitedOnLine.com in Southern California that purports to sell Pioneer/Elite refurbs on ebay with a factory warranty but I've never looked into them. Then there's the ebay/amazon dealers that or not authorized. I've bought from them a time or two when I was really feeling cheap and it worked out well, for me anyway. You could always buy a SquareTrade warranty and ebays Buyer Protection Plan actually works. EDIT: I forgot to mention BestBuy. You can always walk into the Magnolia HiFi section and ask if they have any left-over 2011 models. Got my open box SC-35 for $649 (msrp $1800) that way. I currently have an Elite SC-35 and a vsx-23. Previous Pioneers were a 1014, 59txi (68 lb beast!), 94 txh (should have kept that one) and a vsx-32. Onkyo's I've owned: HT-500, 702, 805 (well traveled), Integra 9.8 pre-pro (should have kept that one too) and an Integra 8.9.