Upgrading receiver, but has to be from Best Buy (1 Viewer)

[PeterTHX]

Um, why Best Buy?

Circuit City has Onkyo & Harman Kardon.

Good Guys has Denon.

These are better than the majority of what BB carries.

 

[Kevin Alexander]

No one said it didn't sound good, and yes, it does. But it is not the only good sounding receiver in it's price range. And yes, it is over-hyped. For some reason, some of you 1014/1015 owners take it as a personal affront when someone dares express interest in something other than a Pioneer 1015. When someone starts a thread that they've narrowed their choices down to a Denon, Yamaha, or an H/K receiver, why do Pioneer owners often jump in and do a hard sell for a Pioneer? Again, the original poster narrowed things down to a few choices and the Pioneer didn't make the cut plain and simple. I think it's just a case of "I have this receiver and to continually justify my decision and make me feel good about my purchase, I want you to have it as well." Again, the Pioneer is a very nice receiver. Pioneer did a heck of a job putting out so much for so little money. But not everyone wants a Pioneer...some will prefer more the sound of other receivers, and some may not like it at all for whatever reason. For all the reasons above, yes, I feel that the Pioneer is overhyped...A very nice receiver, but way overhyped.

 

[DorianBryant]

Nice job Kevin.

My point was that the 1014 was hyped as being the greatest in features, power, sound, and overall performance. while a great receiver, i do not think it separated itself from the HK 235, Yammy 5790, Onkyo 602, etc. That is not a knock on the Pioneer. I still think the Panny XR50 sounds great as well and performed as well-minus the features. I also think the Onkyo 502 gave it a run in power and performance-again minus the features.

I think a big part of the appeal with the 1014 is that people feel they are getting an "Elite" for less money. Pioneer is still the same company that toon an VSX-811, gave it the Urishi finish, cinema eq, and an lcd display on the remote and jumped the price by $500....

a also did a comparison with the 1014 and onkyo 602 last night. Pretty equal in features. Pioneer has THX but the 602 has more headroom in my set-up regardless of specs. For me, the 602 sounds better. my opinion is the 235 and 602 are both slightly better than the 1014-more in sound than anything else.

 

[RyanJE]

May I chime in, I have listened to all the receivers listed here so far. I own a 1014 that I got for 360 and in no way is it over-hyped. It all depends on what your needs are. Ill be the first to admit that it may be the worst receiver of the bunch for music. For some reason bass management (I feel) is very poor with music.

On the flip side of this I felt that it is by far the best for movies and gaming. This is why I bought it, I dont listen to music on my HT. When it comes down to it everyone has there own needs and preferences, I didn't hear any HK's at the price point that I liked at all.



I dont think its that, its just the abundance of 1014-1015 owners have increased dramatically over the past few months. This attitude is unavoidable when someone asks (what should I buy)? Most have limited experience with comparing multiple AVR's but everyone is certainly an expert on there own gear. Just like when JBL's were/are hot. If someone asked what speakers under 500, alot of people would jump and say JBL XXX. Its obvious JBL's arent for everyone but thats going to be the majority of the suggestions. Thats why it seems its "over-hyped", everyone has one.

 

[skip marr]

It must be all in what one is comfortable with. I looked at the following and found flaws with all -
Yamaha - harsh, bright sound
HK - build quality and heat issues
Denon - extremely thin sound quality
Pioneer - thin sound quality - some say the Elite line is smoother
Onkyo - Reliability issues
Integra - Reliability issues like it's little brother
Marantz - Reliability issues and heat issues

So what is one to do. There is also the issue of the 2 Yamaha lines - HTR & RX - can anyone assist here? BB tells you there is no difference - the local shops overwhelm you with details.

 

[DorianBryant]

Every receiver/brand could have reliability issues. Any of the larger receivers when pushing 5-7 speakers can run "hot." I have had the Pio 1014 and 41, Yammy 5590, HK-235, Panny XR50, and onkyo 502 and 602-within the past 14 months. Currently I have the 602. Has auto set-up with eq and all the features the 1014 and the others have give or take.

It is silly to get upset over the "this one is clearly better" debate. They are all very close, can all run warm, can all break. I think the 235 is my favorite although the 602 is very close and sounds great with the infinity studio monitors I am currently using.

My advice is still try them out in your own home with your speakers-then decide.

 

[EricN]

My local Best Buy had 2 Pioneer 1014's on the sale table for $224 last week... Rediculous buy for that receiver. They were open box with all parts and full warranty.

See if your's has the same deal in the store and you will be very happy.

 

[MitchSchaft]

I went for the yammie 5890 and I'm lovin' it so far . I honestly couldn't ask for anyting more at this point. Well, now that I have 6.1 capabilities I've been looking into getting the rearl fills going.