Yamaha HTR-5550 vs. Pioneer VSX-D811S (1 Viewer)

[Felix]

Help!

I am deciding between the Yamaha HTR-5550 and Pioneer VSX-D811S receivers for my budget HT. They both will cost just around $300 with shipping.

I have Bose Accoustimass 10 Series II 5.1 speakers and a 15'x15' living room. The receiver will be used for 60% music and 40% DVD movies. I don't have much money.

Important factors are (in rough order of importance):
* Value
* Reliability - I want something that will last 5+ years. I think Yamaha's are known to last a while.
* Flexibility for the future - I have very low demands now for S-Video/digital inputs b/c my setup is very simple, but I would feel more comfortable with options to expand in the future.
* Brand - I feel warm and fuzzy having a Yamaha, and bleh with Pioneer.

Please help before I pull the trigger. Thanks!

 

[DonJ]

I've notice everyone is staying clear of this post. You mention a nasty word around hear(Bose). But I would clear from both those receivers. Check out JandR and look at the H/K 320 I heard its going for 390.00 plus shipping. If thats out of your budget I would wait and save alittle more it would be well worth it. There is a huge difference with that 90.00 more.

 

[Nick Cerretti]

HT sould quality should be fairly close. I doubt you could tell the difference between the two. Owners have complained that the 811 stereo playback is a little flat, but there's a many who have said pressing the midnight/loudness button (I don't remember which one) fixes that. I'd give the edge to the yammie though.

The pioneer has a few more video inputs, but I wouldn't give it the edge over the yammie on 1 single s-video input (although teh 811 does have front inputs!). THe pioneer has full pre-outs, so if you plan on using external amplification, this is the only one thats going to work. Plus it has DTS-ES Discrete. While the number of titles that use this format is fairly low (around 30), most are popular movies and the number can only go up.

So to answer your question, I would go with the Pioneer unless sound quality is an issue. In which case, audition them! It includes much more future-proofing, and I've yet to hear any problems with the unit.

EDIT - I was looking at this price point for receivers and ended up with the H/K avr320. I don't know if I agree with Don about making a huge difference, but It was worth it for me.

 

[DonJ]

Hey Nick the reason why I say this is I have a friend who has the 811 he brought it over and we did a side by side and the difference was huge. At or near reference levels in 2 channel or multi channel the 811 was blaring horribly the was no image or detail in anything. It made it hard to differentiate between sounds. While as you know the H/K continues to sing even when pushed. You have to look at the high end of the Pioneer Elite before you come close to the sound quality in the H/K. Of course this is all just my opinion and is useless blat her so go and listen for your self and make a decision.

 

[StevenK]

Hi Felix,

I demoed the HTR-5590, H/K AVR-520, and the 811S in a two week span (I actually wrote a comparison a while back...do a quick search and it should come up).

I concur with the comments on musicality on the receivers. The H/K sounded great while the 811S was kinda "bleh".

For movies, all performed extremely well...with the advantage going slightly to the Pioneer for it's DD-EX implementation.

Reliability wise, Yamaha does have a great rep, Pioneer's is quite average, but H/K has had a lot of complaints recently with it's QC. My AVR520 actually developed a majorly annoying shutdown problem within two months. But as is the case with modern electronics today...I doubt you'll have much to worry about reliability wise for either one of the brands.

P.S. I ended up with the Pioneer because of it's feature set and the fact that I only use it as a movie pre-pro, for which it is a real performer.

P.P.S. Warning on the ergonomics of the H/K...that was what drove me over the edge!

 

[ThomasL]

I've mentioned in the past that 2 channel stereo is flat at lower volumes with the Pioneer. I use the 'Loudness' feature which gradually increases bass and treble around points 100Hz and 10Khz. This makes a world of difference for me anyway but much is also going to depend on your speaker placement, what speakers you're using, etc and what type of sound you like. The 'Midnight' option is identical to Loudness when used in 2 channel mode. It also does other things for surround sound modes. I've never found a need to use it.

cheers,


--tom

 

[ChristopherBer]

I would recommend the Pioneer VSX-D811S because it has an adjustable crossover to 200 Hz. I recall looking at a manual for the Bose Acoustimass 10 Series II it says to set the receiver's crossover 200 Hz. So it should be perfect for your system.

 

[Brian Ruth]

Felix:

I'd spend some dough and replace your Acousimass speakers.... I'm sure you can find MANY other speakers that will end up giving you better sound for half the price.

 

[Chuck Kent]

FWIW, I also looked at the Acoustimass 10 Series II manual and while it clearly does say set the crossover to 200 Hz, this is absolutely meaningless. If the sub is turned off on the receiver, and all of the speakers are set as Large, then ALL of the signals (including the LFE) will go to the bass module and onto the cubes. Nothing will be lost! This would be the case for any modern receiver that correctly applies bass management (Large/Small speaker) settings (such as both the Pioneer or the Yamaha.)

Bottom line...whatever you decide, the crossover frequency issue with the Bose speakers is not a concern.

 

[Felix]

Wow, Bose equipment is really despised in audiophile circles.

The speakers were given to me by my folks who have upgraded to JBLs. They are the types of consumers that don't do the type of research that we do- typical of 80% of the population. You must admit that Bose has great marketing and cost cutting tactics - just another way to run a business.

Anyways, I'm going to hold on to them for a bit and see how they get along with my new receiver. They appear to have good resale value on eBay.

Thanks for all your help on the receiver. I ended up getting the Pioneer based on bang for the buck.

 

[Wayne Ernst]

Wow, Bose equipment is really despised in audiophile circles.

I don't think it even has to get as far as the audiophiles to realize that Bose has some issue. There's probably a great percentage of the readers on this forum that are "hobbyists" or "amateurs" when it comes to audio - myself included (and I've been in the audio game for 24 years.)

A lot of people that I know and talk to put Bose on a very high level. Mind you, these are not people that put much seriousness in their audio setups - nor, do they hit the audio shops on a weekly basis like I do to see what's new and to check out the various gear that's available. These are just people that were led to believe that Bose is the best simply as a result of the Bose marketing campaign.

For the people that fall into the category that I described, then Bose is fine for them. If they are unwilling to take the time to compare what is really available, then they deserve what they get. They will go out and buy the Bose gear and be completely happy with it -- and that is what counts: happiness.

Finally, these are the people who will be impressed with bass that gets down to 40 Hz - forget about even pushing it down to 20 Hz because it wouldn't make a lot of difference to them.

For people that are crunched by time and not having enough of it to look at what's available, the Bose marketing campaign targets them. Plus, their wives love the "compactness" of the satellite speakers - and the fact that they come in white, so they're sold.

I'm not bashing Bose, but just trying to throw some logic out there -

 

[Brian Ruth]

Quoth the Felix:
I wouldn't call it cost CUTTING tactics... more like cost INFLATING tactics. Its amazing how much price is mistaken for quality these days. The price on those things is $1000 - QUITE overinflated if you ask me.
Looks like your speakers fetch about $350-$500 on eBay. I'm not sure what all that gets you, but if you're still in the market for small speakers, the Logitech Z-680's might fit the bill. They ARE PC speakers (technically), but they're actually powerful enough that they can serve as home theater speakers, plus they have a decoder onboard in the sub. Just a suggestion - though since you said you had a receiver, their advantages are probably moot.
I'm sure somone on here can recommend some speakers that will sound miles better than your current ones for whatever price you get on eBay for your Acoustimass speakers.