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Review 2 of 2
Price Paid:
$165.00
from Circuit City Summary:
This is a great little receiver. I initially wanted another Marantz receiver to watch videos or play music in my second family room. When a friend told me it was comparable to an Onkyo, I was skeptical. I have used Marantz, Denon, and Onkyo products and have never had any complaints. At the store, I made direct comparisons between this receiver and an Onkyo using direct sound for each and keeping the treble and base levels at 0. I was stunned. This receiver did have a sound that was comparable to the Onkyo. I tried another Onkyo and had the same result. Since it was under $200, I decided to give it a shot but said I would return it as soon as I had a chance to audition it at home. At home, I made a direct comparison to a Denon AVR 2106. It did practically as well as the Denon concerning music and better concerning the sound of movies. I am now second guessing why I spent $600 for a Denon on the main floor of my home when I could have purchased another one of these for that area as well. I also compared it to a Marantz SR6300. The Marantz outperformed it all around but that was expected in light of the price, quality, and build of the Marantz. But finding that it performs as well as my Denon still shocks me. I do not know about other Pioneer products, but I am certainly going to keep this receiver and need to check out other Pioneer products. Strengths:
Has an incredibly rich sound for an inexpensive, entry level receiver. Automatically switches to best audio format when a different audio input is selected or when the audio source changes. Weaknesses:
Does not have video switching or all the video inputs and outputs so many people now seek in AV receivers. I find it is useless to run video feeds through a receivers and do not bother to do so; but for some individuals, that is terribly important. Similar Products Used:
Marantz SR 6300
Marantz Sr 4120
Denon AVR-2106
Denon DRA-395
Onkyo TX-8511
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