Quickie HTiB Review: Pioneer HTP-2920, $220 (Entry-Level)

[JJ]

So I finally made a foray into bedroom electronics - having only had a 17" Sanyo I was given for free and a Coby CD player since I moved into this house 17 months ago - and proceeded about setting my budget at around $800. I already had two BR players in the living room set-up (with that out there, I'm ALLOWED to have an HTiB in my br. Shush), so I planned on moving my PS3 there. TV-wise, I decided on the Samsung 32" A330, a gorgeous aesthetic and performing television (for $500, couldnt be happier) - but the real challenge came in finding decent sound. Wanting a new stand as well, this limited me to around $200-$250, a hell of a challenge.

So I looked around online at that price range, and at BB I ran into the Pioneer 2920. Not your typical HTiB at this price, as it doesn't include a player, it is only a receiver + 5.1 speakers - but since I love Pioneer since the purchase of my VSX-03 6 weeks ago I decided to give it a chance.

Set-up was a breeze (then again, this stuff is second nature to me nowadays) - it comes packaged as a SX-218 Receiver (218! lol, and you all love the 1018, 8 units up) and S-3100K speakers. Inputs, albeit non-HDMI (didn't need it), were plenty for my needs - one optical, two digital, two RCA red/whites, and FM/AM radio - impressive inputs for a $220 set. The speakers I decided to wall-mount using Atlantic mounts ($20) found at Wally World, great stuff - and the speakers include options for screw mounting or keyhole mounting, again, impressive. The speakers themselves, while not as aesthetically pleasing as LG's modern HTiBs inthe price range, were nonetheless great to look at - just melded into the bedroom. The subwoofer itself - was I surprised. It's only a pair of 5" drivers in a large ported enclosure - I was fearful of turning it on. But anyway, plugged it all in easy enough (unfortunately, the tiny spring connectors on the 5 speakers only fit the 22AWG wire supplied, using bigger would require Pin terminals. On the sub, I was able to fit in 14 AWG wire comfortably. I felt it would need it). Placed the speakers comfortably in my room (perhaps not sonically perfectly, in here I preferred more aesthetics) - and began tweaking.

The amount of options offered to you in this receiver are incredible! It's also quite a looker! Apart from the typical Pro Logic processing given in any HTiB, this one offered a lot of the choices of my VSX-03! The usual Direct/Stereo were there as well, and all of Pioneer's processing options - a wealth of choices that I'd never seen in an HTiB. Sound Retriever was also available, to restore a bit of data lost in music compression for digital mp3 sources. The usual speaker distance/channel level adjustments were present as well, and options for sound manipulation beyond anything I imagined for a $220 set. Handy features such as a Display dimmer were also included.

Disc testing was done on LOTR:RotK DTS edition - Witch-king/Gandalf scene, SW:Ep. I podracing, Dark Knight - Lower 5th. The subwoofer itself was surprising, albeit maybe due to the larger wiring I used, but it adequately filled my 12x15x9 bedroom (it's no Dynamo though, not even close) - and while still boomy, still wasn't completely a one-note pony. Speakers were not tinny sounding at all, albeit I wish I could've used a little equalizer adjustments (not too bright, a little flat). Overall, I was pleased. I smiled a bit, content with it. I would've loved to put some Paradigm Atoms and B&W M-1s in here, but then I couldn't have afforded the Panny 50" for the main room - so overall, if you're looking for a stop-gap unit, a bedroom setup, or even a small gaming rig, this Pioneer 2920 @ only $220 is an incredible bargain. Although lacking HDMI, for the inputs, customization options, and sound quality, and the fact that its still a receiver (and can thus power other speakers - specs say 100Wx6, 0.7% THD, 8 ohms...that 8 ohms part is incredible most HTiBs use 3,4, or 6 so you can't switch out the speakers or receiver for others) - I can't recommend anything else in the price point (although I still believe in saving up for better purchases in the long run). Well done again, Pioneer!