Pioneer 1018 inqury

[callas01]

Hello everyone, I was talking with my wife because she is getting ready to let me buy my xmas present (new receiver) and I have been pretty much set on the Sony 920... she asked me which ones I have been looking at and I told her my pro's and con's about the Yammy 663 and onkyo 606, she asked about any others and I brought up the pio. and so she said well they make really nice stuff and would I rather do that, and I showed here the price diff. and she really wasn't bothered by it and said you always make the right decision, get what you want......


SO, here I am, I only want to discuss the Pioneer 1018. NOT every other receiver, please no anti sony bias, I will accept bringing up the differences of the 2 units, but I would really like to know what the owners of the pioneer think.

Please I want the good, the bad and the UGLY. what seperates it from other receivers like the DAC's or anything else, links to unbiased reviews, issues with setup, do you have to assign inputs, people say bad things about their actual power output.. is that correct??.good or bad customer service...etc.

I played with the Pio. just briefly at BB, but it was hooked up to a polk 5.1 HTiB, and I couldn't get a good feel for the receiver... I also tried to read through the 86 pages at AVS, but its 86 pages!?!

Thanks for your help.

[TENSE]

i would most definitely go with the pio 1018 over the sony 920.

[callas01]

yeah, not really the response I want, I want insite not opinions. thanks though

[TENSE]

this would probably help!

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread...t=pioneer+1018

[callas01]

Thank you, I have already read the official thread and the engadget page. I've read the spec sheet too, but I guess what I am looking for is real world experience with the AVR, Thanx TENSE.

[jay9228]

callas01

Hi there, hopefully I can help you out a bit. I'm fairly new to the home theater game, but after the last two weeks I have some experience with the new Sony's and Pio1080.. I purchased the S820 a week and a half ago as the next step towards my home theater, replacing my old Sony 5.1 receiver, can't remember the model anymore, already donated to a friend. I ended up returning it two days later, but not because I was not happy with it, but it turned out that it was not compatible with my older Sony 51" rear-pro tv.. This older tv only had a DVI input, not HDMI, so when I connected my PS3 to it, I would have video but no audio. After a few phone calls to Sony tech, I was told my only option was to use optical for audio and HDMI for video only. However I also discovered that the amp did not allow me to select optical audio input for the input which was using HDMI at the same time, after a second call I was then told my only option then was to buy a new TV... yah, right.. Other then this issue, I was pleased with the amp's sound quality and features, if it had worked as I had hoped with my equipment I certainly would have kept it...

After returning it I went and picked up the Pio1018, very comparable in features and now that I have listened to many different sources and played with all the surround options, I think I have a real winner on my hands. The sound is amazing, True-HD in 7.1 with my entry level Polk speakers is un-describable, my friends are all buying Blu-Rays just to leave at my house Of course, this setup works flawlessly with my PS3 and older Sony TV, something I still wish the SONY receiver would have worked, but I think in the end I like this receiver more.

Just to note, the 720 and 920 will have the same issue for anyone else using an older TV.

Conclusion, they are both excellent receivers, if you have no concerns with compatability with the rest of your gear, I'm certain you will be happy with either. Personally, I think after having tried both, and even if the Sony had worked with my setup I would still choose the Pioneer, from most sources there is no difference in sound quality, but with True-HD, the 1018 really shines in my opinion.

-Jay