The Official Pioneer Elite 21/23/25/27 Receivers Thread

[Hugans26]

Hello everyone... I'm new to this site, EXCELLENT site filled with great information

My current set-up is the following:

TV: Samsung LCD LN-T5265F
Blu-ray: Sony BDP-S550 - To TV via HDMI -Monster 1000 HD
DVD player: Denon 2900
Receiver: Onkyo TX-DS787 - Rated at 100 x 6 watts
Speakers: 6.1 set-up ALL "Athena Technologies"
Front: AS-F2, Center: AS-C1, Surround & back surround AS-R1 - ALL held with Blue Jeans cable 12 gauge.
Subwoofers: 2 Velodynes CHT-12
Monster Power Center EP 3650

I have to questions I need your expertise advise, PLEASE. Now that you know more or less where I'm at. I will be replacing my Onkyo TX-DS787 with the Pioneer Elite SC-27
1. Do you guys think I would get an improvement on sound quality?

2. Right now I have the Sony S550 connected directly to the Samsung (and it looks awesome) since the Onkyo does not have HDMI inputs. With the Pioneer AV I would like to go from the Sony S550 through the Pioneer's HDMI and out to the Samsung. What kind of video quality would I get since it will not go directly to the Samsung, would it degrate?

Thanks for your advice,
Hugans

[Irrob]

Originally Posted by Hugans26

Hello everyone... I'm new to this site, EXCELLENT site filled with great information

My current set-up is the following:

TV: Samsung LCD LN-T5265F
Blu-ray: Sony BDP-S550 - To TV via HDMI -Monster 1000 HD
DVD player: Denon 2900
Receiver: Onkyo TX-DS787 - Rated at 100 x 6 watts
Speakers: 6.1 set-up ALL "Athena Technologies"
Front: AS-F2, Center: AS-C1, Surround & back surround AS-R1 - ALL held with Blue Jeans cable 12 gauge.
Subwoofers: 2 Velodynes CHT-12
Monster Power Center EP 3650

I have to questions I need your expertise advise, PLEASE. Now that you know more or less where I'm at. I will be replacing my Onkyo TX-DS787 with the Pioneer Elite SC-27
1. Do you guys think I would get an improvement on sound quality?

2. Right now I have the Sony S550 connected directly to the Samsung (and it looks awesome) since the Onkyo does not have HDMI inputs. With the Pioneer AV I would like to go from the Sony S550 through the Pioneer's HDMI and out to the Samsung. What kind of video quality would I get since it will not go directly to the Samsung, would it degrate?

Thanks for your advice,
Hugans

1. most definitely!!!!! The ICE amps in the Elites are super efficient.
2. No degrading. signal passes through unmolested. Going through the receiver is the preferred method...no lossless audio otherwise.

edit. fixed typo

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by Hugans26

Hello everyone... I'm new to this site, EXCELLENT site filled with great information

My current set-up is the following:

TV: Samsung LCD LN-T5265F
Blu-ray: Sony BDP-S550 - To TV via HDMI -Monster 1000 HD
DVD player: Denon 2900
Receiver: Onkyo TX-DS787 - Rated at 100 x 6 watts
Speakers: 6.1 set-up ALL "Athena Technologies"
Front: AS-F2, Center: AS-C1, Surround & back surround AS-R1 - ALL held with Blue Jeans cable 12 gauge.
Subwoofers: 2 Velodynes CHT-12
Monster Power Center EP 3650

I have to questions I need your expertise advise, PLEASE. Now that you know more or less where I'm at. I will be replacing my Onkyo TX-DS787 with the Pioneer Elite SC-27
1. Do you guys think I would get an improvement on sound quality?

2. Right now I have the Sony S550 connected directly to the Samsung (and it looks awesome) since the Onkyo does not have HDMI inputs. With the Pioneer AV I would like to go from the Sony S550 through the Pioneer's HDMI and out to the Samsung. What kind of video quality would I get since it will not go directly to the Samsung, would it degrate?

Thanks for your advice,
Hugans

First, welcome to the site Hugans! This is a great place to learn a ton of things about your HT....

Second, I agree with Irrob on both points. The Elite's processing seems to make the audio sound less "processsed" and just cleaner. This seems to add add'l clarity to what my ears hear IMO. Also, yes, the SC-27 does "passthrough", so the signal should not be manipulated in any way. Like Irrob states, you want to use HDMU thru the receiver to get your lossless audio!

[Hugans26]

Thank you very much forsberg21 and Irrob for your response. I will enjoy this site very much . I'll let you know as soon as I get the SC-27.

By the way, is there really a difference between the SC-25 & 27? Besides the 27 being THX Ultra 2? Do they share the same processing and amps Class "D" ICE power amplification, and AIR Studios Monitor Sound Tuning Certification?

Thanks again for your insightful comments.

Hugans

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by Hugans26

Thank you very much forsberg21 and Irrob for your response. I will enjoy this site very much . I'll let you know as soon as I get the SC-27.

By the way, is there really a difference between the SC-25 & 27? Besides the 27 being THX Ultra 2? Do they share the same processing and amps Class "D" ICE power amplification, and AIR Studios Monitor Sound Tuning Certification?

Thanks again for your insightful comments.

Hugans

In a nutshell, yes. I think the manual is universal for both of them too. My SC-05 manual was for the SC-05 and SC-07...that is how similiar they are....

Welcome again!

[Steve]

Originally Posted by forsberg21

In a nutshell, yes. I think the manual is universal for both of them too. My SC-05 manual was for the SC-05 and SC-07...that is how similiar they are....

Welcome again!

That's correct fors. I have a downloaded copy of the manual, and it covers both models. I was originally hellbent on getting an SC-27, but due to the price difference I'm going to go with the SC-25 instead. I'm not convinced I'll see any practical "real world" difference between the two performance-wise.

[mugupo]

What are difference between 21 and 23 beside 23 has 1 more hdmi and zone.

Is 23 worth $150 more than 21?

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by fireman325

That's correct fors. I have a downloaded copy of the manual, and it covers both models. I was originally hellbent on getting an SC-27, but due to the price difference I'm going to go with the SC-25 instead. I'm not convinced I'll see any practical "real world" difference between the two performance-wise.

I think the biggest difference is the Ultra2 Plus vs Select2 Plus certification. They both have the same power rating, 9 Band EQ for MCACC, the Burr-Brown processing and ICEpower Class D amps.

That makes complete sense to me!

[HD Man]

Originally Posted by mugupo

What are difference between 21 and 23 beside 23 has 1 more hdmi and zone.

Is 23 worth $150 more than 21?

When comparing the 23 to the 21, I believe the 23 has

+ 1 hdmi input (located on the front panel I think)
+ 1 hdmi output
+ 1 zone output (3 zones)
+ Multi channel PQLS vs 2 channel.

So you just have to judge if these features are important to you compared to the price differential.

[Layd Dly]

I got my VSX23-TXH last week from 6ave.com and I finally just got around to hooking it up. Man i cant believe how good this thing sounds, and this was before i even ran the MCACC. Cant wait to tweak it more and get my room set up further.

Gratuitous Pics.

[Fors*]

Congrats Layd Dly! I love the Elite's! Once you run MCACC you'll really see how much more your audio will open up....

[Irrob]

Yes yes congrats! Thats one fine piece of tech you chose. Enjoy the dual HDMI outputs on the 23, for hooking up two HDTV's simultaneously

[Hugans26]

As always, thank you very much for the clarification forsberg...

Fireman, now you got me thinking, if the SC-25 & 27 are plactically simillar in everyway, besides one being THX Ultra 2 vs THX Select 2, I think I wound't mind going for the 25 since there is quite a price difference.

Lloyd, congratulations on your new baby... It looks AWESOME

hugans

[Hugans26]

I'm so sorry, I meant Layd...

[Steve]

Originally Posted by Hugans26

As always, thank you very much for the clarification forsberg...

Fireman, now you got me thinking, if the SC-25 & 27 are plactically simillar in everyway, besides one being THX Ultra 2 vs THX Select 2, I think I wound't mind going for the 25 since there is quite a price difference.

Lloyd, congratulations on your new baby... It looks AWESOME

hugans

I didn't mean to make you second guess your decision. I was just trying to reinforce the idea that these two models are so similar that they share a single owner's manual. I should also make it clear that I've done no direct comparisons between the two, nor do I own one yet. I'm saving up for it, and anticipate ordering in about 3 more weeks. I made the decision to go with the SC-25 due to the price difference. If you decide to go the same route, just make sure it's what you want to do and not because of peer pressure.

However, if you do go with the SC-25, I'm sure you'll spend the money you save on something else HT related.

If you want to do some reading on your own, the link to download the owner's manual for the SC-25/27 is here. Forsberg21 convinced me of the wisdom of downloading the manual and even printing a copy and now I'm passing that advice on to you. It's so much easier to open the file in PDF format on your computer and be able to search it for specific features/functions rather than searching through a paper manual page by page. Anyway digging through the manual a little bit may help you make your decision between the 25/27.

[Hugans26]

Originally Posted by fireman325

I didn't mean to make you second guess your decision. I was just trying to reinforce the idea that these two models are so similar that they share a single owner's manual. I should also make it clear that I've done no direct comparisons between the two, nor do I own one yet. I'm saving up for it, and anticipate ordering in about 3 more weeks. I made the decision to go with the SC-25 due to the price difference. If you decide to go the same route, just make sure it's what you want to do and not because of peer pressure.

However, if you do go with the SC-25, I'm sure you'll spend the money you save on something else HT related.

If you want to do some reading on your own, the link to download the owner's manual for the SC-25/27 is here. Forsberg21 convinced me of the wisdom of downloading the manual and even printing a copy and now I'm passing that advice on to you. It's so much easier to open the file in PDF format on your computer and be able to search it for specific features/functions rather than searching through a paper manual page by page. Anyway digging through the manual a little bit may help you make your decision between the 25/27.

Thank you fireman325... I totally understand and agree with you. I've already downloaded the manual for the SC-25/27, I'll start doing some reading of my own

I want to make sure I make the right choice with no regrets later. Thanks again for your help!

Hugans

[Lipcsey]

I bought an Elite VSX21 yesterday for a good price and am enjoying it so far. I ran the MCACC and it does sound better, a bit tighter and sharper. I initially got an Onkyo 706, the other week, but there was a problem with the HDMI handshaking so I will be taking it back.

I have a question about sound mode/display for blu-rays. When I am playing a bluray through my PS3 it shows on the Elite as PCM when I select standard surround, instead of TrueHD or DTS-HD MASTER I wanted to know if anyone else's receiver does the same thing? On the box it shows DTS-HD MASTER, should I be getting this on the display or should it show PCM?

Thanks

[DMC86X]

Its because the original PS3 doesnt bitstream lossless audio.

[Lipcsey]

Originally Posted by DMC86X

Its because the original PS3 doesnt bitstream lossless audio.

Does this mean that I am losing some of the quality? Anything I can do about it besides buying a standalone player?

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by Lipcsey

Does this mean that I am losing some of the quality? Anything I can do about it besides buying a standalone player?

You are not losing any quality. It just means the PS3 is decoding the HD audio instead of the receiver. You are getting the same quality sound doing it this way. the only thing you won't see on the receiver is the Dolby TrueHD or DTS-HD MA on the receiver's dispaly.

The only thing you could do is to get the PS3 Slim or a stand-alone if you want to bitstream the audio to the receiver and have it decode the audio for you....sorry.