Cheap Pioneer VSX-819H-K 5-Channel A/V Receiver (Black)

First, do not, I repeat, DO NOT buy this receiver if you have large front speakers and/or no subwoofer.

The receiver's auto-speaker calibration forces you to dedicate all of your bass to a subwoofer; what this means is that, A) If you have no subwoofer, you will receive absolutely no bass frequencies from your speakers or, worse, B) If you have large speakers like my 8" woofer Athena towers that dip down to 30hz, you will lose their low frequences from 30hz up to 50hz, as manual set up FORCES you to cross over to a subwoofer at 50hz, regardless of whether you have one or not. You will thus lose those critical 20hz of low-bass capability in which you had invested so much money in in the first place. With my Athena F1.2s in front and B1.2s in back, I shouldn't have to run a superfluous subwoofer, many of which perform worse than my F1s. But without a subwoofer, the system's base frequencies are simply removed, automatically crossed over to a phantom subwoofer. The only explanation for this lame design is that the receiver was really intended for the sonically undemanding home-theater-in-a-box crowd. Pioneer really ought to have clarified this design flaw.

Second, do not buy this receiver if you wish not to have the worst customer service experience in your life. I called Pioneer to report the problem, and after a half hour on hold, an aggressive representative finally came on, demanding, "Yeah, what's up!" Umm, I just wanted to report a problem I have with the lower frequencies . . . . "What, 50hz isn't good enough for you?" (Me, with jaw dropping) Well, are you planning to release a firmware update? "No plans, but you could just hold on the receiver for a while and hope and pray that one comes through. But that's a risk that you'll have to take." So what do I tell amazon? "Tell them its their problem now to sort out." Okkkkaaaayyy. Now, about the 1/2 wait time . . . . "lskdjflskjflskjdflsdkjflsdjfk" (she lectured me in words that I'd rather not repeat here. If you thought your last customer service call to India didn't go well, I dare you to try Pioneer's California service number. The unprofessionalism and utter apathy will knock the wind right out of you.

I'm returning the unit, and I will never buy another Pioneer product. But if you're still thinking about buying the unit, read more:

Other sound issues:

1. The Pioneer has an effects-free, "pure-direct" stereo (2-channel) mode that allows the listener to hear the music "the way it was meant to be heard." Using this mode as a reference, I compared the Pioneer's simulated-surround 2-channel mode, all of the Dolby and DTS modes for 5.1, and the Pioneer's own DSP effects-laden 5.1 mode. None of the alternatives comes close to matching the pure-direct sound: they are very exaggerated and harsh in the upper frequencies, cold in the mids, distorted in the lower end, and altogether lacking in separation. With no fewer than two "gaming" sound modes, the receiver seems to have been designed for the recreational viewer/gamer rather than music listener.

2. Treble, bass, and loudness controls are the only options to the Pioneer sound modes, and they unfortunately have little appreciable impact on the system's sound. This means that the listener is essentially stuck with Pioneer's pre-programmed sounds, which, as noted above, are not geared toward someone who would listen to music with a critical ear. Ultimately, it's a 5.1 system that sounds good only in basic 2-channel stereo.

I wish I could compare this system to the more expensive Onkyo with the same specs. Any suggestions out there for a more musical and a reliable 5.1 or greater receiver at a $350-ish price? Or is this an impossibility for the time being?
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