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What you guys think of Pioneer VSX-919AH-K - Page 2

post #31 of 212
6/27/09 at 12:58pm
Which input are you using?

Your options are:

TV/SAT
DVR
DVD

Plug the RCA cables into the jacks for the input you want to use.

Plug the HDMI cable into HDMI-1, or 2, and use the Input Setup menu (under the home Menu) to select the input you want to use and select the HDMI port you are using.

You will want to turn off KURO link before you can specify the HDMI inputs.

Another option is to connect your HDMI directly to the TV, and plug the audio into the AUX or similar audio only jack on the receiver. THen you have to switch both the input on the TV, and the Receiver, but it but be a workable solution if you don't use it very often, or don't want to sacrifice an HDMI input on the receiver.

The 919 has three HDMI inputs, but one is dedicated to Blue Ray. THe 1019 has a fourth HDMI input...
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post #32 of 212
6/27/09 at 1:22pm
If I plug in my Cable DVR box with HDMI, PS3 with HDMI and a VCR with the Red,White and Yellow cables into the Pioneer VSX-919AH-K will I be able too just run one HDMI into the TV and be able to get Sound aswell?
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post #33 of 212
6/27/09 at 2:00pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by aross99 View Post

You will want to turn off KURO link before you can specify the HDMI inputs.

Ay, there's the rub - it wasn't letting me assign the HDMI ports to the different inputs with this turned on. Smooth sailing now - thanks!
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post #34 of 212
6/27/09 at 5:06pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by gate1975mlm View Post

If I plug in my Cable DVR box with HDMI, PS3 with HDMI and a VCR with the Red,White and Yellow cables into the Pioneer VSX-919AH-K will I be able too just run one HDMI into the TV and be able to get Sound aswell?

Do you mean will you get sound from the TV or receiver?

It will definitely work for through the Receiver. Video will be converted to HDMI...

As far as I can tell from scouring the manual, the only way to get audio out of the receiver and to a TV is through the HDMI connection, and only if the HDMI setting is changed from AMP to THROUGH.

I can't tell if this will convert the analog inputs from something like a VCR to digital for output through the HDMI cable...

Why not use the receiver all the time though?
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post #35 of 212
6/27/09 at 5:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sanzen07 View Post

Ay, there's the rub - it wasn't letting me assign the HDMI ports to the different inputs with this turned on. Smooth sailing now - thanks!

This took me a while to figure out also. The manual for these receivers leave a lot to be desired...
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post #36 of 212
6/28/09 at 1:57pm
Hi

What is the benefit of the 1019 upscalling over the 919? Is it worth the extra ££ for this feature?

I am receiving a Kuro 500A and want to make the best of it, should I rather go for the 1019 for the upscalling of SD ?
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post #37 of 212
6/28/09 at 2:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by IgorJeri View Post

Hi

What is the benefit of the 1019 upscalling over the 919? Is it worth the extra ££ for this feature?

I am receiving a Kuro 500A and want to make the best of it, should I rather go for the 1019 for the upscalling of SD ?

The 1019 has an extra HDMI input , additional Coax Digital audio input, and the Video upscaling. The Video upscaling is only a benefit if you use 480i/480p sources, and if your TV doesn't do a good job of scaling.

WIth a KURO 500A, you would be fine with the 919.

I have a VSX-919 that I use with my KRP-500M, and it works great. I have a 480p DVD player, and the KURO scales that perfectly.

For me, it would come down to how much the extra cost was, and if I needed the extra input.

If I wanted to spend more money, I would look at the entry level Elite receiver (VSX-01TX?)...
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post #38 of 212
6/28/09 at 2:43pm
Thanks across99

What about SD as from standard non HD telli?

Does the Kuro do well here or is this where the 1019 comes in?
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post #39 of 212
6/28/09 at 5:25pm
My SDTV is scaled to 1080i in my STB, but my 480p DVD looks great. I think you will be fine with the 919.
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post #40 of 212
7/6/09 at 10:08pm
Been a silent AVS member for awhile now. I purchased the VSX-919 a couple weeks ago after shopping the $400-$600 arena for about a year...Couldn't resist speaking out about its tremendous value.

I chose this receiver to complete my new home theatre installation (52" Aquos/Paradigm) and couldn't be happier. It has no problem driving my Paradigm Studio system with decent clarity at healthy volumes. Anyone would be hard pressed to match this receiver's features for anywhere close to its price.

Pros:
7.1 TrueHD/DTS-HD
3x HDMI Repeating
Composite/component analog to HDMI out
Zone 2 Audio
MCACC (works VERY well)
Digital IPod Interface with GUI control (yes, it bypasses the IPod's DAC)
USB drive interface (powers/plays my 320Gig HD of WAV/MP3)
6 Ohm load stable

Cons:
480i to 480p only (tho hardly needed anymore as 1080 becomes standard)
Runs warm (haven't heard the internal fan tho)
Remote operation is a tad cumbersome (Harmony fixed that)

I wouldn't be surprised if this receiver is crowned this years best buy...and quite possibly dethrones the Onkyo 606 and Yamaha 663/6160 (upscaling aside). I think Pioneer is breaking new ground...mid-level features for an entry-level price. I WOULD be surprised to hear of any disappointed owners.
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post #41 of 212
7/7/09 at 6:58am
How does the voice dialogue sound? is it good and clear in movies? do you often find yourself having to turn it up when ppl are speaking low?

Quote:
Originally Posted by (((Stereo))) View Post

Been a silent AVS member for awhile now. I purchased the VSX-919 a couple weeks ago after shopping the $400-$600 arena for about a year...Couldn't resist speaking out about its tremendous value.

I chose this receiver to complete my new home theatre installation (52" Aquos/Paradigm) and couldn't be happier. It has no problem driving my Paradigm Studio system with decent clarity at healthy volumes. Anyone would be hard pressed to match this receiver's features for anywhere close to its price.

Pros:
7.1 TrueHD/DTS-HD
3x HDMI Repeating
Composite/component analog to HDMI out
Zone 2 Audio
MCACC (works VERY well)
Digital IPod Interface with GUI control (yes, it bypasses the IPod's DAC)
USB drive interface (powers/plays my 320Gig HD of WAV/MP3)
6 Ohm load stable

Cons:
480i to 480p only (tho hardly needed anymore as 1080 becomes standard)
Runs warm (haven't heard the internal fan tho)
Remote operation is a tad cumbersome (Harmony fixed that)

I wouldn't be surprised if this receiver is crowned this years best buy...and quite possibly dethrones the Onkyo 606 and Yamaha 663/6160 (upscaling aside). I think Pioneer is breaking new ground...mid-level features for an entry-level price. I WOULD be surprised to hear of any disappointed owners.
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post #42 of 212
7/7/09 at 1:03pm
I have been looking at getting the 919. I am not an audiophile, but I do have:

42" HD TV
DVD player
IPOD
DirecTV (HD)
No game player (but might in future)
No BluRay (but might in future)

I have TWO Paradigm Mini Monitor V.3 speakers.

I am getting 2 additional speakers for the patio (for a 2nd zone)

My reasons for my interest in the 919 are:
-Easy video switching, and only one cable to the TV
-Multi-zone capability (ability to listen to different sources in main room vs patio)
-Good Price

My question is whether the 919 will work well with just 2 speakers in the main room. Is there is better option for me?
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post #43 of 212
7/7/09 at 1:13pm
does the 819 upscale through hdmi? i'll be using my 360 for this mostly. i currently have more dvds than bds so...


nevermind, i just looked and it doesn't. i've already made the purchase though. i'm curious to know if the 360 upscales my dvds, will going through the receiver have an affect on that?
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post #44 of 212
7/7/09 at 8:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by (((Stereo))) View Post

Been a silent AVS member for awhile now. I purchased the VSX-919 a couple weeks ago after shopping the $400-$600 arena for about a year...Couldn't resist speaking out about its tremendous value....

Pros:
USB drive interface (powers/plays my 320Gig HD of WAV/MP3).....

Stereo, thanks for posting. Finally someone has hooked an HD to the USB port. I am very interested in your experience.

Drive brand and model? It's great that it will power a drive.

I wasn't aware it played WAV. Have you tried it with WMA files?

How does the on-screen display look/work? Can you set up a playlist? (mostly entire albums for me).

Can you switch from the on-screen display without messing up the music? I often have sports on without sound while listening to music, so could I do that or even turn the TV off once the music is playing?

Will it play lossless at all? I recall the manual states something like 192 WMA or 320 MP3 or less, but it doesn't hurt to try

Doug
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post #45 of 212
7/7/09 at 10:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Taperwood View Post

Stereo, thanks for posting. Finally someone has hooked an HD to the USB port. I am very interested in your experience.

Drive brand and model? It's great that it will power a drive.

I wasn't aware it played WAV. Have you tried it with WMA files?

How does the on-screen display look/work? Can you set up a playlist? (mostly entire albums for me).

Can you switch from the on-screen display without messing up the music? I often have sports on without sound while listening to music, so could I do that or even turn the TV off once the music is playing?

Will it play lossless at all? I recall the manual states something like 192 WMA or 320 MP3 or less, but it doesn't hurt to try

Doug


It powered my Western Digital 2.5" 320Gig Passport no problem. The on screen display is a folder/file view. Not all that different than MS File Explorer. Took a few minutes initially to scan the drive with my 30,000+ audio files.

Not sure if it plays playlists, although I don't recall noticing...doubt it. If your albums are sorted by folders (like mine), it plays through it.

Since its an input option (IPod/USB), you can't select/assign an alternate video source at the same time. You can definately turn off the TV to simply listen only...The LCD text matrix displays your artist/title playing.

No FLAC, but it plays WAV...I converted lossless FLAC files back to WAV and they sound great. You can't beat digital direct WAV playback for SQ. All MP3 bitrates work fine. Haven't tried WMA as I don't have any. Since it digitally interfaces with my 80Gig IPod, lossless ALAC files also sound very good.
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post #46 of 212
7/7/09 at 11:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by digitalman42 View Post

How does the voice dialogue sound? is it good and clear in movies? do you often find yourself having to turn it up when ppl are speaking low?

That may depend on your center channel's sensitivity. However, after running the receiver's auto calibration, voice dialogue on my system sounds natural and well balanced amidst L/R channel effects. I do not have to turn up the volume for quiet dialogue. In fact, my wife commented last weekend about how "theatre like" it now sounded (and she RARELY says anything meaningful regarding technology).
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post #47 of 212
7/7/09 at 11:23pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bryan withaY View Post

Last weekend I exchanged my VSX-819 at BB for the VSX-919. My main reason was for the perceived issue with the loss in video quality using the HDMI in/out. I thought that I was seeing things until a read about it in the 819 thread; so I tested it myself.
It was true, I ran my Blue Ray and my HTPC direct to my projector with the same cables and the image was noticeably better and motion was smoother. When I got the 919 I re-ran my test and the images and motion looked identical to my eyes, the way that HD should look like.

On Pioneers website it shows that the 919 has PureCinema video processing (true 24fps) where the 819 does not. All I know is now is that both the BR and the HTPC images look superb running through the 919. The sound is pretty frickin' good too.

I like.

excellent point. your preceived issue was indeed an issue as far as pq goes. i bought the 519 as it served ALL my audio and connectivity needs but i couldnt help but to think i was getting less than stellar video performance. then i looked on the website and saw (like you did) that the 519 nor the 819 support 24fps, whereas the others do. i was kind of perplexed as to why they would have a reciever that would not pass a feature that is very important to blue ray viewing!!

i took mine back and got the denon 1910. denon's entire line support 24fps and they state it.. sometimes these avr options are like buying a new car, you have to get the sunroof with the nice alloy rims even though you dont really want/need the sunroof. i didnt really need all the bells and whistles of the denon but absolutely needed the blu ray support so i went for it...
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post #48 of 212
7/8/09 at 3:11am
pleasantonman -- Yes, it will work just fine with only 2 channels output (Front L/R). Any 5.1 channel or 7.1 chanel AVR will work just fine for stereo (2 channel) service. The unused channels can be just set to Off.
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post #49 of 212
7/8/09 at 7:05am
Quote:
Originally Posted by (((Stereo))) View Post

It powered my Western Digital 2.5" 320Gig Passport no problem. The on screen display is a folder/file view. Not all that different than MS File Explorer. Took a few minutes initially to scan the drive with my 30,000+ audio files.

Not sure if it plays playlists, although I don't recall noticing...doubt it. If your albums are sorted by folders (like mine), it plays through it.

Since its an input option (IPod/USB), you can't select/assign an alternate video source at the same time. You can definately turn off the TV to simply listen only...The LCD text matrix displays your artist/title playing.

No FLAC, but it plays WAV...I converted lossless FLAC files back to WAV and they sound great. You can't beat digital direct WAV playback for SQ. All MP3 bitrates work fine. Haven't tried WMA as I don't have any. Since it digitally interfaces with my 80Gig IPod, lossless ALAC files also sound very good.


when you convert the flac files to wav are they still lossless? Can you hear much diff in sq between high bitrate mp3 and lossless?
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post #50 of 212
7/8/09 at 7:21am
Quote:
Originally Posted by digitalman42 View Post

when you convert the flac files to wav are they still lossless? Can you hear much diff in sq between high bitrate mp3 and lossless?

Converting FLAC to WAV will still result in a lossless file and no degradation of SQ. The only difference is the WAV will be much larger as it isn't compressed and decompressed on the fly like FLAC.

IMO, it isn't a night and day difference between a 320 MP3 and Lossless, but it's there.
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post #51 of 212
7/8/09 at 10:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by (((Stereo))) View Post

It powered my Western Digital 2.5" 320Gig Passport no problem. The on screen display is a folder/file view. Not all that different than MS File Explorer. Took a few minutes initially to scan the drive with my 30,000+ audio files.

Not sure if it plays playlists, although I don't recall noticing...doubt it. If your albums are sorted by folders (like mine), it plays through it.

Since its an input option (IPod/USB), you can't select/assign an alternate video source at the same time. You can definately turn off the TV to simply listen only...The LCD text matrix displays your artist/title playing.

No FLAC, but it plays WAV...I converted lossless FLAC files back to WAV and they sound great. You can't beat digital direct WAV playback for SQ. All MP3 bitrates work fine. Haven't tried WMA as I don't have any. Since it digitally interfaces with my 80Gig IPod, lossless ALAC files also sound very good.

Thanks. I appreciate it. Bummer that you can't switch the TV to "TV" and watch something while music is playing.

As playlists go, are you saying you can only select one album folder at a time to play, or can you select multiple folders and play them consecutively? Like you would at a party or something.
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post #52 of 212
7/8/09 at 12:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Taperwood View Post

Thanks. I appreciate it. Bummer that you can't switch the TV to "TV" and watch something while music is playing.

There's an easy workaround for that. Just take an unused output on your cable box and hook it directly to an unused input on your TV.

I need a workaround for the one-coax problem. In my house I have computer spdif, dvd spdif, and cable box (choice of spdif or optical) I bought the receiver without counting the inputs. should I go for a cheapo a/b switch, a coax-optical converter, or a new dvd player (an excuse for me to buy a new bluray).
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post #53 of 212
7/8/09 at 1:37pm
Just curious how well the audio delay function works on this or the 519? Right now I'm using a Sony HT-CT100 and am looking to upgrade to a genuine speaker system. The Sony's audio delay function is simply On or Off, no millisecond settings or anything (for some movies, having the delay on is not enough of a delay, and for others turning the delay off is not enough of an "un-delay"). I've read about the Felston, Alchemy2, and Primare stand-alone audio delays, but those can only be used with digital audio (coax/optical) and are pretty pricey (I'd rather just spend the money towards speakers and a receiver). Do the Pioneer receivers have multiple audio delay settings or millsecond settings, or are they just on/off?

(I'm still within the 30 days of my Sony HT-CT100 from Best Buy, but unfortunately my mom just threw the box out a couple of days ago, so I'll probably just have to bite the bullet and absorb the cost of this one. But I'd rather buy a receiver and speakers rather than just a stand-alone audio delay device).
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post #54 of 212
7/8/09 at 4:05pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by JeffStickney View Post

I need a workaround for the one-coax problem. In my house I have computer spdif, dvd spdif, and cable box (choice of spdif or optical) I bought the receiver without counting the inputs. should I go for a cheapo a/b switch, a coax-optical converter, or a new dvd player (an excuse for me to buy a new bluray).

not sure if one is preferred over the other in general, but either of the first two options should work. Of course, the new blu-ray player is the sexiest yet most personally bankrupting option.

if you haven't already, look on monoprice.com. I know when I was researching this stuff, I was concerned that I might need another optical input and that's one place I confirmed that has something like that. I would suspect that they also offer both a switch or a converter as well for spdif.
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post #55 of 212
7/10/09 at 7:34am
I am thinking of getting the VSX-919AH-K, but the fact that it only has 3 HDMI inputs has me concerned. Does anybody have experience hooking up an HDMI switch to one of the inputs on this (or similar receiver)?

I was thinking of a configuration where I had the PS3 and XBOX on a monoprice switch going into HDMI port 3. HDMI port 1 would by my dish DVR, port 2 would be my HTPC. Do you think there would be any HDMI handshake problems inserting another switch in the middle?

PS3 -> monoprice HDMI switch -> VSX-919AH-K -> TV

Thoughts?
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post #56 of 212
7/10/09 at 9:22am
for all that trouble, why not just get the 1019 for a little more?
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post #57 of 212
7/10/09 at 9:40am
That's a very good point, and maybe it is the right way to go.

My struggle is that right now the 1019 is $130 more than the 919. I don't have more than 3 HDMI sources at this point (my example in the previous post was a theoretical one). The only reason to get a receiver with more HDMI is in case I need them in the future. It would be nice to think that if I needed more HDMI in the future, I could just attach a 5x1 hdmi switch.

I'm just trying to figure out if anybody has actually tried this, and if there would be any issues (other than a complication of having to control both the switch and the receiver when switching sources).
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post #58 of 212
7/10/09 at 9:51am
lots and lots of people use HDMI switches in conjunction with receivers to get more HDMI inputs. while there is always the possibility of "handshake" problems with any HDMI switching setup, if you get a good quality switch there should be any issues. I think many people use monoprice switches successfully.
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post #59 of 212
7/17/09 at 4:34pm
I currently have an older VSX-516 and while it does all I need from an A/V I do not like having to always up/down the volume due to the louder sections in a movie or the quieter ones when its not loud enough for the audio.

So I've been looking for a new A/V and have 3 in mind.

VSX-919AH-k. The cheapest of the 3 but I am will to pay more to get what i want.
"Pioneer's ALC technology equalizes the fluctuating volume levels that can occur with digital audio tracks and other input sources resulting in a richer user experience that alleviates the need to manually adjust the volume." Sounds good .. is it so?

AVR-790. This has the most feed back on this issue i've found and it sounds good. The Audyssey stuff

TX-SR607B.

Anyone with thoughts about these or this issue in general?

thx
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post #60 of 212
7/24/09 at 2:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ladic View Post

can the pioneer recieve banana plugs?

Quote:
Originally Posted by aross99 View Post

Yes

Ok I've just taken my Pioneer VSX-919AH out of the box, and for the life of me can't see how my banana plugs will fit. Does this definitely accept banana plugs? The black part inside the red connectors seems to not have a large enough hole.
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