Pioneer Elite 59Txi Owners Thread

$1750?

I've searched deep into the archives and have considered starting one myself. Given the extention of the 59TXi's shelf life after CES, it's appropriate to start one.

At $1750 I hope you've bought it already! You will not be disappointed.

Shoot with any questions you have on it.

I'd looked for one as well, and no luck.

I, for one, don't intend to purchase a new receiver for a while, and need to make the 59txi work out for a good long time. As things settle down a bit I'll move into which ever new DVD format becomes prominent, and replace my tube with a 40" or so LCD, but the 59txi will remain as a centerpont for which ever direction things go.

From what I'm reading on this forum, it doesn't seem like Pioneer will offer a HDMI upgrade for the 59txi, but it does seem that some new dvd players will pass audio through the analog inputs of the 59txi. Then I could, in theory, connect the HDMI cable directly to the panel and route audio directly to the receiver to be adjusted and bass managed there.

Is there any other news on these fronts? Or am I off the mark?

Larry

The 59TXi has 8 channel input which is what we need for analog connection to a BluRay/HD DVD player. We can apply MCACC to analog with the 59TXi so we are set for bass management there. You still need to set the speaker distances etc on the DVD player.

The fly in the ointment is that the player has to do the HD Audio decoding. The announced Toshiba model does do that, the Pioneer one does not from what I've heard.

Thanks, Fred, for your response.

I know and agree with what you said. I discovered the joys of MCACC on my lamented 49tx and now enjoy it on the 59txi, but I thought that a huge part of the function of MCACC was to set the speaker distances for you automatically. When I apply MCACC to the analog inputs for DVD-Audio, I don't need to set the distances in the DVD player, do I? That would be a doubling of room correction as I see it. I can't remember if my player (an older JVC changer) allows that.

Correct?

Larry:

I don't think setting it is 100% necessary. It may just be a figment of my imagination, but after setting my DV-59AVi to the same settings as my MCACC I thought it sounded better.

It could just be me justifying the minutes I spend doing it.

I was very excited when I saw that it does use MCACC for analog connections. On my old VSX-55TXi I was only able to use 5.1 of my 7.1 speakers. On the 59TXi I set multi channel in to 6 Channel input and it adds EX to it so that I have full 7.1 use of my speakers.

What's slowing your down so far?

I would have thought you were busy the last week or two playing with it!

The multi-channel inputs do room correction, bass management and time alignment, if MCACC is engaged. The down side is that sound quality is diminished by the analog to digital back to analog conversions. There is an audible reduction in sound quality.

I uses the Velodyne SMS-1 for bass EQ with my 59TXi to prolong its useful life. I do not plan in upgrading my 59TXi until the HDMI and high definition DVD standards stabilize. Also, I am waiting to upgrade my HD TV until the different technologies shake out a bit.

IMO, unless you have plans for major display and DVD upgrades, the 59TXi is good to go for several years. The only things that I do not like are the remote and the amp section. I run Sunfire Sigature amps and use the 59TXi strictly as a preamp. I use the 49TXi remote to do input switching and the 59 remote to manage most other functions.

Bill

hey guys am I completely lost or what : the remote that comes with the 59txi is not backlit ! I cannot see it at all when all the lights are off. Is there a setting somewhere I can enable it ? (do I need to charge it for a while before it can have backlight ?)

It has a light, you just have to hit it in the upper right hand corner. It looks like a light bulb.

Took me a day to figure it out too!

Thank you!! Isn't it great we have a nice forum here ?

( For a moment I thought I got a lemon! U know never in my past 8ys with pio had I ever got a player/amp that had a quality problem. )

Anyone who has the new Toshiba HD-DVD player using the Pioneer Elite 59TXI? How are you making use of the receiver and sound modes with it?

A while back I read that a prototype of the 59txi with HDMI ports showed up at some show (can't remember which), and that gave me hope that there would be an upgrade because Pioneer currently has no flagship receiver that switches HDMI or even DVI inputs.

I would guess that one would buy a display that has multiple HDMI inputs and then route the sound through the receiver. Then something like a Harmony remote could be programmed to make all the appropriate switches on the receiver and display. Make sense?

(I thought this old thread would be an appropriate place to put this kind of question...)

Thanks!

Larry Becker

Does 59TXi apply bass management, speaker distance, speaker levels, EQ & surround modes(DPLIIx) to multichannel input? I am planning to hook up Toshiba HD-A1 to multicannel inputs of 59TXi.
Thanks,

Yes, as long as you have MCACC turned on for the multichannel inputs, and have them set to the normal or "stream direct 1" setting. IF you want strictly straight analog without corrections, use stream direct 3 which bypasses all digital processing.

Please let us know how it works out, maybe start a new thread about your observations. I have a 59TXi and will be getting into HD or BR and the 59 may have to last me until '07 or later.

ss9001

I have the Toshiba HD-A1 hooked up, but I use the SPDIF connection with 1.5 Mbps DTS sound. To me it sounds better that the output from the Toshiba's DACs with DD+. YMMV.

When you redigitize analog sound, the quality goes down a bit, even with the 192/24 ADCs that the 59TXi uses. I have both analog cables and coax hooked up, so I will eventually retest on the Serenity HD DVD, since it has the best HD DVD sound so far.

Bill

Although I had to look up SPDIF (it's the coax digital connector), this is really good to know that some are able to get good results from the 59TXI. Sometimes I think I should sell it to go with something with HDMI switching, but then I start adding up the cost of the upgrades that I HAVE to make -- the Blu-ray or HD-DVD AND a 1080P display -- and I think that I may just live with my "measley" 59txi.

It really is a great receiver. My 7.1 Energy Veritas speakers love it, and I am never lacking for power or flexibility.

Larry

At the prsent time, the HDMI capability is not needed for HD DVD. The 1080i picture is available via component cables at present. The 1.5 Mbps DTS "down-mix" is good enough audio for me. I am enjoying what little HD DVD content there is without HDMI. I suspect that the 59TXi's DACs are better than the Toshiba's.

Major reductions in the price of the better 1080P displays will eventually get me to buy. (My current display does 1080i.) When a new monitor finally gets me, a new receiver will be on the horizon as well.

Bill

I just joined this "Elite" group of VSX-59txi owners. I purchased the receiver a couple weeks ago (that process is a long story) but due to business travel I could not complete the installation until this week. I just finished the hook up and ran MCACC last night. WOW! What a huge difference from the Pio 1014 I have been using the last year and a half. I'm not too keen on the remote though. It's too dim and too low contrast. I guess a new remote is now on the wish list right after an i-link universal disc player.

I am really looking forward to spending time learning and tweaking the features of this unit. I have wanted one of these for the last two years but kept trying to convince myself that a lesser model would fit the bill. I did a lot of comparisons of other makes and models and decided that this one best fit my needs and it has absolutely the sweetest sound. I guess this means less on-line time researching now and more on-couch time. I really appreciate all the comments here that helped in my decision making.

Congrats on your 59TXi !

Huge is too small a word to describe the difference...........

I had a 55TXi for about 18 months beforehand which is a step up and then some from the 1014 and the 55TXi sounded like a $200 receiver compared to the 59TXi.

Just a FYI, my favorite listening modes are THX Ultra 2 for 5.1 HDTV and DVDs and THX Musicmode for 5.1 audio discs.

I've been thinking about picking up the Toshiba HD-DVD player myself, however I'm probably going to let the format war sort itself out first. If you look at my DVD list linked in my sig, you'll see that I am not hurting for DVD material.......

Fred

I was one of the early adopters of the 49tx, I used it with a parasound 2205 amp I dont think the difference using the amp was huge but it helped with the bass and shutdowns.
I thought the 49tx sounded amazing especially in hi rez music through the analouge imputs and I loved the way 7 channel stereo sounded through sat music. I thought it lacked crispness and dynamics with my paradigm studios with movies especially the center, now this is compared to a few pre pros that I compared it too (krell showcase, anthem avm 20....) and two channel was not its strong point. Overall great piece. I certainly miss the multichannel music, Im sure the 59txi is quite improved esp with the i link.

I got a friend who works for corporate tweeter he said the new flagship is going to be killer, digital amps pro studio room calibration( even better than the current mcacc) etc.... he said they are testing them in digital theaters.
He seems to have pretty good info so we will see

When the 49tx first came to market it was king for a few years and I expect the new flagship to regain its crown.

I might just have to get one to go along with my upgraded paradigm signiture speakers

well huge is too small of word to decribe the diff between sd dvds and hd dvds on the new Toshiba. You may want to rethink it

I've been hearing that there's not that much of an improvement from a few Toshiba owners so far. Yours is the most postitive statement on it. I'm glad to hear it!

Right now I have a Pioneer DV-59AVi connected via HDMI upconverting to 1080i and that was heads above when I had a cheapie DVD player in the past.

I'm still a little leary about which bandwagon to jump on especially since there's not a player that will play both like the DVD-A and SACD players do.

Fred

I had been fretting about using the "older technology" 59txi with newer equipment... no longer. I got a Monoprice HDMI switcher and use my Harmony 880 to switch inputs on the receiver and HDMI switch.

I also got a Pioneer 79avi upconverting dvd player and have it hooked in through HDMI and i-Link. It all sounds and works great! I was thinking I would need to get a receiver that had the HDMI ports, or hope and pray that Pioneer would add HDMI ports to the 59txi... Now I'm not sure I care. It all is working pretty well. There's some life left in the old beastie yet!

Larry

I have a HD-A1 connected to my 59TXi with coax SPDIF. DD+ soundtrack on HD-DVDs will be converted to high bit-rate DTS. I have tried the multi-channels analog outputs on the Toshiba yet (no 6 analog audio interconnect around) so I have no idea how big a difference it will make for DD+. But using the MCACC on the analog multi-channels inputs means the receiver will need to do additional AD -> DA conversion, which I have not even mention the DA conversion on the A1 (which has problem with matching the LFE level with the others). I'm more incline to use the SPDIF connection for now.

I also have a Monoprice 5x1 HDMI switch for my HDMI sources (Denon 3910, HD-A1 and Samsung HD850) such that I can change video sources for my projector and manage the audio for these by the receiver. For the others (components from PS2, XBOX and XBOX360, and S-video/composite from Gamecube, Dreamcast, PC-Engine and LD player) I use the receiver as the switch. So, sources switching is not really a big issue for me at the moment. I'd like the ability to do it on the receiver alone on HDMI with my Denon and Toshiba but it is working fine for now.

My Denon 3910 is connected to the 59TXi with i.Link for SACD and DVD-A. I wish my HD-A1 has that option as well I use this receiver as the "DAC" for these two high-res format for my 2 channels tube pre + power amps (they are driver the front channels for the HT part of my system). I think the MCACC also applies to 2 channel "stream direct" mode when I choose the 2 channel "layer" on SACDs - the sound is balanced and smooth. Sometimes I don't even bother to turn on my Musical Fidelity DAC and just use the Elite for everything

I have also use this as the "sound card" for my PC as well w/ USB port. The PC recognize it as the Pioneer "sound card" device and I can use it for multichannels movies, games, etc. (for AC-3, DTS, etc. stream you will need to install a freeware called "AC3 Filter" before it will send the stream over via the USB link). Hey! You can even use it under Mac OSX 10.4.5/6 (I have tried earlier version) on USB as a "sound card" even though it is not mentioned in the manual.

The only thing that I don't like is the remote: it's operation is extremely sluggish and it is not really that customizable. It is cool to look at and play with for a while but after the "wow" factor is gone it is a pretty dismal remote. I think I will get a Logitech Harmonic remote.

BTW, I'm also waiting for the next Elite flagship. I don't think the new 84TXi is the one. I have not listen to or see the real thing but looking at the picture it doesn't have the flagship built quality (e.g. speaker binding posts, etc.). Anyone know when will it be available? TIA! Since I just got this Elite last year I'm in no rush to replace it.

I've decided to pass on the HD-DVD bandwagon for right now -- I just bought a Pioneer Elite 79avi dvd player to replace my aging JVC changer. I'm using i-Link for the 79avi, and it's really nice. I had been using the 6 analog inputs on the JVC for DVD-Audio, and it was ok, too. One of the things I LIKE about the 59txi is that it CAN apply MCACC correction to the analog inputs. I KNOW that adds digital conversion to the mix, but it does a really nice job at it. In theory you don't want more conversions, but in practice I've found it to be more than acceptable. The DAC's in the 59txi are pretty amazing.

I've been wondering about the new Pioneer flagship as well, but need to get a few more years of use out of the 59txi. HDMI switching has become a non-issue for me, and I'm sure there are significant new sound processing requirements for the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray disks coming out that aren't even settled in yet. I'll wait for some of that to die down, and I'm delighted that I can make it work so nicely now.

Larry

Well I just received my Pioneer Elite DV-79avi last night and connected it to my month old VSX-59txi using the i-link cable. It is a fantastic combination! The set up was simple and worked flawlessly the first time. The SQ via i-link is better than I expected. The VSX-59txi is performing at a level that I thought could not be achieved without high end separate components. I could hear detail in the music last night that I have never heard before and this is with material that I have listened to for 30 years! Along with the great SQ the PQ out of the DV-79avi at 480P via component is the best I have seen from any DVD player on my 3 year old Mits RP CRT TV. I am one happy Pioneer customer right now. I am satisfied that I have the right HT equipment to enjoy quality audio and video for another year or two while the new High Def disc formats slug it out. Looks like a stop at BB is in the cards tonight to pick up more hi-rez discs.