Buy something else!
Written: Jan 28 '01 (Updated Jan 29 '01)
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Pros: Good quality Dolby Ditigal and DTS surround for DVD movies, especially given the price.
Cons: Poor sound quality on "regular" CD playback. Sounds "muddy".
The Bottom Line: Spend another $100 or $200 and get something worthwhile, and with superior CD playback.
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| jennifersean's Full Review: Pioneer VSX-D409 5.1 Channels Receiver |
I saw the VSX-D409 on sale for $349 (Canadian) and I jumped at the chance to graduate from "mere" Dolby Surround sound to enter into the Dolby Digital and DTS realm. What a mistake!
While the Dolby/DTS surround re-production is surprisingly decent for something so economically priced (the Toy Story 2 DVD comes to mind), CD playback is unexceptional. In fact, I would say that CD playback is terrible. The sound stage is "muddy" and murky to me, with no mid-range...only highs and lows, with indistinct cymbal crashes, and virtually no "depth". I say it's a case of spreading too little dollar on too much gimmickry. I guess I should have known better. Plus the remote control is pint size and difficult to use.
I am only glad that I kept my 7 year "old" Yamaha Dolby Surround receiver. While not a high-end model by any means, on CD playback it is vastly superior to the Pioneer.
To get back on track, I plan to purchase either a Denon AVR-1801 or a Yamaha RX-596 Dolby Digital/DTS receiver, although I note with interest that the various "Epinions" lean very heavily towards the Denon product.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 225
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Epinions.com ID:
jennifersean
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Reviews written: 2
Trusted by: 0 members
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