Customer Ratings & Reviews

Great product and would buy another if needed. Great sound and functions.

My movies and music really sounds perfectly incredible.

The sound quality and power this receiver produces is great. It truly places all the sounds and motions through the right speakers at the times the action is going on in movies. The options to control sound quality is out off this world and I love that now my Android Samsung Galaxy Note 3 connects up with this receiver so I can play movies through it, music, and control the functions of my Pioneer Elite receiver through my Samsung phone. My Pioneer Elite receiver is truly the best buy and choice I have made in home theater systems.

The SC 85 PIONEER ELITE EXCELLENT SYSTEM JUST WISH FIRMWARE WOULD do a UPDATE from 2.O to 2.2

if you want something that will be able to put out poer this is the priduct for you!

very adaptable to many audio inputs and different surround sound configurations.

The sound is amazing I just wish it was easier to use. Nothing is intuitive to set up and it takes time to learn everything even for someone that is good with electronics. The remote is difficult to use but the app on the iPhone/iPad is decent. Large learning curve.

The receiver works good. Highly recommended. Dolby atmos.

I found this on open box and the price was spectacular!!! Had to purchase it. Upgrade from a VSX-70. The best receivers on the market.

I have always been a big fan of names like Denon and Onkyo, but when I picked up this pioneer elite I was impressed. Hooked up to my Bowers and Wilkins speakers = great sound.

I had never heard of Atmos but it sounds incredible. I am running my Dish Network signal through this tuner and I swear it upscales my Samsung LED TV signal to near 4k quality. I've never spent this much money for a tuner. Boy was I wrong...

great sound balance. love it. does not get hot or anything.

Needed a new amp for my new 3d Blu Ray and OLED 3D tv.

I love the updated Blue Ray the CS person suggested.

This is a great receiver and enjoy using it daily.

Great receiver but have had a hard time running my computer through the receiver to the projector.

This receiver is very hard to use. Could never get it set the way I wanted it. I know this is not Best Buys fault, called Pioneer customer service. On hold for 30-40 minutes 3 times I called them and they never answered the phone. I bought a Denon AVR-X3100W that is very user friendly and easy to set up. I am very pleased with the Denon. I would avoid buying any Pioneer receiver.

I was at my local BB/Magnolia store on Black Friday just to look around. When I found they had this receiver on sale for $1,299($300-off MSRP), I jumped on it to replaced my 10-year old Pioneer Elite VSX-72TXV. It's got more HDMI inputs and outputs than the average person will probably ever use. There are a couple of coaxial and optical inputs. No S-video inputs if anyone is wondering. The amps in this receiver are powerful. They are rated to handle 4-ohm speakers. My JBL S-312's are 8ohm, so it can drive them easily. I'm running an Aperion Intimus 5C center, JBL N24's for surrounds, and a 12-inch SVS subwoofer. This SC-85 can fill my room, which is 6,500-cubic feet, with distortion free ear bleeding levels of sound. So if you're wondering, yes, it's got enough power for you. It's got all the decoders you expect, Dolby Tru-HD, DTS-MA, and so forth. It's even got some specialized sound fields for listening to Rock/Drama/Sports....and a few others that you will probably never use. If you're like me, you stick to the Dolby/DTS formats. I was a fan of using the Dolby Pro Logic II Music mode on my old receiver. I was disappointed to not find it on the SC-85. Apparently, Dolby has done away with all their old Pro Logic/Pro Logic II/ Pro Logic IIz formats in favor of a new single format called Dolby Surround. The only way to get Dolby Surround and Dolby ATMOS is to upgrade the firmware in the receiver via internet or USB. Speaking of the internet, the networking feature on the SC-85 is way cool. You can hook up to Spotify or Pandora which is cool, but the really neat thing is using your iPhone or iPad to control the receiver. It works with androids and laptops/tablets with anything greater than Microsoft XP I believe. If you are so inclined in researching this receiver in-depth, go to pioneerelectronics.com. Find the SC-85 under Elite receivers and on the left hand side, there is a tab for Manuals and Brochures. You can download the full manual there as well as some quick reference guides. I use an iPad and an iPhone to control my receiver(the app is a free download). It's pretty simple to use as well as freaking cool. The kicker to using this feature and Pandora/Spotify is that you must be connected to the internet. You can buy Pioneer's wireless adapter for $150, connect a cable directly to your router, or use another wireless adapter. I have my receiver connected to a Netgear wireless repeater that I already had and it works flawlessly. I had read many negative reviews on the Pioneer wireless adapter so I would probably avoid that one. Also, it's kinda pricey. I bought this repeater a few years ago from Best Buy for about $70. Also, I did not buy the Bluetooth adapter. I figured if I really want to listen to music from my iPhone through the receiver, I would just plug it into the receiver as it would also charge it. Personally, I liked the MCACC Pro. You can use different settings like Symmetry, Front Align, All Adjust, and Multi-point if you desire. Basic set up is pretty easy, but you can do so much tweaking with this receiver. I highly recommend reading the owners manual to take full advantage of the features the SC-85 offers. The remote control may not be the most intuitive, but coming from a previous Pioneer Elite receiver, the layout is very similar so it was easy for me to pick up on. After I got it connected to the internet, I don't plan on using the remote much. I plan on using the iPad. In summary, this receiver has got everything and more than the average person will use or need. I believe this is the pinnacle of receivers for 99% of the buying population. Only the most discerning of audiophiles will need/want the SC-87 or SC-89. If you are in the market for a new receiver in this price range, definitely give this one a look. It's got power, connectivity, and in my opinion, it's the nicest looking one out there.

This is a very nice receiver, very easy to set up and use.

I had read about Dolby Atmos and had the opportunity to demo it at CES and I was blown away. I had a 7.1 system run by a Pioneer Elite VSX-51. My primary reason for upgrading was to utilize Atmos. I looked at several receivers including Yamaha and Denon but this was the only Reciever that would allow me to utilize a 7.1.2 set-up. It would not support 7.1.4 but you can do 5.1.4. My theater room is roughly 16x18 and decided to stay with a 7.1.2 set-up with two speakers installed in the ceiling. The sound power and clarity is amazing and Atmos is the equivalent of going from an analog TV to 4K. It is truly an amazing 360 experience that will bring your room to life. The firmware upgrade was easy and only took a few minutes. I have also found the picture on my Sharp Projector to be more brilliant. Best Buy Geek Squad did my install and they did a great job on the new speakers and the set-up. Expendables 3 is an ok movie but a great demo of Atmos. Truly a great Reciever and virtually future proof.