Customer Ratings & Reviews

Plenty of power, good decoding. Wish it had wifi, only "complaint" and it's minor when you are talking about a $250 price point

I purchased the Pioneer as a replacement for an Insignia home theater system receiver. The 4K and 3D HDMI video passthrough capabilities 'future-proofed' my purchase. I also considered the Denon entry-level receiver but I didn't see where it provided the ARC function. The sound quality is definitely centered on the higher frequencies. Fortunately the receiver allows ample manual adjustments.

This is a great amp used to push a pair of speakers and fills a room with clean, crisp sound. Several inputs and very user friendly.

I have been a Pioneer fan and user for years. Looks like I'll be continuing the tradition.

This purchase was a replacement for an older model. Had more features that I am learning to use and was very easy to connect. Very pleased with purchase as it is serving its purpose for what I needed it for.

I bought this for my birthday with the Pioneer by Andrew Jones speakers. I like the sound. I have sold high end audio/video equipment and worked for Radio Shack years ago fixing stereos. I am satisfied enough to say that this is good stuff. It is easy to use. Audio/Video systems are tech deep with dozens of sound and video processing labels like DTS, Dolby, Bluetooth, etc. A few sophisticated features could be learned if you aren't tech savvy but that can be ignored. Plug it in, hook up a TV, do the basic setup, and play. The menus aren't confusing. I want to say, but not about this unit, recognizing that electronics engineers and physicists design such awesome tech needs to come down to reality, most people who would buy an inexpensive and well functioning item like this aren't tech nerds. Maybe audio / video setup programs could feature a tutorial designed for IQ SD-1.5 which is 93 % of us. I have programmed computers with machine code but I'm lazy and just want to watch my Star Wars and other awesomely recorded movies without poking through layers of menus. This Pioneer unit is nice that way. It is really nice. The 4 stars is only because Best Buy and Magnolia sell some of the finest affordable high end brands on the market platter (like Pioneer Elite and Martin-Logan) which earn 5 stars for superior performance.

I had a VSX-521 and loved it for its low price/power/sound; it recently started having issues. I replaced it with the VSX-531 since the price point is great and it has all the features/power/sound an entry level person wants and I wouldn't have to learn a new system to setup. Although, the new model has everything my old one did and more...you might not know it. The MCACC automatic room calibration is there, but they didn't ship a microphone with it and the new remote control doesn't have the speaker levels/distance function keys. AND, they only ship a quick start manual, so you don't know how to access the other features that can be changed, nor what they do. I checked online, but no detail manual. Glad I have my VSX-521 manual/microphone and remote. All that said, I still would recommend this receiver, since you can adjust the basic system via the on-screen method.

Many great features. Unbeatable value on sale at Best Buy.