Pioneer 5.1 Channel AV Receiver, VSX-531-B, Amplifier 130 Watt/Channel,, Dolby Digital/TrueHD, Hi-Res Audio Support, 4K UltraHD passthrough, HDMI with HDCP 2.2, Eco Mode, Black

This was great value at the time I bought it (£169.99) and I'd been holding out for a while for it to come back into stock on Amazon. I wanted a simple AV amp to replace an Onkyo for which the display had died and this is perfect. It's got 4 HDMI inputs which is fine, it's simple to set up and operate, the sound is good. I'm not using 4k but good to know this for the future. Why people continue to buy sound bars and not a simple AV amp and speakers is beyond me....

Pretty much "plug and play" which is great :) suits my fairly simple needs and has *a lot* of advanced features.Pros:- good set of advanced features, both for 2.0, 2.1 or 5.1 and even 7.1 audio set-up- easy to navigate UI and menus (I did have to use the manual, though)- comes with a dedicated mic to optimize the sound, which is wonderful if you're an audiophil- good value for money, ie. not expensiveCons:- some features are not easy to learn (nothing that Googling won't fix though)- the built-in Bluetooth did not connect to any of my devices, I'm not sure why. Probably it's the end-devices but it's still a bit of a bummer.

Its way bigger than I realized. My XBOX ONE looks very small next to it. Same with PS4 Pro. It is astonishingly well built. Has a plethora of complicated sound settings I rarely use as DTS (Master HD on compatible Blu Ray) and AMP Stereo meet practically every need. It can NOT play two inputs simultaneously, which is often misunderstood. It CAN switch between inputs easily. You need quality speakers to appreciate the range this AMP offers. Gladiator sounded so good that my neighbors came over with wine and nibbles to sit and watch! (I like them this was okay and the sofa is big enough.) Doom made the house shake and the scare scenes in Until Dawn made (almost made) me need new pair of trousers! It does take a while to set up, it uses a gizmo thingy that helps; but ultimately you will have to tweak and play with it until you get what you feel is right. Orchestral arrangements sound sublime and you will notice notes, instruments you had never heard before. The sounds emanating from the speakers while playing The Evil Within are genuinely disturbing. My GF loves it, but the cat refuses to enter the living room now! (Bonus) So the tech is top-notch and the emotions this will conjure will shape your entertainment for years to come. Thank you Pioneer and thank you Amazon.

Only got this yesterday but thought I would give an early opinion. Replaced my old Pioneer receiver with this to pair it with new 4k tv. My initial reaction in ..wow. It took a couple of hours to set up (more to do with location than any difficulties. Build quality feels good. As well as all the Dolby settings and 4k hdr it also supports Bluetooth. The picture quality is brilliant and the surround sound really does give the all round cinema experience.Still playing around with the settings but what it has produced so far is superb. Can't believe it was only £180!!! Don't bother spending more, this does it all, and really well, I am hugely impressed.

Needed a good amp for parents home cinema. easy to setup. Some tweeks for sound. But overall very good value.

First of all... Surprisingly it arrived next day after ordering, wasn't due for another couple of days. Came by D.P.D... After working out what cable went where.... it didn’t take long to set up... about an half hour... but it did take all day to find it a home... after buying a different T.V stand I finally got it settled in... On a whole... it a terrific bit of kit.... sounds superb... got my Xbox 1, P.S 4, Wee, Blueray, Imac, Record deck and my Shield. And the bonus of Bluetooth connection too..... Well and truly happy... Not sure about the neighbors... lol... Before you buy,,, make sure you can fit it in somewhere.... it’s bloody huge... check the dimensions first...

Great value if you want a no-frills Surround AV amp with HDMI switching. Plenty of power for the price and reasonable build quality. Setting-up was quite easy and operation seems simple enough too. There’s no backligting for the input selectors, which makes it hard to see which input you’ve selected, but at the price that’s understandable. Great value for a five channel AV amp with little competition if you want a top brand.

In retrospect this was at a good price when I bought it, It took a bit of sorting out conections and setting up the balance of the spekers, but i was generally well pleased.Just very occassionally it seemed to turn itself off for no obvious reason. One might suspect a precautionary thermal cut out, but the cover was not covered and it was in a space with air able to circulate.Recently I noticed it was cutting out more often Then it started cutting out almost as soon as turend on (typically after about 4-7 seconds). I removed the cover (when not conected to the live mains) expecting to find a build up of dust inside, given the many ventilation slots. Strangely no obvious dust inside. A careful vaccuum, blowing of air, and genlte brushing of components has made no different. Bought end of August 2018, so it lasted 3 years. It had a lot of use in that time, but I expected better of a Pioneer item. So that limited lifetime for a quality product is the major factor in offering the 2 star rating. I've just orered a replacement, a Yamaha: at the moment there seem very few optionsavailable from major manufacturers (an effect of the pandemic?) and even the less pricey models seem to cost 2-3 times what I paid 3 years ago.