Pioneer Elite SC-68

bdaley6509

Just kidding...no karma here...but now that I have your attention :twisted:
I just picked this up at Best Buy on clearance for 1k. Looks to be a pretty good price for the features this thing has. Currently I'm running a pair of Revel Salons (1st version) with a Anthem D2 Statement pre-amp and Statement P2 power amp, but am considering selling those, using only the Pioneer in bi-amp mode and putting the extra cash in my pocket after selling the Anthem gear. Has anyone had any experience with this receiver? Initial tests prove it to be pretty darn impressive, but not sure it's up to the task of replacing my separates in the long run. My main motivation for making the jump to a new receiver is due to the D2 not being able to handle HDMI very well as the technology is getting kind of dated (for 3D, movies etc). Thanks for any input.

EndersShadow

Mantis has one IIRC and has been loving it. I would talk to him.

nwohlford

I have not had the SC-68 but did have a previous Elite receiver. Right now I have an Anthem 50v and D1. I think that the biggest difference would be the room correction as the SC-68 is should be a damn good receiver. I was never impressed with the advanced MCACC on the Pioneer. If you like what ARC adds to system with the Anthem, I would think that you will not be happy with MCACC. If you have never tried ARC, you really should give it a try. (Of room corrections on the main consumer brand of receivers, I would only put Audyssey XT32 as anywhere close to ARC.)

swegyptian

I can't provide that much input, but I can toss in a comment about the room correction. I've get a regular Anthem MRX300 now, and I love the room correction, but I didn't in my last setup. In my current system, I sit really far away from the back wall. In my last apartment, I was right against the back wall. I didn't like what ARC did with that boundary problem, and perhaps the Statement version would do the same thing. I've had a few Elite receivers, and I never disliked the room correction, even when sitting against the back wall.

The complaint about the correction before was that it left the system with zero bass. You can read about all sorts of people complaining that they hate the lack of bass after running ARC, and I felt the same way. Then I moved all of the gear to a different room where the back wall was 20' away instead of right behind my head, and wow, what a difference after I ran ARC again. Perhaps this is a common problem for some people with ARC?

I guess my point would be that sometimes ARC can be finicky, so if you don't like it perhaps try rearranging the setup. If you love ARC, then I would also agree that you might be less happy with the AVR.

nwohlford

swegyptian wrote: »

I can't provide that much input, but I can toss in a comment about the room correction. I've get a regular Anthem MRX300 now, and I love the room correction, but I didn't in my last setup. In my current system, I sit really far away from the back wall. In my last apartment, I was right against the back wall. I didn't like what ARC did with that boundary problem, and perhaps the Statement version would do the same thing. I've had a few Elite receivers, and I never disliked the room correction, even when sitting against the back wall.

The complaint about the correction before was that it left the system with zero bass. You can read about all sorts of people complaining that they hate the lack of bass after running ARC, and I felt the same way. Then I moved all of the gear to a different room where the back wall was 20' away instead of right behind my head, and wow, what a difference after I ran ARC again. Perhaps this is a common problem for some people with ARC?

I guess my point would be that sometimes ARC can be finicky, so if you don't like it perhaps try rearranging the setup. If you love ARC, then I would also agree that you might be less happy with the AVR.

I have found Audyssey XT32 to be less picky. From my understanding, ARC does aim for a little more neutral bass than a lot of the other room corrections which could be a little bit of the problem. Also, the version of ARC on the pre/pros is slightly more advanced than what is on the MRX receivers.

The issue with MCACC is mostly at low frequencies. (There are ways to address via sub EQs and/or using the manual EQ available in MCACC.) If you room is fairly well behaved in the lowest octaves, it may not be a problem. Some people probably like the room gain they get in the lowest octaves and don't want the peaks removed as XT32 and ARC will do.

bdaley6509

Forgot to mention that my Anthem does not have ARC, so unfortunately I wouldn't be able to compare it to MCACC. So far I'm loving the receiver, but decided to stick with the external amp Statement P2 instead of the class D receiver power. It drove the Salons really well, but the amp still kinda blew it out of the water (not surprisingly). I am giddy about streaming flac from my library right through the receiver, and the ipad/iphone remote app is awesome as well. So far I'm happy with the purchase.

nwohlford

bdaley6509 wrote: »

Forgot to mention that my Anthem does not have ARC, so unfortunately I wouldn't be able to compare it to MCACC. So far I'm loving the receiver, but decided to stick with the external amp Statement P2 instead of the class D receiver power. It drove the Salons really well, but the amp still kinda blew it out of the water (not surprisingly). I am giddy about streaming flac from my library right through the receiver, and the ipad/iphone remote app is awesome as well. So far I'm happy with the purchase.

If it sounds good in your room, then you have your answer. I would make sure to account for the gain difference before comparing the internal amps versus the external amp. You may be happy with the internal amps.

By the way, you can add ARC to a D2 by just getting an ARC kit.