Pioneer VSX521 & Pioneer SHS100 5.1 ?

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Looking for some advice on the best amp/speaker setup on a budget. I was looking at the Pioneer VSX521 paired with the SHS100's.
Is there anything else I should be looking at that would work out cheaper or is this a pretty good choice for the money?

EDIT:
Or if I went with a SONY STRD H820 is it a lot better unit? How would the SHS 100's go with it or do sony do any package or should I look at building a custom speaker set up over time, should I start with a pair of monitors to use as floorstanders or a good centre speaker?

I really like the size & look of the Pioneer VSXS300, how would that fair against the others above.

Could I get a few price options, open box or ex demo wouldn't bother me if I could save a few pound, thanks.

Drunk,

thanks for the post and apologies for the delay getting back to you.

That Pioneer VSX-521 and the Pioneer SHS-100 work really well together - and at £269.95 for the receiver and 5.1 speaker pack they really are a complete bargain - if you were thinking of upgrading and your main logic for the upgrade was Audio quality - I would swap the SHS-100's for the Tannoy SFX5.1 - the addition of the Tannoy pack really allows the 521 to sing and it sounds brilliant for a pack that still comes in under £400 (it's £369.90 for the 521 and the SFX 5.1).

Of course your other idea, of building a 5.1 speaker system over time will give you far better audio quality in the long term - I would suggest getting a good pair of stereo speakers in the 1st instance and next a Subwoofer (to add the 'thump' and drama) , next the rears and finally a centre (although you can of course swap the last two around according to your preference!)

If you were to start to build a 5.1 system based around the VSX521 I would start with the Monitor Audio BX2 and the VSX521 with the BX2 I can do at £349.95.

The VSX S300 is a great receiver as well, but you are paying additional for the slimline aspect of this product (as it takes extra engineering to manufacture a receive which can dissapate heat in a compact package!)

Anyway apologies for rambling - we have all of the above available from stock and if you would like to order anything or of course if you have any queries - please just drop me a line and we will do our best to assist,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew

drunkmonkey wrote: »

Thanks John,

How does the Sony compare, reviews on amazon.com are really turning me off the pioneer 521 seems to be a lot of trouble with it. What HIFI also has a very good review of the sony. I see the Sony is working out at €250 from the Uk site, have to decide then what speaker set to start with. I'm leaning towards the Sony but is it in the same league as the Pioneer.

The Sony is excellent as well - the current Euro price is €264.99 but as stock is tight we are not shipping it at the moment - we can order it in for you and reserve it for you if you like for collection?

On the reliability of the VSX521 - we have sold several 100 and we have had 2 returned (one faulty)..

Keep me posted,

ATVB,

John Mc & Crew