VSX-LX60 Three HDMI v1.3a inputs with full 1080p/24fps and 7.1 HD audio support,.
Three HDMI v1.3a inputs with full 1080p/24fps and 7.1 HD audio support Set-up & calibrate your surround sound like a pro with Advanced MCACC Connect, control, charge & playback your iPod HDMI Control Three-year warranty
Three HDMI v1.3a inputs with full 1080p/24fps and 7.1 HD audio support, iPod control, THX Select2, 3 year warranty.Welcome to the world of LX receivers. Fine-tuned to AIR Studios standards, the VSX-LX60 AV receiver employs FullHD audio decoding (Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio) with seamless connectivity and perfect calibration. Complete your Full-HD experience as the VSX-LX60 features three HDMI v1.3a inputs with full 1080p/24fps and 7.1 HD audio support, Advanced MCACC room calibration, multi-source & room operation, iPod connectivity, HDMI Contol, as well as 130W of power per channel. Home entertainment synergy at its best! With Full HD audio on-board decoding, the VSX-LX60 perfectly partners up with Pioneer's LX Series Full HD plasma TVs and brand new BDP-LX70A Blu-ray player. For more information on Pioneer's new LX product range, please visit: http://www.pioneerlx.com.au/

more info

Pioneer Electronics Australia Pty Ltd Customer Support268
Products colors and illumination may differ in photographs from actual appearance, due to effects of printing and photography.
VSX-LX60 features and benefits Pioneer Electronics has upped the ante on its commitment to offering a Full HD experience in the living room with the release of three flagship A/V receivers (VSX-LX50 / VSX-LX60 / VSX-LX70), which completes your high definition home network. The Pioneer VSX-LX60 AV receiver proudly carries the sub-brand name LX, which stands for luxury. The new Full HD LX experience from Pioneer includes everything from the panel (Project KURO panels), to the source (Blu-ray player, DVD player and DVD recorder) and sound (new flagship 1080p AV receivers). Extraordinary in both performance and size, the VSX-LX60 utilises an array of engineering advancements for unprecedented reproduction of audio and video entertainment with maximum power. With built-in Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS-HD High Resolution Audio and DTS HD Master Audio codecs featured on the VSX-LX60, you are guaranteed pure, lossless quality audio featuring revolutionary technologies and customisation capabilities for supreme 1080p high definition control. High Resolution Audio Playback As the popularity of 1080p home theatre devices including, flat panel televisions and Blu-ray Disc players grows, the Pioneer VSX-LX60 delivers the full impact of lossless DTS-HD Master Audio, Dolby TrueHD and Dolby Digital Plus multichannel audio formats via HDMI. Moreover, the VSX-LX60 can decode and output all currently available sound formats including DTS-ES, DTS 96/24, DTS NEO:6, Dolby PL IIx, WMA9 Pro. Video enthusiasts will appreciate the full impact these new audio codecs add to the viewing experience with rich, realistic sound that illustrate on-screen imagery. Sports fans will be able to feel the impact of hard-hitting tackles when watching sports movies and musicians can distinctly hear the acoustic guitar when enjoying concert discs. 24fps The other half of your home theatre experience, 1080p Full HD video, shouldn't be compromised because certain. Full details about this product are available from the product details screen on our website.

Pioneer online brochure

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Specifications Surround

Front (8 ohms) Centre (8 ohms) Surround (8 ohms) Surround Back (8 ohms) 130W/Channel 130W 130W/Channel 130W/Channel

Power Output

Continious (RMS, 20Hz-20kHz, 8ohms) Total Harmonic Distortion (20Hz- 20kHz, 8ohms) Stereo (DIN, 1kHz, 1% THD, 6ohms) 130W x 7 0.09% 170W + 170W (6ohms)

Product dimensions

Signal Select FL Colour Weight Standby power consumption Width x Height x Depth (mm) Auto Blue 17.0kg 0.65W 420 x 187 x 459mm

Audio Features

Source Direct Switch D/A audio converter Motor Driven Volume Control Midnight Listening Mode Impedance switching Sound Retriever Sound Delay (Lip-Sync) Multi-source / Multi-zone A/D audio converter Yes 192 kHz/24-bit Electric Yes 6 to 8-16ohm Yes Yes Yes 192kHz/24-bit

MCACC LED Speaker calibration system Yes (Orange) Advanced Auto MCACC with mic (9-band Graphical EQ)
Random preset select 3-Speed Accelerated Tuning 30 Yes

Conveniences

Remote control LCD preset learning

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DVD control Sleep timer

Yes Yes

Surround Sound
Dialogue Enhancement Advanced Surround Auto Surround Stereo mode (ch) DSP DTS-ES WMA9-Pro THX Phase Control Standing Wave Control Dolby Digital EX Dolby Digital & DTS Dolby Pro Logic IIx Virtual Surround DTS 96/24 DTS-HD Master Audio DTS-HD High Resolution Dolby Digital TrueHD DTS-Express DTS NEO:6 Dolby Digital Plus Yes 13+1 Yes Yes (7) 3rd generation SHARC processor + Freescale Yes (Discrete) Yes THX Select2 Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Terminals

HDMI Input/Output USB Audio Input S-Video Input/Rec. Output A/V Input on front Analogue Multi-ch Input Audio Input/Rec. Output AV (Composite) Input/ Rec. Output iPod 3/(Audio only) 5/2 (Assignable) (AV, S-Video, OPT-Digital) (7.1 CH) 3/1 7/2 1

Digital Input

Total 6

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Front optical Optical Coaxial Component in/out (assignable) A/V front Preamp output Digital output S-Video IN/OUT Front speaker terminal type Rear centre speaker terminal type Rear speaker terminal type Centre speaker terminal type System remote (SR Port)
1 5/3/1 Yes ALL (7.1) 2 5/3 Large Large Large Large SR+

Miscellaneous

Power consumption 460W

Amplifier Design

Amplification Type Discrete (A.D Energy)
DSP Features (Licence of Format)

Air Studios Monitor

1080p transferring New Audio Transferring (1080p@60Hz) (Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD Master Audio, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS-HD Hi-Resolution, DTS-Express, SACD (DSD), 192kHz/8CH PCM) Yes Yes Up to 1080p
HDMI Control Deep Colour (36-bit RGB) Video Scaler (Analogue to HDMI)

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58 PIONEER VSX-LXwww.pioneer.co.uk

Black Celebration

Jim Hill really connects with Pioneers powerful Full HD ready amplier and discovers the many benets of third-generation HDMI switching
ioneers high-contrast Kuro Plasma TVs, have been grabbing all the technology headlines of late, but while the PDP division has been discovering new shades of black, the less-celebrated audio team has developed a thumping new line-up of AV receivers. The VSX-LX60 slots in toward the top of the range, packing in all of this generations key HD features, but hovering below the crucial 1,000 price barrier. Like the rest of the new line-up, its had a radical makeover, too, with a fashionable gloss black
nish designed to match the Kuro TV range replacing the silver that is now sooo last year! But the real changes here arent cosmetic, theyre much more signicant than that. I know what youre thinking, with
Chunky: Big knobs and a fat frame, you know this amp means business
every new product cycle we are promised dazzling next-gen features that wed be crazy to pass up, but this year does mark something of a paradigm shift in home cinema as we make the transition to high-denition. With HD media
beginning to show signs of commercial life, a whole new level of functionality is required; and that receiver you bought a couple of years ago might not be able to hack it any more. Can it switch a 1080p signal or decode a Dolby True HD soundtrack? If the answer is no, then sooner or later youre possibly going to need a Full HD friendly model, like this one.

Third times a charm

The most fundamental differences arrive with the third-generation HDMI connectivity. Version 1.3, implemented
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for the rst time here, can channel a Full HD 1080p signal and all of the latest lossless audio formats from Dolby and DTS. They can even accept a multi-channel DSD stream from a Super Audio CD player. Earlier HDMI incarnations would stop at 1080i and simply refuse uncompressed audio. And theres something else that last years models couldnt manage the VSX-LX60 has the ability to upscale any video source (analogue included) and output it as 1080p via HDMI. So the LX60 is bang up-to-date in terms of new age techno-trickery, but how does it compare with the rest of the AV competition? Like most The LX60 also incorporates a few sound-enhancing features such as phase control, which compensates for mismatched speakers in the system and sound retriever, which restores some of the quality of compressed formats like MP3s from your iPod by intelligently rebuilding the signal. be instantly useful for anyone with both TV and projector in their home cinema setup. Included in the box are a universal remote control and a microphone. The remote looks bafing, with cramped buttons, many of which full more than one function, but then this is quite a sophisticated piece of kit. The onscreen menu is very utilitarian though Pioneer has showed fast-track improvements in this area, in order to come up with a more friendly OSD and it will take you a while to set up all of the inputs to suit your system. But then, I guess thats half the fun of owning a behemoth like this. The onscreen menu is where you can assign inputs and set speaker levels, and this is where the supplied microphone comes into play too. Plug it in and place it in the prime listening position and the MCACC (Multi-Channel Acoustic Calibration System) will take over and optimise the speaker levels and delay for you. MCACC has generally enjoyed rather mixed reviews in HCC but I found it accurate. I calibrated the system for my 6.1 speaker conguration and derived a wholly coherent soundstage after about

Terminal velocity

I suspect the new plastic fascia will divide opinion. The high-gloss is certainly in tune with the current trend for consumer electronics, but last years brushed silver looked classy, while the plastic looks, well, a bit plasticky. Perhaps Pioneer should factor this into its next round of design meetings? This is a sturdy beast though, standing nearly 19cm tall and weighing in at 17kg. This all leaves plenty of space for connections around the back, which looks like a BT switchboard. The HDMI inputs and output are the most noteworthy additions, but frustratingly, there are only three of these, which doesnt seem very generous. Id trade all of the composite video inputs for one more HDMI socket. And while Im on the subject, why not have two HDMI outputs instead of one? That would
Product: THX Select 2 certied 7.1 amplier, with support for Dolby TrueHD and DTS master Audio Positioning: Well specied but potentially lost in a no-mans land between the upcoming LX70 and copious cheaper fare Peers: Sony STRDA5200ES Onkyo TXSR875
Pioneer amps, its remarkably powerful, with seven discrete analogue ampliers producing upwards of 175W apiece, and it meets the criteria for THX Select 2 certication.
On the test bench, the LX60 is a powerhouse. Overall muscle drops to around 100W (into 8) with ve channels driven which is more than enough to earn the THX Select badge but in two channel mode it is a beast. The delity rewall gure (a measure of usable power before distortion) is particularly good at 165W.
Meet the beast: the LX60 is a solid, advanced, powerhouse of a product
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10 minutes of listening to the amp record its own test signals. soundtrack is very close to the studio master and it sounds fantastically open here, and will give your speakers a really good workout when you turn the volume dial up a few dB. This is a seven-channel amp, which means you can choose either one or two surround back speakers for EX extended 6.1 and 7.1 soundtracks and input your choice in the menu. Another hard button behind the drop-down fascia ap tells the amp to use it only when it sees a ag in the EX soundtrack, or to enhance 5.1 soundtracks as well. Sonys PlayStation 3 was way ahead of its time with HDMI v1.3 outputs on its launch last year, and only now is the rest of the industry catching up. Thankfully, I am able to play an SACD and hear the uncompressed multi-channel version through the Pioneer amp via a single cable. Listening to the 5.1 mix of Groove Armadas Vertigo album shows just how musical the Pioneer can be too. The tone is clear and descriptive without being cold or brash. A bassier sound can be achieved by tweaking, if you prefer more fullness to your music, and this tends to improve things with classical and jazz music.

Performance

With over 100W owing to six speakers, this Pioneer can achieve a remarkably dynamic and punchy performance, especially from Blu-ray and HD DVD discs. Thanks to the v1.3 HDMI inputs, you no longer need make an analogue multi-channel connection to hear the high-resolution soundtracks. On the Blu-ray release of Curse of the Golden Flower you can actually listen to the uncompressed Chinese 5.1 PCM soundtrack and hear the fully extended bass chant of the palace monks emanating from somewhere deep within your room. This contrasts well with the delicate clink of the empresss jade teacups.
Another good test is the 5.1 DTS HD Master Audio track on the Blu-ray release of Kingdom of Heaven. We havent heard much of this audio codec so far, but the LX60 recognised the ag and icked into DTS mode in a trice, displaying the mode and
the number of speakers it employs on its front panel. This high-res DTS
In two-channel mode, the Pioneer does a ne job of driving resolutely hi- speakers. Thanks to this amps exibility, it is possible to re-assign the surround rear channels, if you are not using them, in order to bi-wire the front pair and harness an additional amp module. This is perfect for getting the most out of difcult hi- enclosures. And well done if you
In a ap: The pull-down front ap reveals plenty of controls

Connections

A Multi-zone AV
A second zone (adjacent room) can be fed audio and composite video

B THX Select 2

The receiver is certied for THX Select 2, the post-processing mode for smaller rooms. THX Select 2 is being replaced by THX Select 2 Plus, which adds Loudness Control for better low-level dynamics

C BD input

So why would you need legacy video connections for a Blu-ray player? A single HDMI v1.3 is all you need?

D 12V trigger

Simple home cinema system automation is possible through the use of the 12v trigger. Just turn on the LX60, and your projector switches on automatically and the screen descends

E Air Studios

Audio characteristics have been honed at Londons renowned Air Studios, spiritual home of several generations of Pioneer receivers

F HDMI connectivity

Three HDMI v1.3 inputs, but only one output, which may limit system setup options

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spotted the air logo on the front panel; this indicates that the Japanese designers of the LX60 travelled to the world-renowned Air studios, once owned by Sir George Martin, and used the facilities and expertise there to ne tune the audio character of the receiver.
has made this competitive ground, though, and nearly all of
these features are now available on competing mid-priced models. Theres simply no room for weakness. The Pioneers lack of a DAB tuner is excusable. Only Denon, it seems, are capable of implementing this cost effectively, and media streaming from your PC is a high-end luxury that more traditional users can likely live without, as is an Ethernet port for receiving intenet radio channels. However, just three HDMI inputs at this price point may dictate the addition of a separate switching box into your stack at a later date.

Specifications

Dolby True HD: YES and Dolby Digital Pus DTS HD Master Audio: YES and DTS Neo 6, DTS ES discrete etc THX: YES THX Select 2 certification DAB Radio: NO Analogue AM/FM tuner only Universal remote: YES Teach it to control your other components Multi-channel audio: YES 7 x 170W amplifiers Multi-channel input: YES 7.1 channel analogue inputs Multi-room: YES speaker outputs for a second zone Phono input stage: YES input for a turntable AV inputs: YES inputs for 9 sources in total HDMI switching: YES 2-into-1 HDMI switching Video upscaling: YES up to 1080p via HDMI Component video: YES 3 into one component switching iPod dock: YES input for an optional dock with OSD USB reader:YES read and play music files Dimensions: 420(w) x 459(d) x 187(h) mm Weight: 17kg Features: MCACC microphone assisted setup included; iPod photo ready; full band phase control; Faroudja DCDi deinterlacer

Scaling

In this new world of Full HD, the ability to upscale standard-def sources to 1080p is often billed as a major selling point. In reality, the Faroudja scaler used here actually lacks some of the nesse evident from the best on the market, so you may well nd yourself leaving the video processing switched off. What is more important, certainly if you intend to use the LX60 as a video switching unit, is that it passes an unadulterated 1080p signal from source to screen without adding any noise or jitter. The Pioneer achieves this particularly well. There is no doubt, in fact, that this receiver betters all Pioneer models that have gone before it on the strength of its contemporary connectivity and features. Rivalry

Conclusion

There is no doubt that the LX60 is a powerful, advanced product. But where it particularly scores over the similarly specied, but cheaper, receivers, is in audio quality. Despite a wealth of muscle, its as musical as it is exciting, but it lls a room with less effort in order to produce a more cohesive soundstage. In short, this is a ne receiver, but if you want even more features, including another HDMI input, you could consider Pioneers own step-up model, the VSX-LX70

from the ever-innovative Denon and the aggressively marketed Onkyo stables

Tech Labs

Manufacturers Claimed Output 150W per channel Measured power @ 1kHz 175W, 2 channels driven, 8: 0.5% THD 250W, 2 channels driven, 4: 0.5% THD 100W, 5 channels driven, 8: 0.5% THD 150W, 5 channels driven, 4: 0.5% THD Fidelity firewall: 165W (0.05% THD, 8, 1kHz) THD @ 50W: 0.0326% THD (1kHz, 8) Frequency response: 20Hz-20kHz +/- 0.16dB

VERDICT

Pioneer VSX-LXApprox Highs: HDMI v1.3 inputs; HD audio formats supported; powerful performance Lows: Only three HDMI inputs; no networking features; no DAB radio Performance: Design: Features:
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Overall:

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