Performance meets value for Pioneer's 2009 A/V lineup
SINGAPORE--Pioneer has always been well-regarded for delivering fine, albeit premium, audio-visual products such as its renowned Kuro plasma TVs. But lately, there seems to be renewed emphasis on affordability for the company's latest 2009 offerings which also include its flagship LX-series system. For example, the new midrange VSX-1019AH costs 23 percent lower than its predecessor.
 Some of the 2009 Pioneer A/V products at a glance.
(Credit: Philip Wong/CNET Asia)
Among the vast lineup announced today at its media event were enthusiast-oriented Blu-ray players and A/V receivers, as well as lifestyle home cinema kits and DVD players for mainstream consumers. At the moment, product pricing and availability are limited to Singapore, and we'll update with regional launch details once these are available.
Blu-ray players
As far as Blu-ray disc playback is concerned, the handsome BDP-120, BDP-320 and BDP-LX52 can output 1080p visuals in unadulterated 24p film mode via the HDMI 1.3 port. Full Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio surround sound are supported in "raw" bitstream and decoded LPCM formats, too. Unfortunately, there's no backward compatibility with older A/V receivers since they lack a set of multichannel analog audio outputs. This is a minor tradeoff considering the BD-Live support (using an optional USB thumbdrive for the BDP-120) to download bonus content from the Internet.
Out-of-the-box, the trio will upscale regular DVDs to 1080p resolution and read AVCHD home videos recorded on your HD camcorders encompassing full extended color gamut, thanks to their x.v.Color and Deep Color compliancy. Connectivity-wise, on top of the above-mentioned HDMI jack, all the usual sockets from component-video to digital optical audio outputs are present. The exception is S-video which has been phased out by most major vendors and is not a showstopper.
The BDP-120 is further differentiated by a quick-start function that powers up the machine within 0.8 second. While this fast-boot option is not available on the BDP-320 and BDP-LX52, these two models are equipped with advanced auxiliary processing for enhanced performance. To ensure hassle-free integration with your TV, there's a Video Adjust Mode with optimal settings for different display types. For sound, a Precision Quartz Lock System (PQLS) is designed to improve CD and Blu-ray multichannel LPCM quality via the HDMI output hooked up to selected Pioneer A/V receivers.
Key specifications at a glance
| Models |
BDP-LX52 |
BDP-320 |
BDP-120 |
| Disc compatibility |
CD/DVD/Blu-ray |
| Video playback |
1080p24 |
| Audio playback |
Dolby Digital Plus, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD High Resolution, DTS-HD Master Audio |
| Blu-ray profile |
BD-Live |
BD-Live (upgradeable) |
| DVD-upscaling |
1080p |
| Multimedia playback |
MP3, JPEG, WMA, DivX, AVCHD |
JPEG and AVCHD |
| HDMI output |
Yes (HDMI 1.3) |
| Triple HD noise reduction |
Yes |
N.A. |
| HD graphics user interface |
Yes |
N.A. |
| PQLS |
Multichannel |
Stereo |
N.A. |
| Price |
S$999 (US$735.52) |
S$699 (US$514.64) |
S$599 (US$441.02) |
| Availability |
Now (Singapore) |
June (Singapore) |
Tags:
1080p,
Blu-ray Disc,
video,
HDMI,
graphics
|
)
)
)
