Pioneer VSX-56TXi specifications Provided By, Conclusion

equipment Review

Here, I found that the VSX-56TXi did a very good job of keeping the stage coherence together. I found that there was only the usual small gap between front and surround hemispheres, indicating excellent overall presentation, as well as good linearity between the various pieces required to deliver this track correctly.

As a closing listen, I went to one of the best big band discs in my collection, the Bob Mintzer Big Band’s Homage To Count Basie. “One O'Clock Jump” is a killer blues track, which builds from start to finish and features an ambient mix with only ambience information in this quadraphonic (4.0) mix. As accent chords are hit by the band on a

piano solo chorus, the attack in front, with decay in all loudspeakers, provided an excellent peak into what the sound was like at the recording. Also of note was the pres- entation of the alto sax solo, which has a deliberately overblown timbre. I’m not a fan of this approach, but I also wasn’t hired to play the part! That said, the presentation from small combo to tutti shout choruses is well done both by the recording and the VSX-56TXi. It is easy to have timbre break- down with denser passages, and the VSX- 56TXi managed to come through this partic- ular text with nary a scratch on the Urishi black exterior.

Conclusion

Pioneer's VSX-56TXi is indicative of the progress that has been made in the last several years in the audio side of the home theatre market. This $1,700 product does an outstanding job, with performance that would have been considered high-end sev- eral years ago. Its warm, rich sonic signa- ture does an excellent job in conveying the message rather well. The flaws in the VSX- 56TXi lie in its operational issues far more than in its sonic attributes. With some user interface polishing, the few rough spots could be dramatically improved. ■■

Provided By

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Widescreen Review • Issue 97 • June 2005 Page 5/5