Home > Consumer Reviews > Pioneer HTP-2920 5.1-Channel Home Theater System

This item is sold in stores at around $219, but that aside, this is a fantastic product. I was originally searching for an inexpensive home theater system for a small 12' x 14' room with a DVD player built in, but none of them have the features I want, and none of them are rated above 3 stars no matter where I checked. This set includes a fairly capable Pioneer receiver in the box that has a nice amount of inputs, decoders, effects and other features. I've only tested it in this 12' x 14' room, but it's been amazing so far, especially for a set that costs less than I paid for just my subwoofer in my main home theater. No regrets. Everything I've hooked up to this system sounds excellent. I didn't expect to get this kind of quality from a $219 system.

The one thing I may change are the wires. The ones supplied are of a fairly small gauge. I may replace them with thicker gauge wire in the future, but they sound great as is, so I'm in no hurry.

So I finally made a foray into bedroom electronics - having only had a 17" Sanyo I was given for free and a Coby CD player - and proceeded about setting my budget at around $800. I already had two BR players in the living room HT set-up, so I planned on moving my PS3 there. TV-wise, I decided on the Samsung 32" A330, a gorgeous aesthetic and performing television (for $500, couldnt be happier) - but the real challenge came in finding decent sound. Wanting a new stand as well, this limited me to around $200-$250, a hell of a challenge.

So I looked around online at that price range, and I ran into the Pioneer 2920. Not your typical HTiB at this price, as it doesn't include a player, it is only a receiver + 5.1 speakers - but since I love Pioneer since the purchase of my VSX-03 6 weeks ago I decided to give it a chance.

Set-up was a breeze (then again, this stuff is second nature to me nowadays) - it comes packaged as a SX-218 Receiver (218! lol, and you all love the 1018, 8 units up) and S-3100K speakers. Inputs, albeit non-HDMI (didn't need it), were plenty for my needs - one optical, two digital, two RCA red/whites, and FM/AM radio - impressive inputs for a $220 set. The speakers I decided to wall-mount using Atlantic mounts ($20) found at Wally World, great stuff - and the speakers include options for screw mounting or keyhole mounting, again, impressive. The speakers themselves, while not as aesthetically pleasing as LG's modern HTiBs inthe price range, were nonetheless great to look at - just melded into the bedroom. The subwoofer itself - was I surprised. It's only one 6" driver in a large ported enclosure - I was fearful of turning it on. But anyway, plugged it all in easy enough (unfortunately, the tiny spring connectors on the 5 speakers only fit the 22AWG wire supplied, using bigger would require Pin terminals. On the sub, I was able to fit in 14 AWG wire comfortably. I felt it would need it). Placed the speakers comfortably in my room (perhaps not sonically perfectly, in here I preferred more aesthetics) - and began tweaking.

The amount of options offered to you in this receiver are incredible! It's also quite a looker! Apart from the typical Pro Logic processing given in any HTiB, this one offered a lot of the choices of my VSX-03! The usual Direct/Stereo were there as well, and all of Pioneer's processing options - a wealth of choices that I'd never seen in an HTiB. Sound Retriever was also available, to restore a bit of data lost in music compression for digital mp3 sources. The usual speaker distance/channel level adjustments were present as well, and options for sound manipulation beyond anything I imagined for a $220 set. Handy features such as a Display dimmer were also included.

Disc testing was done on LOTR:RotK DTS edition - Witch-king/Gandalf scene, SW:Ep. I podracing, Dark Knight - Lower 5th. The subwoofer itself was surprising, albeit maybe due to the larger wiring I used, but it adequately filled my 12x15x9 bedroom (it's no Dynamo though, not even close) - and while still boomy, still wasn't completely a one-note pony. Speakers were not tinny sounding at all, albeit I wish I could've used a little equalizer adjustments (not too bright, a little flat). Overall, I was pleased. I smiled a bit, content with it. I would've loved to put some Paradigm Atoms and B&W M-1s in here, but then I couldn't have afforded the Panny 50" for the main room - so overall, if you're looking for a stop-gap unit, a bedroom setup, or even a small gaming rig, this Pioneer 2920 @ only $220 is an incredible bargain. Although lacking HDMI, for the inputs, customization options, and sound quality, and the fact that its still a receiver (and can thus power other speakers - specs say 100Wx6, 0.7% THD, 8 ohms...that 8 ohms part is incredible most HTiBs use 3,4, or 6 so you can't switch out the speakers or receiver for others) - I can't recommend anything else in the price point (although I still believe in saving up for better purchases in the long run). Well done again, Pioneer!

Excellent system for a good price. I was on a limited budget and I bought this system to hook up to a Samsung BD-P2500 1080p Blu-ray player and a Samsung 1080p HDTV. I am very happy with my purchase. The system sounds great, but is not overpowering. Components are very solid and look good. Setup took about an hour. I had a couple of questions and Pioneer customer service was very helpful.

I recently purchased the Pioneer HTP-2920 Home Theater System with an excellent receiver and it's six speakers. They come as a set and do not include a DVD player which I did not need as I have a Panasonic Blue Ray player already. The system costs between $200 and $320 on line, Amazon, eBay, or directly from Pioneer who has, like Amazon, extremely fast shipping and excellent customer service. The best prices are the questionable "open box" items on eBay, I elected to get a brand new system direct from Pioneer for $209 plus 99 cents shipping. Returns can be made if you are not satisfied for any reason. I thought about sending mine back as it does not have HDMI hook ups and Pioneer authorized my return with no problem but I am very glad I did not send it back.

Set up was well explained in the "quick set up" guides which are also available on line at: pioneerelectronics.com. Each speaker and wire is color coded for fool proof set up. The speakers include
plenty of wire length for a mid-sized room, wire gauge could be stouter but worked just fine. There were plenty of hook ups in the back and in front for accessories rivaling much more expensive receivers. There are three
audio inputs and a plug in the front that can be used for iPods. The receiver has 840 watts total power which is quite powerful and has six channels. It does not have HDMI hook ups which I was afraid would adversely effect my sound from my Blue Ray DVD player, but that was not the case at all.

The system is a very handsome looking set up with a glossy black receiver, and unobtrusive matching black speakers that matched my Toshiba 42" HD LCD 1080p TV to the "T". The sub-woofer has plenty of base and can only be used with this receiver. The other speakers and the receiver can be matched up with other systems and, frankly, the receiver was worth the price of the whole set alone. I have other receivers I paid $300 plus for that are not as nice as this Pioneer receiver is.

It has 30 presets for FM & AM radio stations. It has a large list of different Pioneer, Pro-logic & Dolby DTS sound selections, more than are even needed but can be tried for sound preference for various music types, movies, TV, etc. Sound Retrieval is also available, to restore a bit of data lost in music compression from sub-optimal digital mp3 sources.

The usual speaker distance/channel level custom adjustments are available but a "quick set up" for automatic speaker balancing offering an easy option with one having to select room size and indicate if the front or back speakers are closest. The options for sound manipulation were beyond anything I imagined for a $220 set. Even a display dimmer is included.

The speakers are small so I was expecting the sound to be poor to average but I was surprised to have sound that rivaled that of my Bose sound system that cost nearly
ten times as much! It sounded too good to be true but it was true and terrific and I'm thrilled with its sound and performance. No distortion at high volume. No tin-like sound, sub-woofer provided the right amount of bass that can be adjusted through the receiver. The speakers take up little room and are very easy to wall mount, all you need to do is hang them on a firmly secured wall screw. The small wires have an advantage too, they are hard to notice. So, small speakers and wires do have a plus in a room where you don't have a lot of room or do not want ugly wires and speakers cluttering things up. It's a compact system that packs quite a punch!

Go ahead and buy one, you won't be disappointed and if you are, you can always return it.

I got this just over christmas and i'm very surprised at the sound quality from the set. The speakers are very unobtrusive, the subwoofer is a good size but not powered. If you are looking for a high quality system that wont break your bank, then these are for you.

Overall: Very good.