Topic: Pioneer integrated amps

[av_phile1]

akyat cool!....sana merong maligaw sa pier nyan?

I'd be among the first in tow if any of them sells for just 10T.   

[akyatbundok]

i think Pioneer Exclusive is a japan-only brand... its been around for a while since i see in yahoo auctions (jp) some old/used gear circa 70's and 80's selling for incredible prices similar to those posted above.

for instance this Exclusive M4 is on auction with starting bid at P82,000 (168,000 yen).

its surprising that somebody would expect people to bid at such prices, but even more shocking is that there are actually bids for such items, esp. in the Accuphase section.

[qguy]

IMO ...I dont think its an "exclusive" issue...but a price issue....its not practical to release a super japanese amp in the US or Europe when there are other competing brands like Krell etc...

[taggart]

Just wondering if anyone knows about this amp I just got.  It's a Pioneer A201...what are the specs of this one?  La din kasi kahit isang review sa internet.  Thanks!

[taggart]

dunno why my post didn't make it so am reposting from within.

need your opinions regarding pioneer int. amps...do they suck that bad?  meron kasi ako pioneer a-201 w/ nad c542cdp and biwired diamond 9.1s and for me they sound pretty good.  i tried auditioning the nad320bee w/ c542cdp and non-biwired monitor audio b2s and they sound too warm for me.  parang mas balanced setup ko e or is that bec. i'm probably still a newbie?  or does biwiring mask the so-called weakness of the pioneer amp?  sa mga kilala kong mga audio experts di maganda impression nila sa pioneer int. amps.  what do u guys think? 

[jerix]

I am using PIONEER products and m satisfied with it --  judgment ultimately boils down to your overall satisfaction bro in terms of sound quality, features and price -- 

[bumblebee]

a pioneer amp was used by hifi choice in its ma b2 review. i guess that says a lot.

[av_phile1]

dunno why my post didn't make it so am reposting from within.

need your opinions regarding pioneer int. amps...do they suck that bad?  meron kasi ako pioneer a-201 w/ nad c542cdp and biwired diamond 9.1s and for me they sound pretty good.  i tried auditioning the nad320bee w/ c542cdp and non-biwired monitor audio b2s and they sound too warm for me.  parang mas balanced setup ko e or is that bec. i'm probably still a newbie?  or does biwiring mask the so-called weakness of the pioneer amp?  sa mga kilala kong mga audio experts di maganda impression nila sa pioneer int. amps.  what do u guys think? 

If you listen to audio experts and seasoned audiophiles, no commercial brand of integrateds and recievers will ever be to their liking.  Their contempt is not just limited to Pioneer, but to many others so called mid-fi brands, often Japanese.  They have their reasons, often subjective.  Most of the time, their wallets are just too bulging to bother with commerical brands. 

[levi]

Maybe it depends on what model but if you are happy with it then that will save you a lot. At the restaurant where the Grand eb was held, Pioneer integrated was being used  with Bose speakers and the owner was telling me that he is not satisfied with the sound. Customers are complaining that the sound was too noisy even at moderate volume. You cant understand anything that is coming out from the speakers, only tssst and boom. I told Epoy of Architectural Audio about his problem and he recommended to try a different amp before changing the speakers. So he demoed HK int amps and instanly you could already hear the difference. The music became complete even their broadcast ads became clearer. Imagine if it was not a Bose. just my 1 cent advise

[taggart]

thank u sirs for your valued opinions. 

sir jerix glad to know i'm not alone...just a tad bright pero malinis naman para sakin...even when compared to a new hk230a/v receiver. 

sir bumblebee yun pala gamit sa review?  hmmm...ok a. 

sir av_phile1 you're right, the expert i know said Japanese int. amps are generally poor sounding compared to their British counterparts.  wish i got a bulging wallet so i can really hear what the hoopla is all about.

sir levi thanks for integrating my post hehe...yeah looks like i'm one of the lucky ones who don't have golden ears.   what source was he using?  i got my amp packaged with bose acoustimass(baka same owner haha) and when paired with my c542 ok naman tunog for me...surround sound pero imho malayo sa 9.1s for clarity and soundstage.(maybe due to design, biwiring or good interconnects?)       

[RU9]

Just wondering if anyone knows about this amp I just got.  It's a Pioneer A201...what are the specs of this one?  La din kasi kahit isang review sa internet.  Thanks!

Hi Taggart,

I got a Pioneer 229D, I think an earlier model than an A201.  I prefer my Pioneer over my Rotel RB03 due to a better midrange.

Do you have the ADAPT2 switch which is intended for the graphic equalizer, etc. Plug a Tono preamp in there , the improvement in sound is ten-fold.

I am sad that people who have not heard the equipment will give their opinion based on hearsay.

I have this Pioneer amp for more than 10 years now and I know what I am talking about.  I am using this amp now and the Rotel is now in storage.

Louie

[taggart]

Hi Taggart,

I got a Pioneer 229D, I think an earlier model than an A201.  I prefer my Pioneer over my Rotel RB03 due to a better midrange.

Do you have the ADAPT2 switch which is intended for the graphic equalizer, etc. Plug a Tono preamp in there , the improvement in sound is ten-fold.

I am sad that people who have not heard the equipment will give their opinion based on hearsay.

I have this Pioneer amp for more than 10 years now and I know what I am talking about.  I am using this amp now and the Rotel is now in storage.

Louie

sir louie...wow i never thought there would be another great pioneer amp besides the a400(according to review).  to think that you'd prefer it to a rotel speaks a lot on the quality of that amp.  i don't think my amp has that switch...sayang.  still satisfied with my amp so long as di ko linakasan...over 10 o'clock and the amp starts sounding strained...good thing i got a small room.  thanks for the feedback sir. 

[synchro]

for the price that I paid for my A404 integrated im quite satisfied with its performance and sound. the sound is not exceptional but it isnt mediocre either.  not much in terms of power reserves so it should be mated to speakers that are fairly easy to drive. if you operate it within its limits it should perform well.

[taggart]

for the price that I paid for my A404 integrated im quite satisfied with its performance and sound. the sound is not exceptional but it isnt mediocre either.  not much in terms of power reserves so it should be mated to speakers that are fairly easy to drive. if you operate it within its limits it should perform well.

sir i think i saw that amp being sold at glorietta but that was last year.  yun ba may mosfet?  nice amp.  yeah my diamond 9.1s aren't easy to drive(86db) pero at least kaya ng 35-40w pioneer amp ko at normal listening levels.  i might upgrade to higher watts amp when i get tired of this setup pero for now ok pa hehe.  i agree with the sound...it might not sound as dynamic as the other known brands pero it sounds pretty well-balanced to me.(walang agaw eksena)

[dimple_guy0619]

Well, i got pioneer a-777 integrated amplifier(100 RMS watts per  channel). Bought it 1992 when i'm working in kingdom of saudi arabia. What can i say, until now its been working properly. It has a great  sound... true rated 100 watts RMS...

[taggart]

nice amp sir.  100w/ch rms is a lot of power.   maybe the new(2000 and up?) pioneer amps don't sound as good as the old ones?  btw found out that my amp sounds really great with big sony 3-way speakers(1990s).  also tried some d-i-y cleaning and resoldering which made it louder and cleaner sounding.   before cleaning it, balance was a little off and you can hear some distortion at high frequencies.  not anymore.

[JojoD818]

I was looking for something and while I'm sorting out my stuff I stumbled on this Pioneer power amp. Bought it in 1993 I think.



After being in storage since 1998 I decided to open it up and was prepared to find things others may find disturbing...





And so I decided to bring out the usual tools and cleaning chemicals we all love to use, looks like my air compressor and vacuum cleaner is going to have a hard day today...

[JojoD818]

After spending hours blowing air and liquid into the amp it seems the procedure is doing great. I can finally read the part values, those are really thick layers of dust that was in there.

Finally...





disassembled the Toshiba output devices and applied a thin coat of Arctic Silver used in pc processors...



The elements did take its toll on the front panel, labels are already incomplete, probably due to the weather and years in storage.



And after disassembling the controls for cleaning I have finally finished cleaning and cheking her up.



After checking and reforming the caps, cleaing the controls (good thing it has digital controls for switching sources), and retesting the bias and psu she is working again.

Alas, I now have an amp I can use for speaker break-in purpose, testing preamp, and everyday background music. 

Cheers

[dimple_guy0619]

I have a PIONEER A-777 integrated amplifier (130 watts RMS per Channel @ 8 ohms). was bought December 1992 in Riyadh KSA. It was Made in Japan. Until now its is working, sounds perfectly, i dont have any problem with this. It was paired with BOSE 601 Series III  Floorstanding Speaker.
     I think the more important thing is, before purchasing any thing like an amplifier ,you have to listen to it. Whatever brands it is..... as long as it sounds good to you..
     

[JojoD818]

Been listening to the A-403 since yesterday and it's been doing well as is. It's a good thing I found it for I have been thinking of building another ss amp which I'll use for burning-in a future speaker plan. It's now paired to a Wharf 9.1 doing it's workout.

Of all the Pioneer gears I bought, only this A-403 amp, a GR-777 EQ, and SE-M250 headphones survived the years of use/storage cycle. The tape decks, AM/FM tuner, cd jukebox, and a PD-204 cdp have been recycled back to Mother Earth.


Cheers

[5Speed]

hehehe galing talaga ni master jojo....

We previously had a Pioneer Amp in the late 70's (usong uso non ang components eh)...I already forgotten the model pero simple lang sya, me dalawang knob na malaki (one for volume and the other for selecting tape/phono/tuner/aux) at power button tapos me led lights lang for identifying whether its on or off.....tapos ang kapal at ang bigat nya.....

it sounded really good for me during the early 80's and at that time it is paired with a Pioneer turntable (this I like), a single tape deck (di pa masyadong uso non ang double tape deck) a Pioneer dual 7band graphic equalizer for left and right channel, a Pioneer AM/FM tuner and a HUMONGOUS 5-way almost cabinet size Pioneer speakers that rocks our house.....pati kapitbahay namin eh nakikipakinig na lang sa amin....hehehehe


I miss those gears......every component died by themselves due to wear and tear or by course of nature disturbance..... the Integ. Amp accompany us until  92 or 93 at that time with only a sony cdp as its mate......

Thats one piece of Amp that I wont forget....very powerful for me and everybody who hears it swears that it is a good sounding Amp....and at that time I dont know what is a good and a bad sounding Amp...until in the late 90's when the bug hits me again and I want to have another audio gears again...my first course of action is to find a Pioneer Amp again trying to re-kindled my affair with the ol' Pioneer gears....but I was dissapointed...I've auditioned Pioneer Amps here and there new and old and I cannot get the sound that I've been once familiar with.... I've stumbled to one Amp that sounds very good but it was an Elite model and at that time I need to rob a bank to buy this kind of Amp. And at that time there are so many new things that catch my attentions....AVR's which is quite complicated for me at first....What the hell are they thinking, making the simple audio setup so complicated, why so many DSP's, why cant it be a bass and treble only??   

After auditioning some Pioneers, Sansui's (which faded in the scene completely) and Marantz, only the Marantz hold its foothold on the old known brand...and I moved on.....opening myself on a vast and complicated A/V world....hehehehe

[qguy]

my Pioneer A-405 looks exactly like your A-403

Been listening to the A-403 since yesterday and it's been doing well as is. It's a good thing I found it for I have been thinking of building another ss amp which I'll use for burning-in a future speaker plan. It's now paired to a Wharf 9.1 doing it's workout.

Of all the Pioneer gears I bought, only this A-403 amp, a GR-777 EQ, and SE-M250 headphones survived the years of use/storage cycle. The tape decks, AM/FM tuner, cd jukebox, and a PD-204 cdp have been recycled back to Mother Earth.


Cheers

[ATJr.]

jojo,

good job! the last pioneer integrated amp i owned was an SA-8800 which i lost when robbers broke into my shop and carted away two of my Leach Super Amps, a sansui cassette deck, an AKAI open reel deck. that was in 1992..... :'( :'( :'(

pioneers are sturdy amps, more durable than sansui imho.....

@all,

in case you're wondering what the 560watts printed at the back means, it is the combination of loads that the power cord of the amp can support.  as you know there are power outlets at the back which you can plug in your other appliances...so to be safe try not to exceed that figure, or else replace the dinky power cord of the amp to higher gauged wire...

that figure btw has nothing to do with the power output capability of such amps....

[s2kov]

master 2ny, san na yung pics ng GC at creator nyan?

[ATJr.]

master 2ny, san na yung pics ng GC at creator nyan?

oy, OT na tayo...baka nag-iisip pa ng sasabihin, i will ask for his permission though and i will start it for him...

[JojoD818]

hehehe galing talaga ni master jojo....

We previously had a Pioneer Amp in the late 70's (usong uso non ang components eh)...I already forgotten the model pero simple lang sya, me dalawang knob na malaki (one for volume and the other for selecting tape/phono/tuner/aux) at power button tapos me led lights lang for identifying whether its on or off.....tapos ang kapal at ang bigat nya.....

it sounded really good for me during the early 80's and at that time it is paired with a Pioneer turntable (this I like), a single tape deck (di pa masyadong uso non ang double tape deck) a Pioneer dual 7band graphic equalizer for left and right channel, a Pioneer AM/FM tuner and a HUMONGOUS 5-way almost cabinet size Pioneer speakers that rocks our house.....pati kapitbahay namin eh nakikipakinig na lang sa amin....hehehehe


I miss those gears......every component died by themselves due to wear and tear or by course of nature disturbance..... the Integ. Amp accompany us until  92 or 93 at that time with only a sony cdp as its mate......

Thats one piece of Amp that I wont forget....very powerful for me and everybody who hears it swears that it is a good sounding Amp....and at that time I dont know what is a good and a bad sounding Amp...until in the late 90's when the bug hits me again and I want to have another audio gears again...my first course of action is to find a Pioneer Amp again trying to re-kindled my affair with the ol' Pioneer gears....but I was dissapointed...I've auditioned Pioneer Amps here and there new and old and I cannot get the sound that I've been once familiar with.... I've stumbled to one Amp that sounds very good but it was an Elite model and at that time I need to rob a bank to buy this kind of Amp. And at that time there are so many new things that catch my attentions....AVR's which is quite complicated for me at first....What the hell are they thinking, making the simple audio setup so complicated, why so many DSP's, why cant it be a bass and treble only??   

After auditioning some Pioneers, Sansui's (which faded in the scene completely) and Marantz, only the Marantz hold its foothold on the old known brand...and I moved on.....opening myself on a vast and complicated A/V world....hehehehe

Those were really the days when you must have the highest wattage amps and the bigger the cone size of your speakers, the better! 

Nevertheless, we should consider ourselves fortunate to have been a part of such a history. 

[JojoD818]

my Pioneer A-405 looks exactly like your A-403

I was under the impression that they use the same boards for the A-403 and A-405 but with different transistors and tranny specs since the A-405 is a much higher wattage version. 

[JojoD818]

jojo,

good job! the last pioneer integrated amp i owned was an SA-8800 which i lost when robbers broke into my shop and carted away two of my Leach Super Amps, a sansui cassette deck, an AKAI open reel deck. that was in 1992..... :'( :'( :'(

pioneers are sturdy amps, more durable than sansui imho.....

Thanks! It was fun really, I never expected it to run anymore anyway so I guess I now have a reserve amp for all season. 

Aray ko! 2 Leach SA and a Pioneer? Sana lang they sold it for use, sayang naman if they just sold it sa junk shop for the copper. Darn. 

I also had an AKAI open reel, but Memorex na lang and Ampex yun nabibili na tapes so my father junked it when I was into turntables.

 

[ATJr.]

jojo,

a year later, that amp was posted for sale in a then free "buy and sell magazine", even had a phone conversation with the seller who was at the time in mandaluyong. the guy i talked to was extolling the amps as coming from the states... and described the amp to me in detail so that unmistakeably they were my amps!

so what i did was to organize some policemen to go with me to raid the place, pero mukhang nakahalata and wala na kaming inabutan, but there were other amps there when we came to the place! ang balita ko, ginagamit sa combo/banda yung mga amps ko na ninakaw nila!!! :'( :'( :'(

[JojoD818]

Sayang yun Pioneer hindi na din na-recover. 

At least you can always build a Leach amp anytime.