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Strengths: Appearance, quality, price, option for dual rear centers in 6.1 sound, plenty of inputs, PLIIx, lets me program my remote to work with my Xbox.
Weaknesses: Heat. You're supposed to have 8" vertical clearance for ventilation. Remote doesn't have programming presets for either of my TVs, so I have to use separate remote. Manual not detailed enough.
Summary: I needed a receiver for my home theater setup and I ended up getting this one because the price to performance ratio was the best I could find. I do somewhat regret getting it now, since Pioneer is releasing their new receiver models soon, and also because the existing 914/1014 models have many great additional features I'm missing out on. However, this one was $100 less so I think I still got a good deal.
The things that bothered me the most were:
1) You are supposed to keep an eight inch clearance above the unit for ventilation. Well, I'd have to put it on the floor for that. I just ignore that request and take the risk of damage, although I'm careful not to let it overheat.
2) The remote is fantastic except you're just SOL if your other electronics aren't pre-programmed presets in the remote. Both my DVD players work great with the remote (including my Xbox which was unexpected and awesome), but I have 2 TVs which don't have presets, so I can't use the receiver remote for them. I wish it was a learning remote like the one included in the 914 model is. Oh well.
I'm really glad this model was offered in silver, one advantage this has over the 1014. Black is great too, but it doesn't match the rest of my setup as well.
I've heard that on the 814, the "100 watts per channel" is a tiny bit exaggerated, but it powers my speakers well, and I don't think I'd need a full 100 watts anyway. It delivers very good audio all the way up until -15db volume, where the buzz/fuzz starts to kick in. That doesn't matter though, since that's a rediculously loud volume that I'd never listen to.
This receiver was easy to calibrate for my HT setup after just glancing through the manual for some things, and all in all, it is a very good receiver that was well worth $220. Unless the new Pioneer models are priced very well and have great new features, I'd recommend this model for anyone looking for a great receiver for not too much. Kinda wish I had 7.1, but 6.1 really is all I need anyway.
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