pioneer lx54 vs lx91

[buzzheavyyear]

Hi

I'm just about to splash out on a new blu-ray player and I was wondering if anyone has any notion of which player would give a better picture. The lx91 is old but originally billed as having a sublime picture. The lx94 is new and, from what I see, is being given away with pioneer amps. As I also need a new amp, perhaps the lx54 is the best route to go.

I'm really after the best picture. Any thoughts anyone?

Cheers

Nick

 

[Ronald Archiebald]

buzzheavyyear,

The LX-91 is the best ever blu-ray player I have ever seen. This is a top-end Pioneer product and I seriously doubt that a mid-range product like the LX-54 would come anywhere close to it, visually and sonically.

Ronald

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Hi Nick

I have not seen the LX54 yet however if you're after an upmarket Blu ray ray then as an alternative to the LX91 i'll suggest you also consider Sony's 5000ES (particularly as these are now available for around £600). As impressive as the the LX91 is i didn't feel its performance was any better then the 5000ES to justify the premium.

Btw, what display and speakers are you/will be using please?

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[buzzheavyyear]

Hi Rick

I have a pioneer kuro 60" plasma 6090, speakers are old bose, which also need upgrading. I'm thinking of Monitor Audio Apex with possibly a B&W PV1 and buying the pioneer lx83 to drive them.

Nick

 

[buzzheavyyear]

Thanks Ronald. The Sony is cheaper but I hope to have better matching with my 6090 using the 91.

Cheers

Nick

 

[Ronald Archiebald]

buzzheavyyear:
Thanks Ronald. The Sony is cheaper but I hope to have better matching with my 6090 using the 91.

Cheers

Nick

Trust me, it will be the LX-91 that would look absolutely glorious on your 60 inch Kuro plasma!

 

[v1c]

With the AV you have and the speakers you are considering the LX91 would be worth getting. However i wouldn't pay over a grand for a BDP and the LX91 already feels like a dated option to me. I've owned a pioneer player for the last 15 years in one form or another from laser disc through to dvd and Blu but for the first time my attention is on a different make with the Oppo 95 top of the list at the moment.

I would recommend getting an ex demo one for under £900 here though. If you don't want/need the latest spec then it's a great buy. i've had ex demo from them and it's virtually new with a standard warranty. I'd get it myself but the dated spec concerns me to much.

 

[Anonymous]

buzzheavyyear:
Hi Rick

I have a pioneer kuro 60" plasma 6090, speakers are old bose, which also need upgrading. I'm thinking of Monitor Audio Apex with possibly a B&W PV1 and buying the pioneer lx83 to drive them.

Nick

That will be a sweet setup, don't think there would be a huge difference between the lx91 and the Sony 5000ES though in all honesty.

 

[TheHomeCinemaCentre]

Good as the 91 is you would be better off with the Sony as Rick mentions. It is a superior player and with the price you can get them for now a bargain. Spending that extra cash on an ISF calibration for your screen or speakers would give you a bigger overall gain.

 

[v1c]

I think the OP want's a Pioneer to match with his other Pioneer equipment. Some brands inspire loyalty and i find Pioneer for me is one of them. If my choice was between the Sony 5000ES or a Pioneer LX54 i would go with the Pioneer even though the Sony is considered better. I know i said earlier i'm looking at a different make but i want to move up a level and the LX 91 to me is dated and over 1K so that takes it out the equation. It may well be my loss the Sony doesn't interest me.

 

[buzzheavyyear]

Thanks guys, this is exactly what I needed. I'm very grateful for your thoughts.

Cheers

Nick

 

[MUSICRAFT]

buzzheavyyear:
Hi Rick

I have a pioneer kuro 60" plasma 6090, speakers are old bose, which also need upgrading. I'm thinking of Monitor Audio Apex with possibly a B&W PV1 and buying the pioneer lx83 to drive them.

Nick

Hi Nick

I am going to be tied up now until at least 7pm so i hope you don't mind but i'll respond to you later on tonight. I am sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[Frank Harvey]

I'd have had an LX91 if the facia matched my SCLX83. Fantastic player, fabulous build quality, with picture and sound as good as you'll get.

 

[MUSICRAFT]

MUSICRAFT:buzzheavyyear:
Hi Rick

I have a pioneer kuro 60" plasma 6090, speakers are old bose, which also need upgrading. I'm thinking of Monitor Audio Apex with possibly a B&W PV1 and buying the pioneer lx83 to drive them.

Nick

Hi Nick

I am going to be tied up now until at least 7pm so i hope you don't mind but i'll respond to you later on tonight. I am sorry for any inconvenience this may cause.

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

Hi Nick

I am sorry for the delay.

Funnily enough i compared LX91 and the BDP5000ES using three Kuro displays (508XD, 5090 and the 600A) with Yamaha's DSP-Z11 and Chord Electronics DSP8000/SPM3005. As i said in my initial post as good as the LX91 is i don't feel its performance warrants the premium over the 5000ES. Therefore i'll recommend you save your money and seriously consider the 5000ES instead.

As for speakers Monitor Audio's Apex speakers are fantastic. Although the PV1 is a good sub i genuinely feel the icing on the cake will come in the form of the matching Apex AW-12 sub woofer. However if you ultimatey prefer the house sound of B&W sub woofers and if you are happy to consider buying used then i'll highly recommend the ASW675 and ASW700. Both of these models (around £650 and £900 RRP's respectively) were around when the PV1 was released and frankly i always thought their overall performance (particularly the ASW700's) much better then the PV1's. You should find a good used ASW675 for around £250 and the ASW700 around £350.

As impressive as Pioneer's LX83 is overall i don't feel the amp is an ideal match for Monitor Audio speakers. Tonally a far superior match for the Apex speakers comes in the form of Yamaha's RX-V3067. The RX-V3067 and Apex speakers together produce (amongst their other qualities) a sound which is highly detailed, potent, rich with timbre, dynamic, fast (without being in the face) and has an overall 'feel' which can be listened to for hours without fatigue with movie or music soundtracks.

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[v1c]

If you don't go the pioneer route then the new Oppo 93 would be a better specified option than the Sony ES5000 and you would save even more money.

You need to also bare in mind that the LX54 Is free with an LX83 amp at the moment. So you could get that first and see if you even need to upgrade.

 

[buzzheavyyear]

OK - I'll try and and a demo of the Oppo 93 - it would be interesting to compare it against either the sony or pioneer

Thanks

 

[buzzheavyyear]

Rick, a huge thanks for your insights. Looks like I'm going to listen to the apexs with the yamaha with either the sony or the oppo then. This has been really helpful. Now, where do I find some discounted Apexs!

Thanks again to you and everyone else

Nick

 

[john1000000boy]

v1c:

You need to also bare in mind that the LX54 Is free with an LX83 amp at the moment. So you could get that first and see if you even need to upgrade.

What do you reckon i could get for my 82/52 combo to sell for a 83/54??!!

 

[v1c]

I'd like to think you would get a reasonable price for it but i' really not the best person to ask i end up giving my old stuff away to family.

 

[Frank Harvey]

To be fair, higher end players tend to come into their own with projectors. Many 42", 50", and 60" screens won't necessarily reveal the benefits of the likes of the 5000es and LX91.

 

[MUSICRAFT]

buzzheavyyear:
Rick, a huge thanks for your insights. Looks like I'm going to listen to the apexs with the yamaha with either the sony or the oppo then. This has been really helpful. Now, where do I find some discounted Apexs!

Thanks again to you and everyone else

Nick

Hi Nick

Your welcome and i hope you enjoy the demonstrations

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[bigboss]

You really need to demo your options. If I'm getting a free LX54 player, I would take that instead of spending a lot on the LX91. For 1080/24p blu-ray performance, you will struggle to notice any difference. This is based on my own experience over the years. I've got a Pana BD60. I couldn't notice any difference in blu-ray video playback when I compared with Denon 2500BT. The difference is mainly in DVD upscaling, but the Kuro is one of the best upscalers around.

I found the Apex AW-12 to be vastly superior to the PV1. So definitely demo them.

Receiver is a personal preference. Even I wanted all Pioneer to match my Kuro. But I found the Pioneer LX72 & 82 to be bright sounding with MA Radius HD speakers. So I went for the Yamaha.

There are quite a few forum members running the Apex speakers with a Pioneer receiver & are very happy.

DEFINITELY DEMO ALL YOUR OPTIONS RATHER THAN BLINDLY FOLLOW OUR SUGGESTIONS.

 

[bigboss]

buzzheavyyear:
Rick, a huge thanks for your insights. Looks like I'm going to listen to the apexs with the yamaha with either the sony or the oppo then. This has been really helpful. Now, where do I find some discounted Apexs!

Thanks again to you and everyone else

Nick

If you buy a receiver from Sevenoaks, you'll get 15% off for the Apex speakers. Check www.ssav.com.