Pioneer VSX-832 vs Pioneer VSX-831

      Pioneer VSX-832

      Pioneer VSX-831
      83
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      78
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      Australia and Asia
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      Asia
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      Disclosure: We earn money from the affiliate links to products associated with content in this article.

      Overview

      Here we are comparing Pioneer VSX-832 to Pioneer VSX-831 to reveal their common strengths and weaknesses as well as the differences between them which will help you in making a correct decision before the purchase. The Pioneer VSX-832 has 5 channel and the Pioneer VSX-831 has 5 channel amplifiers.


      Pioneer VSX-832 Pioneer VSX-831

      Pioneer VSX-832 was introduced in 2017. It is equipped with 5 channel amplifier with 80 W (8 Ω, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 2 channel driven) power per channel and is capable of 5.1 maximum channel processing. It supports Dolby Atmos and DTS:X, passes 4K/60Hz and upscales 1080p to 4K video signal.

      Pioneer VSX-831 was introduced in 2017. It is equipped with 5 channel amplifier with 80 W (8 Ω, 20 Hz - 20 kHz and 2 channel driven) power per channel and is capable of 5.1 maximum channel processing. It , passes 4K/60Hz and upscales up to 4K video signal.

      Highlights

      • 5.1 Channels
      • 5.1 Channel Processing
      • 80 W (8 Ω, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 2 channel driven)
      • Dolby Atmos, DTS:X
      • HDR10, Dolby Vision
      • 4K/60Hz Passthrough, 4K/30Hz Upscaling
      • Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet

      Highlights

      • 5.2 Channels
      • 5.1 Channel Processing
      • 80 W (8 Ω, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 2 channel driven)
      • HDR10, Dolby Vision
      • 4K/60Hz Passthrough, 4K/30Hz Upscaling
      • Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet
      • Phono Input

      Table of Contents
      1. Overview
      2. Pros and Cons
      3. Advantage of Pioneer VSX-832
      4. Advantage of Pioneer VSX-831
      5. Common Strengths and Weaknesses
      6. Audio Section
      7. Video Section
      8. Inputs and Outputs
      9. Evaluations
      10. Specifications  

      Now that we've looked at the most essential specifications and gained a basic understanding of these receivers, we can delve into more details and see the differences between them.

      Pros and Cons

      In this section we present pros and cons of Pioneer VSX-832 and Pioneer VSX-831.

      PROS

      Pioneer VSX-832

      Pioneer VSX-831

      •   Dolby Atmos
      •   DTS:X
      •   DSD via HDMI
      •   Auto Speaker Calibration System with Mic.
      •   HDR10
      •   Dolby Vision
      •   New HDCP Version
      •   Analog To HDMI Upconversion
      •   Wi-Fi
      •   Bluetooth
      •   Chromecast Built-In
      •   USB Input
      •   Composite Video Inputs
      •   Ethernet
      •   Analog Tuner
      •   Spotify
      •   Tidal
      •   DSD via HDMI
      •   Auto Speaker Calibration System with Mic.
      •   HDR10
      •   Dolby Vision
      •   New HDCP Version
      •   Analog To HDMI Upconversion
      •   Wi-Fi
      •   Bluetooth
      •   Chromecast Built-In
      •   USB Input
      •   Phono Input
      •   Composite Video Inputs
      •   Ethernet
      •   Analog Tuner
      •   Pandora
      •   Spotify

      CONS

      Pioneer VSX-832

      Pioneer VSX-831

      •   Few Channels - 5.1
      •   Low Power Output - 80 W
      •   5.1 Channel Processing
      •   No Dolby Atmos Height Virtualization
      •   No IMAX Enhanced
      •   No Auro 3D with Auro-Matic Upmixer
      •   No HDR10+
      •   No eARC
      •   No 8K Passthrough
      •   Does not Work with Amazon Alexa
      •   4 HDMI Inputs
      •   1 HDMI Outputs
      •   0 8K Input
      •   Few RCA Line Inputs
      •   No Phono Input
      •   No RCA Pre-Outs
      •   No Zones
      •   No Digital Radio
      •   No Pandora
      •   Few Channels - 5.2
      •   Low Power Output - 80 W
      •   5.1 Channel Processing
      •   No Dolby Atmos
      •   No Dolby Atmos Height Virtualization
      •   No DTS:X
      •   No IMAX Enhanced
      •   No Auro 3D with Auro-Matic Upmixer
      •   No HDR10+
      •   No eARC
      •   No 8K Passthrough
      •   Does not Work with Amazon Alexa
      •   1 HDMI Outputs
      •   0 8K Input
      •   Few RCA Line Inputs
      •   No RCA Pre-Outs
      •   No Zones
      •   No Digital Radio
      •   No Tidal


      And here are some specifications which fall into average criteria and are neither in PROs nor in CONs category:

      AVERAGE

      Pioneer VSX-832

      Pioneer VSX-831

      •   Bluetooth 4․1 + LE
      •   6 HDMI Inputs
      •   Bluetooth 4․1 + LE

      Advantage of Pioneer VSX-832

      Pioneer VSX-832
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      This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Pioneer VSX-832 over Pioneer VSX-831.

      Pioneer VSX-832 vs Pioneer VSX-831
      Certified 4 Ω Performance vs
      Dolby Atmos vs
      Dolby Surround Upmixer vs
      DTS:X vs
      DTS Neural:X vs
      Music Playback via USB MP3, WMA, AAC, Apple Lossless, WAV, FLAC, AIFF, DSD, Dolby TrueHD vs MP3, WMA, AAC, Apple Lossless, WAV, FLAC, AIFF, DSD
      High Resolution Audio Formats via USB Apple Lossless, WAV, FLAC, AIFF, AAC, DSD, Dolby TrueHD vs Apple Lossless, WAV, FLAC, AIFF, DSD
      HLG vs
      DTS Play-Fi vs
      USB Input 2 (1 Front) vs 1 Front
      Versatile Speaker Configuration FRONT, CENTER, SURROUND vs
      Tidal vs
      Deezer vs
      Bigger Power Supply 400 W vs 390 W

      Check out other receivers which are frequently compared to Pioneer VSX-832.

      Onkyo TX-NR6100
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      7.2 channel

      100 W

      Denon AVC-A1H
      Image cannot be found

      15.4 channel

      150 W

      Denon AVR-X6300H
      Image cannot be found

      11.2 channel

      140 W

      Denon AVR-X1500H
      Image cannot be found

      7.2 channel

      80 W

      Pioneer VSX-935
      Image cannot be found

      7.2 channel

      80 W

      Pioneer VSX-534
      Image cannot be found

      5.2 channel

      80 W

      Sony STR-ZA810ES
      Image cannot be found

      7.2 channel

      70 W

      Onkyo TX-RZ630
      Image cannot be found

      9.2 channel

      90 W

      Yamaha RX-A2040
      Image cannot be found

      9.2 channel

      140 W

      Pioneer VSX-1131
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      7.2 channel

      100 W

      Yamaha RX-A2050
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      9.2 channel

      140 W

      Yamaha RX-A740
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      7.2 channel

      90 W

      Advantage of Pioneer VSX-831

      Pioneer VSX-831
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      This section shows those features and specifications which are the reason to choose Pioneer VSX-831 over Pioneer VSX-832.

      Pioneer VSX-832 vs Pioneer VSX-831
      More Channels 5.1 vs 5.2
      Bi-amp capability vs
      Dolby Pro Logic vs PLII
      DTS Neo vs Neo:6
      More Tone Control Channels 2 Channel vs All Channels
      More HDMI Inputs 4 vs 6
      Phono Input vs
      Pandora vs
      Higher Rated Headphone Power Output 80 mW (32 Ω, 1 kHz, 10% THD) vs 85 mW (32 Ω, 1 kHz, 10% THD)

      Check out other receivers which are frequently compared to Pioneer VSX-831.

      Denon AVR-X2100W
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      7.2 channel

      95 W

      Onkyo TX-NR636
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      7.2 channel

      95 W

      Pioneer VSX-LX302
      Image cannot be found

      7.2 channel

      100 W

      Yamaha RX-A860
      Image cannot be found

      7.2 channel

      100 W

      Pioneer SC-LX501
      Image cannot be found

      7.2 channel

      120 W

      Onkyo TX-NR747
      Image cannot be found

      7.2 channel

      110 W

      Pioneer VSX-45
      Image cannot be found

      5.2 channel

      80 W

      Pioneer VSX-822-K
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      5.1 channel

      80 W

      Yamaha RX-A2010
      Image cannot be found

      9.2 channel

      140 W

      Yamaha RX-A2020
      Image cannot be found

      9.2 channel

      140 W

      Yamaha RX-A750
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      7.2 channel

      90 W

      Pioneer VSX-1131
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      7.2 channel

      100 W

      Common Strengths and Weaknesses

      We already listed pros and cons of each model. However, you may also find useful to look at their common strengths and weaknesses shown side-by-side.

      STRENGTHS Pioneer VSX-832 Pioneer VSX-831
        DSD via HDMI 2-ch/Multi-ch Input 2-ch/Multi-ch Input
        Auto Speaker Calibration System with Mic. MCACC MCACC
        HDR10
        Dolby Vision
        New HDCP Version2.22.2
        Analog To HDMI Upconversion Composite Composite
        Wi-Fi
        Bluetooth SBC, AAC
        Chromecast Built-In
        USB Input2 (1 Front)1 Front
        Composite Video Inputs22
        Ethernet
        Analog Tuner FM/AM with RDS FM/AM with RDS
        Spotify
      WEAKNESSES Pioneer VSX-832 Pioneer VSX-831
        Few Channels5.15.2
        Low Power Output80 W (8 Ω, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 2 channel driven)80 W (8 Ω, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 2 channel driven)
        Channel Processing5.15.1
        No Dolby Atmos Height Virtualization
        No IMAX Enhanced
        No Auro 3D with Auro-Matic Upmixer
        No HDR10+
        No eARC
        No 8K Passthroughup to 4K/60p (YCbCr 4:4:4)up to 4K/60p (4:4:4 24-bit)
      4K/60p (4:2:0 36-bit)
      4K/24p (4:4:4 36-bit)
        Does not Work with Amazon Alexa
        Few HDMI Outputs11
        Few 8K Inputs
        Few RCA Line Inputs3 (1 front)3 (1 front)
        No RCA Pre-Outs0.10.2
        No Zones11
        No Digital Radio

      Audio Section

      Amplifier

      Pioneer VSX-832 Pioneer VSX-831

      5 channel Discrete Direct Energy Amplifier: Pioneer VSX-832 features 5 channel power amplifier with Discrete Direct Energy design. It is rated at 80 W (8 Ω, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 2 channel driven) and is able to drive 4 ohm speakers.

      5 channel Discrete Direct Energy Amplifier: Pioneer VSX-831 features 5 channel power amplifier with Discrete Direct Energy design. It is rated at 80 W (8 Ω, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 2 channel driven).

        Speaker Configurations

        Pioneer VSX-832's and Pioneer VSX-831's amplifiers can be assigned for different speaker configurations.

        • Dolby Atmos Configurations: The following speaker configurations are supported for Dolby Atmos:
        • Pioneer VSX-832: 3.1.2 with internal amplifier.
        • Pioneer VSX-831: Not supported.
        • DTS:X Configurations: The following speaker configurations are supported for DTS:X:
        • Pioneer VSX-832: The speaker configurations for DTS:X are the same as for Dolby Atmos - 3.1.2 with internal amplifier.
        • Pioneer VSX-831: Not supported.
        • Configurations without height channels: There are also other speaker configurations available which do not include height channels:
        • Pioneer VSX-832: 5.1 with internal amplifier.
        • Pioneer VSX-831: 5.2 with internal amplifier.
        • Bi-Amp: Pioneer VSX-831 is able to bi-amp up to 2 main channels simultaneously. During bi-amplification two amplifiers are used for one speaker. One amplifier powers the midrange and tweeter section of the speaker and another amplifier powers the low frequency woofers. Each amplifier is less loaded and performs better. In order to use this feature speakers must have 2 pairs of connectors.

          • Dolby Atmos

          Pioneer VSX-832 supports Dolby Atmos. It is a cinematic audio format in which sounds exist as individual entities, called audio objects. In Dolby Atmos, any sound can exist as an independent audio object, free of channel restrictions. They can be precisely placed and moved anywhere in your room, including overhead, to flow above and around you in three-dimensional space. Through the use of audio objects, overhead sound, and all the richness, clarity, and power of Dolby sound, Dolby Atmos turns your room into an amazing place for entertainment. The format supports up to 128 simultaneous independent audio objects in a mix for rich, realistic, and breathtaking sound. It recreates the director's original concept through descriptive metadata to provide customized playback for home theater and delivers sounds above you through overhead speakers, special upward-firing Dolby Atmos speakers, or a Dolby Atmos enabled sound bar.

          • Dolby Surround Upmixer: Pioneer VSX-832 supports Dolby Surround Upmixer. If the content is not mixed in Dolby Atmos then the Dolby surround upmixer will expand the audio to all channels including ceiling speakers. The upmixer has replaced the Dolby Pro Logic II family with improved upmixing algorithms.

          DTS:X

          Pioneer VSX-832 supports DTS:X. A technique used in DTS:X is similar to the one used in Dolby Atmos. Instead of a fixed number of channels, DTS:X defines object locations from the listener in polar coordinates. An a/v receiver then dynamically renders sound according to the current speaker configuration. The speaker layout employed by DTS:X is the sum of Dolby Atmos and Auro-3D. It has standard 7.1 channel base layer, a 5 channel height layer above the base layer on the front and side walls, and 3 rows of speakers on the ceiling.

          • DTS Neural:X: Pioneer VSX-832 supports DTS Neural:X which is an advanced upmixer that can take non DTS:X content and upmix it to the DTS:X speaker layout. It has replaced the DTS Neo family with improved flexibility.

          Sound Processing

          • Compressed Music Enhancer: Pioneer VSX-832 and Pioneer VSX-831 feature Compressed Music Enhancer which enhances the quality of the music files with lossy compression.
          • Advanced Sound Retriever: Compressed music enhancement in Pioneer VSX-832 and Pioneer VSX-831 is done by Pioneer’s Advanced Sound Retriever. Hear the detail, warmth and clarity, the way the artist intended it, from all of your highly compressed MP3 and WMA files stored on USB, Smartphone and portable media players. By restoring data that tend to get lost in the digital compression process, Pioneers Advanced Sound Retriever Technology enhances audio reproduction all the way upto 20 Khz frequencies.

          Room Calibration

          Pioneer VSX-832 and Pioneer VSX-831 come with MCACC room correction system.

          • MCACC: Pioneer’s exclusive Multi-Channel Acoustic Calibration System (MCACC) delivers an easy-to-use, automatic sound adjustment system to precision-tune your Pioneer and Pioneer Elite receivers with minimal effort. Every MCACC system comes with a microphone to measure and analyze reverb characteristics. The equalizer optimally adjusts sound parameters to fit the size and shape of your home environment while maintaining the integrity of high-resolution playback without any degradation to the quality of your music.

        Video Section

        HDMI

        Pioneer VSX-832 comes with 4 HDMI inputs. It has 1 output.

        Pioneer VSX-831 comes with 6 HDMI inputs. It has 1 output.

        • 4K/60Hz Passthrough: On both receivers all inputs pass up to 4K/60p (YCbCr 4:4:4) video signal.
        • 4K Upscaling: Both receivers can upscale 1080p to 4K from HDMI and analog sources.
        • Analog To HDMI Upconversion: Both receivers support analog to HDMI Upconversion, so you can input your analog video sources and output them digitally via HDMI. This means that you will need only one HDMI cable to connect to your TV.
        • BT.2020 Color Space: BT.2020 or Rec. 2020 is a color standard which delivers a wider color gamut compared to Rec. 709. It covers approximately 75% of the total visual spectrum while the Rec. 709 covers only 35% (available on both models).
        • HDCP 2.2.0 Copy Protection: Both receivers are HDCP 2.2.0 compliant which is a requirement for 4K/HDR copy-protected content transmission.
        • 3D Ready: Both receivers are able to pass 3D video through HDMI.

        HDR (High Dynamic Range)

        Pioneer VSX-832 supports HDR10, Dolby Vision and Hybrid Log-Gamma.

        Pioneer VSX-831 supports HDR10 and Dolby Vision.

        High dynamic range video has greater dynamic range than standard dynamic range (SDR) video with brighter whites and deeper blacks. The result is greater contrast and more details in dark and bright areas, better color and depth.

        • HDR10: HDR10 uses the wide-gamut Rec. 2020 color space. It sends static metadata via video stream to the TV which calibrates its screen brightness and color according to that. HDR10 supports 10-bit color which corresponds to 1024 shades of the primary RGB colors. It is technically limited to a maximum of 10,000 nits peak brightness, however common HDR10 contents are mastered with peak brightness from 1,000 to 4,000 nits.
        • Dolby Vision: Dolby Vision is a set of technologies developed by Dolby Laboratories for high dynamic range (HDR) video. It covers content creation, distribution, and playback. Like HDR10+, it includes dynamic metadata that are used to adjust and optimize each frame of the HDR video to the consumer display's capabilities in a way specified by the content creator. Dolby Vision allows for a maximum resolution of 8K up to 12-bit color depth, maximum peak brightness of 10,000 nits and a color gamut up to Rec. 2020. It uses Dolby's proprietary dynamic metadata defined in SMPTE ST 2094-10.
        • Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG): The Hybrid Log-Gamma (HLG) is a transfer function developed mainly for HDR live video feed and over-the-air broadcasts. It is an HDR format that uses BT.2020 color primaries and a bitdepth of 10-bit. It is backward compatible with the transfer function of SDR and is designed to be better-suited for television broadcasting, where the metadata required for other HDR formats is not backward compatible with non-HDR displays. HLG defines a non-linear optical-electro transfer function, in which the lower half of the signal values use a gamma curve and the upper half of the signal values use a logarithmic curve.

        Inputs and Outputs

        Audio

        • Phono Input: There is an MM phono input on Pioneer VSX-831 with built-in phono stage for connecting the moving magnet cartridge output of the turntable directly to the receiver.
        • Analog Line Inputs: There are 3 pair of line inputs on both receivers for connecting sources with analog outputs.
        • Digital Inputs: 1 optical input and 1 coaxial input are available for digital audio connections on both receivers.
        • Headphone Output: There is a 6.3 mm (1/4") headphone output jack on the front panel of each receiver.

        Video

        • HDMI:
        • Pioneer VSX-832
          Inputs:           4   Outputs: 1
          8K Inputs: 0.
        • Pioneer VSX-831
          Inputs:           6   Outputs: 1
          8K Inputs: 0.
        • Composite Video: Connect you VCR, Laserdisc player and other old video equipment with composite video cables.
        • Pioneer VSX-832
          Inputs:           2   Outputs: 0.
        • Pioneer VSX-831
          Inputs:           2   Outputs: 0.

        Front A/V Inputs

        • Pioneer VSX-832: USB, Mini-Jack
        • Pioneer VSX-831: USB, Mini-Jack

        Pioneer VSX-832

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        Pioneer VSX-831

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        Evaluations

        We evaluate Pioneer VSX-832 and Pioneer VSX-831 and give them scores of 83 and 78 out of 100 recpectively. We also give separate scores for 7 different categories according to the available features and specifications some of which are listed below. These evaluations are relative and may change each time a new receiver is added to the database.


        Pioneer VSX-832

        Pioneer VSX-831

        OVERALL
        83
        OVERALL
        78

        Amplifier

        Pioneer VSX-832

        Pioneer VSX-831

        GOOD
        83
        •   Few Channels - 5.1
        •   Low Power Output - 80 W
        GOOD
        77
        •   Few Channels - 5.2
        •   Low Power Output - 80 W

        Audio Features

        Pioneer VSX-832

        Pioneer VSX-831

        EXCELLENT
        86
        •   Few Channels - 5.1
        •   5.1 Channel Processing
        •   Dolby Atmos
        •   No Dolby Atmos Height Virtualization
        •   DTS:X
        •   No IMAX Enhanced
        •   No Auro 3D with Auro-Matic Upmixer
        •   DSD via HDMI
        GOOD
        71
        •   Few Channels - 5.2
        •   5.1 Channel Processing
        •   No Dolby Atmos
        •   No Dolby Atmos Height Virtualization
        •   No DTS:X
        •   No IMAX Enhanced
        •   No Auro 3D with Auro-Matic Upmixer
        •   DSD via HDMI

        Video Features

        Pioneer VSX-832

        Pioneer VSX-831

        EXCELLENT
        95
        •   HDR10
        •   No HDR10+
        •   Dolby Vision
        •   No 8K Passthrough
        •   Analog To HDMI Upconversion
        EXCELLENT
        92
        •   HDR10
        •   No HDR10+
        •   Dolby Vision
        •   No 8K Passthrough
        •   Analog To HDMI Upconversion

        Connectivity

        Pioneer VSX-832

        Pioneer VSX-831

        GOOD
        78
        •   No eARC
        •   New HDCP Version
        •   Wi-Fi
        •   Bluetooth
        •   Does not Work with Amazon Alexa
        •   Chromecast Built-In
        •   4 HDMI Inputs
        •   1 HDMI Outputs
        •   0 8K Input
        •   USB Input
        •   Few RCA Line Inputs
        •   No Phono Input
        •   No RCA Pre-Outs
        •   Composite Video Inputs
        •   Ethernet
        •   Bluetooth 4․1 + LE
        GOOD
        80
        •   No eARC
        •   New HDCP Version
        •   Wi-Fi
        •   Bluetooth
        •   Does not Work with Amazon Alexa
        •   Chromecast Built-In
        •   6 HDMI Inputs
        •   1 HDMI Outputs
        •   0 8K Input
        •   USB Input
        •   Few RCA Line Inputs
        •   Phono Input
        •   No RCA Pre-Outs
        •   Composite Video Inputs
        •   Ethernet
        •   Bluetooth 4․1 + LE

        Zones

        Pioneer VSX-832

        Pioneer VSX-831

        AVERAGE
        55
        •   No Zones
        AVERAGE
        55
        •   No Zones

        Radio

        Pioneer VSX-832

        Pioneer VSX-831

        EXCELLENT
        90
        •   Analog Tuner
        •   No Pandora
        •   Spotify
        •   Tidal
        EXCELLENT
        88
        •   Analog Tuner
        •   Pandora
        •   Spotify
        •   No Tidal


        For a full specification list please go to the specifications page:

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