In April, Pioneer Electronics of Canada Inc. will introduce two new 7.1-channel A/V receivers. Priced respectively at C$599 and C$799, the VSX-920 and VSX-1020 (shown here) are both rated at 7x110 watts, and support all the advanced surround-sound codecs used on Blu-ray Disc, including Dolby True HD and DTS-HD Master Audio.

Both models have Anchor Bay video processing, which can upscale all sources to 1080p and output video over HDMI. Like Pioneer's two new 5.1-channel receivers, the VSX-920 and VSX-1020 have HDMI 1.4 connecitivity. Among other things, this allows them to pass 3D video from a 3D-capable Blu-ray player to a 3D-capable HDTV display. The VSX-920 has four HDMI 1.4 connectors, while the VSX-1020 has six, including one on the front.

Both receivers have iPod and iPhone connectivity via front-panel USB ports, and come with iPod cables. The VSX-1020 adds some attractive extras: built-in Internet radio capability, onscreen album art during iPod playback, and (most interestingly) support for Pioneer's iControl AVR app, which allows the receiver to be controlled wirelessly from an iPhone or iPod Touch. All four models in Pioneer's 2010 A/V receiver lineup can accept an optional Bluetooth adapter, so that users can stream music wirelessly from a Bluetooth A2DP-capable smartphone or music player.

Article Tags:  pioneer, electronics, 3D, HDMI, iPod, iPhone, AVR, receiver, blu, Dolby, DTS, Bluetooth, iControl