Chris Chiarella

AV Receiver Reviews
Pioneer Elite VSX-42 A/V Receiver
Chris Chiarella  |  Aug 02, 2012
Audio Performance
Video Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
Price: $450 At A Glance: Good streaming features • Ample power for a budget receiver • Free iOS/Android control app

Pioneer Electronics has long offered consumers an evolving array of attractive audio/video receivers, from simple, high-value choices to high-end alternatives that serve up the most desirable new features. In the company's step-up Elite line, the extremely affordable VSX-42 is the entry-level model and still relatively new, having debuted just this spring. Pioneer offers non-Elite models that are significantly less expensive, and some much pricier, but the VSX-42 offers a surprising complement of features at a price under $500.

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Out Of The Blu
Boss Season One, Hatfields & McCoys, Star Trek: The Next Generation Season One
Chris Chiarella  |  Jul 27, 2012
Three very different TV series arrive on Blu-ray, assuring ample worthwhile programming during the summer doldrums.
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Out Of The Blu
Being Flynn, Down By Law, Metropolitan
Chris Chiarella  |  Jul 13, 2012
Robert De Niro returns in of his more serious dramatic leads in years, while two new Criterion Blu-rays serve up a pair of late-'80s independent gems.
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Out Of The Blu
Bullhead, Midsomer Murders, God Bless America
Chris Chiarella  |  Jun 29, 2012
An Oscar-nominated Dutch crime drama, a beloved British series and a topical, off-the-wall dark comedy are all arriving on Blu-ray.
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Out Of The Blu
Cat Run, Too Big to Fail, John Mellencamp: It's About You
Chris Chiarella  |  Jun 15, 2012
After we've fed our intellectual side with a profound music documentary and a first-class dramatization of the 2008 financial crisis, we can kick back with the R-rated exploits of a gun-toting hooker on the run.
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Out Of The Blu
Goon, The Deadly Spawn, Perfect Sense
Chris Chiarella  |  Jun 01, 2012
Comedy, romance and horror are on the menu for this edition, with a kinda-true sports opus, a very different sort of love story and one of the most underrated creature features you've never seen.
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Out Of The Blu
Goon, The Deadly Spawn, Perfect Sense
Chris Chiarella  |  Jun 01, 2012
Comedy, romance and horror are on the menu for this edition, with a kinda-true sports opus, a very different sort of love story and one of the most underrated creature features you've never seen.
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Out Of The Blu
A Bullet for the General, The Aggression Scale, We Need to Talk About Kevin
Chris Chiarella  |  May 18, 2012
Spaghetti Westerns don't come more delicious than this edition's lead title, while audiences partial to contemporary domestic thrillers won't be disappointed with the little-seen Aggression Scale, either. But seriously: No Oscar love for Kevin?
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Out Of The Blu
Mother's Day (2010), Hell on Wheels Season One, Walking Tall: The Trilogy
Chris Chiarella  |  May 04, 2012
Check out Rebecca De Mornay in a guilty-pleasure remake of an off-the-wall classic, or saddle up for the entire first year of AMC's hot (and sweaty) new Western hit, or pop in all three movies in the beloved series about a lone sheriff facing impossible odds.
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Out Of The Blu
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1979), The Innkeepers, Titanic (Miniseries)
Chris Chiarella  |  Apr 20, 2012
This year's Oscars no doubt hastened the Blu-ray release of the exceptional original Tinker, while ABC's centennial-timed Titanic approaches the familiar tale from a fresh perspective. And who doesn't love an inspired horror movie?
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