I have the Onkyo TX-SR608 receiver and love it. The Pioneer does have more connections for various devices such as Bluetooth, USB, and i-Phone but the Onkyo has an advantage in power output and quality of sound, at least to my ear. The Onkyo does have a universal port and a VGA/DVI connector so with an adapter you can hook up to USB or a PC. The Onkyo has front panel connectors for HDMI and standard audio and video so hooking up a camera or a camcorder is easy. Plus the Onkyo is THX Certified and I don't know if the Pioneer is. That means your THX games or DVD's will play on the Onkyo in true THX-EX sound. One comment about an earlier post concerning throughput of HDMI when the receiver is off. That is possible with the Onkyo -- I'm not sure about the Pioneer. But understand that you must enable the RIHD (Remote Interactive over HDMI) feature on the Onkyo to have passthrough possible and then the passthrough is only possible with other RIHD compatible devices (TV's, DVD Players, Etc) and many still being sold are not RIHD compatible. There is a list of RIHD compatible devices on Onkyo's web site. If the Pioneer offers HDMI passthrough it would be the same situation as to my knowledge there is no receiver at any price capable of passing through HDMI signals when the receiver is off without the RIHD capability. If you do enable this feature you should be aware that the receiver will draw more power even when in stand-by. I have heard it is 35 watts. One last comment about the Onkyo 608 and you would have to find out if this is true for the Pioneer as well. The latest and greatest sound from Dolby EX, THX-EX, and other formats is only possible wthe true effects if the receiver is configured in a 7.1 speaker setup. If you use 5.1 you must use the "Surround" speaker connection terminals for your rear or side speakers rather than the "Rear Surround" connection terminals. Unless you have rear speakers hooked up to the "Rear Surround" connection terminals in a 7.1 setup you will not hear Dolby-EX or THX-EX or DTS-MS. You can still hear THX and Dolby sound output in a 5.1 configuration but it will not be the latest versions (THX-EX, Dolby- EX, DTS-MS and so forth). Many of the latest receivers have this same requirement so the Onkyo is not unique but if you plan to use a 5.1 setup and want to hear the latest and greatest sounds as listed above you should be aware of this and check out the Pioneer or any other receiver as to whether the same restriction applies. Also, if you can, I would listen to both receivers with the same speakers before you buy to be sure you choose the receiver you like best. Best way is buy both receivers from the same store that has liberal return policies. Hook both up to your actual speakers rather than the speakers in the store and see which sounds best in your room with your other equipment, keep the best one and return the other. Time consuming but worth it because you will be listening to the receiver you ultimately choose for quite a while most likely. Good luck with your choice.
