Entered CNET Catalog: 08/08/2005
SKU: 0012562744513
Manufacturer: Pioneer North America
Manufacturer description
It's a one-stop shop for watching DVD movies, recording TV shows and home movies onto a Hard Disk Drive, then watching or recording them to DVD. Here's what makes it so fun to use: The built-in 80GB Hard Disk Drive lets you record lots of home movies and TV shows for temporary storage. Once they're recorded you can watch them whenever you want, edit them, delete them, or burn them to DVD. The DVR-533H-S can hold up to 170 hours of content (recorded at lowest video quality - SEP Mode). When burning your recorded content to DVD from the Hard Disk Drive, an hour-long program recorded in SEP (lowest video quality) mode can take less than 30 seconds to burn - that's approximately 120x (max) speed. With Disc Backup, a Pioneer exclusive, you can make a direct file transfer of your home-movie DVD back to the Hard Disk Drive, and from that make as many copies of your home movie as you want, all at blazing speed. With the recording mode set to SEP mode (lowest video quality), you can get up to 10 hours on one disc. Stuck in the middle of a task like setting up a recording? Don't know the next step? Just press HELP, and you'll see an on-screen recommendation on what to do next. The i-LINK (a.k.a. "DV" and "IEEE 1394") interface allows you to transfer your DV (Digital Video) home movies smoothly to the Hard Disk Drive. Just connect the bi-directional DV input on the unit's front panel to your camcorder's DV input, and begin. And if your movies were shot in analog format, inputs for composite video/S-video and Left-Right audio are provided for dubbing them to DVD.Product summary
The good: The Pioneer DVR-533H-S is dual-layer DVD-R compatible; solid recording quality; intuitive, comprehensive menus; free TV Guide electronic programming guide worked properly in our tests; high-speed video dubbing and archiving; custom recording modes; FireWire input; 30-second (or longer) commercial skip.
The bad: The Pioneer DVR-533H-S cannot record to DVD+R/RW or DVD-RAM; TV Guide not compatible with satellite TV and is clunkier than TiVo; crowded remote; no coaxial digital audio output.
The bottom line: With dual-layer recording, a host of conveniences, and a slim look, the full-featured Pioneer DVR-533H-S recorder seems like a bargain.
Average user rating: from 52 users
3.0 stars
Editors' review
- Editors' Choice: Yes
- Reviewed on: 08/30/2005
The Pioneer DVR-533H-S's busy remote is its major design flaw, and it took us a few seconds to find the keys we wanted among all the labels and icons. The clicker might stymie beginners, especially since many keys lack visible differentiation, but advanced users and universal-remote programmers will appreciate the one-touch access to the deck's many functions. We liked the jumbo HDD and DVD buttons that switch the controls from one disc to the other, as well as dedicated keys for input select, which lets you cycle through the recorder's various A/V inputs, and recording mode, which gives you one-touch control over the deck's recording speed without having to dig into the setup menu.
We do wish the oh-so-useful 30-second-skip button was a bit larger, and its functionality may initially throw people used to the standard skip from Dish Player-DVR 942. Instead of simply jumping forward 30 seconds immediately, the device pauses for a second, allowing you to press the button repeatedly and add to the skip time, to as long as 10 minutes. The reverse-skip offers similar functionality in different time increments, beginning with 5 seconds. We ended up loving the adjustable skip, since many commercial breaks are exactly 2 or 3 minutes long, and once we got the hang of it, we were able to skip them with dead-on accuracy. Given that many DVD recorders won't skip at all, this anti-advertising feature is a big bonus.
Pioneer's onscreen display still looks a bit unpolished next to the slick menus of Sony's RDR-HX900, for example, but we found them highly functional and easy to follow. The DVD/HDD navigator, for instance, will display either four or eight titles at a time with thumbnails, and you can easily skip from one screen to the next. There's also a wizard that takes you through the initial setup process and plenty of onscreen help in the form of messages at the bottom of the screen (which expert users are free to disable). We loved the both the home menu, which provides a central place to find all of the recorder's many functions, and the step-by-step copying and finalization dialogs, which make burning programs from the hard drive to DVD a breeze. While novices might find all the options bewildering at first, the logical nature of the interface makes using the device to its full potential relatively easy. The Pioneer DVR-533H-S offers the most complete feature package in its class. Its ability to record to dual-layer media means you can fit nearly twice as much video on one disc. Using the longest-play SEP mode, the Pioneer DVR-533H-S can squeeze 18.5 hours onto a single DVD-R DL; higher-quality SP allows 3 hours, 43 minutes. The downside is that DVD-R DL discs cost significantly more than other media; at one store, we saw prices of $5.33 per DVD-R DL disc compared to $4.99 per DVD+R DL and as little as 48 cents per standard DVD-R. But DVD-R DL media just started becoming widely available, and prices will undoubtedly drop over the next few months. Note that the Pioneer cannot record to DVD+R/RW or DVD-RAM formats, but that isn't a huge deal since "plus" and "minus" media cost about the same.
This deck's 80GB HDD is good for about 35 hours of recording in SP mode, and while you can't record live two shows at once--a feature reserved for cable and satellite DVRs--or pause and rewind live TV à la Philips's HDRW720, you can press record any time to capture what you're watching. To pause, rewind or fast-forward the current recording, you must either press play or find the recording in the menu and engage playback. The difference between always-on recording and manually pressing record is one thing that separates most DVD/HDD recorders from DVRs.
To dub, you simply create playlists of titles to copy them from the hard drive to DVD or vice versa, and you can modify the titles, as well as menu thumbnails and appearance during finalization--Pioneer offers a handful of styles. The High-Speed Copy mode dubbed a 2-hour SP-mode movie to disc in just 15 minutes. Unfortunately, if you want to take a title that was recorded at one speed and copy it at a different speed--for example, to fit a longer title to disc--you'll have to copy it in real time. There also a disc-archiving feature that takes a DVD (menus and all), archives it to the hard drive, and then copies it to a blank disc. The archiving went relatively quickly--it took about 12 minutes to upload a 100-minute movie to the hard drive and 16 minutes to copy it to a new disc--and you can even keep the archive file on the HDD and make multiple copies. Naturally, the Pioneer won't let you archive copy-protected DVDs.
Both the HDD and DVD boast one-touch recording, and you can record to XP, SP, LP, EP, SLP, and SEP (10-hour) modes that offer various balances of video quality vs. drive/DVD space. The HDD offers an additional XP+ mode, which gives you superfine, 15Mbps recordings (or the equivalent of 41 minutes of disk space compared to an hour in standard XP mode). There's also a manual mode that lets you fine-tune the recording speed in 32-step increments, perfect for fitting, say, a 130-minute movie onto a DVD at the best quality possible. It's Pioneer's equivalent of Panasonic's Flexible Recording mode.
As with many non-TiVo HDD decks we've tested, the DVR-533H uses TV Guide's free electronic programming guide for setting your recording schedule. While TV Guide's EPG still won't work with satellite setups, we finally had no trouble getting it to work with our Time Warner New York digital cable box, Scientific Atlanta's 8300HD. We plugged in the RF cable from our controller box; followed the EPG's setup instructions; attached the IR blaster, which changes channels on the cable box; then turned off the deck. About 24 hours later, we were greeted with our local channel lineup, program listings, and descriptions (just for a few days out, mind you, but that's what you get from a free EPG). We're still miffed by the guide's clunky design--only two columns of programming at a time, not to mention sluggish menus--but we're pleased by the new recording options, including weekly recording, custom start/end recording times, different recording speeds for specific shows, and reminders for when a show is about to begin.
The deck has plenty of editing options for HDD and DVD-RW VR-mode recordings, including the ability to change title names, set thumbnails, erase sections of titles or divide them in two (HDD only), and add or remove chapter stops manually or automatically. With DVD-RW discs formatted in VR mode, you can also create playlists that let you edit together recordings without touching the original titles. If you're trying to edit recordings on DVD-RW discs in video mode (as opposed to VR mode; video mode creates discs that are compatible on most playback devices) or DVD-R discs, your recording options are limited to changing the title name and setting the thumbnail; however, you can always do your editing on the hard drive first and copy the titles to disc later.
The DVR-533H brings an impressive set of A/V connections. In the back of the deck, you get a progressive-scan-capable component-video output, two sets each of S-Video inputs and outputs, an optical (but not coaxial) digital audio output, and the standard RF ports, while up front you'll find a complete set of A/V inputs for a camcorder, including S-Video and FireWire inputs. The only real omission is a coaxial digital audio output.
Pioneer also offers a version of this deck with a 160GB hard drive, called the DVR-633H-S. In addition, the Pioneer DVR-531H-S ($349 list), which is identical to the DVR-533H-S except that it lacks a FireWire port, is available exclusively from Sam's Club and Wal-Mart. The Pioneer DVR-533H-S scored strong if not exceptional marks in our performance tests. The deck captured about 450 lines of horizontal resolution in the 1-hour XP and 2-hour SP modes, with its resolution falling to a much softer 300 lines in the 4-hour LP mode, pretty much as expected. As we dialed down to the 8-hour SLP and 10-hour SEP modes, our recordings showed fewer than 250 lines, making for an even softer picture rife with MPEG artifacts--again, nothing unusual there.
Switching to our test recordings of Star Trek: Insurrection, we noticed our XP and SP recordings of the airborne probes snatching the fleeing peasants looked rock-solid, although the SP recording showed some traces of background blockiness. At the LP setting, the picture looked much softer, and there were distracting, blocky artifacts throughout the rocky backdrop. Its recording quality in 4-hour mode is one area where the DVR-533H-S is soundly beaten by the Panasonic DMR-E50H.
The image became jerky starting at the 6-hour EP mode, and by the time we'd reached the SEP mode, it was well-nigh unwatchable--but we expected as much from this mode. Moving to a darker scene in the damaged bridge of the Enterprise, the XP setting did a fine job of handling the tricky smoke and dark interiors, while colors started to look a little less saturated in SP mode. We saw some false contouring with the smoke in LP mode, growing gradually worse as we switched to the lower-quality modes.
In our 2:3 pull-down test, the DVR-533H-S smoothly rendered the jaggy-prone bridges and haystacks during Insurrection's opening credits. We also ran the Pioneer through Silicon Optic's HQV benchmark against our reference Denon DVD-2900 and it scored significantly lower--not a huge surprise since Denon uses the SI chip. Overall, there were no glaring issues in its progressive-scan playback performance.
Our quick compatibility tests of DVD-R/RWs created by the DVR-533H-S also went well, but playback of DVD-R DL media--we used Verbatim 4X discs--was mixed. They played back fine on the newer GoVideo VR3930, the Denon DVD-2900, and the Sony DVP-NS975V, but the older Apex AD-600A and Onkyo DV-S525 didn't recognize the discs, and neither did a newer Portable One MX laptop. (To be fair, the laptop wouldn't recognize our Verbatim DVD+R DL discs either.) Compatibility varies widely depending on the media, the recorder, and especially the player, so these issues can't be blamed entirely on the Pioneer. The DVR-533H-S tested well in terms of DVD/CD playback compatibility.
User opinions
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4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
PIONEER DVR-533H
Pros: Hello! I have in my possession a writer Pioneer DVR-533H and my reader-writer no longer works. I want to replace it. I was told to install DVR-109 and that they felt would be compatible. Help me. Thank you
Cons: Hello! I have in my possession a writer Pioneer DVR-533H and my reader-writer no longer works. I want to replace it. I was told to install DVR-109 and that they felt would be compatible. Help me. Thank you
Review:
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
A Workaround to TV Guide Problems
Pros: see CNET editors' review: "The Pioneer DVR-533H-S is dual-layer DVD-R compatible; solid recording quality; intuitive, comprehensive menus...
Cons: The free TV Guide electronic programming guide fails to reset requiring a call to customer svc 1-800 421-1404 and for a walk through the process of reprograming the unit with a code.
Review: The Pioneer answer to TVG problems is only a temporary fix with Time Warner Cable in NYC -- lasting at best 2-3 weeks before failing once again. For satelite a similar fix is resetting the recorder to all of its factory settings, see Operating Instructions, Ch 14, p 98.
I notice this product is no longer offered for sale except on eBay. I think the problem lies with the Pioneer software and have emailed them of my success with the following workaround.
Before switching the recorder into standby, press HOME MENU or TV GUIDE and then STANDBY/ON. The TV monitor should go blank and the front panel display turn dim almost immediately. If instead the character display reads POWER OFF, wait for the action to complete, switch the recorder back on and repeat the procedure. When in recording mode before switching to (or turning off) the TV, I should likewise press HOME MENU or TV GUIDE but don't always remeber to do so.
Bill Foote
Sr Programmer/Analyst Retired
Young & Rubicam Brands
I notice this product is no longer offered for sale except on eBay. I think the problem lies with the Pioneer software and have emailed them of my success with the following workaround.
Before switching the recorder into standby, press HOME MENU or TV GUIDE and then STANDBY/ON. The TV monitor should go blank and the front panel display turn dim almost immediately. If instead the character display reads POWER OFF, wait for the action to complete, switch the recorder back on and repeat the procedure. When in recording mode before switching to (or turning off) the TV, I should likewise press HOME MENU or TV GUIDE but don't always remeber to do so.
Bill Foote
Sr Programmer/Analyst Retired
Young & Rubicam Brands
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Great Item!
Pros: I love the TV GUIDE, pretty easy to operate
Cons: Small hard drive
Review: I heard about how noisy the hard drive was because of the TVGuide downloading, but it is not nearly as bad as I expected. The unit I am in love with both the scheduled recording & timer recording are awesome!!!
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Very good once you get used to the remote
Pros: Easy, but not very precise at editing out commercials.
Cons: Clock runs slow. Very picky about blank DVD brands
Review: I like it, but it doesn't care for the usual brands of DVD blanks. The only one I've found that will work 98% of the time is from Circuit City, Brand name is NEXXTECH. Currently on sale at under $10 for a stack of 50.
User Rating:
2.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Too many problems in the 1st year or so
Pros: Records good when I can set it up
Cons: No ownership of the interactive TV guide set up problems
Review: I cannot say I am particularly pleased with the unit as I had a breakdown that needed repair after about 35 days. I cannot record onto 16X DVD's or get any kind of local upgrade and now I cannot timer record becaus e the screen just goes black when I select TV Guide or Timer Record. Ofcourse it is just out of warranty.
User Rating:
3.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Great except for TV Guide
Pros: Big HDD, convenient, search listings, burn DVD's
Cons: TV Guide blows the listings up at least once a month
Review: If not for the TV Guide's problems, I'd rate this a 10. Unfortunately it loses all the listings at least once a month, and can forget to record your favorite show. Pioneer blames it on errors in the listings, and has no cure.
User Rating:
2.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Will Not Play Movies Copied into DVD-R Disks!
Pros: Good Selection Options
Cons: Wont play DVD-R Disks
Review: I have the Pioneer 533H-S and it will not playback movies I copy onto quality DVD-R disks! I have to play the movie on another DVD Player! Any suggestions on what kind of blank DVD-R Disks that I can copy movies to that will play on my Pioneer?
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Outstanding recording quality.
Pros: Ease of use. Great recording quality.
Cons: Remote is the same frequency as TIVO recorder.
Review: For the price. The DVR 533H-S is a good buy.
User Rating:
2.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
DVR Good; TV guide onscreen WORTHLESS
Pros: this machine works well
Cons: TV Guide Onscreen Service doesn't work in Arizona
Review: If you buy this DVR with the idea of saving your monthly TIVO fee, do some research first. MY TVGUIDE onscreen does not work. I've spoken several times with Pioneer cust. svc. They blame the problem on my local PBS station (KAET - Tempe, AZ). PBS stations are supposed to broadcast the tv guide info to load into your dvr while it's off. After 6 months of frustration, I realize I should have bought TIVO. Do your research before purchasing this DVR!
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Product is Discontinued and No Longer Available
Pros: Great Value
Cons: Unavailable and Discontinued
Review: Even though the Pioneer 533H-S and its sister product the 633H-S are great, both are discontinued and unavailable from Pioneer dealers and nternet based suppliers. So why continue to praise this unit? It would be great to get one but we will all have to settle for the next best!
User Rating:
1.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
The Great Disappointment
Pros: Chase play, high quality playback
Cons: Cannot sustain TV guide, cannot keep time.
Review: Bought this machine in January 06. Absolutely thrilled with it for five months. Then the TV guide stopped working and no combination of resets would bring it back.
OK, I will just use it like a glorified VCR and enter recording times manually. Well, it won't keep time any more. Set the clock manually, set the clock on auto and the time will jump forward five hours. (Perhaps to UCT?) If it can't keep time the only method of recording is to manually push the buttons when the program starts. A $30 VCR is better than that.
Pioneer has know since August 05 at the latest about the defects in this recorder, but they continue to sell it. Shame on them.
I'm going for an RMA on this thing... what I'd really like is a refund. Now I know why they have sales on stuff like this.
OK, I will just use it like a glorified VCR and enter recording times manually. Well, it won't keep time any more. Set the clock manually, set the clock on auto and the time will jump forward five hours. (Perhaps to UCT?) If it can't keep time the only method of recording is to manually push the buttons when the program starts. A $30 VCR is better than that.
Pioneer has know since August 05 at the latest about the defects in this recorder, but they continue to sell it. Shame on them.
I'm going for an RMA on this thing... what I'd really like is a refund. Now I know why they have sales on stuff like this.
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Great recorder! Excellent Menu creator. Excellent editing capabilities.
Pros: great menu creator, high speed archiving of previously recorded DVD-Rs, logical menu structure, excellent editing features
Cons: Doesn't record on DVD + R or DVD RAM formats
Review: Overall, I am highly pleased with my decision to buy this product. I've been using it for months and have had no problems and only burnt one coaster. i don't use the TVGuide, so it isn't an issue for me since i use my DVR to record off TV and then archive to DVD by way of the Pioneer's HDD. I am really impressed with the iDVD-like menu creator. My older Panasonic recorder produced very bland text based menus, this one is capable of many different themes with thumbnails. With the exception of not being able to use DVD-RAM, I have to agree with the editors that this is the best DVD recorder I've used to date.
User Rating:
3.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
I'm satisfied but hate the TV-Guide
Pros: Excellent picture and plenty of record time
Cons: TV Guide is plagued with problems
Review: My DVR is the DVR531H-S which doesn't have the firewire port, but is the same as the 533 otherwise. I'm fine with this recorder in most respects except the TV-Guide. I've had so much trouble with the TVG that I am going to try some of the other users fixes and just turn it off for good. Mine has experienced every malady that the other users have, plus one that no one else has reported. This week after a brief 2 or 3 second power outage, the recorder jumps time by 2 hours. I kept getting the wrong recorded programs and finally realized that the time setting had jumped back two hours and 4 minutes. I reset the time (which requires a total reset of the recorder) but several hours later it jumped back 2 hours and 4 minutes again. I can't make the unit stay on the correct time, so I have fooled it by setting my timed recording manually instead of by TVG. I tell it to record 2hrs and 4 mins early and that works. Another thing I don't like about this unit is that you cannot remove weak channels that were found during the automatic set-up. It won't let you pick channels manually. If you try to remove the unwanted channel, the "skip" buttoon is grayed out. Some of the reviews mentions the reset codes. I went that route awhile back and was told (I think!) by the Indian service rep that those codes won't work a 2nd time. You have to get the codes from the rep each time you reset the recorder. Personally, I don't find the TVG very usful so I'm going to try some of the fixes to see if I can eliminate the TVG altogether and just do manual recordings. I would like to repeat that you can manually set a timer recording, but at first you may not think so. It doesn't work like a VCR where you use the arrow keys to change things - you have to type in the channel and time.
Updated
Several new buyers who had no trouble setting up the TVG have suggested that others are too stupid to read the manual. To them I say, just wait, your turn is coming. Your TVG will go out within a few weeks and you will be frantically reading through all these reviews to find out how to restore it. Mine has gone out several times, but I do the device codes reset procedure that CNET obtained from Pioneer and off I go again for a few weeks. On timer recordings, I would rather use the VCR method, but when you disable the TVG, you lose access to the manual timer procedure. If it weren't for that, I would permanently disable the TVG because I don't find it all that useful. This week I have had a lot of trouble with this unit but have slowly worked most problems out. Somebody suggested doing the reset and bypassing any automatic setup in favor of manual setup. I tried that on the channels and the unit locked out every channel that I wanted and locked in all the ones I didn't. Strange! So I went back through it again and locked in all the channels I didn't want and locked out all those that I did want and now I have the channels I wanted all along. Really strange! I mentioned above that this past week the time has been jumping back two time zones plus 3-4 minutes an hour or so after the clock has been set. Nobody else has reported that problem, so I'll just work on a solution myself. Resetting the unit with the device codes may cure it. I'll let you know in a few days.
Several new buyers who had no trouble setting up the TVG have suggested that others are too stupid to read the manual. To them I say, just wait, your turn is coming. Your TVG will go out within a few weeks and you will be frantically reading through all these reviews to find out how to restore it. Mine has gone out several times, but I do the device codes reset procedure that CNET obtained from Pioneer and off I go again for a few weeks. On timer recordings, I would rather use the VCR method, but when you disable the TVG, you lose access to the manual timer procedure. If it weren't for that, I would permanently disable the TVG because I don't find it all that useful. This week I have had a lot of trouble with this unit but have slowly worked most problems out. Somebody suggested doing the reset and bypassing any automatic setup in favor of manual setup. I tried that on the channels and the unit locked out every channel that I wanted and locked in all the ones I didn't. Strange! So I went back through it again and locked in all the channels I didn't want and locked out all those that I did want and now I have the channels I wanted all along. Really strange! I mentioned above that this past week the time has been jumping back two time zones plus 3-4 minutes an hour or so after the clock has been set. Nobody else has reported that problem, so I'll just work on a solution myself. Resetting the unit with the device codes may cure it. I'll let you know in a few days.
Updated
It's been a month now since I disabled the TV Guide On Screen feature and I couldn't be happier. Use the A0A0A0 method described by others, then set up the tuner manually, so it doesn't search for stations. Set the clock manually also. After everything is set-up, don't press the TV Guide button ever again or it will try to set-up TV Guide. When you want to make a timed program, press the "timer record" button and and the left side of the screen will open for setting your programs manually. If you need to edit a program later, press the "timer record" button again, then press the "menu" button and the left portion of the screen that expects you to set a new program will disappear which will allow you to scroll down the programs to the one you want to edit. With that program highlighted, press the "menu" button and the edit screen will open on the left side. Don't ever use the TV Guide button again. A great side feature of disabling the TV Guide is that the recorder will turn off and stay off when you press the power button. No more hard drive noise all day. As one reviewer described, I set a one minute timed recording for a year in the future to keep the unit from trying to search for a TV Guide signal, but I keep several timed programs on the list all the time so I don't know it the future recording has any effect.
It's been a month now since I disabled the TV Guide On Screen feature and I couldn't be happier. Use the A0A0A0 method described by others, then set up the tuner manually, so it doesn't search for stations. Set the clock manually also. After everything is set-up, don't press the TV Guide button ever again or it will try to set-up TV Guide. When you want to make a timed program, press the "timer record" button and and the left side of the screen will open for setting your programs manually. If you need to edit a program later, press the "timer record" button again, then press the "menu" button and the left portion of the screen that expects you to set a new program will disappear which will allow you to scroll down the programs to the one you want to edit. With that program highlighted, press the "menu" button and the edit screen will open on the left side. Don't ever use the TV Guide button again. A great side feature of disabling the TV Guide is that the recorder will turn off and stay off when you press the power button. No more hard drive noise all day. As one reviewer described, I set a one minute timed recording for a year in the future to keep the unit from trying to search for a TV Guide signal, but I keep several timed programs on the list all the time so I don't know it the future recording has any effect.
User Rating:
2.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Not there Yet.
Pros: Almost Does-it-all DVD-HDD recording machine
Cons: Image quality doubtful, No PVR Buffer.
Review: Image quality is really doubtful. It might my gear but I doubt it. As a pass-through instrument, the image is top notch. However, as soon as you record something and watch it from the HDD, even the best XP quality (XP in this case, which let you record only 15 hours with a 80GB HD, meaning this quality should be perfect), the image looks like if you had compressed a movie in DivX with not enough bitrate. The effect is small, but still you see flickering smoothing of the image and sometimes it's like the items in the background are moving, even the actors faces. Unnaceptable. I observed this with my machine plugged in either with S-VIDEO or RCA outputs. Source was a satellite receiver. Compared to the quality of a dish network / XpressVu 5900 series, It's really not there yet.
By no "PVR buffer" I mean : You can just watch live TV and decide to press pause because the phone is ringing. You need to be recording the show and watching it delayed to be able to do this. If you are watching a live show and would like to go back a few seconds because you missed something, you can't. Unless you are already recording the show and watching it delayed. There should be a one hour buffer to what you are watching. Basic feature, no excuses.
By no "PVR buffer" I mean : You can just watch live TV and decide to press pause because the phone is ringing. You need to be recording the show and watching it delayed to be able to do this. If you are watching a live show and would like to go back a few seconds because you missed something, you can't. Unless you are already recording the show and watching it delayed. There should be a one hour buffer to what you are watching. Basic feature, no excuses.
User Rating:
3.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
WHEN the TVGOS feature is working properly, I recommend this unit.
Pros: Easy to use but problems with TVGOS
Cons: TVGOS doesn't always work properly
Review: Initially (December, 2005), I thought this was a great unit. However, the TV Guide On Screen (TVGOS) feature hasn't worked consistently. The Guide will disappear for days (sometimes more than a week) at a time. For the past 4 months I have been speaking with Pioneer; they are aware of the problem, but claim that it is something that TV Guide is working to resolve with the Cable Company (in my case Time Warner in NYC). And, my understanding is that Pioneer's next unit won't have the TVGOS feature (leads me to believe that a resolution to the problem isn't happening anytime soon). Beware.
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Awesome Recorder.
Pros: Great features, IEEE firewire, user friendly and great quality
Cons: Can't record to DVD+R and guide does not link with SAT
Review: I bought this unit several months ago, mainly for dumping my camcorder tapes to DVD. I have been transferring about 3 tapes each night. The firewire link is awesome, letting you totally control your camcorder through the Pioneer unit's remote. When your camcorder tape gets to the end, the DVD recorder automatically stops so you don't have to baby-sit it. Editing is very easy so you can cut unwanted parts before burning to DVD, name and change thumbnails and titles, combine movies, etc. High speed recording is very fast and the quality (when set to LP or higher) is excellent. Some people hate the fact that you cannot use its tv guide with SAT, but this does not bother me since I have my Tivo unit running through my Pioneer DVD recorder so it is easy to just dump a program recorded on Tivo to a DVD. The DVD-Rs that I burned with this unit played on every standard player that I have tried so far (about 4 different players); unlike a previous dvd burner that I had before this one which never worked on other players. If you knew just how rare it is for me to give a rating of "9", you would understand just how much I love this unit!
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Great Product - with a few caveats
Pros: Good control of recording quality, Easy to set up, Runs cool and quiet
Cons: Dual-layer recording problems
Review: I did a lot of reading (mostly here on Cnet) before buying a DVR. I wanted dual layer burning capability so the Pioneer 533H-S was my choice.
Having satellite instead of cable, I knew going in that the EPG TV Guide feature wouldn't work so I have no criticism of that. My thanks to the folks who put the information in their reviews on how to disable the EPG function.
This unit was hard to find online but I finally found it for $399. The unit was very easy to set up (with the manual handy). Having a big screen TV, I had no trouble with small font problems some reviewers mentioned.
I'm not sure where one reviewer got the notion that you can't schedule recordings just like a VCR. Of course you can. The recording scheduler menu is a little clunky being integretad with the TV Guide EPG menu but once you get the hang of it, you can easily create any number of entries for one time recordings. and you can set up repeat recording times for your favorite shows each week.
Several reviewers also reported that the unit was noisy. My unit runs very quiet even when burning a DVD.
Because the unit is in a component cabinet,I was concerned about heat. I leave it on all day and it's still relatively cool to the touch at the end of the day.
If you record using the manual option, you can adjust the video quality in small increments to assure a movie can fit on a single layer DVD with the best picture quality.
The quality of recordings (mostly at the SP speed - 2 hrs. on a single layered DVD) are excellent. The editing features are adequate to help trim the recording and remove commercials. If you're just going to watch the raw recording, I love the 30 second jump feature to get past commercials.
I've tried 2 recordings that required dual layered DVDs due to the length. The first burn played ok but there were several hangs during the playback. The second burn stopped at the end of the first layer. I have one DVD player that will not sense the change in layers but that same dual layered DVD plays fine on the 533S. I'm going to work with this feature some more before I report it unsatisfactory.
The remote is a bit crowded and some buttons may never be touched for as long as you own the unit. That said, the functonality is there.
All in all a good DVR for the money.
Having satellite instead of cable, I knew going in that the EPG TV Guide feature wouldn't work so I have no criticism of that. My thanks to the folks who put the information in their reviews on how to disable the EPG function.
This unit was hard to find online but I finally found it for $399. The unit was very easy to set up (with the manual handy). Having a big screen TV, I had no trouble with small font problems some reviewers mentioned.
I'm not sure where one reviewer got the notion that you can't schedule recordings just like a VCR. Of course you can. The recording scheduler menu is a little clunky being integretad with the TV Guide EPG menu but once you get the hang of it, you can easily create any number of entries for one time recordings. and you can set up repeat recording times for your favorite shows each week.
Several reviewers also reported that the unit was noisy. My unit runs very quiet even when burning a DVD.
Because the unit is in a component cabinet,I was concerned about heat. I leave it on all day and it's still relatively cool to the touch at the end of the day.
If you record using the manual option, you can adjust the video quality in small increments to assure a movie can fit on a single layer DVD with the best picture quality.
The quality of recordings (mostly at the SP speed - 2 hrs. on a single layered DVD) are excellent. The editing features are adequate to help trim the recording and remove commercials. If you're just going to watch the raw recording, I love the 30 second jump feature to get past commercials.
I've tried 2 recordings that required dual layered DVDs due to the length. The first burn played ok but there were several hangs during the playback. The second burn stopped at the end of the first layer. I have one DVD player that will not sense the change in layers but that same dual layered DVD plays fine on the 533S. I'm going to work with this feature some more before I report it unsatisfactory.
The remote is a bit crowded and some buttons may never be touched for as long as you own the unit. That said, the functonality is there.
All in all a good DVR for the money.
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
functional
Pros: great for the money
Cons: tv guide down load
Review: Well... i waited about two months before i wrote this review. in all this is one great dvr for the money. problem one, customer service; with so many hook up options customer service could have been a little more understanding. they keep passing the bulk when i had a problem with compatability issues with my other av items; YOUR ON YOUR OWN. when you have 1000 station the tv guide can take days to download. pioneer should make this a manual thing to only download the stations you record the most. hang up's in down load when you have a interactive pay per veiw stations. will not complete down load unless you manually change the channel to complete the download process. hard drive noise is something pioneer could have taken care of.even with those 3 drawbacks i would buy an updated model when the hard drive gives out. spend a little extra an buy the 633 model for extra hard drive... bigger is better.
User Rating:
1.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Huge Disappointment… Going Back to Toshiba
Pros: It looks nice
Cons: Failed to cut DVDs, features far short of competition
Review: I have owned the Pioneer DVD recorder model DVR-533H-S for about 3 weeks, and I’m sending it back. I bought it to replace a Toshiba RD-XS32 that began to fail in burning new DVDs after about 15 months, but the Pioneer failed in burning new DVDs right out of the box. Even if it did work “properly,” and in spite of the fact that the Pioneer is a more recent vintage and gets a better CNet review, I much preferred the Toshiba in terms of its features and performance. Here’s why.
1. The Pioneer has the very confusing requirement that the user choose between “Video Mode” and “VR Mode” for both hard disk and DVD recordings. It seems that one mode gives you more much more flexibility in terms of editing options but doesn’t allow high-speed transfers of recordings from the hard disk to DVD. If you can’t do both proper editing and high speed cutting of DVDs, what’s the point?
2. Even in the mode that is supposed to offer the most flexible editing options, the Pioneer cannot edit as capably as the Toshiba. For example, when choosing a point in a program to divide a program, the Toshiba allows precise frame-by-frame advancing, while Pioneer’s version of “frame-by-frame” advancing actually covers about an entire second of content – this can be a lot if you want any sort of precision.
3. The Pioneer allows only one ‘playlist’ to exist at one time. (A playlist is a list of recorded programs, or “titles” to be played or recorded in succession). This is an incredibly limiting restriction. The Toshiba does not have a limit on the number of playlists.
4. The Pioneer does not have a PIP (picture-in-picture) feature. The Toshiba does. This feature is great for watching a DVD while keeping an eye on a live TV show at the same time. It’s a feature that you tend to miss once you no longer have it.
5. The Toshiba shows a timeline every time you navigate forward or backward through a title. The timeline graphically shows the elapsed time into the title and how long the title is in total. The Pioneer can also show this information of course but it doesn’t show while you’re navigating through a program - you have to hit the ‘display’ button twice to see it.
6. The Pioneer remote control has a layout that makes it harder to access common navigation features and operate ‘by touch’ than the Toshiba’s.
7. I found the user interface on the Toshiba to be more user-friendly and more polished looking than Pioneer’s.
8. As noted in many other reviews, the Pioneer’s TV Guide is a “feature” most people want to avoid. I managed to avoid it during setup but it wasn’t easy.
9. The Pioneer is alarmingly noisy when attempting to copy a program from the hard drive to a DVD.
9. I say ‘attempting’ because my Pioneer refused to EVER record to DVD from a playlist, and its success even in attempting to record program one by one was less than 20%, even when using a brand and type of blank DVDs recommended in the manual.
You might ask why I bought a Pioneer if I was so happy with the Toshiba. After about 15 months of use, during which I created about a hundred DVDs, the Toshiba began to give me intermittent failures in creating new DVDs. The Pioneer was rated well so I decided to give it a try. I am returning it and rolling the dice again with a new Toshiba. Given that ultimately both the Toshiba and the Pioneer failed at cutting new DVD (although at very different times), I suspect that the recording mechanism in DVRs are inherently prone to high failure rates and that this just might be one product that might need an extended warranty. At a minimum, I’d advise buying it with a credit card that doubles the manufacturer’s warranty.
1. The Pioneer has the very confusing requirement that the user choose between “Video Mode” and “VR Mode” for both hard disk and DVD recordings. It seems that one mode gives you more much more flexibility in terms of editing options but doesn’t allow high-speed transfers of recordings from the hard disk to DVD. If you can’t do both proper editing and high speed cutting of DVDs, what’s the point?
2. Even in the mode that is supposed to offer the most flexible editing options, the Pioneer cannot edit as capably as the Toshiba. For example, when choosing a point in a program to divide a program, the Toshiba allows precise frame-by-frame advancing, while Pioneer’s version of “frame-by-frame” advancing actually covers about an entire second of content – this can be a lot if you want any sort of precision.
3. The Pioneer allows only one ‘playlist’ to exist at one time. (A playlist is a list of recorded programs, or “titles” to be played or recorded in succession). This is an incredibly limiting restriction. The Toshiba does not have a limit on the number of playlists.
4. The Pioneer does not have a PIP (picture-in-picture) feature. The Toshiba does. This feature is great for watching a DVD while keeping an eye on a live TV show at the same time. It’s a feature that you tend to miss once you no longer have it.
5. The Toshiba shows a timeline every time you navigate forward or backward through a title. The timeline graphically shows the elapsed time into the title and how long the title is in total. The Pioneer can also show this information of course but it doesn’t show while you’re navigating through a program - you have to hit the ‘display’ button twice to see it.
6. The Pioneer remote control has a layout that makes it harder to access common navigation features and operate ‘by touch’ than the Toshiba’s.
7. I found the user interface on the Toshiba to be more user-friendly and more polished looking than Pioneer’s.
8. As noted in many other reviews, the Pioneer’s TV Guide is a “feature” most people want to avoid. I managed to avoid it during setup but it wasn’t easy.
9. The Pioneer is alarmingly noisy when attempting to copy a program from the hard drive to a DVD.
9. I say ‘attempting’ because my Pioneer refused to EVER record to DVD from a playlist, and its success even in attempting to record program one by one was less than 20%, even when using a brand and type of blank DVDs recommended in the manual.
You might ask why I bought a Pioneer if I was so happy with the Toshiba. After about 15 months of use, during which I created about a hundred DVDs, the Toshiba began to give me intermittent failures in creating new DVDs. The Pioneer was rated well so I decided to give it a try. I am returning it and rolling the dice again with a new Toshiba. Given that ultimately both the Toshiba and the Pioneer failed at cutting new DVD (although at very different times), I suspect that the recording mechanism in DVRs are inherently prone to high failure rates and that this just might be one product that might need an extended warranty. At a minimum, I’d advise buying it with a credit card that doubles the manufacturer’s warranty.
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Great product -- but you HAVE to read the manual!
Pros: Better than Tivo, no subscription, quick and easy setup even though mine was missing the manual.
Cons: Can hear unit while it records, collects TV guide... too complex for your average walmart lemming... er shopper.
Review: I am very pleased with the product... Great functionality, don't have to keep paying to use it...
Only drawback is single tuner and is forced to rely on external cable box for scrambled channels.
Device gets a bad wrap because idiots who won't read the manual....
The TVGuide feature will ONLY work when it's connected right and one follows the instructions and leaves it alone in standby mode for 8-24 hours so that it can get the program guide.
I'm sure that is why this device and others like it are no longer on the market. Too many perfect units returned by people too stupid to read the manual... who found it easier to run back to walmart and return it twice without ever reading a page about what they bought.
Only drawback is single tuner and is forced to rely on external cable box for scrambled channels.
Device gets a bad wrap because idiots who won't read the manual....
The TVGuide feature will ONLY work when it's connected right and one follows the instructions and leaves it alone in standby mode for 8-24 hours so that it can get the program guide.
I'm sure that is why this device and others like it are no longer on the market. Too many perfect units returned by people too stupid to read the manual... who found it easier to run back to walmart and return it twice without ever reading a page about what they bought.
Updated
The TV guide on mine stopped working after several weeks of use and was out for about a week. I managed to find another unit but when I went to hook the new unit up, the TV guide in the old one had started working again.
The TVGuide is slow and clunky... but can be sped up by using it without the cable box. Trade-off is you can't record from premium, digital or scrambled channels.
The TV guide causes the unit to click and grind most of the day and night... and the 531 uses a very noisy hard drive which can at-times be heard in the next room.
The TV guide on mine stopped working after several weeks of use and was out for about a week. I managed to find another unit but when I went to hook the new unit up, the TV guide in the old one had started working again.
The TVGuide is slow and clunky... but can be sped up by using it without the cable box. Trade-off is you can't record from premium, digital or scrambled channels.
The TV guide causes the unit to click and grind most of the day and night... and the 531 uses a very noisy hard drive which can at-times be heard in the next room.
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Satellite, the bottom line...
Pros: Fexibility, power
Cons: Nocturnal nature
Review: After I decided to purchase a DVR, I went through my normal routine of pervasive research. All signs pointed to the Pioneer DVR-533H-S as the best overall unit. I read many of the postings here, both favorable and not so, and even though I have satellite I decided to take the plunge. I figured Pioneer couldn't possibly create a unit that wouldn't function without access to TV Guide info. Well, after getting it all hooked up and playing with it for a while, it became evident that the whole unit is centered around the TV Guide feature. Some reviewers complained about the unit being noisy. Well, I suppose if you put it in your bedroom and you are accustomed to absolute silence when you sleep, then it would bother you. If, however, you placed it in a den/family room/living room and there was any other ambient noise present, you wouldn't hear squat.
With respect to the EPG (Electronic Program Guide) - the TV Guide listing feature... It's true that if you have satellite, you won't get the guide, event though the unit tries its darndest. When you power the unit off, it stays off for about three seconds. Then it turns itself back on, in a background task sort of way, so that it can go searching for TV Guide listings (even if you've told it that you don't have cable or an antenna). And it will churn away trying, while getting nowhere. My thought was, "This thing's gonna wear itself out." It's always on, even when it's off.
Here's the trick - we'll call this an undocumented feature: If you manually set up a one minute recording, say a year in the future, when you power the unit off, it will stay off - no EPG. For those of you with overly sensitive hearing (you know who you are), this means absolute peace. And when the unit's on, you'll probably be watching TV, so you won't hear it anyway.
I have used most of the features - recording, editing, copying, burning, chase viewing, etc. This unit rocks! The organization of the menus takes some getting used to, but once you learn the method to its madness, life is good. The remote is crammed with buttons - so many that there's a few I still haven't even touched. The unit has surprised me numerous times with its flexibility and power. I wonder if it will do something, then I try it, and guess what... it does. Next I'm gonna try to get it to record two programs simultaneously - one to the hard drive through the Line 1 input, and the other to a DVD through the Line 3 input - while watching a third program from the hard drive. If it'll do that, I'll become a spokesman for Pioneer.
With respect to the EPG (Electronic Program Guide) - the TV Guide listing feature... It's true that if you have satellite, you won't get the guide, event though the unit tries its darndest. When you power the unit off, it stays off for about three seconds. Then it turns itself back on, in a background task sort of way, so that it can go searching for TV Guide listings (even if you've told it that you don't have cable or an antenna). And it will churn away trying, while getting nowhere. My thought was, "This thing's gonna wear itself out." It's always on, even when it's off.
Here's the trick - we'll call this an undocumented feature: If you manually set up a one minute recording, say a year in the future, when you power the unit off, it will stay off - no EPG. For those of you with overly sensitive hearing (you know who you are), this means absolute peace. And when the unit's on, you'll probably be watching TV, so you won't hear it anyway.
I have used most of the features - recording, editing, copying, burning, chase viewing, etc. This unit rocks! The organization of the menus takes some getting used to, but once you learn the method to its madness, life is good. The remote is crammed with buttons - so many that there's a few I still haven't even touched. The unit has surprised me numerous times with its flexibility and power. I wonder if it will do something, then I try it, and guess what... it does. Next I'm gonna try to get it to record two programs simultaneously - one to the hard drive through the Line 1 input, and the other to a DVD through the Line 3 input - while watching a third program from the hard drive. If it'll do that, I'll become a spokesman for Pioneer.
User Rating:
3.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Great recorder, worth the price. Be patient with TV guide
Pros: Excellent recording quality, easy to use interface. On screen help
Cons: EPG function noisy, takes a long time to download program information
Review: I bought the DVR-531H-S which is similar to the 533 but doesn't have firewire input. The recorded video quality has been superb. I've recorded movies via digital cable that are as good as retail DVD's The commercial skip feature is a god send for network programming. All recordings made on DVR-R and RW have been fully compatible with other players and PC's.
The on screen TV guide wasn't a feature I was looking for. Unfortunately I found it took a long time to find it's host channel and fully download (3 wks to find the host another wk to load 8 days worth of programming in my case). The clock initally erratic jumping 4 hrs in time until about a wk when it locked on to a timing source and now it's rock solid including autoshifting with day-light saving time.
While 'off' the EPG feature keeps the hard drive running so it can be noisy in a quiet environment.
The on screen TV guide wasn't a feature I was looking for. Unfortunately I found it took a long time to find it's host channel and fully download (3 wks to find the host another wk to load 8 days worth of programming in my case). The clock initally erratic jumping 4 hrs in time until about a wk when it locked on to a timing source and now it's rock solid including autoshifting with day-light saving time.
While 'off' the EPG feature keeps the hard drive running so it can be noisy in a quiet environment.
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Excellent DVD recorder -- ALMOST a Tivo replacement
Pros: Very nice image, very, very nice recording and editing features, fast-burn from hard drive is very nice indeed
Cons: The free TV Guide service is very handy but certainly isn't TIVO
Review: I have the DVR-531H which is the same thing as the 533, but without the Firewire input. I had a massively buggy Sears LiteOn LV5007 before this and finally threw it in the trash after weeks of lockups, freezes and general unacceptable crankiness (from the recorder, not me). I wouldn't have even put that thing on eBay for $10 because I wouldn't have passed that puppy off on anyone.
The image recorded at SP mode on the 531 is significantly better than the image recorded on my Series 1 Tivo at 'Best' quality... and the Tivo image ain't bad at all -- I was very satisfied with it until I saw this. I don't know if the Pioneer has a better tuner or recording method or what. Both these boxes get their analog cable signal straight off the same split.
I hear no noise from my hard drive at all (sit 8 feet away) and the TV Guide has worked flawlessly on my Time-Warner analog cable.
Compared to the LiteOn I previously owned, this Pioneer has incredibly easy and sophisticated recording and editing capabilities. I love the ability to edit out commercials from recordings on the hard drive and then burn the final product very quickly to DVD. The editing process is easy. I burned 3 episodes each of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert for my brother to a DVD-R in about 9 minutes.
I also love the capability to set virtually an unlimited range of recording quality settings. The Pioneer gives you multiple pre-set quality levels, but also allows you to easily set a custom quality level you can then use for impromptu or scheduled recordings. I've created a 3-hour recording level that nestles neatly right between the factory-set SP (two-hour) and LP (4-hour) levels. I use this for kid's cartoons and such.
Now for the weak part -- yes, the TV Guide scheduling system. Although it's head-and-shoulders above manually programming a time and channel in, it still is not up to the elegance of a Tivo. I know others bemoan the fact that TV Guide recording doesn't allow you to do Wish Lists, but I don't think this is a big deal because it's a feature I use relatively little. For me, the big problem is that the TV Guide doesn't automatically purge older recordings after your hard drive fills up or allows you to set a repeating, scheduled recording so that it will only keep 1, 2 or however many episodes of a show you want to keep. This means that at some point, if I don't keep the hard drive manually cleaned out, it will stop doing new recordings. The fact that I could tell Tivo just to keep one episode at a time of say -- local evening news -- was great because it would only keep the most recent and keep the older ones from filling the drive. My bottom line though, is that if the TV Guide scheduler had only this feature -- automatic purge of older programs and number-of-episodes-to-keep setting, I would gladly boot the Tivo and use only this. I still might. It's very sweet.
The image recorded at SP mode on the 531 is significantly better than the image recorded on my Series 1 Tivo at 'Best' quality... and the Tivo image ain't bad at all -- I was very satisfied with it until I saw this. I don't know if the Pioneer has a better tuner or recording method or what. Both these boxes get their analog cable signal straight off the same split.
I hear no noise from my hard drive at all (sit 8 feet away) and the TV Guide has worked flawlessly on my Time-Warner analog cable.
Compared to the LiteOn I previously owned, this Pioneer has incredibly easy and sophisticated recording and editing capabilities. I love the ability to edit out commercials from recordings on the hard drive and then burn the final product very quickly to DVD. The editing process is easy. I burned 3 episodes each of Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert for my brother to a DVD-R in about 9 minutes.
I also love the capability to set virtually an unlimited range of recording quality settings. The Pioneer gives you multiple pre-set quality levels, but also allows you to easily set a custom quality level you can then use for impromptu or scheduled recordings. I've created a 3-hour recording level that nestles neatly right between the factory-set SP (two-hour) and LP (4-hour) levels. I use this for kid's cartoons and such.
Now for the weak part -- yes, the TV Guide scheduling system. Although it's head-and-shoulders above manually programming a time and channel in, it still is not up to the elegance of a Tivo. I know others bemoan the fact that TV Guide recording doesn't allow you to do Wish Lists, but I don't think this is a big deal because it's a feature I use relatively little. For me, the big problem is that the TV Guide doesn't automatically purge older recordings after your hard drive fills up or allows you to set a repeating, scheduled recording so that it will only keep 1, 2 or however many episodes of a show you want to keep. This means that at some point, if I don't keep the hard drive manually cleaned out, it will stop doing new recordings. The fact that I could tell Tivo just to keep one episode at a time of say -- local evening news -- was great because it would only keep the most recent and keep the older ones from filling the drive. My bottom line though, is that if the TV Guide scheduler had only this feature -- automatic purge of older programs and number-of-episodes-to-keep setting, I would gladly boot the Tivo and use only this. I still might. It's very sweet.
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
A decidedly positive experience
Pros: Automatic record with TV Guide (if you get it to work), Good picture quality, no subscription fees, very flexible features
Cons: Noisy hard disk, Coordination with digital cable service, Slow startup and shutdown
Review: I must admit to having felt a little concerned after I ordered this system (actually got the 633, with double the hard disk size), and then started reading the other user reviews. The common theme is clearly the issues with setting up the TV Guide feature for this system, along with the noisy hard disk.
The TV Guide actually set up with hardly a hitch, although I did have to disregard the manual's recommended approach. Using Comcast Digital in San Francisco with a General Insturments / Motorola box from the late 90s, I was unable to get the two systems to play nicely together, nor did Pioneer provide much help with documentation to support what must not be too uncommon a configuration. In the end, I put a splitter in front of the cable box, and ran the coax lines into both the cable box and the unit, with the output from the cable box running into another input on the Pioneer (there are lots of inputs on this unit). This enabled me to set up the TV Guide with regular cable straight through the unit, and digital channels coming through separately.
The downside of all of this is that digital cable channels cannot be programmed to record automatically, as the infrared unit provided does not work in controlling the cable box in a master/slave configuartion.
So for regular old cable, which is about 50% of what I view, this thing works great. You can search through the TV Guide, and program to record with 1-2 clicks. DVD or HDD recording both work without a hitch. It's also quite easy to connect in from a camcorder and VCR, provided you are trying to record home videos to the hard disk or DVD. Playback has a nice commercial skip function as well.
In summary, this is a pretty versatile unit, with lots of features, and high quality output. Most of the complaints logged for this product appear sincere, but I have to say the unit has worked almost completely as billed.
The TV Guide actually set up with hardly a hitch, although I did have to disregard the manual's recommended approach. Using Comcast Digital in San Francisco with a General Insturments / Motorola box from the late 90s, I was unable to get the two systems to play nicely together, nor did Pioneer provide much help with documentation to support what must not be too uncommon a configuration. In the end, I put a splitter in front of the cable box, and ran the coax lines into both the cable box and the unit, with the output from the cable box running into another input on the Pioneer (there are lots of inputs on this unit). This enabled me to set up the TV Guide with regular cable straight through the unit, and digital channels coming through separately.
The downside of all of this is that digital cable channels cannot be programmed to record automatically, as the infrared unit provided does not work in controlling the cable box in a master/slave configuartion.
So for regular old cable, which is about 50% of what I view, this thing works great. You can search through the TV Guide, and program to record with 1-2 clicks. DVD or HDD recording both work without a hitch. It's also quite easy to connect in from a camcorder and VCR, provided you are trying to record home videos to the hard disk or DVD. Playback has a nice commercial skip function as well.
In summary, this is a pretty versatile unit, with lots of features, and high quality output. Most of the complaints logged for this product appear sincere, but I have to say the unit has worked almost completely as billed.
User Rating:
1.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Beware the TV Guide
Pros: Sleek look, good quality recording, record to hard drive and/or DVD
Cons: Difficult manual, too many menus, TV Guide functionality completely nonfunctional and can't be turned off
Review: I was very excited when I bought this DVD-Recorder. It's a beautiful machine; the quality of recordings is great, and I could even get used to the multitude of various menus and buttons.
However, I can't get the TV Guide functionality to work. I live in Southern Ontario, I get cable, it should work. I've tried for 3+ weeks, with various postal codes, etc. The straw that broke the camel's back was the fact that even though I kept setting the time (and what a painful process that is - you have to go through setting all the channels too), every time the unit powered off, the time jumped ahead by 5 hours. Tech support just told me that this is because the TV Guide is not working properly. Their solution: (1) keep trying different postal codes in my area. (2) keep resetting the clock every time I turn it on. I pointed out that (2) wouldn't work because you can't make a manual timer recording without powering off the machine. So suggestion (3) was the best: offset my timer recordings by 5 hours so that they would record properly. I'm not making this up - this is the Pioneer tech support.
There is absolutely no way of turning off the TV Guide functionality. I thought maybe if I told it that I don't have cable or antenna that it would leave me alone - nope, it still does the EPG (trying to get the TV Guide informaiton) thing all the time.
I'm so disappointed, especially based on the amount of money this baby cost me, and the fact that I always thought Pioneer was a great brand name. I'm getting ready to take it back to the store.
However, I can't get the TV Guide functionality to work. I live in Southern Ontario, I get cable, it should work. I've tried for 3+ weeks, with various postal codes, etc. The straw that broke the camel's back was the fact that even though I kept setting the time (and what a painful process that is - you have to go through setting all the channels too), every time the unit powered off, the time jumped ahead by 5 hours. Tech support just told me that this is because the TV Guide is not working properly. Their solution: (1) keep trying different postal codes in my area. (2) keep resetting the clock every time I turn it on. I pointed out that (2) wouldn't work because you can't make a manual timer recording without powering off the machine. So suggestion (3) was the best: offset my timer recordings by 5 hours so that they would record properly. I'm not making this up - this is the Pioneer tech support.
There is absolutely no way of turning off the TV Guide functionality. I thought maybe if I told it that I don't have cable or antenna that it would leave me alone - nope, it still does the EPG (trying to get the TV Guide informaiton) thing all the time.
I'm so disappointed, especially based on the amount of money this baby cost me, and the fact that I always thought Pioneer was a great brand name. I'm getting ready to take it back to the store.
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Soild Player/Recorder, with some quirks!
Pros: Easy to record and play back using HDD or DVD; in general, easy setup; good variety of input and output connections.
Cons: TV Guide functions take some work for proper functioning; manual could be a little more detailed (examples); the remote is a bit crowded.
Review: After a month of recording and playing (HDD and DVD) I'm still happy with the choice. I was even happier when I think I figured out the TV Guide function and the elimination of the chatting unit. After setting up my TV Guide functions I had the same constant "chatting" noise as others have noted while the unit was on or off. I emailed the Pioneer Tech Support and they asked if the channels listed in the TV Guide listings were correct. I checked and they were....well after another day of "chatting" I checked closer and low and behold, not all were. I have only the basic of cable services (20 channels), but two of the ones I don't watch were wrong (for instance, WGN came up on channel 24 instead of 28). So I corrected those and turned off all the channels I don't get and the TV Guide now appears to be functioning correctly. Updates (chatting) occurs only when the unit is turned off and only briefly a couple times a day. I have performed 4 successful TV Guide timed recording sessions so far.
If you have this problem give this a try and goodluck, because otherwise the unit is very good (well the remote is still a little complicated, but..).
If you have this problem give this a try and goodluck, because otherwise the unit is very good (well the remote is still a little complicated, but..).
User Rating:
0.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
TV Guide won't load, Pioneer Canada hasn't called me back after 10 days
Pros: Picture quality and GDD Recording functions - custom quality features
Cons: Pioneer Canada Support
Review: Can't get TV Guide to work with Rogers Digital Cable system. Called Pioneer Canada Customer Service 3 times, all times I was placed on hold until eventually sent to voicemail. Pioneer claim to return calls within 24 hours, but 10 days and 3 messages later they have not returned my call. Two emails to customer support have gone unanswered as well. If you're in Canada and want support, don't choose this product!
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
This is one easy to use machine!
Pros: Love the hard drive, the on-screen menus and the fact that I can off-load content to DVD
Cons: It always seems that this unit updating itself!!!
Review: I had the Sony RDR-GX300 and decided to upgrade to a recoder with a hard drive. After having a hard drive there's no going back. I also bought the Toshiba RD-XS34 just to compare it to the Pioneer (I got great Boxing Day deals on both). I found that eventhough the Pioneer had half of hard drive space of the Toshiba, the Pioneer was waaaaaaay easier to use, the menus were well thought out, and the remote wasn't so bad eventhough there was alot on it.
I loved the fact that I was able to get the Pioneer up and running without using the manual (OK I did have to look at the manual eventually!). Also the thumbnails and editing tools are easy to use and was all I needed to split up and clean up content on the hard drive before transfering to DVD.
With all that going for it - it makes the hard drive updating not such a big deal. When I watch TV or a Movie I can't tell at all, it's only when eveything is turned off.
The remote seems like alot to handle but once you get used to it - it's great!
The things I hated about this machine was the TV Guide On Screen schdule and the updating of the TVGOS. After about 2-3 days I finally got it to work. I'm still getting used to it, but they need to improve on it big time! This unit should be updating at 2 am or something...
Nevertheless, the Pro's outweight the Con's in this case...Winner Pioneer DVR-533H-S!!!
I loved the fact that I was able to get the Pioneer up and running without using the manual (OK I did have to look at the manual eventually!). Also the thumbnails and editing tools are easy to use and was all I needed to split up and clean up content on the hard drive before transfering to DVD.
With all that going for it - it makes the hard drive updating not such a big deal. When I watch TV or a Movie I can't tell at all, it's only when eveything is turned off.
The remote seems like alot to handle but once you get used to it - it's great!
The things I hated about this machine was the TV Guide On Screen schdule and the updating of the TVGOS. After about 2-3 days I finally got it to work. I'm still getting used to it, but they need to improve on it big time! This unit should be updating at 2 am or something...
Nevertheless, the Pro's outweight the Con's in this case...Winner Pioneer DVR-533H-S!!!
User Rating:
2.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Not happy with it YET
Pros: Not sure yet, have only found all the cons
Cons: Cannot seem to make it record one program while watching another.
Review:
Updated
Along with the above mentioned, not being able to watch one program while recording another...
The hard drive is very loud. The TV Guide constantly updating, changing the channel, bringing up the menu while I am trying to watch TV. Very slow to responde when I change the channel on the remote, to the time it actually takes to change the channel on the tv. Keeps going to channel 1 for no reason.
Will update when things get better (or worse)
Along with the above mentioned, not being able to watch one program while recording another...
The hard drive is very loud. The TV Guide constantly updating, changing the channel, bringing up the menu while I am trying to watch TV. Very slow to responde when I change the channel on the remote, to the time it actually takes to change the channel on the tv. Keeps going to channel 1 for no reason.
Will update when things get better (or worse)
Updated
I got to the point where I can actually record one program while watching another, only problem... I cannot record certain channels, they come in as blank screens.
I have the system set up as on pg. 17 in the manual, I can get all the channels through my cable box, but not through the DVD recorder... It is getting so frustrating that I am considering taking this thing back... not really worth the hassle, as I see it so far...
I got to the point where I can actually record one program while watching another, only problem... I cannot record certain channels, they come in as blank screens.
I have the system set up as on pg. 17 in the manual, I can get all the channels through my cable box, but not through the DVD recorder... It is getting so frustrating that I am considering taking this thing back... not really worth the hassle, as I see it so far...
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Great piece of equipment but not perfect
Pros: great playback of dvd
Cons: Very confusing to hook up the best way
Review: There are many ways to hook up this unit to tv, amp, cable box, sattelite box etc. I have my main cable running to my cablebox--to sattelite receiver---to dvr---to tv. I have also hooked up via input 1 my sattelite receiver and via input 3 my cable box using s video. the manual says you can hook up the unit in such a way to use internal tuner watch one program record another. Is this possible with a digital cable box with many scrambled channels. My tv guide set up in less than 24 hours. However my tv guide will list channels like hbo, encore, cinemax but will not give any other detail other than listing not available. Also any time I swith inputs on the dvr my cable channel changes to pbs. Example if I switch input to directv when I switch back the cable box turns to channel 8. I would love to be able to watcxh one cable channel via the internal tuner and record another is this possible with charter digital cable.
I must say the playback of dvds which is why I will use most is simply stunning.
I must say the playback of dvds which is why I will use most is simply stunning.
Updated
ONCE YOU FIGURE OUT HOW TO HOOK THIS UP RIGHT. IT IS AMAZING I CAN RECORD ONE CABLE CHANNEL WATCH ANOTHER. RECORD SATTELITE TV WATCH CABLE OR WATCH A DVD ANYTIME NO MATTER WHAT I'M RECORDING. TIVO CAN'T COME CLOSE TO THAT. EVERY SHORTCOMING I'VE HAD WITH THE UNIT THUS FAR THERE HAS BEEN A SOLUTION.
IF ANY ONE HAS HAD THE PROBLEM WITH LOW VOLUME PLAYBACK ON DIGITAL CABLE CHANNEL RECORDINGS HERE IS THE FIX FOR SOM CABLE BOXES. IF YOU HAVE YOUR DIGITAL CABLE BOX HOOKED UP WITH DIGITAL AUDIO OUT YOU WILL NOTICE A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN VOLUME WHEN WATCHING LIVE AND RECORDING. THE FIX FOR THIS IS TO SET YOUR AUDIO RANGE TO NARROW NOT WIDE IN YOUR CABLE BOX MENU. IF YOU LEAVE IT ON NARROW AND TRY TO RECORD A DIGITAL SOURCE YOU WILL NOTICE NO DIFFERENCE IN VOLUME RECORDED OR LIVE. THIS DROVE ME NUTS UNTIL I FOUND THIS SOLUTION ON ANOTHER WEBSITE. THE AUDIO RANGE COMPRESSION ON A DIGITAL CABLE BOX IS FAR DIFFERENT FROM THE DYNAMIC RANGE COMPRESSION ON A DEDICATED AV RECEIVER.
ONCE YOU FIGURE OUT HOW TO HOOK THIS UP RIGHT. IT IS AMAZING I CAN RECORD ONE CABLE CHANNEL WATCH ANOTHER. RECORD SATTELITE TV WATCH CABLE OR WATCH A DVD ANYTIME NO MATTER WHAT I'M RECORDING. TIVO CAN'T COME CLOSE TO THAT. EVERY SHORTCOMING I'VE HAD WITH THE UNIT THUS FAR THERE HAS BEEN A SOLUTION.
IF ANY ONE HAS HAD THE PROBLEM WITH LOW VOLUME PLAYBACK ON DIGITAL CABLE CHANNEL RECORDINGS HERE IS THE FIX FOR SOM CABLE BOXES. IF YOU HAVE YOUR DIGITAL CABLE BOX HOOKED UP WITH DIGITAL AUDIO OUT YOU WILL NOTICE A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN VOLUME WHEN WATCHING LIVE AND RECORDING. THE FIX FOR THIS IS TO SET YOUR AUDIO RANGE TO NARROW NOT WIDE IN YOUR CABLE BOX MENU. IF YOU LEAVE IT ON NARROW AND TRY TO RECORD A DIGITAL SOURCE YOU WILL NOTICE NO DIFFERENCE IN VOLUME RECORDED OR LIVE. THIS DROVE ME NUTS UNTIL I FOUND THIS SOLUTION ON ANOTHER WEBSITE. THE AUDIO RANGE COMPRESSION ON A DIGITAL CABLE BOX IS FAR DIFFERENT FROM THE DYNAMIC RANGE COMPRESSION ON A DEDICATED AV RECEIVER.
Updated
The more I get accustomed to this device the more I love it. 1 problem I encountered was low volume on playback of digital cable channels. Anything I recorded in 5.1 on digital cable was about a third as loud as the live recording.
Simple solution to this in most digital cable boxes there is some type of audio compression setting mine was wide, normal, narrow. Setting it to wide is great for live listening setting it to narrow is the way to go. If you set the compression range to narrow the volume of your recordings live and recorded will be the same volume level on your digital channels. just thought I would share that Im sure I'm not the only one to encounter that problem.
The more I get accustomed to this device the more I love it. 1 problem I encountered was low volume on playback of digital cable channels. Anything I recorded in 5.1 on digital cable was about a third as loud as the live recording.
Simple solution to this in most digital cable boxes there is some type of audio compression setting mine was wide, normal, narrow. Setting it to wide is great for live listening setting it to narrow is the way to go. If you set the compression range to narrow the volume of your recordings live and recorded will be the same volume level on your digital channels. just thought I would share that Im sure I'm not the only one to encounter that problem.
Updated
The more I get accustomed to this device the more I love it. 1 problem I encountered was low volume on playback of digital cable channels. Anything I recorded in 5.1 on digital cable was about a third as loud as the live recording.
Simple solution to this in most digital cable boxes there is some type of audio compression setting mine was wide, normal, narrow. Setting it to wide is great for live listening setting it to narrow is the way to go. If you set the compression range to narrow the volume of your recordings live and recorded will be the same volume level on your digital channels. just thought I would share that Im sure I'm not the only one to encounter that problem.
The more I get accustomed to this device the more I love it. 1 problem I encountered was low volume on playback of digital cable channels. Anything I recorded in 5.1 on digital cable was about a third as loud as the live recording.
Simple solution to this in most digital cable boxes there is some type of audio compression setting mine was wide, normal, narrow. Setting it to wide is great for live listening setting it to narrow is the way to go. If you set the compression range to narrow the volume of your recordings live and recorded will be the same volume level on your digital channels. just thought I would share that Im sure I'm not the only one to encounter that problem.
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Awesome product - would purchase another
Pros: Easy to use recorder
Cons: TV Guide menu is difficult to properly set up
Review: I have read some of the negative comments and disagree totally. This unit is easy to record and unlike some other comments you can manually record any channel at any time. Would recommend product to anyone. Can easily record, copy or edit to the hard drive or dvd.
Updated
One of the other reasons that I purchased this product is for the front input jacks which includes the firewire for digital cameras. Other products that I researched did not have this feature.
One of the other reasons that I purchased this product is for the front input jacks which includes the firewire for digital cameras. Other products that I researched did not have this feature.
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Best on the market today
Pros: great combination of features and editing
Cons: VCR plus doesn't seem to work for everyone, no +R
Review: My set-up-- DirecTV with Tivo and Onkyo surround sound. TV Guide feature was not an issue due to DirecTV and Tivo. I've done a lot of research and The Pioneer came up on top as the best mix of features. Primarily I use the unit to archive TV shows and movies that I have Tivoed. The unit is a great player and you can even listen to the audio when fast forwarding (at the "slowest" fast forward option). Editing is easy and straightforward and the iLink connects to camcorders for easy archiving of MiniDV tapes. The remote and onscreen navigation aren't up to Tivo standards, but they get the job done. I've used Memorex and Sony DVDs and haven't made any coasters yet. I'm pleased with the purchase and it was easy to turn off the TV Guide feature. Coincidentially, the Pioneer and DirecTV Tivo us the same remote frequency which caused some minor confusion and each unit to be turned off inadvertantly. However, the Pioneer has 3 frequencies to choose from so it wasn't difficult to resolve the issue.
User Rating:
2.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
i cant get the chapters to work
Pros: good picture
Cons: dont want epg downloading at all
Review: i cant get the chapters to work, when you record and press next and prev.,onremote it goes to the end of title and holds last frame of picture for sevral seconds, and goes into stop mode ,back to whatever channel is on . it will go to each title and i can scan forward and back and also do channel skip, 30sec.-5-10 min. and i went to initial set up menu, and it is already on the 10 min. auto-chapter, i changed it to other settings and it still does the same thing.also any ideas to get rid of epg? i used the canada postal code, i set it manually to record, but still see epg.
Updated
yes , i know it should be auto-chapter every 10 minutes,but it does not work, it just goes to the end of title and holds still picture for many seconds,and goes back to the tuners channel.this is when i press next or prev on remote, can anyone help?
yes , i know it should be auto-chapter every 10 minutes,but it does not work, it just goes to the end of title and holds still picture for many seconds,and goes back to the tuners channel.this is when i press next or prev on remote, can anyone help?
Updated
yes , i know it should be auto-chapter every 10 minutes,but it does not work, it just goes to the end of title and holds still picture for many seconds,and goes back to the tuners channel.this is when i press next or prev on remote, can anyone help?
yes , i know it should be auto-chapter every 10 minutes,but it does not work, it just goes to the end of title and holds still picture for many seconds,and goes back to the tuners channel.this is when i press next or prev on remote, can anyone help?
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Great for transferring home movies to DVD, but be sure get the right brand of blank disks!
Pros: HDD allows for easy editing; good price/performance ratio
Cons: Seems to be finicky about disk brand, instructions do not provide enough details
Review: I will completely side-step the TV Guide programming issues, because I bought this unit specifically to transfer home movies to DVD (actually, I bought the 633, which is the same as the 533 except for a 160GB HDD).
First, my biggest complaints:
(1) the instructions assume that I understand all about creating DVD's . . . for example, it doesn't explain the differences between titles and chapters and when I should use one versus the other (I went out onto the web and found some useful info in this regard).
(2) I made sure that I reviewed the manual before buying any DVD disks, and I still got hosed. The manual indicates that any 8X disk that conforms to the DVD standards will work at high speed, but the Memorex 8X disks that I purchased crashed about half the time. I then bought some Sony 8X's, and the first two worked fine, but that's all I've tried thus far.
I have only created one title thus far (copies of a cantata performance at my church last weekend), and here's how it went:
- I connected the unit to my TV and went through the initial setup . . . I by-passed the TV Guide setup altogether and do not have a cable signal coming in the back of the unit (I have a DVR on my DISH setup, so this unit is dedicated to transferring home movies to DVD) . . . thus, I have not yet had any of the HDD thrashing issues mentioned in other reviews.
- I connected my camcorder to rear input and followed the instructions to create a recording of my tape onto the HDD . . . I used XP quality because the performance was less than one hour long, but my guess is that SP would have been just as good since the source was analog.
- I edited the title (easy enough, but the interface is a little cumbersome), trimmed the end of it (I had accidentally recorded some blank stuff onto the end), and divided it into 10 chapters (one for each song of the performance).
- I used the one-touch high-speed copying feature, trying to create 8 copies, but it took 12 tries just to get 5 good ones, so I tried one real-time copy, which worked. I then had 6 good copies, but didn't want to take 2 hours to make the last 2 copies. As noted above, I switched to Sony disks and my first two high-speed tries worked fine and I had my 8 copies.
- I am going to distribute the copies at church tonight, and will then make as many more as I need to fill any additional requests, so we'll see how the Sony's do.
A couple more annoying things:
The title does not break neatly on the title screen of the final DVD - my title was "One Incredible Moment", and the final "t" was by itself on the second line (?!?).
The unit insists on assigning a default disk title (e.g., disk11, disk12, etc.), so you have to delete or overwrite it on each copy. I wish that they would have just left it blank by default.
All-in-all, I think I am going to be very please with the unit as long as I don't have any more DVD disk problems. I'll post an update in a week or two with any additional information.
Sorry for the ramble, but I hope this is useful to somebody.
Regards,
Greg
First, my biggest complaints:
(1) the instructions assume that I understand all about creating DVD's . . . for example, it doesn't explain the differences between titles and chapters and when I should use one versus the other (I went out onto the web and found some useful info in this regard).
(2) I made sure that I reviewed the manual before buying any DVD disks, and I still got hosed. The manual indicates that any 8X disk that conforms to the DVD standards will work at high speed, but the Memorex 8X disks that I purchased crashed about half the time. I then bought some Sony 8X's, and the first two worked fine, but that's all I've tried thus far.
I have only created one title thus far (copies of a cantata performance at my church last weekend), and here's how it went:
- I connected the unit to my TV and went through the initial setup . . . I by-passed the TV Guide setup altogether and do not have a cable signal coming in the back of the unit (I have a DVR on my DISH setup, so this unit is dedicated to transferring home movies to DVD) . . . thus, I have not yet had any of the HDD thrashing issues mentioned in other reviews.
- I connected my camcorder to rear input and followed the instructions to create a recording of my tape onto the HDD . . . I used XP quality because the performance was less than one hour long, but my guess is that SP would have been just as good since the source was analog.
- I edited the title (easy enough, but the interface is a little cumbersome), trimmed the end of it (I had accidentally recorded some blank stuff onto the end), and divided it into 10 chapters (one for each song of the performance).
- I used the one-touch high-speed copying feature, trying to create 8 copies, but it took 12 tries just to get 5 good ones, so I tried one real-time copy, which worked. I then had 6 good copies, but didn't want to take 2 hours to make the last 2 copies. As noted above, I switched to Sony disks and my first two high-speed tries worked fine and I had my 8 copies.
- I am going to distribute the copies at church tonight, and will then make as many more as I need to fill any additional requests, so we'll see how the Sony's do.
A couple more annoying things:
The title does not break neatly on the title screen of the final DVD - my title was "One Incredible Moment", and the final "t" was by itself on the second line (?!?).
The unit insists on assigning a default disk title (e.g., disk11, disk12, etc.), so you have to delete or overwrite it on each copy. I wish that they would have just left it blank by default.
All-in-all, I think I am going to be very please with the unit as long as I don't have any more DVD disk problems. I'll post an update in a week or two with any additional information.
Sorry for the ramble, but I hope this is useful to somebody.
Regards,
Greg
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Wow – incredible machine, stunning picture, now if I could only get the EPG to work!
Pros: Chase Play, incredible picture & sound, great remote, actually too many “pros” to describe.
Cons: Can’t get TV Guide to work (yet), lack of detailed information for setup.
Review: I read everything prior to purchasing the unit, decided I didn't need the firewire, and purchased the 531 model at Wal-Mart for $299.
I am thrilled with the quality of the playback picture ( in SP mode), I receive a very clear, clean digital picture here on my Comcast cable, and the recorded playback on almost everything is impossible to tell from the live broadcast. I was considering the Panasonic because of their high quality LP mode, but this LP mode is very good, clean, but slightly soft. (Actually about the same as my old Super VHS VCR).
Without a doubt, “Chase Play” will forever change the way I enjoy watching TV. In fact, it changed it the first day! I love the simple – friendly way you see thumb pictures of each “title” (recorded show), and each plays in miniature before you even select it. The remote control is really well designed to allow us TV nuts to enjoy playback – just about every control is exactly where it should be under your finger.
There truly are way to many great features to go into, and that is one of the (minor) problems, the learning curve (for this retired guy), is a little steep! The manual is good (probably better than average), but the main problem is that it could be about 4-5 times thicker. It simply doesn’t go deep enough into the details.
For example, I’m not yet really sure how to set the unit up. The set-up instructions do present a clear picture of how to hook up the cables, but they don’t tell me anything about how to operate it once it’s set up. I have no clear idea of what to expect. For example, with set-up #1, I GUESS channels 2-73 or so are received in the unit’s tuner, and then cable channels above 73 are received from my cable box and I can see them through Input 1? But, is this all automatic? Should I be able to simply keep clicking + on my remote and seamlessly go thru all channels 2 to 310 or higher?
After struggling with the initial set-up a few times, and being unable to get the TVG to work at all, and not sure if my remote should be changing my cable box channels for me, (and when it once briefly worked it was slow as hell changing cable box channels), I gave up for the time being and initially am simply pumping everything into the Input 1.
Anyway, I would appreciate all the help I can get from anyone who’s solved these issues! Does Pioneer have a Forum where these issues (like TVG, set-ups, etc.) are discussed in detail with solutions? I will continue to monitor CNET as one solution. (I’ve already read most of your comments – thanks). I’m not sure if CNET provides a means for us users to email each other directly?
Still an incredible unit! (Think how much more I’ll love it when I get everything to work)!
I am thrilled with the quality of the playback picture ( in SP mode), I receive a very clear, clean digital picture here on my Comcast cable, and the recorded playback on almost everything is impossible to tell from the live broadcast. I was considering the Panasonic because of their high quality LP mode, but this LP mode is very good, clean, but slightly soft. (Actually about the same as my old Super VHS VCR).
Without a doubt, “Chase Play” will forever change the way I enjoy watching TV. In fact, it changed it the first day! I love the simple – friendly way you see thumb pictures of each “title” (recorded show), and each plays in miniature before you even select it. The remote control is really well designed to allow us TV nuts to enjoy playback – just about every control is exactly where it should be under your finger.
There truly are way to many great features to go into, and that is one of the (minor) problems, the learning curve (for this retired guy), is a little steep! The manual is good (probably better than average), but the main problem is that it could be about 4-5 times thicker. It simply doesn’t go deep enough into the details.
For example, I’m not yet really sure how to set the unit up. The set-up instructions do present a clear picture of how to hook up the cables, but they don’t tell me anything about how to operate it once it’s set up. I have no clear idea of what to expect. For example, with set-up #1, I GUESS channels 2-73 or so are received in the unit’s tuner, and then cable channels above 73 are received from my cable box and I can see them through Input 1? But, is this all automatic? Should I be able to simply keep clicking + on my remote and seamlessly go thru all channels 2 to 310 or higher?
After struggling with the initial set-up a few times, and being unable to get the TVG to work at all, and not sure if my remote should be changing my cable box channels for me, (and when it once briefly worked it was slow as hell changing cable box channels), I gave up for the time being and initially am simply pumping everything into the Input 1.
Anyway, I would appreciate all the help I can get from anyone who’s solved these issues! Does Pioneer have a Forum where these issues (like TVG, set-ups, etc.) are discussed in detail with solutions? I will continue to monitor CNET as one solution. (I’ve already read most of your comments – thanks). I’m not sure if CNET provides a means for us users to email each other directly?
Still an incredible unit! (Think how much more I’ll love it when I get everything to work)!
Updated
The EPG is now working, I was answering one on the initial set-up questions incorrectly (Pilot Error)!
Of course now that it is working, it brings up a completely new set of problems(opportunities?)
PROS
It pretty much works as advertised. I've got a few days Listings. It's neat to be able to review future shows, read the info, and simply click on them to set-up recording. The recordings have all recorded perfect.
CONS
If you have a Cable Box, you'll soon see that if you leave the Preview Screen un-locked (so that every listing you select causes a delay as the DVR sends a signal to the cable box to change to that channel. It's much faster to simply leave the Preview Screen Locked.
Overall I still love this recorder, but there are many other things to learn about it, and perhaps improve my set-up.
If you want to chat about problems/ideas, please email me at jimhock@att.net - also check out http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=106 for much more interesting discussion about this product.
The EPG is now working, I was answering one on the initial set-up questions incorrectly (Pilot Error)!
Of course now that it is working, it brings up a completely new set of problems(opportunities?)
PROS
It pretty much works as advertised. I've got a few days Listings. It's neat to be able to review future shows, read the info, and simply click on them to set-up recording. The recordings have all recorded perfect.
CONS
If you have a Cable Box, you'll soon see that if you leave the Preview Screen un-locked (so that every listing you select causes a delay as the DVR sends a signal to the cable box to change to that channel. It's much faster to simply leave the Preview Screen Locked.
Overall I still love this recorder, but there are many other things to learn about it, and perhaps improve my set-up.
If you want to chat about problems/ideas, please email me at jimhock@att.net - also check out http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=106 for much more interesting discussion about this product.
User Rating:
3.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
TV guide won't work
Pros: Picture quality
Cons: difficult to set up
Review: Comcast Motorolla Digital Cable box
Comment by jbjr43 (see profile) - December 20, 2005
I (like so many others) have been trying for two weeks to get the stupid TVG to work with my Comcast Motorolla digital cable box. I have used wabjxo's codes yesterday, still nothing. It looks like it's programming because the channels are changing on the cable box. In addition I can't get the internal tuner to change channels. All it does when I try to change the channel is switch the input. Does anybody know of a fix?
Comment by jbjr43 (see profile) - December 20, 2005
I (like so many others) have been trying for two weeks to get the stupid TVG to work with my Comcast Motorolla digital cable box. I have used wabjxo's codes yesterday, still nothing. It looks like it's programming because the channels are changing on the cable box. In addition I can't get the internal tuner to change channels. All it does when I try to change the channel is switch the input. Does anybody know of a fix?
User Rating:
1.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Almost a good product.
Pros: Records large number of programs.
Cons: Too NOISY! Requires TV Guide to record manual settings.
Review: This is almost a great product. As others have pointed out, the unit is NOISY. It makes a clicking noise almost constantly, at least 20 hours a day. It might not have been so bad if the clicking noise ocurred only in standby mode. But it also clicks when it is on, in use. It is loud enough to be heard over the TV.
I read the reviews prior to buying the unit. I figured "How bad can the noise be?" Trust the reviews. It is much too loud. Whoever at Pioneer approved the release of this product with this design defect ought to be fired.
The user interface is cumbersome, but I can overlook that. It functions.
I've had to reboot the system a couple of times because of some internal glitch. Afterwards, you have to wait for TV Guide to reload before you can use the product. The wait is at least 24 hours, sometimes more.
The unit wouldn't download TV Guide when I first installed it. It tried unsuccessfully for four days before I called up Pioneer support. Level of support and product knowledge is variable. The first person I talked to was completely useless and knew nothing about the product although she pretended to. I talked to another person later who walked me through the reinitialization procedure, which isn't in the manual.
Apparently the unit does not allow the user to manually set recordings until TV Guide has loaded. This is a big disadvantage, especially if TV Guide is not working. I would be happy if I could disable TV Guide and set all my recordings manually. In this respect, it would act as a super VCR, allowing lots of recordings. In fact, this is how I use the unit. I set up all recordings manually. As long as TV Guide works, my settings successfully record shows. But if TV Guide stops working, it won't record my manual settings. How dumb is that?
Albert
I read the reviews prior to buying the unit. I figured "How bad can the noise be?" Trust the reviews. It is much too loud. Whoever at Pioneer approved the release of this product with this design defect ought to be fired.
The user interface is cumbersome, but I can overlook that. It functions.
I've had to reboot the system a couple of times because of some internal glitch. Afterwards, you have to wait for TV Guide to reload before you can use the product. The wait is at least 24 hours, sometimes more.
The unit wouldn't download TV Guide when I first installed it. It tried unsuccessfully for four days before I called up Pioneer support. Level of support and product knowledge is variable. The first person I talked to was completely useless and knew nothing about the product although she pretended to. I talked to another person later who walked me through the reinitialization procedure, which isn't in the manual.
Apparently the unit does not allow the user to manually set recordings until TV Guide has loaded. This is a big disadvantage, especially if TV Guide is not working. I would be happy if I could disable TV Guide and set all my recordings manually. In this respect, it would act as a super VCR, allowing lots of recordings. In fact, this is how I use the unit. I set up all recordings manually. As long as TV Guide works, my settings successfully record shows. But if TV Guide stops working, it won't record my manual settings. How dumb is that?
Albert
User Rating:
0.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
maybe good if you have an engineering degree
Pros: no idea what that is
Cons: unbelievably hard to set up
Review: the instructions were incomplete, tried to follow the picture to set up, but the recorder never did show the screen it was suppose to on setup. maybe once it gets going its great, I have no idea 
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Awesome recorder, head over to Walmart!
Pros: fantastic picture quality, solid construction
Cons: TV guide epg a little hard to get used to, but works fine
Review: Like the review says, the DVR-531hs is the same as the 533hs without firewire port up front but still has S video and RCA connectors up front. Got mine at Walmart for $298.00!! You won't find anything comparable, trust me I looked all over. VERY heavy player, solid construction. Remote control is of the multi type which should work on other video components (fixed my problem where normal TV remote wouldn't turn on my TV!!)Can watch and record same channel or other recorded program on HDD/DVD at same time or even after recording starts!! Check your Walmart for availability, the one here on Cape Cod is tiny and even they had it!
User Rating:
5.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Call Pioneer to help getting TV Guide to work
Pros: Great features for editing out commercials
Cons: Takes some time to learn the features, but easy to remember once you learn them
Review: The above remarks about having difficulty getting the TV Guide feature to work was true for me. But I simply called the customer svc on the 800 phone number and they walked me through the process of reprograming the unit with a code. Also there is indeed a manual programing feature which works precisely like a VHS deck. The right lower button on the remote control activates the manual recording feature. I've burned a few shows onto DVD disks after editing out the commercials for future viewing. Great for educational programs for kids. I just bought a second unit. I'm getting close to tossing all the old VHS units.
User Rating:
1.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
No Support!! No TV Guide
Pros: Good Menu system
Cons: Flaky TV Guide; no USA Tech Support
Review: I was never able to download a TV Guide with my digital cable box and when I contacted USA support they told me no one has been trained on the product in USA and they had no idea how to support it.
User Rating:
2.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Good if EPG download doesn't drive you mad
Pros: Great quality recording
Cons: HDD noise caused by constant EPG downloads
Review: I bought this unit, but had to return it. It looks good, recording quality looked excellent, BUT, after setting it up, using it for a while, I turned it off for the first time (pressing the stand-by button).
This unit does not turn completely off if it is downloading EPG stuff for the TV Guide "feature". This continued 24/7 for 6 days, accompanied by a HDD read/write clicking (frequency once every 2 seconds) noise audible 20 feet away.
A look at the Panasonic website (search EPG in the Knowledge Base) confirmed that this is "normal" for the unit. They give you a way to turn off this wonderful feature, but the kicker is when you turn it off, you cannot make a manual recording by timer! You cannot ask the unit to record Channel 3 from 10 to 11 without using the TV Guide.
With this single exception it's a wonderful unit. Buyer beware.
This unit does not turn completely off if it is downloading EPG stuff for the TV Guide "feature". This continued 24/7 for 6 days, accompanied by a HDD read/write clicking (frequency once every 2 seconds) noise audible 20 feet away.
A look at the Panasonic website (search EPG in the Knowledge Base) confirmed that this is "normal" for the unit. They give you a way to turn off this wonderful feature, but the kicker is when you turn it off, you cannot make a manual recording by timer! You cannot ask the unit to record Channel 3 from 10 to 11 without using the TV Guide.
With this single exception it's a wonderful unit. Buyer beware.
User Rating:
1.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Potentially great unit but unable to manually record!!!!!!
Pros: Great recordings.
Cons: TV guide software a farce, Inability to manually set future recording times.
Review: You would think that a company that can produce this level of good technology would be able to intergrate software to record future programming as any old VHS player could. The ony recording option in the #%*^# TV guide software. There is no venue to request (chanel 161 @ 1:30am next week) So the unit is basically useless for one of its primary goals. TO RECORD in the future. There is a "manual" setting that will only display the curent time and chanel with NO option for change. I have called tech support 3 times and received inconsistant advice. I have gone to my cable Co. (Comcast) and put a new didital set top box in but I can't get the EPG signals to register in the "TV Guide". Pioneer only got the high tech stuff right. Very disapointed.
User Rating:
3.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
not recommended for recording off TV
Pros: excellent HDD to DVD burning
Cons: EPG TVGuide (I HATE it)
Review: Strengths: burning DVDs to archive VHS tapes and Camcorder miniDV tapes. I transfer my stuff to the HDD, add chapters where I want, name the Disc and Titles, burn it, and it works great. Only complaint is that the navigation and ease of use with the menus in order to burn and edit is awful (the users guide isn't informative enough either). But if you devote the time to figure it out, you can make it work. It took me three days and a few discs to get it right.
Weakness: using as a DVR to record stuff off the TV. The TVGuide feature is the worst thing invented. It runs CONSTANTLY making lots of noise whenever the device is turned off. And in order to use a simple VCR like Manual Timer Recording the TVGuide feature has to be "Setup". I have tried various hacks like setting the configuration to read like I'm in Canada, etc. But that TVGuide thing still tries to download 24/7 even when it's been given a bogus zipcode. I HATE it. The only fix I have found is to not SETUP the TVGuide feature at all. But of course this means I cannot Timer record anything (I can record what's on Live TV though if I'm there to hit record at the right time). Navigation of the TVGuide is a joke too for anyone familiar with Tivo. It's so crowded etc. I just can't use it at all to see what's on or to tell it what to record. Instead I look in the paper TV guide book that comes with the morning paper and do a Manual Timer recording.
Bottom Line: Excellent HDD to DVD burning. Excellent picture quality (far superior to Tivo). But the TVGuide and awful menu navigation on this DVR make Tivo heaven even with diminished picture quality. I bought this to burn HDD to DVD and as a "backup DVR" due to Tivo only having one Tuner. But unfortunately because I can't stand having that TVGuide running ALL the time and making all that noise, I don't use it as a "backup DVR" because I refuse to setup the TVGuide EPG.
PS: if the manufacturer gave you the option to turn off the TVGuide and still be able to Manual Timer Record the only negative to this product would be the less than ideal menu navigation.
Weakness: using as a DVR to record stuff off the TV. The TVGuide feature is the worst thing invented. It runs CONSTANTLY making lots of noise whenever the device is turned off. And in order to use a simple VCR like Manual Timer Recording the TVGuide feature has to be "Setup". I have tried various hacks like setting the configuration to read like I'm in Canada, etc. But that TVGuide thing still tries to download 24/7 even when it's been given a bogus zipcode. I HATE it. The only fix I have found is to not SETUP the TVGuide feature at all. But of course this means I cannot Timer record anything (I can record what's on Live TV though if I'm there to hit record at the right time). Navigation of the TVGuide is a joke too for anyone familiar with Tivo. It's so crowded etc. I just can't use it at all to see what's on or to tell it what to record. Instead I look in the paper TV guide book that comes with the morning paper and do a Manual Timer recording.
Bottom Line: Excellent HDD to DVD burning. Excellent picture quality (far superior to Tivo). But the TVGuide and awful menu navigation on this DVR make Tivo heaven even with diminished picture quality. I bought this to burn HDD to DVD and as a "backup DVR" due to Tivo only having one Tuner. But unfortunately because I can't stand having that TVGuide running ALL the time and making all that noise, I don't use it as a "backup DVR" because I refuse to setup the TVGuide EPG.
PS: if the manufacturer gave you the option to turn off the TVGuide and still be able to Manual Timer Record the only negative to this product would be the less than ideal menu navigation.
Updated
After a side-by-side comparison (via TwinView) of the picture quality between Tivo Series 2 and the Pioneer DVR-533H-S, I want to admit I was Wrong when I stated the Pioneer has superior picture quality. After examining them I decided I actually prefer the Tivo image (it is brighter with more detail). So Tivo has only advantages and no shortcomings whatsoever over the Pioneer.
After a side-by-side comparison (via TwinView) of the picture quality between Tivo Series 2 and the Pioneer DVR-533H-S, I want to admit I was Wrong when I stated the Pioneer has superior picture quality. After examining them I decided I actually prefer the Tivo image (it is brighter with more detail). So Tivo has only advantages and no shortcomings whatsoever over the Pioneer.
Updated
I used this product now for well over a year and my original review is still pretty accurate. I abandoned using it as a DVR to record stuff off the TV because of the TV Guide issues I mentioned. But as an HDD to DVD recorder it really excels. I am now very familiar with the menus and navigation and have a much easier time of "getting everything done." Bottom line: this unit performs admorably for HDD to DVD recording. I will look to Pioneer again in the future if I'm in need of more HDD to DVD recorders.
I used this product now for well over a year and my original review is still pretty accurate. I abandoned using it as a DVR to record stuff off the TV because of the TV Guide issues I mentioned. But as an HDD to DVD recorder it really excels. I am now very familiar with the menus and navigation and have a much easier time of "getting everything done." Bottom line: this unit performs admorably for HDD to DVD recording. I will look to Pioneer again in the future if I'm in need of more HDD to DVD recorders.
Updated
I have used this product now for well over a year and my original review is still pretty accurate. I have never used it as a DVR to record stuff off the TV because of the TV Guide issues I mentioned. But as an HDD to DVD recorder it really excels. I am now very familiar with the menus and navigation and have a much easier time of "getting everything done." Bottom line: this unit performs admorably for HDD to DVD recording. I will look to Pioneer again in the future if I'm in need of more HDD to DVD recorders.
I have used this product now for well over a year and my original review is still pretty accurate. I have never used it as a DVR to record stuff off the TV because of the TV Guide issues I mentioned. But as an HDD to DVD recorder it really excels. I am now very familiar with the menus and navigation and have a much easier time of "getting everything done." Bottom line: this unit performs admorably for HDD to DVD recording. I will look to Pioneer again in the future if I'm in need of more HDD to DVD recorders.
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Outstanding product at the right price
Pros: Very high quality picture, versatile recording options, easy editing, low price
Cons: TV Guide function doesn't work for me.
Review: This DVR does everything I bought it for and does it very well.
Of course, it plays DVDs, records TV and burns DVDs. Picture quality is excellent, whether from DVD, the TV receiver or the analog inputs. One surprising feature is that it can record to the hard drive while either playing a DVD or watching something else from the hard drive. Unlike a VCR that has to be in standby mode in order to record, the Pioneer just starts dumping the information to the hard drive while the kids watch whatever they are watching. One key feature I was looking for is the ability to take home video, organize it and burn it to DVD easily. Once again the Pioneer shines. Picture quality using the front AV jacks is outstanding. Editing is a snap using the remote control. You can split scenes, add chapter breaks, assign labels and choose thumbnails from your easy chair. Two minutes with the manual and another two playing around and I had it all figured out. It would be nice if I could attach a keyboard for faster label entry. You can either navigate around a list of letters looking for what you want or use the remote like a phone pad (2 for A, 22 for B, etc) to put in what you want. It's pretty clever for a remote driven system, but slow compared to typing. Burning is very straight-forward. I have had it bomb a couple of times using the high speed mode. Each time, I have been able to use the other modes successfully without losing the disk I'd started. You do have to remember to have it finalize if you want to view it on other machines. There is an option you can set on the burn screen to handle it automatically, but the default is "no".
The TV guide feature has never worked for me. It's not a problem since it has a manual timing option much like a VCR that allows you to set up a one time recording or repeat recordings. One irritation is on turning the machine on, it tries to update the programming guide resulting in a 10 second delay before it is ready.
The remote is fairly straight-forward with controls at the bottom for the TV. No mute button or controls for anything but the TV and the DVR.
I'd been watching the DVR market for six months waiting for prices to drop, but most of the quality machines are still in the >$400 range. I bought a 531H at a Super WalMart for a little over $300 and I don't think I am missing any features that the more expensive machines offer. There is no DV port on the 531H, but as mentioned above, the AV ports work fine. I highly recommend this machine. Don't have great expectations concerning the TV guide, but you don't need it anyway.
Of course, it plays DVDs, records TV and burns DVDs. Picture quality is excellent, whether from DVD, the TV receiver or the analog inputs. One surprising feature is that it can record to the hard drive while either playing a DVD or watching something else from the hard drive. Unlike a VCR that has to be in standby mode in order to record, the Pioneer just starts dumping the information to the hard drive while the kids watch whatever they are watching. One key feature I was looking for is the ability to take home video, organize it and burn it to DVD easily. Once again the Pioneer shines. Picture quality using the front AV jacks is outstanding. Editing is a snap using the remote control. You can split scenes, add chapter breaks, assign labels and choose thumbnails from your easy chair. Two minutes with the manual and another two playing around and I had it all figured out. It would be nice if I could attach a keyboard for faster label entry. You can either navigate around a list of letters looking for what you want or use the remote like a phone pad (2 for A, 22 for B, etc) to put in what you want. It's pretty clever for a remote driven system, but slow compared to typing. Burning is very straight-forward. I have had it bomb a couple of times using the high speed mode. Each time, I have been able to use the other modes successfully without losing the disk I'd started. You do have to remember to have it finalize if you want to view it on other machines. There is an option you can set on the burn screen to handle it automatically, but the default is "no".
The TV guide feature has never worked for me. It's not a problem since it has a manual timing option much like a VCR that allows you to set up a one time recording or repeat recordings. One irritation is on turning the machine on, it tries to update the programming guide resulting in a 10 second delay before it is ready.
The remote is fairly straight-forward with controls at the bottom for the TV. No mute button or controls for anything but the TV and the DVR.
I'd been watching the DVR market for six months waiting for prices to drop, but most of the quality machines are still in the >$400 range. I bought a 531H at a Super WalMart for a little over $300 and I don't think I am missing any features that the more expensive machines offer. There is no DV port on the 531H, but as mentioned above, the AV ports work fine. I highly recommend this machine. Don't have great expectations concerning the TV guide, but you don't need it anyway.
Updated
After playing around with it, I realized that there were four options for cable setups. When I tested them all, the last one worked for my TV Guide setup.
After playing around with it, I realized that there were four options for cable setups. When I tested them all, the last one worked for my TV Guide setup.
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Best in it's class, and you don't have to pay a fee to use it like TIVO!
Pros: Very versatile, can use it for many different purposes
Cons: Hard drive is rather noisy when it is using the EPG
Review: I chose this deck after lots of research, and found it to be exactly as advertised. I think this is the best DVR/DVD Recorder combo on the market today. I primarily bought this so I could make copies of my son's football games and be able to burn them to DVD. It burns about 1 hour of video to DVD in about 15 minutes. Much less than the full hour it used to take when I would make VHS copies of the games. What is great about this deck is that it makes custom DVDs from your home movies. I edit the content on my MAC, then copy it to the hard drive on this unit. Then I can set up, label and even edit out portions of each video. Then copy these videos to the DVD. I can burn the videos made for 10 games, with labels and create a menu of the 10 games. The video starts playing with the first video, or I can press menu and skip to any one of the 10 videos, just like a regular DVD. This is prefect for what I bought it for.
Then there is the added bonus of being able to use it record shows off the air or cable, it has a built in TV Guide schedule that works just fine (takes 24 hours for it to set itself up with the EPG). I love how I can record any show I need to instantly, and I no longer have to go searching for a blank tape. I can burn that show to a DVD. I can also erase the commercials, this is great for shows I want to keep and burn to DVD without the commercials! I also love how I can instantly access any video or show recorded to the drive. This makes watching, recording and keeping TV shows a real snap, and is the wave of the future. Now I will never go back to my old VHS deck again. Plus the video quality is much higher, I can view shows on the cable and it actually looks cleaner and shaper when watched through this deck on the same TV and cable.
My only complaint is the the hard drive runs all day long using the EPG update and if you are in a quite room it can be quite annoying, other than that one complaint, this is the perfect machine for video.
Then there is the added bonus of being able to use it record shows off the air or cable, it has a built in TV Guide schedule that works just fine (takes 24 hours for it to set itself up with the EPG). I love how I can record any show I need to instantly, and I no longer have to go searching for a blank tape. I can burn that show to a DVD. I can also erase the commercials, this is great for shows I want to keep and burn to DVD without the commercials! I also love how I can instantly access any video or show recorded to the drive. This makes watching, recording and keeping TV shows a real snap, and is the wave of the future. Now I will never go back to my old VHS deck again. Plus the video quality is much higher, I can view shows on the cable and it actually looks cleaner and shaper when watched through this deck on the same TV and cable.
My only complaint is the the hard drive runs all day long using the EPG update and if you are in a quite room it can be quite annoying, other than that one complaint, this is the perfect machine for video.
User Rating:
5.0 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Great product. Bad review sare wrong.
Pros: Great quality, easy to use. TV Guide (TVG) works properly if you select a PBS channel that sends TVG info.
Cons: Can't find any. Near-sighted people might not be able to read some of the smaller on-screen lettering.
Review: Bad reviews are wrong:
1-It does have an easy-to-use Timer Record feature for future programs, just like your old VCR.
2-TVG works properly if you select a PBS channel that actually sends the TVG info. I returned my first unit to Wal-Mart 'cause my TVG filled two or three days, then started losing those days. For my second unit, which acted the same, I called Pioneer and they gave me a clue: TVG info is sent on the local PBS channel. My local channel was WAIQ, but I noticed that in the OFF channels there were several others (WBIQ, WCIQ, etc.) When I set up the second unit, when the menu appeared that it found several cable systems in my area, I selected one that was NOT mine because I found that it sent WBIQ. Doing that required me to go through all the channels and realign several non-PBS channels(6 or so) to my local channel assignments. The result is a rapidly filled and constantly updated TVG layout.
This same result MIGHT be achieved elsewhere, and maybe even by simply selecting another PBS channel from those in the OFF category that your local cable outlet delivers??? If not, try selecting an entirely different cable outlet, then realigning the non-PBS channels to match you local layout.
1-It does have an easy-to-use Timer Record feature for future programs, just like your old VCR.
2-TVG works properly if you select a PBS channel that actually sends the TVG info. I returned my first unit to Wal-Mart 'cause my TVG filled two or three days, then started losing those days. For my second unit, which acted the same, I called Pioneer and they gave me a clue: TVG info is sent on the local PBS channel. My local channel was WAIQ, but I noticed that in the OFF channels there were several others (WBIQ, WCIQ, etc.) When I set up the second unit, when the menu appeared that it found several cable systems in my area, I selected one that was NOT mine because I found that it sent WBIQ. Doing that required me to go through all the channels and realign several non-PBS channels(6 or so) to my local channel assignments. The result is a rapidly filled and constantly updated TVG layout.
This same result MIGHT be achieved elsewhere, and maybe even by simply selecting another PBS channel from those in the OFF category that your local cable outlet delivers??? If not, try selecting an entirely different cable outlet, then realigning the non-PBS channels to match you local layout.
Updated
Thanks to "cnetbuys" review Dec 6, I learned that Pioneer has finally come up with some help for TVG problems. cnetbuys called Pioneer for help and got "codes" to enter. You have to ask for "Advanced" CS person. I entered codes, but not sure if it works yet.
For those who want to try this "fix" but don't want to wait on hold, here's the procedure:
1-Go to TVG "SETUP" in top Service Bar ("go to Service Bar" in side Menu, then left in Service Bar to "SETUP").
2. Down arrow once to "Change system settings" and HIGHLIGHT. DO NOT press Enter button.
3. With "Change system settings" highlighted, Enter 1st code with number keys: 753159852.
4. When grey menu screen appears, enter 2nd code: 653274147.
5. Turn unit OFF.
6. Turn unit ON.
7. Redo TVG Setup. Go to SETUP again and, this time, select (Enter) "Change system settings."
8. Select the bottom choice, "No, repeat Setup process."
9. Enter your system/location info. again, even if it's there from before.
10. Turn unit OFF.
11. Wait 24-48 hours for results.
12. If this doesn't work, call Pioneer again and ask for "Advanced" help. They will "escalate" your problem (whatever that entails).
They say this should work for any system set up with RF In connection...direct cable, cable boxes, etc. just not for "satellite" (not sure why not, I don't have satellite). My connection is analog Adelphia cable w/o cable box.
Thanks to "cnetbuys" review Dec 6, I learned that Pioneer has finally come up with some help for TVG problems. cnetbuys called Pioneer for help and got "codes" to enter. You have to ask for "Advanced" CS person. I entered codes, but not sure if it works yet.
For those who want to try this "fix" but don't want to wait on hold, here's the procedure:
1-Go to TVG "SETUP" in top Service Bar ("go to Service Bar" in side Menu, then left in Service Bar to "SETUP").
2. Down arrow once to "Change system settings" and HIGHLIGHT. DO NOT press Enter button.
3. With "Change system settings" highlighted, Enter 1st code with number keys: 753159852.
4. When grey menu screen appears, enter 2nd code: 653274147.
5. Turn unit OFF.
6. Turn unit ON.
7. Redo TVG Setup. Go to SETUP again and, this time, select (Enter) "Change system settings."
8. Select the bottom choice, "No, repeat Setup process."
9. Enter your system/location info. again, even if it's there from before.
10. Turn unit OFF.
11. Wait 24-48 hours for results.
12. If this doesn't work, call Pioneer again and ask for "Advanced" help. They will "escalate" your problem (whatever that entails).
They say this should work for any system set up with RF In connection...direct cable, cable boxes, etc. just not for "satellite" (not sure why not, I don't have satellite). My connection is analog Adelphia cable w/o cable box.
Updated
Some new clues:
1-Don't force the DVR to go Off by pushing the Power button more than once when you want it to go off. It has a delay before going off. One thing it's doing is searching for the PBS channel to get TVG info from. I witnessed this during one of my "experiments" -- it delayed, showed POWER OFF in the display window, then went off but tuned to my PBS channel (Ch. 10) as it went off!
2-I am trying a new test, with good success.
Instead of replacing my PBS channel from those in the OFF portion of the channel listing, I turned ALL PBS channels ON and even told them all to appear in the Ch. 10 slot! It's added two days to my anemic TVG info. (after my test of the Pioneer "codes" which didn't work!).
It seems that just selecting the "best" PBS channel from those the DVR found in Setup is the answer to my particular setup -- analog Adelphia cable, no cable box. Pioneer says the TVG system should work with any system having RF IN as the signal source. It will not work with "satellite" hookups (not sure why not).
So...don't force the DVR off, and find the best PBS channel (might even try first turning them all ON and seeing if that is a lasting solution). I say "lasting" because I've found that trying to fool the system with just another PBS channel might work well for a time (30 days or so), somehow the DVR seems to find out about the "trick" and will hang up in a mode of "Due to your Setup change, I'm trying to rebuild your channel list..." or some such skullduggery.
Some new clues:
1-Don't force the DVR to go Off by pushing the Power button more than once when you want it to go off. It has a delay before going off. One thing it's doing is searching for the PBS channel to get TVG info from. I witnessed this during one of my "experiments" -- it delayed, showed POWER OFF in the display window, then went off but tuned to my PBS channel (Ch. 10) as it went off!
2-I am trying a new test, with good success.
Instead of replacing my PBS channel from those in the OFF portion of the channel listing, I turned ALL PBS channels ON and even told them all to appear in the Ch. 10 slot! It's added two days to my anemic TVG info. (after my test of the Pioneer "codes" which didn't work!).
It seems that just selecting the "best" PBS channel from those the DVR found in Setup is the answer to my particular setup -- analog Adelphia cable, no cable box. Pioneer says the TVG system should work with any system having RF IN as the signal source. It will not work with "satellite" hookups (not sure why not).
So...don't force the DVR off, and find the best PBS channel (might even try first turning them all ON and seeing if that is a lasting solution). I say "lasting" because I've found that trying to fool the system with just another PBS channel might work well for a time (30 days or so), somehow the DVR seems to find out about the "trick" and will hang up in a mode of "Due to your Setup change, I'm trying to rebuild your channel list..." or some such skullduggery.
Updated
My experiment with turning on ALL PBS channels my DVR found didn't work. I'm back to one PBS channel from a large city nearby (not my subscribed PBS channel). This work-around works best for my setup (analog Adelphia cable, no cable box).
Also, I never force the unit to turn off by pressing the Power button twice. That gives it the chance it needs to POWER OFF and simultaneously set the tuner to my PBS channel (Ch. 10). I witnessed it actually doing this (it happens fast, and only if the tuner is not already on that channel), so this is not a "theory."
My experiment with turning on ALL PBS channels my DVR found didn't work. I'm back to one PBS channel from a large city nearby (not my subscribed PBS channel). This work-around works best for my setup (analog Adelphia cable, no cable box).
Also, I never force the unit to turn off by pressing the Power button twice. That gives it the chance it needs to POWER OFF and simultaneously set the tuner to my PBS channel (Ch. 10). I witnessed it actually doing this (it happens fast, and only if the tuner is not already on that channel), so this is not a "theory."
Updated
I've been reading opinions by many who have cable boxes requiring extra cabling and some recording on the DVR thru inputs other than RF IN.
Recording that way is fine, but if you want to ALSO have TVG work properly, the unit must have a regular coax input from your source to the RF IN connector on the DVR!
Otherwise, the unit will cycle all day trying, but failing, to find the TVG info it needs. (Maybe the constant EPG noise people hear is the EPG system complaining!?)
Don't forget to also select the "best" PBS channel in your area...the one that delivers the TVG info most reliably.
I've been reading opinions by many who have cable boxes requiring extra cabling and some recording on the DVR thru inputs other than RF IN.
Recording that way is fine, but if you want to ALSO have TVG work properly, the unit must have a regular coax input from your source to the RF IN connector on the DVR!
Otherwise, the unit will cycle all day trying, but failing, to find the TVG info it needs. (Maybe the constant EPG noise people hear is the EPG system complaining!?)
Don't forget to also select the "best" PBS channel in your area...the one that delivers the TVG info most reliably.
Updated
It finally dawned on me that many people talk of the "cable box" but they might mean their "satellite receiver"???
TVG info is not transmitted via satellite, which might explain why some people are "fed up with" the TVG feature.
The keys to happy channels and happier TVG is: cable service (direct or thru cable box), RF IN to DVR via coax cable, cable box AFTER the DVR (pg 17 of manual), and the "best" PBS channel turned ON. (All PBS channels are not created equal.)
After that, you can set the unit to record thru L1, L2, L3 or RF IN, and you'll be happy too!
If you have satellite service, you'll have to be somewhat unhappy and live with a great recorder but no TVG.
It finally dawned on me that many people talk of the "cable box" but they might mean their "satellite receiver"???
TVG info is not transmitted via satellite, which might explain why some people are "fed up with" the TVG feature.
The keys to happy channels and happier TVG is: cable service (direct or thru cable box), RF IN to DVR via coax cable, cable box AFTER the DVR (pg 17 of manual), and the "best" PBS channel turned ON. (All PBS channels are not created equal.)
After that, you can set the unit to record thru L1, L2, L3 or RF IN, and you'll be happy too!
If you have satellite service, you'll have to be somewhat unhappy and live with a great recorder but no TVG.
Updated
Here's how to find out which channel is the "Host" channel that sends YOUR EPG/TVG data:
1- Go to TVG Setup (top bar).
2- Highlight Change system settings, but DO NOT press Enter.
3- Enter with number keys the following:
753159852. DO NOT press Enter.
4- Grey menu should appear.
5- Press right-arrow key (NOT Enter).
6- 2nd grey menu should appear. Look down the list of items to find:
VBI Chan: ## (channel number you are tuned to at this time).
Host Chan: ## (this is the channel YOUR EPG/TVG data is sent on).
My Host channel is 10, which is my PBS channel.
When I change my PBS station to the most powerful one in my state (go to PBS.org and find yours), I get excellent TVG data on a continuous basis.
Others on other sites like this report their Host channel is NOT PBS, but this little test will prove what your Host channel is for sure.
Here's how to find out which channel is the "Host" channel that sends YOUR EPG/TVG data:
1- Go to TVG Setup (top bar).
2- Highlight Change system settings, but DO NOT press Enter.
3- Enter with number keys the following:
753159852. DO NOT press Enter.
4- Grey menu should appear.
5- Press right-arrow key (NOT Enter).
6- 2nd grey menu should appear. Look down the list of items to find:
VBI Chan: ## (channel number you are tuned to at this time).
Host Chan: ## (this is the channel YOUR EPG/TVG data is sent on).
My Host channel is 10, which is my PBS channel.
When I change my PBS station to the most powerful one in my state (go to PBS.org and find yours), I get excellent TVG data on a continuous basis.
Others on other sites like this report their Host channel is NOT PBS, but this little test will prove what your Host channel is for sure.
Updated
For those who can't get TVGOS reliably and others who don't need the Pio 53x/63x series TVGOS 'cause they have a Sat receiver or TIVO unit with its excellent guide, or you have digital cable service so you can't get the analog TVGOS signal, I developed a method called a "Hostectomy" that will turn TVGOS off without losing any of the other operating features of the TVGOS menu system.
Go to TVGOS > SETUP > Change channel display and turn OFF any and all PBS channels you find in your listing. ALSO, tune each of those channels to channel 0 (zero).
Within a few days, all your TVGOS listings will say "No data ..." and your EPG light on the unit will only be on for a few minutes after turning the unit off. It lights only for the system to do "light housekeeping" on the "No Data..." blocks in the 8-day TVGOS listings (i.e., it adds more "No Data..." blocks).
The recorder will no longer search for TVGOS data, so no more constant "thrashing," no continual changing channels on a Sat or cable box searching for a Host station, no sudden losses of data and missed recordings, etc.
For those who can't get TVGOS reliably and others who don't need the Pio 53x/63x series TVGOS 'cause they have a Sat receiver or TIVO unit with its excellent guide, or you have digital cable service so you can't get the analog TVGOS signal, I developed a method called a "Hostectomy" that will turn TVGOS off without losing any of the other operating features of the TVGOS menu system.
Go to TVGOS > SETUP > Change channel display and turn OFF any and all PBS channels you find in your listing. ALSO, tune each of those channels to channel 0 (zero).
Within a few days, all your TVGOS listings will say "No data ..." and your EPG light on the unit will only be on for a few minutes after turning the unit off. It lights only for the system to do "light housekeeping" on the "No Data..." blocks in the 8-day TVGOS listings (i.e., it adds more "No Data..." blocks).
The recorder will no longer search for TVGOS data, so no more constant "thrashing," no continual changing channels on a Sat or cable box searching for a Host station, no sudden losses of data and missed recordings, etc.
Updated
Forgot to add to my "Hostectomy" post above that, after a Hostectomy, the PBS channels you turn off and tune to zero will still be tunable by direct entry of channel #...your Host channel will still appear with channel up/down button.
(I can't remember for sure, but I think those PBS channels you turn off will also be recordable with a Timer Rec program if you enter the old channel #...you'll have to try this to be sure?)
Forgot to add to my "Hostectomy" post above that, after a Hostectomy, the PBS channels you turn off and tune to zero will still be tunable by direct entry of channel #...your Host channel will still appear with channel up/down button.
(I can't remember for sure, but I think those PBS channels you turn off will also be recordable with a Timer Rec program if you enter the old channel #...you'll have to try this to be sure?)
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
easy to use, great recordings, inexpensive too
Pros: Ebay cheap-works flawlessly-DVD copies+HDD !!!
Cons: can't use TVG feature - small on screen info/directions
Review: This is my 3rd Pioneer DVD recorder. I have the 310 (DVD record only), the 420 (same as the 520), and my folks also have the 'Costco only' 420 model. I bought the 310 from an online Pioneer dealer ($440) and the 420 thru Ebay ($338) 2/05. My new 531 was won thru "BIN Ebay" for $244 total. Not a Pioneer reconized dealer, but none of our other DVR's have shown any trouble, and get used daily to record.
The Hard Disk Drive is a MUST in my opinion!! But with no Tivo fee. All models are pretty easy to record or setting the timers, either with the HDD or DVD. The 531 (my model actually, same as 533) is sleaker, but basically the same remote and functions as the 420. It claims to record dual layer DVD-R, which would be great for archiving large programs (3 hr hockey games, on XP record) etc, twice the info available than reg. DVD-R disc. I use two satellite services, so the TV Guide feature was not usable for my needs, I always use the DirecTV guide. Using the 531 manual timer is not as easy to operate as my previous models, basically because it takes one extra step thru the remote to prompt the feature. Also, the on screen directions are so tiny in comparison to the 310 and 420 models. THATS MY BIG complaint! The remote is unchanged for the most part, I can use it blindfolded from my two yrs experience. I figured out MOST of the features with this model without the manual (which is very helpfull, easy to read). Pioneer has live C. Serv. help too. It works like a VCR, but the results of DVD copies. SP, XP(FINE) are what I mainly use for recordings, and YOU CAN"T TELL THE DIFFERENCE from the live feed. LP or EP record results start to show faint color and blurry action. I've sent DVD copies to friends, the DVD-RW disc work on most players. I've copied many old VHS tapes, again a simple process, and THEY look great, of course digital copying will never fade from over use. Editing takes time to learn, but once/twice thru, that also becomes a simple operation. And you're able to preview your edits before you erase your original program content. Live play viewing of a current recording(chase play) with the HDD is another Tivo like feature - can't live without it!! Skip forward in :30 intervals, simple!! It looks good, operates great, records flawless, and Pioneer quality, I can't say anything bad about any of my DVR's from them. I rarely watch LIVE TV, now I have so much to watch anytime, but never enough time to watch!! The Tivo giveaways from satellite and cable are hard to pass up, but in my mind a HDD + DVD recorder is the way to go. Pioneer reviews HERE and on Epinions.com are all positive! I'm not planning on high Def anytime soon, so I've no remarks concerning its use. I'll follow up in about a month.
The Hard Disk Drive is a MUST in my opinion!! But with no Tivo fee. All models are pretty easy to record or setting the timers, either with the HDD or DVD. The 531 (my model actually, same as 533) is sleaker, but basically the same remote and functions as the 420. It claims to record dual layer DVD-R, which would be great for archiving large programs (3 hr hockey games, on XP record) etc, twice the info available than reg. DVD-R disc. I use two satellite services, so the TV Guide feature was not usable for my needs, I always use the DirecTV guide. Using the 531 manual timer is not as easy to operate as my previous models, basically because it takes one extra step thru the remote to prompt the feature. Also, the on screen directions are so tiny in comparison to the 310 and 420 models. THATS MY BIG complaint! The remote is unchanged for the most part, I can use it blindfolded from my two yrs experience. I figured out MOST of the features with this model without the manual (which is very helpfull, easy to read). Pioneer has live C. Serv. help too. It works like a VCR, but the results of DVD copies. SP, XP(FINE) are what I mainly use for recordings, and YOU CAN"T TELL THE DIFFERENCE from the live feed. LP or EP record results start to show faint color and blurry action. I've sent DVD copies to friends, the DVD-RW disc work on most players. I've copied many old VHS tapes, again a simple process, and THEY look great, of course digital copying will never fade from over use. Editing takes time to learn, but once/twice thru, that also becomes a simple operation. And you're able to preview your edits before you erase your original program content. Live play viewing of a current recording(chase play) with the HDD is another Tivo like feature - can't live without it!! Skip forward in :30 intervals, simple!! It looks good, operates great, records flawless, and Pioneer quality, I can't say anything bad about any of my DVR's from them. I rarely watch LIVE TV, now I have so much to watch anytime, but never enough time to watch!! The Tivo giveaways from satellite and cable are hard to pass up, but in my mind a HDD + DVD recorder is the way to go. Pioneer reviews HERE and on Epinions.com are all positive! I'm not planning on high Def anytime soon, so I've no remarks concerning its use. I'll follow up in about a month.
Updated
So far so good.....I still ignore the TVG feature, setting the TIMER REC takes getting use to, but editing IS easier than the 420 model. Recordings to HDD or DVD are perfect in XP + SP. The two neg. reviews on this site, the users obviously did not, read directions or bother to call the C.S. 800# to ask for live help, its there, USE IT!! Pioneer obviously added the TVG feature to make their product more TIVO-like. I say get rid of the TVG in future models. MOST folks who buy a DVD recorder are most likely to have sat. or cable already and an existing channel guide provided. My 420 model is still easier and preferred, the 310 was sold to Dad for $80. ALL FOUR Pioneer DVD REC's that we own work great, as advertised.
So far so good.....I still ignore the TVG feature, setting the TIMER REC takes getting use to, but editing IS easier than the 420 model. Recordings to HDD or DVD are perfect in XP + SP. The two neg. reviews on this site, the users obviously did not, read directions or bother to call the C.S. 800# to ask for live help, its there, USE IT!! Pioneer obviously added the TVG feature to make their product more TIVO-like. I say get rid of the TVG in future models. MOST folks who buy a DVD recorder are most likely to have sat. or cable already and an existing channel guide provided. My 420 model is still easier and preferred, the 310 was sold to Dad for $80. ALL FOUR Pioneer DVD REC's that we own work great, as advertised.
User Rating:
1.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Can't record future programs if your cable company doesn't have TV Guide
Pros: Many nice features
Cons: Has no date/time/channel setup to record future programs
Review: This recorder needs the TV Guide On screen info from your cable company to record future programs, like when you are away or out of town. Comcast does not provide this info anywhere in its service area. Don't buy unless you have confirmed TV Guide info with your cable company.
Updated
After returning this recorder, I have found a paragraph on page 47 of the DVR-533H-S manual in the Troubleshooting section that has instructions for setting date/time/channel info for future recordings.
After returning this recorder, I have found a paragraph on page 47 of the DVR-533H-S manual in the Troubleshooting section that has instructions for setting date/time/channel info for future recordings.
User Rating:
2.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Mediocre Product
Pros: Great recording and editing capabilities
Cons: Noisy HDD when EPG is loaded, unpredictable timer recording modes, clock needs to be adjusted weekly
Review: Once the EPG from TV Guide have been fully loaded, there is major grinding noise from the HDD. I can hear it about 10 ft away from the unit, even with the TV and air conditioning on.
Once a week I have to readjust the clock because it becomes too slow by a minute or two. Even the clock I bought from the Dollar Store doesn't deviate that much.
Using timer-recording, sometimes it records SP program in LP and vice versa.
Oh, I use Pioneer DVR-533 and DVR-633, they both have the same problem.
Once a week I have to readjust the clock because it becomes too slow by a minute or two. Even the clock I bought from the Dollar Store doesn't deviate that much.
Using timer-recording, sometimes it records SP program in LP and vice versa.
Oh, I use Pioneer DVR-533 and DVR-633, they both have the same problem.
User Rating:
2.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Nice IF TV Guide ever works
Pros: No monthly fee, dual layer burning, good playback options
Cons: Basically a vcr if TV Guide doesn't work
Review: I bought the 532H-S which is basically the same model. I bought this a month and a half ago as I am one of the many who use only cell phones and forego the land line required for TiVo.
The TV Guide function never worked. I emailed and spent many calls with tech support (who to their credit did stay in contact very well with me) and was never able to use it as anything but a timed recorder. I even exchanged it in case it was a faulty model. Changing zip codes to the nearest larger city never worked either. Tech support was baffled and so was I, so I returned it and got the Humax DVR800 (had to borrow the neighbors land line for a bit though).
I have Time Warner Digital Cable and live in Lincoln, NE...this really shouldn't have been a problem.
Would have rated this much higher if the guide had worked!
The TV Guide function never worked. I emailed and spent many calls with tech support (who to their credit did stay in contact very well with me) and was never able to use it as anything but a timed recorder. I even exchanged it in case it was a faulty model. Changing zip codes to the nearest larger city never worked either. Tech support was baffled and so was I, so I returned it and got the Humax DVR800 (had to borrow the neighbors land line for a bit though).
I have Time Warner Digital Cable and live in Lincoln, NE...this really shouldn't have been a problem.
Would have rated this much higher if the guide had worked!
Updated
The model I had was the 531H-S...there is no 532...sorry.
The model I had was the 531H-S...there is no 532...sorry.
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 52 user reviews
Outstanding!!
Pros: EASY to use, slim design
Cons: The TV Guide is a little hard to read; the display is too "busy"...minor complaint.
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Pioneer DVR-533H-S specifications
- General
- Type of component DVD recorder
- Width 16.5 in
- Depth 10.7 in
- Height 2.3 in
- Weight 9.0 lbs
- System
- A/V System Recommended Use Home
- Max Recording Capacity 170.0 hour(s)
- Features Simultaneous recording and playback , Variable bitrate (VBR) , Chasing playback
- Component features
- Audio D/A converter 24bit / 192kHz
- DVD Additional Features JPEG photo playback , Progressive scanning
- Media load type Tray
- Media type CD-R , Video CD , CD-RW , DVD-R , CD , DVD-RW , DVD
- Video D/A converter 10bit / 54MHz
- Audio System
- Output Mode Stereo
- Digital Audio Format Dolby Digital output , DTS digital output
- Connectors
- Optical Digital Output Yes
- TV Tuner
- TV tuner qty 1.0
- Digital Player (Recorder)
- Digital Storage Media Hard disk drive - 80.0 GB
- Recording Features
- Synchro Start Yes
- High Speed Dubbing Yes
- Video Features
- Commercial Skip Yes
- Electronic Program Guide TV Guide On Screen
- Program Guide Features Timer Programming
- Clock & Alarm
- Clock Yes (digital)
- Timer Record
- Remote Control
- Type Remote control
- Technology Infrared
- Connections
- Connector Type 2.0 x Component video output ( 4 pin mini-DIN ) - Rear , 2.0 x Remote control ( RCA phono x 3 ) - Rear , 2.0 x SPDIF output ( RCA phono x 3 ) - Rear , 1.0 x Composite video/audio input ( RCA phono x 3 ) - Front , 1.0 x S-Video input ( RCA phono x 3 ) - Rear , 1.0 x Composite video/audio input ( 4 pin mini-DIN ) - Front , 1.0 x RF output ( 4 pin mini-DIN ) - Rear , 1.0 x S-Video input - Rear , 2.0 x RF input - Rear , 1.0 x Composite video/audio output - Rear , 1.0 x S-Video output - Rear , 1.0 x - Front , 1.0 x - Rear
- Miscellaneous
- Cables Included Video / audio cable , Antenna cable
- Power
- Type Internal
- Battery
- Battery None
- Manufacturer Warranty
- Service & Support 1 year warranty
