What is consensus on Pioneer Elite sound quality?

Well from what I've gathered on this site and others, unless I'm going to spend a bit more, I might as well stick with the Elite receiver. I was tmpted by the Cambridge 840A, but it may not be a major sonic improvement over the Elite that I now have. I can't fork over big bucks at the moment so I should keep saving and then do a MAJOR upgrade down the road (possibly a McIntosh or similar.

I did some research on Pioneer Elite as well and you have made a good choice to keep what you have. I think their gear is neutral sounding and a very good value for the money. You will have to spend more to step up. I like my Pioneer Elite integrated amp enough to stay with the brand for any upcoming HT system in the far future.

I tried Kimber Kabling I use with my tube system on the 2 channel Pioneer Elite system and it made a very noticeable improvement in a clearer sound, tighter more articulate bass with cleaner highs. I likewise tried some Monster Cable I had laying around and it did not compliment Pioneer Elite so well, but I will bet that is what most stores offering the Pioneer Elite brand carry. This may be a good option for an upgrade that you can keep with you for the future.

Thanks..I've heard a lot of good things about Kimber. I have Monster 12 Gage speaker cable which I could tell was a step up from the 16 gage cable that I had earlier

If you need a blueray player that can deliver excellent 2 channel analog, you need to grab the PE bdp51fd. Run, not walk to a BB nearby if they have any left. Retail $499.00, it can be had NIB for $149.00. I 've two DBP51fd units which I use as a CDP player thru 2 channel analog. The built-in Wolfson Dacs and the sound quality make me wonder why I spent a whole lot more for some of my stand alone CDP.