It makes sense comparing Pioneer SC-LX901 vs Onkyo TX-8260 because they both are able to give some premium features.
A significant difference between the receivers in the number of channels, Pioneer SC-LX901 has 11.2 versus 2.0 for Onkyo TX-8260. Regarding power, then SC-LX901 has such a W/Ohm ratio - 140/8, 200/6 when TX-8260 has a power of 80/8, 160/6. The THD is 0.08% for the SC-LX901 but 0.09% for the TX-8260.
Characteristics of digital to analog converter (DAC) are different, ESS SABRE32 Ultra 192 KHz/32-bit for SC-LX901 and AK4452 384 KHz/32-bit for the TX-8260. Only the SC-LX901 supports Bi-amping feature. The Pioneer SC-LX901 can transmit an audio signal directly to the amplifier and bypasses any DSP processing. Rivals from our review have Bluetooth support. The Apple Music service is implemented on considered devices: AirPlay. Spotify can be used on each receiver. The SC-LX901 can work with the audio stream from Deezer, TIDAL, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and the TX-8260 can receive a content from TIDAL, Pandora, TuneIn Radio.
Only the Pioneer SC-LX901 has support for High dynamic range (HDR). Only the SC-LX901 provides HDMI signal transmission in standby mode. The SC-LX901 can scale the input HDMI signal, unlike the TX-8260. Dolby Vision technology found support only on the SC-LX901. Only the SC-LX901 supports HDMI Audio Return Channel (ARC). Unfortunately, HDMI eARC is not available on monitored devices. Of the two receivers in our comparison, HDMI CEC is present in only the SC-LX901. These compared receivers have a built-in phono stage for connecting a vinyl player.
The SC-LX901 supports 3 Multi-room zones, versus 2 for the TX-8260. A voice control is not available. An ECO mode is not present in each of the AV receivers. The setup assistant will help you configure Pioneer SC-LX901.
Only the SC-LX901 has a Dolby Atmos multichannel audio format support. A surround technology DTS:X is supported only by the SC-LX901.