An affordable AV receiver is always a good option to consider, so Pioneer VSX-LX301 vs Onkyo TX-8140 comparison definitely makes sense.
A significant difference between the receivers in the number of channels, Pioneer VSX-LX301 has 7.2 versus 2.0 for Onkyo TX-8140. Regarding power, then VSX-LX301 has such a W/Ohm ratio - 100/8, 170/6 when TX-8140 has a power of 80/8, 110/6. The THD is the same and is 0.08%.
Competitors' digital to analog converter (DAC) is identical to AK4458 384 KHz/32-bit. Only the VSX-LX301 supports Bi-amping feature. Each of the AV receivers can transmit an audio signal directly to the amplifier and bypasses any DSP processing. Rivals from our review have Bluetooth support. Spotify can be used on each receiver. The VSX-LX301 can work with the audio stream from Deezer, TIDAL, Pandora, TuneIn Radio, and the TX-8140 can receive a content from SiriusXM.
Only the Pioneer VSX-LX301 has support for High dynamic range (HDR). Only the VSX-LX301 provides HDMI signal transmission in standby mode. The VSX-LX301 can scale the input HDMI signal, unlike the TX-8140. Dolby Vision technology found support only on the VSX-LX301. Only the VSX-LX301 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 VSX-LX301. These compared receivers have a built-in phono stage for connecting a vinyl player. A voice control is not available. An ECO mode is not present in each of the AV receivers. Both VSX-LX301 and TX-8140 can be configured using the Setup assistant.
Only the VSX-LX301 has a Dolby Atmos multichannel audio format support. A surround technology DTS:X is supported only by the VSX-LX301.