A question came in from a reader about using the bypass (HDMI passthrough) function on a Pioneer receiver, specifically on the VSX-821K receiver reviewed by Rachel Cericola last year. The reader wanted to be able to watch TV from a source that was switched through the receiver to the TV even when the receiver was switched off.

This feature is not available on all receivers, but apparently the Pioneer 821K does support it, albeit it in a fairly roundabout way. According to the folks at Pioneer, in order to use HDMI passthrough, the following two conditions much be met:

HDMI-CEC must be enabled on all devices - HDMI-CEC is a standard control protocol for passing device commands over HDMI. It goes by many names (for Panasonic, it's VIERA Link, for Sony, BRAVIA Link) but it is a common feature found on most Blu-ray players, set-top boxes and TVs.

Display Power Off Mode: OFF in receiver set-up menu - This setting will prevent the receiver from automatically turning itself on when a connected device is powered up.

Also, Pioneer states in the manual that passthrough mode is only "officially" supported when all devices are Pioneer (source, receiver and display). But considering that Pioneer hasn't made a new TV in a few years (the new "ELITE" sets, notwithstanding), meeting this condition may be tricky. Pioneer says they make this statement because not all manufacturers follow the HDMI-CEC spec to the letter, but many TVs, set-top boxes and optical disc players do function properly in passthrough mode.

And I quote: "We do like the HDMI passthrough feature and see it as a convenience many consumers want. We are providing it without the HDMI CEC option in our upcoming models."

So there you have it. Now why anyone would watch TV with the sound running through the TV speakers when you have a perfectly good surround sound system, I have *NO* idea (well, OK, I guess it's just for convenience for less tech-savvy viewers), but if you have the need, the above should work.

-CB