Home Theater System Help

[wgaffer]

Quick question with respect to Home Theater Systems. I am a Sony consumer. I have a KD-34XBR2 HDTV and a DVP-NS700P dvd player. At this point I would like to further upgrade my viewing experience by adding a home theater system. For background, I use the tv primarily for sporting events (great in hd) and movies (primarily on dvd and the hd channels on cable). Also, the room is of average size. I am aware that several, if not all, HTS systems include a dvd player. I am willing to buy a system with a dvd player.

Can you recommend a Sony system as well as a reference source (not too technical) for me to better understand the systems.

[raff]

This is kind of a loaded question since the options are limitless and can only be bound by the amount of money you're looking to spend.

I'm going to make the assumption that you're looking for a Home Theater In a Box (HTIB), meaning the receiver and speakers all come together.

The other option is to buy the receiver and speakers as individual components... but again, I'm assuming you're looking for an HTIB and I have no idea what you're looking to spend.

As an FYI, there are several packages by other manufacturers that do not include DVD players.

If you are partial to Sony, you'll most likely get a system with DVD. You really just have to pick one in your price range.

If you wish to go elsewhere, the Yamaha YHT-150 is a great 5.1 system for around $300. Move up to 6.1, with the Yamaha YHT-450 at $500.

[wgaffer]

Yes, I do want to stay with Sony and I am interested in the system in the box. If anyone has a specific recommendation and would like to share their experiences, I would appreciate the info.

[akirby]

Honestly speaking any of the Sony HTIB will work fine. The more expensive ones will generally have more features and sound better but they'll all do the job. Just remember the more you put into it the better it will sound.

Personally I'd get a Sony receiver ($200 - $600) and some other brand of speakers. Using larger bookshelf speakers for the fronts and center channel with at least 5 1/4" woofers will sound much better than those tiny satellite speakers. Satellites are ok for the surrounds. Again you can get these in any price range you want and higher cost will generally speaking yield better sound (to a point).

[Richard]

Doesn't matter how much you spend; the key to sound quality is proper setup which means more than anything. Putting the speakers in the right locations at the right height in the room for your listening position is the key. One advantage of HTIB is that all the speakers sonically match and with proper setup they work far better than many expect as documented by many reveiwers.

A negative is make sure the DVD player allows setup for 16:9 HD displays as I have seen some that did not.

[wgaffer]

Thanks for the info. Upon further examination of Sony HTS systems, I have one other question. Will a Sony DAV-FR9 DVD Dream System also allow HD programs/sports (5.1) coming thru my digital cable box to fully utilize the HTS speakers? Or will this HTS (one box) system only provide the higher quality sound for dvds? I don't want to shell out another $600 for a system that won't let me take advantage of the cable programming as well as the dvds.

[akirby]

Assuming it has additional digital audio inputs for the cable or satellite box (and it should) you'll be able to get the same Dolby Digital audio for HD (although whether it's really the same is debatable).

[raff]

Thanks for the info. Upon further examination of Sony HTS systems, I have one other question. Will a Sony DAV-FR9 DVD Dream System also allow HD programs/sports (5.1) coming thru my digital cable box to fully utilize the HTS speakers? Or will this HTS (one box) system only provide the higher quality sound for dvds? I don't want to shell out another $600 for a system that won't let me take advantage of the cable programming as well as the dvds.

Here are the I/O's for that unit.

[akirby]

So you'd be able to connect ONE other device but not two. If you only have a cable box you're all set.

You may want to consider purchasing a separate Sony receiver that has more inputs which will give you more options in the future. There's nothing special about the Dream system as far as i can tell. And you won't have to purchase another DVD player.

[tombanjo2]

Seems like my posting problems have popped up again. I'll try "New Post" in response to wgaffer's question.

The most important question is how much money you are willing to invest. If you are able to spend more then for a home theater in a box, then I would strongly advise you NOT to lock yourself into one manufacturer, not matter how much you like Sony. Synergy is a vastly over used term in HT. It's a rare manufacturer that makes all components of a system well. I haven't found any yet. Sony makes some great displays and receivers, some good DVD players but not so great speakers, unless you get to the $20,000 range.

One question you'll need to ask yourself is will you outgrow your HTIB quickly? I started off with a modest system, a combination of used and new gear that ran about $1000. I soon found it lacking, especially on action movies. Will you catch the upgrade bug? It's almost impossible to sell a HTIB on the used market, so your $600 will be a loss should you upgrade. On the other hand, if you put together a system of used stuff you'll end up with a $2000 rig for $700- $1000 and always have the option to upgrade while re-selling your old gear. I suggest you walk into a decent A/V place like Tweeters and check out various set ups to see what it can sound like compared with your Sony HTIB. One thing I alreday see wrong is that you only have one digital audio input, so either your DVD or cable box won't put out Digital 5.1 sound.

audiogon.com and videogon.com are two reputable sites for classifieds.