The Philips HTS3544 home theater system is a great sound system for your home, especially if you are on a budget. Its sleek design will add a touch of sophistication to the room and its solid performance had exceeded my expectations for a sound system of this price range.

This home theater comes with all the usual features coupled with a few additional and is an excellent choice for a system of its class. The quality and clarity of the sound is unquestionable, and the bass provided by the sub-woofer is more than adequate (only users accustomed to too much bass will say otherwise).

The Philips HTS3544 has in-built Dolby Digital, DTS, and Pro Logic II surround sound systems that account for the exceptional sound quality. The home theaters progressive-scan DVD player can up-convert videos to 1080i HD resolution. It is compatible with DivX, CD, Mp3, WMA, and picture CD formats.

A USB port on the DVD enables photographs to be viewed and music to be played, where even cell phones can be connected to it. The Philips HTS3544 also has a unique feature – an iPod dock through which the MP3 player can be charged and while the music is being played. One of my favorite features is that while the iPod is plugged in, the music playback can be controlled and browsed through the remote. Thanks to its practical design and configuration, the system was very easy to set-up and use. All in all, the Philips HTS3544 will make a great purchase, providing excellent performance at a relativity low price.

By: Tim Pecunia

About the Author:

Complete Home Theaters

Design: Measuring 17.4 inches by 12.94 inches the Onkyo TX-SR607 has a rather large footprint. Following the big-and-bulky design school the A/V receiver comes in either silver or black. Featuring a front panel with a HDMI port built-in amongst all the controls, the A/V receiver is simple and easy to use. It comes with a similarly simple remote control utilizing a mostly menu-driven text-based interface.

Specifications: The Onkyo TX-SR607 offers built-in decoders for DTS Neo:6 , DTS Express, DTS-ES Matrix 6.1, Dolby TrueHD, Dolby Digital Plus, DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS-ES Discrete 6.1, Dolby Pro Logic IIz and Dolby Digital Surround EX. Connection-wise the A/V receiver offers six HDMI inputs, two optical audio inputs, two component video inputs, two coaxial audio inputs, two stereo analog audio inputs and five composite AV inputs. It can support up to 8 HD devices at a time. The receiver also offers Onkyo’s universal port for other Onkyo devices as well as two sub-woofer outputs for dual sub-woofer setups.

Features & Performance: Setting up the Onkyo TX-SR607 is easy with the Audyssey 2EQ speaker calibration system. While the sound quality is great out of the box some audio purists may find the sub-woofer volume a bit too loud. Other features of note include basic multi-room functionality for more flexibility.
While the Dolby Pro Logic IIz support doesn’t seem to add much in atmosphere, other more traditional standards offer great sound on mid-range levels, with crystal clear audio layering and great audio separation. The receiver can be powerful when you need it and deliver accurately natural trebles when required as well. Analog to 1080i is just above average with better results for lower resolutions.

All in all, the Onkyo TX-SR607 is the A/V receiver to get if you need to use many HD devices at one time. With its much more affordable price set, great audio and respectable features the A/V receiver should definitely be on your list of good value-added home theater sound systems.

By: Tim Pecunia

About the Author:

Best Home Theaters

Simulating the movie theater experience at home is the goal of the best home theater system. When HDTV first came out, they were at a price most people couldn’t afford.

Today prices have dropped dramatically on components that make up a home theater system and more people than ever before can enjoy watching movies and programs in high quality.

To many people, a television set is what they think of as their home entertainment system. However, if you have higher ambitions but are on a budget one strategy we suggest is to start small by buying components over time to add to your system.

Basically you would get the best HDTV you can afford. Then when you have set aside some money and when the time is right you can build up by adding speakers, or then replacing an older regular DVD player with a BlueRay DVD disc player. Later you can also include a gaming system.

It would be nice to be able to buy every component at once and start enjoying your system, but building up slowly overtime will prevent you from going broke. After all, you do have other living expenses to pay for too.

With this buy slowly strategy you will save money when you wait for the sales. You also avoid being disappointed by being stuck with a component that has become obsolete when compared to newer models with more and better features.

So when looking for the best home theater system, the best approach is to do your research, buy when there’s a sale and add components slowly and within your budget.

Copyright

Best Home Theater Systems – Know This Before You Build One!