The Home Theater thread

nairrk · 29th July 2010, 11:18

Hi, experts!
Need your opinion about Phillips Home Theatre, Model:

HTS 5550/94 - 1200W RMS 5.1 (Rs.26,990) and
HTS 5540/94 - 1200W RMS 5.1 (Rs.24,990)

??

nairrk · 1st August 2010, 13:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by nairrk

Hi, experts!
Need your opinion about Phillips Home Theatre, Model:

HTS 5550/94 - 1200W RMS 5.1 (Rs.26,990) and
HTS 5540/94 - 1200W RMS 5.1 (Rs.24,990)

??

++
haha,, seems no response from any members

In addition to above models, I have selected other two models:

-Sony DAV DZ610 - 1000w Rs.24,990/-

Samsung TZ 425-1000w rms- same price.

Pleased to hear !

ampere · 1st August 2010, 18:15

Sorry no idea. Stopped following, after I got mine 6 years back!
If you are OK with budget, a high level summary: Plan for a home theater separately per your specs, rather than buying an integrated one.

Yes that will sky rocket the budget, but you can plan it out in a phased manner.

frankmehta · 1st August 2010, 18:24

It's not everyday that one buys a home theatre system. That's the reason why I took so many demos. I am now pretty well versed with quite a few speakers within this price range, that sound decent and provide enough bang for the buck.
Here's a small run-through of what is on my mind.

I have been lusting after tall floorstanders ever since I saw the National 'towers' at an Uncle's place at the age of 10.
The fixation with floorstanders was also accentuated by the phrase that actuallt holds quite true even now, "bigger is better."
The nail on the coffin for 'small' speakers (not floorstanders) was the fact that I compare anything small with Bose. I hold a different, poliarized opinion of Bose speakers. Never have I heard something sounding SO abysmal and poor, for the INSANE prices they charge. They suck. Period. People can come and pick a nail with me over this. But seriously, Bose? No way. Hence an aversion to Bose'esque small speaker setups.

Until now.

I agree nothing comes close to listening to music on Floorstanders, or that visceral reinforced impact from them when you are watching a movie. I respect that.
But then, there are budgets. And there is mine.
A Lac of rupees can only buy a decent mid level system in India. Many reasons to blame. High custom duties, heavy shipping costs, the sometimes stringent price manipulation (read: High prices) by reputed brands in India, just because they have had a good run in the past.
I am a 'gujju' (Gujarati, for those who are not well versed with this term) and 'gujjus' are known to try and get the best out of their money.
I am here to do the same. I am here to buy something that gives me the MOST bang for my buck, even if it belies old school philosophies and casts a doubt on my mental stablity.
I also have funda that I find helpful in these days of inflation. Buy the mid level product you can afford of a slightly less reputed (albeit highly respected) brand, instead of buying the entry level product of the highest brand.
EG: If I have 60 k in my hands. I am out to buy a set of floorstanders. Which one would I buy?
Simple: I would buy a mid level product of brand like Mordaunt Short or Dali or even PSB, instead of buying the cheapest offering from, say Focal or B&W.

This is my philosophy. Works most of the time for me.

And now, after all that rambling, let's get down to business.

I have a lac of rupees. I am out to buy a home theatre system. A good set of front speakers, a matching and sweet center channel, a rocking subwoofer and a set of satellite rears.
A lac of rupees sounds like a large amount. But counter in the cost of buying a GOOD sounding floorstander and a matching center channel and you are left with not much momey after that. The reason for this could be the fact that the cabinet of the FS is a big one, or weighs a lot. Adding to the cost. But not necessarily to the sound. The bass, yes, but not too much to the overall tonal quality. I am paying more for slightly more bass and the SHIPPING and PACKING COSTS. (NOTE: I do not endorse this policy when you are on an unrestricted budget. Floorstanders are better than bookshelves or satellite speakers if you can afford them)
One more thing in my case that helped me decide against floorstanders was the fact that the models I liked came with backfiring port/s. My speakers will be almost up against the wall. And one thing I JUST cannot stand is BOOM.

So coming back to my system, I had to let go of the thought to get floorstanders. With a heavy heart (ask me 'WHY' one more time and I smack you in the face :ohyeah

I am not into critical listening but I prefer honest sounding speakers. I really do not like coloured sound or sound that has been artifically enhanced by boosted equalization.
To find such a set of speakers in this price range is difficult. Not impossible.

I was on a quest to find something that fitted my requirements well. I am now done deciding.

Here goes.

I bring to you, the Definitive Technology ProCinema 1000 PLUS package WITHOUT the ProSub 1000.

Yes, I am floored by the ProMonitor 1000s in this package. I was floored when I had my first demo but neglected them as I wanted floorstanders then. I am now a wiser man.
Their small girth belies the soundstage they can produce. Their clever design makes them more competent and efficient than a lot of bookshelves that cost almost double the price of the ProMonitor 1000s.
The BDSS driver structure almost gives them the performance of a 'larger than normal' bookshelf, at a smaller cost. They look plain jane, but you need to power them up to believe the amount of detail they can produce. The midbass they put out is the most surprising part. They have a lot of technical wizardry going for them and this is something that floors me. HOW can you deliver such refined sound at THIS price???

Well, the package consists of 4 ProMonitor 1000s and the LARGER ProCenter 2000.

I had heard the system ProCenter 1000. The 1000 series center channel was nice and clear and made movie watching a cinch. I was impressed by it, till I was told there was a larger (Dont you remember? "Bigger is better"), more powerful ProCenter 2000 on offer and within my budget. I didn't hesitate nodding my head. I said yes, naturally.

BUT then came the part that blew my budget to smithereens. Well, not by a large margin, but YES, it spells a larger blow to my wallet. The ProSub 1000 that I heard with the system that day was slightly the fly in the ointment. It dug low, yes, but didn't have a visceral impact that I had just experienced when I had gone to demo a set of Mirage speakers in 'Thump' and had heard the Mirage MM8 alongwith them. I was blown away by their performance.

Till Mr. Anil Srivastava (Audio Excellence distributes DefTech in India. Mr. Anil heads it. Fabulous guy. Demo was at his warehouse in a swank demo room) asked his helper to attach the Supercube.

THE SuperCube. A death blow to most subwoofers in and it's budget. MY GOD! That was it! LOVE at first hear! Dark Knight on Bluray had NEVER sounded this good! The shotgun in the first scene. The accompanying music in the run up to the bank heist. I have only one word to describe the depth and the surreal performance of this subwoofer. ORGASMIC. Period.
Tight, visceral bass which attacks you and makes you swallow your throat with it's astounding lows and super fast piranha-like reflexes. I was in love. No, you can call it 'lust!'
I was told the SuperCube III might be able to fit into my budget (a little higher, actually) but I decided to go for the SuperCube II which comes with a beefier driver and the built in amp does double the power of the onein the SuperCube III.

My budget went out of the window by about 30%. But, I now have the ProMonitor 1000 that has the SAME award winning drivers as the TOP OF THE LINE DefTech speakers. AND I have a ROCKING subwoofer. Not to mention the Uprated Center Channel. All this for the amount that could just about afford the MOST entry level setup from Focal or Dynaudio or Bowers & Wilkins (actually, NO)
I am DEAD sure my system is going to sound better than their entry level offerings for movies as well as music.

My case lies rested.

Disclaimer: Lots of hearts were broken while making this choice.
All views mentioned in the above article are mine. Please take them with a pinch of salt.

sammyboy · 2nd August 2010, 01:55

Hey Frank, sounds delicious. So how much was the total damage? I am looking for a HT and need to decide what kind of a budget I need to have. I know there is no upper limit but going by your feedback if I were to get the exact same system what else would I need? I know you got the Denon sometime back too so whats the total I need to look at if I were to take the same thing? Thanks a lot.

vasoo · 2nd August 2010, 11:00

Looks like the new Onkyo HT-S3300 is pretty good for an entry level HTiB. Apparently this model is sold out in all showrooms in Bangalore. Lots of new features including HD sound processing, on screen display, HDMI 1.4a support etc. Priced between 22 to 25k.

navin · 2nd August 2010, 11:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by frankmehta

It's not everyday that one buys a home theatre system.

It is even rarer for one to DIY one!

nairrk · 3rd August 2010, 17:17

I have now shortlisted following readily available HTS

Samsung - C555 and Sony DZ610
both are almost same price and 1000w RMS but sony has got couple of features more comparing the sammy system.
Any suggestions please!

vasoo · 3rd August 2010, 17:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by nairrk

I have now shortlisted following readily available HTS

Samsung - C555 and Sony DZ610
both are almost same price and 1000w RMS but sony has got couple of features more comparing the sammy system.
Any suggestions please!

My suggestion is if you are looking at a budget above 20k, consider entry level models of specialist brands such as Onkyo, Denon etc instead of mass market products like Sony or Samsung.

Raj1008 · 3rd August 2010, 18:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by vasoo

My suggestion is if you are looking at a budget above 20k, consider entry level models of specialist brands such as Onkyo, Denon etc instead of mass market products like Sony or Samsung.

Or even Yamaha. They are half decent and prolly a bit cheaper than Onkyo/Denon. But if you had to choose out of Samsung or Sony, go with the Sony. Its a bit better than the two

nairrk · 3rd August 2010, 18:20

Yes, feature wise sony has got few things more than samsung
However some suggestions are that C555 (samsung) is the new model and better sound quality.
I have selected Samsung LCD 46C550 model, so feel better with Samsung HT?

Raj1008 · 3rd August 2010, 18:56

The woofer in the sony sounded better to me. What you like is very subjective, you have to listen to it everyday. As far as integration with C550, some samsungs have a feature to integrate the power options with samsung ht, I am not sure about this model. Soundwise it wont make a difference if you get a sony or samsung to go with a samsung tv

navan49 · 7th August 2010, 00:12

Hi friends,
Recently I had the hearing experience of the Harmon Kardon sound sticks. It was a great speakers. Finally I was looking for the price of the mini giants with 2.1 speakers it was 11500. Great sticks and great speakers. Took the money and went for the purchase of the sticks but my friend diverted me towards Express mall and had the experience of Samsung's HT C453. With two Tall boy speakers and one SW and 4 more satellites. Finally the effect was also good and ended up with that on the offer of 15500 which will be installed tomorrow.

nairrk · 7th August 2010, 10:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by navan49

Hi friends,
Recently I had the hearing experience of the Harmon Kardon sound sticks. It was a great speakers. Finally I was looking for the price of the mini giants with 2.1 speakers it was 11500. Great sticks and great speakers. Took the money and went for the purchase of the sticks but my friend diverted me towards Express mall and had the experience of Samsung's HT C453. With two Tall boy speakers and one SW and 4 more satellites. Finally the effect was also good and ended up with that on the offer of 15500 which will be installed tomorrow.

+
HT-c453 - the system output is 500W rms??
believe MRP of this product is Rs.18300 and you got it at Rs.15500. I thinkg Samsung is giving good cash discount!
I have shortlisted HT-c555 (1000W) and phillips 5540/94 but phillips set is not available here hence I may have to settle with HT-C555 which, according to the dealer , has got great sound. I am waiting for the demo and will finalise then.
Please give your opinion about the sound (bass) and clarity after installing the system in your house today..

BaCkSeAtDrIVeR · 7th August 2010, 15:00

@nairrk - AFAIK, samsung offers better choice in terms of playback formats from the USB drive. I have not verified this particular model though. Do they HDMI outputs?

29th July 2010, 11:18	#931
nairrk Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Kannur Posts: 2,441 Thanked: 674 Times View My Garage	Hi, experts! Need your opinion about Phillips Home Theatre, Model: HTS 5550/94 - 1200W RMS 5.1 (Rs.26,990) and HTS 5540/94 - 1200W RMS 5.1 (Rs.24,990) ??
	() Thanks

1st August 2010, 18:15	#933
ampere Team-BHP Support Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Bangalore Posts: 17,945 Thanked: 12,928 Times View My Garage	Sorry no idea. Stopped following, after I got mine 6 years back! If you are OK with budget, a high level summary: Plan for a home theater separately per your specs, rather than buying an integrated one. Yes that will sky rocket the budget, but you can plan it out in a phased manner.
	() Thanks

1st August 2010, 18:24	#934
frankmehta Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Mumbai Posts: 4,000 Thanked: 3,577 Times View My Garage	It's not everyday that one buys a home theatre system. That's the reason why I took so many demos. I am now pretty well versed with quite a few speakers within this price range, that sound decent and provide enough bang for the buck. Here's a small run-through of what is on my mind. I have been lusting after tall floorstanders ever since I saw the National 'towers' at an Uncle's place at the age of 10. The fixation with floorstanders was also accentuated by the phrase that actuallt holds quite true even now, "bigger is better." The nail on the coffin for 'small' speakers (not floorstanders) was the fact that I compare anything small with Bose. I hold a different, poliarized opinion of Bose speakers. Never have I heard something sounding SO abysmal and poor, for the INSANE prices they charge. They suck. Period. People can come and pick a nail with me over this. But seriously, Bose? No way. Hence an aversion to Bose'esque small speaker setups. Until now. I agree nothing comes close to listening to music on Floorstanders, or that visceral reinforced impact from them when you are watching a movie. I respect that. But then, there are budgets. And there is mine. A Lac of rupees can only buy a decent mid level system in India. Many reasons to blame. High custom duties, heavy shipping costs, the sometimes stringent price manipulation (read: High prices) by reputed brands in India, just because they have had a good run in the past. I am a 'gujju' (Gujarati, for those who are not well versed with this term) and 'gujjus' are known to try and get the best out of their money. I am here to do the same. I am here to buy something that gives me the MOST bang for my buck, even if it belies old school philosophies and casts a doubt on my mental stablity. I also have funda that I find helpful in these days of inflation. Buy the mid level product you can afford of a slightly less reputed (albeit highly respected) brand, instead of buying the entry level product of the highest brand. EG: If I have 60 k in my hands. I am out to buy a set of floorstanders. Which one would I buy? Simple: I would buy a mid level product of brand like Mordaunt Short or Dali or even PSB, instead of buying the cheapest offering from, say Focal or B&W. This is my philosophy. Works most of the time for me. And now, after all that rambling, let's get down to business. I have a lac of rupees. I am out to buy a home theatre system. A good set of front speakers, a matching and sweet center channel, a rocking subwoofer and a set of satellite rears. A lac of rupees sounds like a large amount. But counter in the cost of buying a GOOD sounding floorstander and a matching center channel and you are left with not much momey after that. The reason for this could be the fact that the cabinet of the FS is a big one, or weighs a lot. Adding to the cost. But not necessarily to the sound. The bass, yes, but not too much to the overall tonal quality. I am paying more for slightly more bass and the SHIPPING and PACKING COSTS. (NOTE: I do not endorse this policy when you are on an unrestricted budget. Floorstanders are better than bookshelves or satellite speakers if you can afford them) One more thing in my case that helped me decide against floorstanders was the fact that the models I liked came with backfiring port/s. My speakers will be almost up against the wall. And one thing I JUST cannot stand is BOOM. So coming back to my system, I had to let go of the thought to get floorstanders. With a heavy heart (ask me 'WHY' one more time and I smack you in the face :ohyeah I am not into critical listening but I prefer honest sounding speakers. I really do not like coloured sound or sound that has been artifically enhanced by boosted equalization. To find such a set of speakers in this price range is difficult. Not impossible. I was on a quest to find something that fitted my requirements well. I am now done deciding. Here goes. I bring to you, the Definitive Technology ProCinema 1000 PLUS package WITHOUT the ProSub 1000. Yes, I am floored by the ProMonitor 1000s in this package. I was floored when I had my first demo but neglected them as I wanted floorstanders then. I am now a wiser man. Their small girth belies the soundstage they can produce. Their clever design makes them more competent and efficient than a lot of bookshelves that cost almost double the price of the ProMonitor 1000s. The BDSS driver structure almost gives them the performance of a 'larger than normal' bookshelf, at a smaller cost. They look plain jane, but you need to power them up to believe the amount of detail they can produce. The midbass they put out is the most surprising part. They have a lot of technical wizardry going for them and this is something that floors me. HOW can you deliver such refined sound at THIS price??? Well, the package consists of 4 ProMonitor 1000s and the LARGER ProCenter 2000. I had heard the system ProCenter 1000. The 1000 series center channel was nice and clear and made movie watching a cinch. I was impressed by it, till I was told there was a larger (Dont you remember? "Bigger is better"), more powerful ProCenter 2000 on offer and within my budget. I didn't hesitate nodding my head. I said yes, naturally. BUT then came the part that blew my budget to smithereens. Well, not by a large margin, but YES, it spells a larger blow to my wallet. The ProSub 1000 that I heard with the system that day was slightly the fly in the ointment. It dug low, yes, but didn't have a visceral impact that I had just experienced when I had gone to demo a set of Mirage speakers in 'Thump' and had heard the Mirage MM8 alongwith them. I was blown away by their performance. Till Mr. Anil Srivastava (Audio Excellence distributes DefTech in India. Mr. Anil heads it. Fabulous guy. Demo was at his warehouse in a swank demo room) asked his helper to attach the Supercube. THE SuperCube. A death blow to most subwoofers in and it's budget. MY GOD! That was it! LOVE at first hear! Dark Knight on Bluray had NEVER sounded this good! The shotgun in the first scene. The accompanying music in the run up to the bank heist. I have only one word to describe the depth and the surreal performance of this subwoofer. ORGASMIC. Period. Tight, visceral bass which attacks you and makes you swallow your throat with it's astounding lows and super fast piranha-like reflexes. I was in love. No, you can call it 'lust!' I was told the SuperCube III might be able to fit into my budget (a little higher, actually) but I decided to go for the SuperCube II which comes with a beefier driver and the built in amp does double the power of the onein the SuperCube III. My budget went out of the window by about 30%. But, I now have the ProMonitor 1000 that has the SAME award winning drivers as the TOP OF THE LINE DefTech speakers. AND I have a ROCKING subwoofer. Not to mention the Uprated Center Channel. All this for the amount that could just about afford the MOST entry level setup from Focal or Dynaudio or Bowers & Wilkins (actually, NO) I am DEAD sure my system is going to sound better than their entry level offerings for movies as well as music. My case lies rested. Disclaimer: Lots of hearts were broken while making this choice. All views mentioned in the above article are mine. Please take them with a pinch of salt. Last edited by Rehaan : 10th August 2010 at 18:10. Reason: @Frank - you MUST host images on the Team-BHP server itself. Please make sure to do this in the future. Thanks.
	() Thanks

2nd August 2010, 01:55	#935
sammyboy Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Ggn/Dehradun Posts: 1,842 Thanked: 521 Times View My Garage	Hey Frank, sounds delicious. So how much was the total damage? I am looking for a HT and need to decide what kind of a budget I need to have. I know there is no upper limit but going by your feedback if I were to get the exact same system what else would I need? I know you got the Denon sometime back too so whats the total I need to look at if I were to take the same thing? Thanks a lot.
	() Thanks

2nd August 2010, 11:00	#936
vasoo Senior - BHPian Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Memphis TN Posts: 1,039 Thanked: 246 Times View My Garage	Looks like the new Onkyo HT-S3300 is pretty good for an entry level HTiB. Apparently this model is sold out in all showrooms in Bangalore. Lots of new features including HD sound processing, on screen display, HDMI 1.4a support etc. Priced between 22 to 25k.
	() Thanks

3rd August 2010, 17:17	#938
nairrk Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Kannur Posts: 2,441 Thanked: 674 Times View My Garage	I have now shortlisted following readily available HTS Samsung - C555 and Sony DZ610 both are almost same price and 1000w RMS but sony has got couple of features more comparing the sammy system. Any suggestions please!
	() Thanks

3rd August 2010, 18:20	#941
nairrk Senior - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Kannur Posts: 2,441 Thanked: 674 Times View My Garage	Yes, feature wise sony has got few things more than samsung However some suggestions are that C555 (samsung) is the new model and better sound quality. I have selected Samsung LCD 46C550 model, so feel better with Samsung HT?
	() Thanks

3rd August 2010, 18:56	#942
Raj1008 BHPian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Toronto Posts: 119 Thanked: 64 Times View My Garage	The woofer in the sony sounded better to me. What you like is very subjective, you have to listen to it everyday. As far as integration with C550, some samsungs have a feature to integrate the power options with samsung ht, I am not sure about this model. Soundwise it wont make a difference if you get a sony or samsung to go with a samsung tv
	() Thanks

7th August 2010, 00:12	#943
navan49 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: CHENNAI Posts: 1,000 Thanked: 73 Times View My Garage	Hi friends, Recently I had the hearing experience of the Harmon Kardon sound sticks. It was a great speakers. Finally I was looking for the price of the mini giants with 2.1 speakers it was 11500. Great sticks and great speakers. Took the money and went for the purchase of the sticks but my friend diverted me towards Express mall and had the experience of Samsung's HT C453. With two Tall boy speakers and one SW and 4 more satellites. Finally the effect was also good and ended up with that on the offer of 15500 which will be installed tomorrow.
	() Thanks

7th August 2010, 15:00	#945
BaCkSeAtDrIVeR BANNED Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Kochi Posts: 2,522 Thanked: 752 Times	@nairrk - AFAIK, samsung offers better choice in terms of playback formats from the USB drive. I have not verified this particular model though. Do they HDMI outputs?
	() Thanks