Kenwood HTB-503 Home Theater in a Box -- It's Not the 502!!
Written: Mar 28 '01 (Updated Mar 29 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Bargain Price, Real 100-Watt Powered Sub, Great Speakers for this Price Point
Cons: You'll Eventually Want to Move Up to Higher-Quality Speakers
The Bottom Line: For $450 you get a real receiver, a self-powered 100-watt subwoofer, and a passable set of surround speakers.
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| radioguy's Full Review: Kenwood HTB-502 |
I would post this under the HTB-503 category, but there isn't one. Epinions hasn't updated product information (other than movie and music releases) for months. So, if you wanted to read a review of an old, out-of-date product you can't buy anymore (the HTB-502), please accept my most sincere apologies.
If, on the other hand, you want to read about a product which, if you so desire, you can go and purchase at your local Circuit City (or from many online merchants), then please read on. And don't forget to e-mail Epinions to ask them what the heck is going on and when are they going to bring back the Suggest-a-Product link, or, at least, update the products once every couple of years.
Meet the Kenwood HTB-503
The Kenwood HTB-503 represents a product category which has grown in tandem with the ascendance of DVD players and surround-sound receivers, the Home Theater in a Box, or HTIB.
Generally, the HTIB adds a set of six speakers to an A/V surround-sound receiver with digital audio input. These receivers will usually handle the Dolby Pro Logic and Dolby Digital (DD -- a.k.a. "5.1") surround-sound formats, and those above entry-level will also do Digital Theater Sound (DTS).
Generally speaking, the HTIB gives you everything, except the TV set and (possibly) the DVD player, that you'll need to have a complete home-theater setup with high-quality video from your DVD player and/or VCR, and surround-sound audio from the A/V receiver and speakers.
Some of these HTIB systems, such as the Panasonic SC-HT80 and Sony DAV-S300, both of which I recently reviewed, have a single unit which combines a DVD player and a surround-sound receiver with an AM/FM tuner. These combo units also come with a set of six surround-sound speakers.
Other HTIB's, including the HTB-503, include a receiver and a set of speakers. And then there are HTIB packages, such as the Kenwood HTB-503DV, which include the receiver, speakers, and a DVD player. Kenwood's includes a Kenwood-branded DVD player. However, Kenwood doesn't make DVD players. Thus, they're just putting their label on an OEM product (made by another company).
Of all the HTIB's I've evaluated, the HTB-503 is the best value. First of all, since it doesn't include a DVD player, it lets you choose just where on the DVD price-performance curve you want to invest your money. Since high picture quality is pretty much universal on DVD players, there's no reason you can't go for a $120 Apex unit when putting together your system. Or, if you'd like to spend a bit more, there are excellent values around the $200 point from Panasonic, Toshiba, Philips, and Sony.
Picking the DVD player for your home-theater is also an advantage because you can tailor the player to your TV. Thus, if your TV doesn't have component-video input, you don't need to spend the extra bucks for a component-output DVD player (though, all other things being equal, the price spread between component-capable and non-component-capable DVD players has gotten quite narrow).
The Speakers in the HTB-503
The HTB-503 is built around the Kenwood VR-407 receiver, which has a street price of $300. As the whole HTB-503 package sells for a street price of about $450, you are, in effect, getting the whole set of speakers for $150. Since just about all surround-sound receivers, including the VR-407, have excellent performance and features, the main question you need to take into consideration with this package is the quality of the speakers.
Of course, the facile answer would be that you're lucky to even get a full set of surround sound speakers for $150. On the other hand, if they were garbage, they'd be a waste of money, no matter how low the price.
Well, after having given these speakers as good of a workout as possible under the circumstances (At Circuit City, I cranked the soundtrack of my Saving Private Ryan DVD, along with Jeff Beck's "Blow by Blow," until the security guard asked me to leave the store -- though it was a few minutes from closing time), I can say that they're surprisingly good. They probably won't satisfy the kind of audiophile who would much rather have a set of B&K's or PSB's, but they'll be satisfactory for those who want decent sound in a small to medium-sized room.
The construction of the speakers is not furniture-grade. The speaker cases, for example, are made from medium-density fiberboard -- MDF. But, even though it's a cheap material, you will find MDF on speaker sets that cost more than the entire HTB-503 HTIB which is fine because, structurally, MDF doesn't differ much from solid wood . All the cones in the HTB-503's speakers, of course, are paper. Paper is not the ideal material for speaker cones, but speakers got by with paper cones for years before speaker makers and, in turn, audiophiles, realized that polyester was a superior material. The paper in the HTB-503's speaker cones is thick, more akin to card stock than copy paper.
With some of the DVD/receiver all-in-one units I mentioned, such as the Panasonic SC-HT80 and the Sony DAV-S300, you only get a passive subwoofer, meaning the sub is powered by an amplifier in the receiver instead of an amp built into the subwoofer itself. The HTB-503's SW32-HT self-powered sub has an eight-inch downward-firing driver fed by a 100 watt amplifier. The SW32HT is a serious subwoofer. This bass-reflex unit includes a volume control, crossover level control, and line-level inputs. The bass-reflex configuration means the SW32HT has great performance, but limited efficiency. However, the 100 watt amplifier in the SW32HT will keep it cooking with plenty of heat. Unfortunately, there are no speaker-level inputs, but the line-level input will let you run the sub in DD and DTS modes with no problems. Also, there's no phase-reversal switch, though you can probably live without that. According to tests by Home Theater Magazine, the SW32HT's integral amp runs from 34 to 120 hz between 0 and -3.0 dB.
The surround speakers are a bit odd, though still a good deal for this price. What's strange about this set of speakers is that the mains, front-left and front-right speakers, are of the two-woofer/one-tweeter configuration (woofer-tweeter-woofer) while the center speaker contains a single driver only (same size as each woofer in the mains). Usually, center-channel speakers have the woofer-tweeter-woofer configuration while the mains are two-way speakers (woofer-tweeter). This extra driver, in most surround-speaker arrays, is put in the center speaker because, with most surround-sound soundtracks, the bulk of the audio energy, including voices and many on-screen events, plays through the center-channel speaker. The HTB-503's two surround speakers (rear-right and rear-left) are single-driver units, identical to the center-channel speaker.
Each of the two woofers in the mains is a 4.0-inch driver while the single tweeter is a 1.0-inch dome unit. Home Theater rates the mains as running on-axis from 200 Hz to 10 kHz between +9.1 and -3.1 dB. The center channel speaker, with its single 4.0-inch driver, runs on-axis from 200 Hz to 10 kHz between +2.1 and -6.8 dB. The surrounds, each with a single 4.0-inch driver, run on-axis from 20 hZ to 10 kHz between +7.2 and -2.5 dB. The variation of the response of the center-channel speaker and surrounds, despite their use of identical drivers, is probably due to the size of their cabinets -- the center speaker has a larger, rectangular cabinet while the surrounds are in almost-square cabinets. Actually, when you see the performance on a graph, the two types of speaker in this system have almost-identical curves.
To give you an idea of the performance you'd get with a more expensive set of surround-sound speakers, let's take a look at Paradigm's Cinema System, which consists of a center-channel speaker flanked by two 3.5-inch woofers and a single 0.625-inch woofer, four matching two-way surround speakers (front-right, front-left, rear-right, rear-left) with each having one 3.5-inch woofer and one 0.625-inch tweeter, and a powered sub with a 90-watt amplifier and an 8.0-inch driver.
In the Paradigm Cinema System, all the drivers in the center and surround speakers are made from polypropylene while the single driver in the woofer is constructed from a carbon-fiber composite material. According to Sound & Vision Magazine, the center and surround speakers in this system all run from 125 hZ to 20 kHz at about +/- 5.0 dB on-axis. The sub is measured at 46 hZ to 115 hZ +/- 2.1 dB. Clearly, although the measured response of the sub in this Paradigm system doesn't differ much from that of the sub in the Kenwood system, the high-frequency performance of its center and surround speakers greatly surpasses that of the center and surrounds with the Kenwood. On the other hand, the price of the Paradigm system, $716 (sold through authorized dealers only and not likely to be discounted) also handily surpasses that of the entire Kenwood system. Keep in mind, they don't throw in a receiver with the Paradigms. And these are considered compact, entry-level speakers, by audiophile standards.
The Kenwood VR-407 Receiver, the Pulsing Heart of the HTB-503
According to Kenwood, the VR-407 receiver puts out 100 watts per channel, in both stereo and surround modes, from 20 hZ to 20,000 hZ (20 kHz), with 0.7% Total Harmonic Distortion (THD). The VR-407 handles the three most popular surround-sound modes, Dolby Pro Logic, Dolby Digital (DD), and Digital Theater Sound (DTS). Dolby Pro Logic, which is found on VHS movie tapes, some laserdiscs, and some television broadcasts, is the older, analog (comes into the receiver via the analog inputs) variation of surround sound. Dolby Pro Logic, a matrixed surround scheme which is actually derived from the original L/R analog stereo channels, sends full-range audio to your mains (front-left/front-right) and center-channel speakers while a single limited-frequency signal is split to feed the two rear (rear-right, rear-left) speakers. Dolby Digital, which is found on DVD's, some CD's, certain laserdiscs, and some satellite broadcasts, comes into your receiver via a digital input (either the coaxial jack or optical jack). The DD specification, in the case of the VR-407, calls for feeding five full-range signals to the center, mains, and surround speakers while a single low-frequency-effects (LFE) channel is sent to your system's subwoofer amp where it causes the sub to put out all the bumps, thumps, low organ notes, and other low-frequency audio energy. DTS is identical to DD, except that it's an uncompressed digital format and, thus, has the potential to have greater sonic range than DD.
Speaker Connections
The VR-407 uses banana-plug connectors for the mains and the center-channel speaker. For the surrounds, it uses spring-clips, which don't provide as much connection area as banana plugs. However, the increased resistance which you'll have with the spring-clip connectors, at the power levels involved with the audio amp output of this receiver, doesn't make a bit of difference. That being said, spring clips are a bit cheap and cheesy looking. It's hard to imagine why Kenwood didn't just go ahead and make those last two speaker connections banana plugs after they'd done so with the first three. Maybe it's to get you to move up to the all-banana VR-4080, which sells for a cool $600. Through such means do manufacturers differentiate their more-expensive products from their less-expensive products, thus enticing you to pay more and get all those extra features.
Digital Audio Connections
The VR-407 has a built-in DD/DTS decoder. So, you just connect the digital output of your DVD player (either with the coaxial or optical output) to either one of the two coaxial digital-audio or one of the two optical digital-audio inputs of the VR-407, and you're all set to decode, and enjoy, surround-sound, 5.1-channel soundtracks. It's nice that the receiver includes two of both the coaxial and optical inputs because some DVD players only have a single optical output and most satellite receivers only have a single optical output, meaning that on receivers with only a single optical input you can come up short when you have to connect both a DVD player and a satellite receiver.
Analog Audio Connections
The VR-407 also has a set of six analog 5.1-channel surround-sound inputs. If you have a DVD player with its own integral surround-sound DD or DTS decoder, you can use these six inputs to connect the six analog outputs of the DVD player (front-right, center, front-left, rear-right, rear-left, and sub) to the VR-407. This type of connection, however, would require using six cables where you could just use the single digital cable. The real advantage of the six surround-sound 5.1-channel inputs is that if, in the future, some kind of new high-performance CD player comes out, a CD player that puts out its signal in six-channel surround-sound form, these jacks will let you connect the new player to the VR-407. Thus, the 5.1-channel analog input jacks are a form of insurance against obsolescence, as much as it's possible to insure against that these days.
The other analog audio inputs on the VR-407 (all on the rear panel) include a phono input, a CD/DVD (for analog DVD audio, such as the output from a SACD or DVD-Audio player) input, a MiniDisc/tape-deck input, and two video inputs. For the MiniDisc/tape-deck and video inputs, there are corresponding outputs, allowing you, for example, to feed the signal from the receiver's AM/FM tuner to a tape deck.
Controls and Features
The VR-407 lets you tailor its sound with bass, treble, and balance controls. Via the remote, you can control the levels of all 5.1 (five plus subwoofer) surround-sound channels. The receiver will automatically detect, and adjust itself for, either DD/DTS or PCM (digital audio from a CD) input. For private listening, there's a front-panel headphone jack which, when you insert the headphone plug, automatically cuts power to the speakers. A Midnight Mode reduces overall volume while maintaining a solid, dynamic audio level, allowing you to fully enjoy soundtracks without waking up your roomies too many times during the Matrix. A pink-noise generator assists in accurately setting speaker levels.
AM/FM Tuner with Presets
The quartz-synthesized tuner has manual operation, or you can set it to go up or down the dial, stopping momentarily each time it encounters a signal of moderate-or-higher strength. The tuner has a total of 40 AM and FM presets.
Remote
The remote is a fairly straightforward unit. It's compact, albeit a little crowded. You can program up to three macro routines into the remote and it's also capable of controlling certain other pieces of audio and video gear.
Display, Video Inputs and Outputs
A flourescent display in the center of the front face of the receiver keeps you updated on all the current functions. You can adjust the brightness level of the display. The front panel also has a set of A/V inputs, including one S-Video jack, one RCA composite-video jack, and a set of L/R analog RCA audio input jacks. This will allow you, for example, to quickly connect a camcorder or video game to the receiver. On the receiver's rear panel, there are two S-Video input jacks and two composite-video input jacks plus an S-Video output jack and a composite-video output jack to run the signal to the TV. This will allow you to connect all your video gear and switch it through the receiver. However, according to the review in Home Theater, the VR-407 adds quite a bit of distortion and noise to video signals which are fed through it. Your mileage may vary, but you might want to just directly connect your video components to your TV, assuming that the TV has a sufficient number of inputs to handle everything you want to feed into it (this is not always the case, especially with less-expensive TV's). If the TV's short on inputs and you don't want to use the receiver for switching, you can buy auxiliary switches, starting at around $20 for a two A/V-in, one A/V-out unit (A/V being one composite RCA jack for video plus L/R audio RCA jacks).
Ease of Use
The HTB-503 comes with a Quick Connect guide to aid you in getting everything unpacked and connected. The guide includes a color-coded wiring diagram and it explains basic installation chores such as locating the speakers and setting the volume levels for the speakers.
Conclusion
If you're on a really tight budget, the HTB-503 is a pretty attractive option. For a street price of about $450, it lets you get a home-theater system with a very nice receiver, a real powered sub, and a fairly good set of surround speakers. As I said before, since this receiver sells for about $300, you can basically figure that you're getting the whole speaker system for $150. It's pretty tough to find any set of surround-sound speakers, including a subwoofer (a real one, not a passive sub), at this price.
However, there is another option for folks who are cash-restricted but want to begin to assemble a high-quality home-theater sound system. The first step is to get a high-quality home-theater surround-sound receiver. The VR-407 is an excellent unit, but you can find other fine options, some selling for less than the VR-407. For example, some of the Sherwood receivers, with Dolby Pro Logic and Dolby Digital, sell for less than $200 (at 800 DOT com). For about the same cost as the VR-407, you can get an Onkyo TX-DS484, which, while it's rated by its manufacturer as putting out less power than the Kenwood receiver (60 watts per channel), its output is cleaner than that of the VR-407 (the Onkyo's THD is 0.08% in both stereo and surround modes).
To a high-quality receiver, you could add the first three speakers of a surround-sound configuration -- the center speakers and the front-right and front-left speakers. Taking this approach, for example, you could get PSB Alpha front-right, center, and front-left speakers for $370 ($200 for the Alpha front-right and front-left mains, $170 for the Alpha CLR Center-Channel speaker). Now, with this arrangement, initially, you wouldn't have a subwoofer or rear surrounds. However, you would have three excellent front speakers, speakers of much better sound quality than those included with the HTB-503. Remember, the bulk of audio in a soundtrack is focused in the center-channel speaker.
If you have a pair of speakers from your old stereo, you might get away with using those, temporarily, for your two surround (rear-right and rear-left) speakers. It's less critical to match the timbre of surrounds than that of the front speakers.
Over time, as finances allow, you can purchase the PSB surrounds and subwoofer. There are various approaches you can take to buying home-theater gear. I suggest the possibility of starting with three high-quality front speakers and an inexpensive (relatively) surround-sound receiver because great speakers will still sound pretty good with an inexpensive, entry-level receiver while cheesy speakers will sound like cheesy speakers, no matter how expensive the receiver.
On the other hand, if you buy the HTB-503, you'll still have an excellent receiver. The speakers with this package really only add $150 to the price of the system, so you won't be out a huge amount of money if you later decide to upgrade to better speakers. You could sell the HTB-503 speakers or use them as a second set of speakers in a bedroom or your kids' room.
Recommended:
Yes
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radioguy
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