A great deal but lacks key features
Written: Jan 29 '01 (Updated Jan 29 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Affordable, Good Features, Nice Speakers, Deep Bass
Cons: Passive Sub, Small Center Channel, No S-video in/output
The Bottom Line: If you can get past the few short-comings, the Nice sound, built-in DD/DTS, deep bass, 600w, and a low price make this Home Theater system a smart and solid buy.
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| badfish29's Full Review: Panasonic SC-HT280 Theater System |
I chose to write this opinion because when I was looking to buy this system, I could not find a single review of it. This is Panasonic's stab at the budget market, and from my experiences with it, it is not bad. However, there are some short-comings, I will discus them later, with this system that I wish I had known about. As far as I can tell, there are one or two problems with each component to this system.
The receiver is very solid, it feels well built and is packed with features. Dolby pro-logic, Dolby Digital, and DTS decoding are all featured, as well as 5 (too few) SFC's, they are: Hall, Live, Club, Sim. Surround, and Theater. What intrigued me was that this receiver is very much a Technics SA-DX940 in disguise. They are exactly the same, except Panasonic writes their name on the front and on the remote, and also adds the passive sub output that this system uses (however, it also has a standard RCA output for a powered subwoofer, should you choose to use another one). The amp itself puts out 6x100w which is enough power for most consumers. It also features 3 optical digital inputs, which is quite adequate for most (I only use 1, for the dvd). It also has RCA ins/outs for DVD, VCR, and TV, and audio for CD, Tape, and Phonograph. You can also adjust the subwoofer volume level with the remote!
My complaints about the reciever... no s-video in/outputs (what were they thinking?!), no digital coaxial inputs (seems a little odd), no bananna plugs, and even though DD and DTS are built in, 6 discrete channel input would be nice for those of us who would like to game in surround sound as well.
As far as the speakers, It's a little hard to say. The 5 speakers are all identical. This is great for the rear channels, however, it leaves a little to be desired for what comes out of your center channel. The sub-woofer is suprisingly deep in bass, with 25 different volume levels, it is much better than any other passive sub I have ever heard. Still, it is inconvenient to be stuck with a sub that is powered directly from the amp in case you decide to upgrade the receiver. But it sounds good. Still, the center is a little weak as far as sound reproduction, simply because of its size.
The remote is intersting. It is a nice size and easy to hold on to, but it is sometimes quirky. It's also not backlit so it's hard to see when your watching a movie. Apparently, you can't turn the receiver off when the remote is in dvd or tv or vcr mode, or any other component you may have on at the time, otherwise it will just turn the component off instead of both like it's supposed to.
Overall, the system is pretty good. The price and features and fairly solid sound make it worth it. Still, the lack of s-video, smallish center speaker, and non-powered subwoofer make this Home Theater in a Box just a little less than ideal.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
badfish29
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Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 0 members
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