It will decode all of today's hottest formats-dd,dts,prologic II,surround, etc. Very clean sound from all speakers and very loud!!!

wires,sub is okay. This is worth buying you careful buyers trust someone like you. Thank you Kenwood for making my movie nights something of a dream!!!!

Just getting into the game of home audio and I am very pleased with my first choice, the HTB-502. If you are a college student or someone with a tight budget then this is the system for you. Don't worry about it not sounding as good as the real expensive ones. It sounds amazing!!!! I have watching movies now more for the sound than the plot. It'll blow you away!!!

Where do I start? Excellent price, quality, BB for assistence, etc.

@#$# cables everywhere!!

Price excellent. Although one of the previous reviewers decided to buy from Shop4.com and then before the thirty day trial expired, cancelled his membership. Shop-at-home, at least with me, said the HTB 502 was on back order until the 31st day of my membership. I didn't care. Every other retailer wanted between $570 and $599 for the unit. Shop4.com was $459 plus the membership fee. It was still considerably cheaper. The sound is excellent. Setup was a bit difficult for me. I have an IQ of 145,a BS in Chemistry education and a MS in Educational Administration (watch the wisecracks). I tried to figure out the current path and kept getting confused. The quick setup card was more helpful than the instructions. The sound is excellent. The quality is excellent. I have a problem when the instruction book for the remote control is longer than the instruction book for the unit, but I'll figure it out.
The previous 17 reviews for this unit sold me on it. I am verry happy with the purchase. I can't advise anyone about the more expensive unit this is the only one I tried. It's $200 cheaper and the sound is perfect.

Similar Products Used:

Sony receivers

Price, Dolby Digital, DTS, Auto-switching

Speaker build Quality, shipped wires

I have put this system through a battery of test and it comes through glaring. For it's price range, you cannot buy a better system. I have recommended it to other starter uppers. I wonder if Kenwood will do an upgrade for the new year. If I replace anything, it will be the speakers. I have to give it 5 stars because of the quality and price.

Price, Subwoofer, DTS support

Obviously since this is only $600 retail, the speakers are the weakest part of the unit.

I bought this unit in September, and so far have been very impressed with it. I bought this for $550 from netmarket, though it can be had for less. The unit is very easy to set up. It comes with color coded speaker wire, and a easy to follow diagram for those unfamiliar with hooking up stereo equipment. The wire is pretty thin, so you might want to get some heavier guage wire later on. Also, the surround wires are fairly short. I live in a dorm room, and they BARELY reach the surround speakers.
The remote can be programmed to control other components in your system but I havent used it for anything but the receiver yet.
The audio quality is very good, for the price. The sub is excellent, and this system sounds great watching DVD's. Another audio plus is that the receiver supports DTS sound.
The speakers arent as great for music, and the construction seems a bit cheap, and you can pull the front grilles of any of the speakers, but this system is only $600.

The receiver has S-Video switching if you have multiple S-Video devices you want to hook to your TV, but I havent used this yet.
One issue I have run into was trying to hook the audio out from my TV to the receiver. It only worked when hooked to some of the audio inputs, and not others. I'm not sure why this is.

If you want to get into home theater, and dont have a lot of money to spend, I heartily recommend this system.

Great value (get much more than you pay for). Easy to set up. Great sound.

"Seek" function of tuner. Might have to buy a powered antenna to get local stations.

I had looked at this unit previously, but had put off purchasing it. While with a friend who was purchasing a TV at Circuit City, the salesman remembered me and asked if I was still looking at the system. I told him, "give it to me for $499 ($100 off of listed price) and I'll buy it right now." He said he had to check with his manager, and when he came back, he was carrying the box on a dolly.

Set up was easy (other than having to buy extra speaker wires (needed flat wire to run under carpet, and longer wires, and a couple fo mounting brackets for the rear surround sound speakers.

Once it was set up, the speakers required a little fine-tuning to the setup of the room. This was extremely easy.

Now, it was ready to go. Hooked up to the DVD player and the big screen TV, threw in Saving Private Ryan, and I was just blown away.

I would definitely reccommend this to anyone who is looking to get into the Home Theater market, or anyone who isn't satisfied with their current system.

p.s. - read the examples here...you can see what people are buying it for at different places...talk the salesmen (esp. at Circuit City) down.

Sound, Price, Sound, S-Video switching, and Sound.

Wires

This system ROCKS! I can't tell you the number of times my wife has said, "turn it down!" DD/DTS sound so good. I run DVD and DSS through the system, and they both sound great. The cheap wires were quickly replaced with Monster cable, including the system connections. It made a huge difference! The sub rumbles the living room, (Top Gun). I'd recommend this system to anyone!

Price, everything included.

I bought this as a open box model for $500 and I am very happy with it. I had a DVD player and a nice TV and I badly needed to get a 5.1 system. It was very easy to set-up, I upgraded the speaker wires and the remote, I could not get the included remote to operate all of my components. The receiver is quite good, has S-video switching, which I have yet to utilize. The speakers are fine, not the greatest, but the subwoofer is performing quite well. I have not had one problem with this is 7 months. A great way to enter the home theater market.

Price

Remote and front speakers

This package definately has to be one of the best available for the price. I got mine for a little over $500 and have been very pleased with it. The sub ROCKS, and the other speakers are decent, but they seem a little flimsy. For movies the system sounds awesome. I am also impressed by how well the receiver automatically detects the digital input. If you are in the market for a good home theater package at a great price, check this one out.

I must join the chorus of folks here to sing the praises of the HTB-502. I never imagined that I could get a system this good for the price I paid. I bought mine locally here in Atlanta from Circuit City for $499.00. I actually saw and purchased mine before reading any reviews on it. The list price in the store was $599.00, but the salesman knocked off $100.00 bucks on the spot! I took it home with the intention of researching it on the Web before I even opened it--to see what must be wrong with it. That same night, I read the reviews here and on other sites, and cracked open the box. I replaced a Sony SA-VA15 Dolby Pro Logic surround system with the Kenwood HTB-502. All the S-Video jacks are just what I was looking for because I have a Sony 1000 S-VHS VCR as well as a Panasonic DVD-A120 and Dish Network 7100 satellite receiver (they all have S-video out). The sound difference between my old Sony system and this Kenwood set was instantaneous!! The speakers produce an astonishingly crystal clear image and the subwoofer is very clean and powerful. My DVD player can play S-video directly through the Kenwood receiver to my Pioneer 51" cinema-wide monitor with no problem. I feel as if I got the deal (or steal) of the century with this system. After only one week, I am highly satisfied with it, and am proud to show it off. I *definitely* recommend it to anyone interested in a high-quality but very affordable complete home theatre sound system. You will NOT be sorry!

Similar Products Used:

Sony SAVA15

definitely the price, sound, receiver, value

receiver clicks when changing audio streams (prologic to live dsp), the subwoofer, the packaged speaker wires, and center channel speaker

the overall value of the product is exceptional. it produced the sound that i wanted and performed very well. the speaker wires are a bit too thin, and i had to buy another subwoofer because i did not get the bass i wanted from the original sub. (i replaced it with a JBL) i am also planning to change my center channel because the original sounds flat. i got it for around $550 and it is the best value i can find in a home theater in a box. next time im planning to buy my stuff separately....maybe a yamaha rx-v1 for a receiver!!