Value, DTS and DD, SUBWOOFER, perfect for the beginnger leap to HT

other speakers not the greatest, manual no help, cheap speaker wire, and does that receiver really put out 100W/ch? I think not.

Being a college student, I do not have a lot of money of space for a home theater set up. This was the perfect solution for both of these needs.

The strengths:
The VR-407 receiver surpisingly does the job for being included in a box system. Lots of inputs, a bunch of analog and two optical and two coax. Add to that DD and DTS decoding and the fact that this receiver can be found for $250 by itself and we have a decent receiver for the money.

The 8" sub is quite large and will fill any dorm/fraternity house room with a lot of bass. It can be boomy at times and will distort if you don't have your settings tweaked. With the cheap speakers I set the crossover to max and the volume at around 3/4 max. Overall good deal.

The weaknesses:
The VR-407 claims to put out 100W/ch to all speakers. I think that it puts out 100W/ch when it is cranked up. For music and TV I have the volume between -40dB and -30dB. My brother's receiver puts out waaay more power with the volume a quarter up. Of course it's a nicer Sony receiver and he has rather large Sony speakers.

Don't use the speaker wire that comes with the package. Get some thicker guage wire immediately. The stuff that comes in the package is MAYBE 22 gauge. If you want the best sound out of the speakers, then get thicker guage wire.

The other speakers in the package are less than exciting. Music and some dialogue can sound like as if the system were in a large fishbowl. Center channel especially. I'm going to upgrade these as soon as I can. But for a small room like I have these do quite well. I do think that my stands are worth more than the rest of the speakers.

Overall:
I give it 5 stars for value. Like so many other people, I went to Sears and had them price match it for me. The receiver and sub can easily go for $400 by themselves, and it's like the other five speakers were free. But for overall quality I give it 3 stars. If you want to have audiophile status pass this up. For the rest of us on a buget or just getting into HT, this is perfect.

Similar Products Used:

Sony shelf system

bang for the buck.

same as everyone else, remote,center,wires,etc...

This is the first audio anything I ever bought and I couldn't be happier. A friend of mine had a similar sony system that I was totally jealous of and, he didn't even have the rear speakers hooked up. I soon became a full audio junkie and decided i had to have a system too. So started to research and learn everything I could. The first thing I learned was that this stuff is exspensive for a college student's budget.

After I bought a big tv and a DVD player, I started shopping sound systems. All I kept finding were tiny speakers, no power and big prices. Then I found the HTB-503. It said 100w X 5 for $450 and I jumped on it. It took me a while to hook evrything up but, once I fired up a DVD I was floored by how much better it made watching movies.
If you are a real audiophile with deep pockets,this system won't cut it. If love big theater quality sound and your on a budget, it's perfect!

There are a few small problems. The center speaker is weak. I replacted mine with a sony that has dual 5" drivers and the whole system works better. The remote is too small, A universal remote will solve that and you'll need to buy some real speaker wire.

On the other side, this system has all the good stuff. DD,DTS, plenty of s-video and optical inputs. My cable, DBS, VCR, DVD and play station run through the reciver. The sound quality is great and the sub will piss-off the neighbers. I promise!(the cops have been to my house apartment twice)

It's not the best system in the you can get but,it is the best you can get for under $500.I love it,all my friends are jealous of me now and the guy who had the system I was jealous of. Now brings his DVD's to my house. It is a wonderful starter system.

Similar Products Used:

none

Subwoofer, Value, Wide range of inputs/outputs, Kenwood Tech Support

Remote, User's Manual, Cables that come with it, Music Play

I got this system from Sears a couple of weeks ago. I took in a printed web page that showed the system for $405.95, and Sears matched it (after adding estimated shipping)! A week later, they had a 10% off sale for using a Sears card. They gave me another $41 back, so I ended up paying about $390 before taxes (I saw it a couple years ago at Circuit City for $600!)!!!

I had a little trouble setting up the system, but tech support helped me find the rather unusual problem in minutes, rather than the hours it would have taken me to figure it out! I tested out the Prologic (no DVD player yet...) with "Independence Day" and was very impressed with the sound! The center channel sounded kind of muffled, but I guessed that it had to do with the fact that I used the cheezy cable they sent. I have since replaced it with Monster Cable (except for the subwoofer), along with using a Monster Cable on my VCR, and the sound is MUCH better! It sounds like a completely different system!

I'm a little disappointed that they don't have simulated surround sound for music (since my old Kenwood did)! The music play doesn't seem to quite compare with my old system (except for the bass, which is much better now). But I think I made the right choice, since I bought this system mainly for movies.

I think that the value for this system is UNBEATABLE at this price! I looked at the HTB-203A and HTB-403, but considering all of the extra features for the small price differential, I couldn't justify it.

The HTB-503 sells like hot-cakes here, and it's kind of hard to find, but it's worth the wait! This system is great for any class of listener, up to the Extreme Audiophile. Just make sure and use Monster Cable (even if it sets you back another $50-$100!!!)

Similar Products Used:

Kenwood VR-126R, LS-7000 Speakers

Nice receiver; good sub; DTS,DD 5.1, and new PRO-LOGIC II decoding; excellent value!

Included wires and sub cable

THIS REVIEW IS FOR THE NEWEST HTB-504......
Let me say first that I am impressed with Kenwood in that it seems they have been monitoring these reviews and have made some improvement with the new HTB-504. The included receiver is the VR-507 which includes several DSP modes as well as "Cinema EQ". The remote is a much nicer unit than that of the VR-407 in the HTB-503. It is a much larger piece with larger buttons and programmability. Also, someone at Kenwood was thinking about comfort when they designed the shape of this remote as it fits nicely in the hand. Another improvement made was to the center channel speaker. It now matches the mains in number of drivers with TWO 4" woofers and a 1" tweeter.
Given the price of this system($412 price match from the internet at Sears), the performance is absolutely amazing! Even an audiophile looking for a budget setup for the bedroom or vacation home would be pleased, especially if he upgraded the speaker wire,sub cable, and used an optical hookup for the DVD player. It's also a perfect "starter" home theater for those that have become intrigued but have not been willing to spend the big bucks that other "good" systems cost. Be aware that you are not likely to hear this system set up properly at a store.

Dolby Pro Logic 2, 100W Powered Sub, Abundant inputs

No component video input, CD Audio playback lacking midrange, Poor speaker wire.

This review is for the HTB-504.

This is my first Home Theater and I have to say that I'm extremely pleased with the performance of this thing. And I'm excited with the prospect that equipment only gets better after this.

The DD 5.1 and DTS rock for sure but I have to say that I'm most impressed with the Dolby Pro-Logic II. What this does is takes any 2-channel source and matrixes it into a 5.1 output and does it fairly well with only minimal bleedover. The old Pro-logic (which is also included) only gave you mono sound from the surrounds. With Pro-Logic II it is now possible to get something close to 5.1 out of even your old VHS tapes (who would've thought). And it does the same with your TV signal also. I get more use out of my VCR now more than I ever have thanks to this thing.

But before I start sounding like a Dolby representative (I'm not),let tell you about some of the other things....like the sub. This sub friggin' rocks. If you're like me and you live in an apartment you'll have to turn this thing down all the time and at night you'll probably have to turn it off completely. Be warned, this is an 8 inch sub that thinks it's a 12 inch. It has a nice tight response and sounds nice overall even when it bottoms out (which happens rarely). This and the reciever just by themselves would have been worth the near four hundred dollars I paid for this system. Other than that you have perfectly balanced left right and center channel speakers and you have an adequate universal remote (no backlight though).

Now for the bad stuff. The prepacked speaker wire is a joke. Throw it away as soon as you see it and buy a 14 gauge minispool of Monster Cable at Circuit City (about 50 bucks). Another minor thing was CD playback...it sounds fine at higher volumes but when at a lower volume the midrange suffers a little bit. Nothing that would make me not recommend this system but still worth noting. The DVD playback more than makes up for these things. If you've never experienced true 5.1 sound before.....once you hear it, you'll never go back. This is a great way to start.

Kenwood really hit this one out of the park. For just 400 dollars you get a system that blows the crap out of nearly every Bose system you can find (I know, I did direct comparisons and the results were shocking) and leaves every similiarly priced system in the dust. I urge you to go do some sound comparisons and see for yourself. It's the best 400 dollars that I've ever spent, that's for sure.

Similar Products Used:

Panasonic Shelf System

Subwoofer, Reciever, Speakers, Everything else

For this price there are no weaknesses

After reading all the reviews I was certain that this product would be the one to buy. The clarity of the speakers are amazing, I was listening to the last track on the Mission Impossible 2 soundtrack through a Pioneer DVD connected with regular RCA (gonna get a digital cable tommorrow, just gotta pick optical or coax) and the guitar sound is truly incredible. Every slide, every strum, every little nuance that is in the music comes alive like I have never heard before, I am hearing things in my music that I didn't know were there.
Subwoofer complements the speaker package exceptionally. Beautiful transition from the sub to the main speakers, you can hardly notice the change. For an eight inch sub this thing goes pretty damn low. I have a 12 inch JL Audio W3 sub in my car and I can say that this eight gets really close to low end of that 12, very impressive.
I have read about the speaker wires being junk, but they sound really good to me. I guess buying some 16 gauge or thinker speaker wire would be good because 100W is quite a bit of power, but with the stock wire it really sounds very very good.
I wish my Sears price matched etronics.com, I went down to the store and had the sales person call in to see if they price matched etronics, but he returned and said that they did NOT match with etronics. So, I took back my printed etronics invoice and told him so long and bought it off the net. I was kinda weary as the package would travel ground from New York to the SF Bay area, but everything arrived fine. The outside box was rather beaten up looking, but Kenwood has done a smart thing and enclosed the reciever, the subwoofer, and the speakers all in their own boxes, each with styrafoam padding and much support. I hooked it all up and it all worked, which brang a big sigh of relief.
If you want a very high quality, easy to set up and purchase, and don't want to fork over a thousand bucks, this is THE system for you, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. As the value rating states "5 Stars - Bargain, Giand killer"!!!

Casey

Similar Products Used:

JVC Hometheater in a box (yuck, tin city), TEAC Pro-Logic reciever with rather old marantz and Pioneer speakers

reciever, sub

reciever manual

(This is for the HTB504)

I researched this one for a long time. I really doubt you can get this good a sound for the money with any other system. I have a 20x20 living room with 18' ceiling, and the sound fills up nicely, and imaging and focus is still accurate.
I wanted good sound, but I don't watch a movie every night, so I didn't want a big investment. This system more than fits the bill. Obviously you don't get reference quality, but it is certainly better than the price would imply. The Pro Logic II is really enjoyable with VHS movies and music CD's, and I like the option of DD or DTS for DVD movies.
The reciever and sub are good enough to keep for a long time, so this makes a nice system to test the waters without emptying the bank. If you get sucked into it, the speakers could be replaced for even better sound.
I listened to other "in the box" systems, and even brought home a lesser Kenwood system (heard one song on a CD and boxed it up and returned it). This system far surpasses the sound quality and component quality of the other systems I saw. If you are thinking about it, and want a solid value for your money for an entry level system, go buy it.

Similar Products Used:

Bose, pioneer, typical consumer level stuff

(For the HTB-504)
The system is much more powerful than I thought.The abundance of sound fields drives me wild. You have so many choices that you can watch a DVD any number of times and not get bored. The subwoofer and receiver by themselves make the system more than worth it.

None

Anyone who is interested in a Home Theater System, wether they are on a budget or not, should at least give this system a listen. They will not be disappointed.

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Fisher Mini Home Theater System

This home theater system has the best bang for your hard earned buck.

Cycling through the sound modes, speaker wire

*******THIS REVIEW IS FOR THE HTB-504*******

Kenwood has created a spectacular system for the audio enthusiast on a budget. I bought this system after days and days of reading online reviews and listening firsthand to systems in the store. I was all set to buy the Harmon Kardon AVR 220($400) and a Cerwin Vega surround sound speaker package($400), when I stumbled upon this system in a Circuit City ad. I read all the reviews I could find and then went to listen to it. WOW! I was blown away by the amount of bass this put out and the clarity of the surround sound with the Pro Logic II on normal TV movies. This system is/was the lowest priced system I could find with PL II (to say "cheap" would be an insult). Needless to say I now knew which system I was going to buy.

When you get the system home... TOSS THE SPEAKER WIRES!

This system is the base for the new home theater/audio system I am building. I have a lot of old equipment and this system makes it sounds 100 times better than it ever has. Right now it is connected to an RCA 32" regular TV (dont know the model#), Toshiba M45 VCR, and a Magnavox (you can stop laughing now...) CDB 486 6 disc CD changer. The CD player is one of the first changers ever made circa 1988...so old it doesn't have digital outs.

I will be getting a Toshiba SD-9200 DVD player...for FREE..can't wait to hear that!

I found the HTB-504 advertised online at Etronics for $384, then I read in the reviews here that Sears priced matched. So, I went to Sears and got the system there.

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Old stuff not worth mentioning.

Price, sound

None yet, except for monopole speakers in my situation

** This is for the 504 **

Sounds great to me, and for less than $500, INCLUDING RECEIVER, this is a great product! (But I did spend an extra $160 for our speaker solution -- see below.)

We have a bad listening setup. TV (57" 16:9 TV) is in the corner and our L-shaped Sectional Couch is in the opposite corner, with walls all around, of a room approx. 14' deep x 12' wide. TV screen distance varies from 9.5 - 11.5 feet, depending on where you sit. We CANNOT place the rear speakers behind us; I placed the included surround speakers on the walls at the ends of the couch so they were pointed toward the center of the couch. This was okay, but, e.g., PEARL HARBOR, the sound was all wrong for the planes that flew overhead from BEHIND you; the sound was distractingly coming from the sides. Again, this is a problem with our setup, not with the 504 system. I thought of MAYBE mounting them high on the wall behind the middles of each section of the couch, which would sort of help, but then it would sound like the sound was ABOVE us all the time. That's the problem with monopoles for surround sound; they're very directional.

THEN I saw the Kenwood dipole (bipole?) 64's at the Kenwood Factory Store. The guy gave me the right to return them if not satisfied (normal policy is exchange only). Plus, they are white, which goes better with our walls. I bought them and hooked them up, hanging them on the walls just past the end of the couch. These have two sets of speakers in each enclosure - the speakers point away at each side at about 45 degrees, and the enclosure sits flat against the wall. They are 6 ohm, but the guy said that wouldn't be a problem (all the other speakers in the 504 set are 8 ohm).

WHAT A DIFFERENCE. The sound is dispersed/diffused along our wall, and in PEARL HARBOR the approaching planes sound is MUCH MORE accurately reflective of where they appear on the screen; it almost seems like it's coming from behind and overhead, as it should. In PATRIOT, the gunshots and voices of Mel Gibson when he and his kids ambush the redcoats who were going to hang his son are also much more accurate-sounding in terms of where the sounds should be coming from. In THE MATRIX the helicopter sounds seem to surround us when they should, and the gunfire and bullets sound better.

THIS is all to say that if you have a horrible surround sound setup problem like we did, the dipoles could be your easy answer. They'll cost you an additional $160/pair at a Kenwood Factory store, but should be pretty much sonically matched to the rest of the 504 speakers (the speakers look a bit different -- the tweeter is silver, not black, and the woofer/midrange is flat in the center, not rounded).