Home Theater Systems Help

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There is no end to the choice when it comes to home theater sound systems, with prices ranging from the absurdly cheap to the absurdly expensive. How do you know what to get for your room? How can you tell good quality from something that’s garbage? My research in this field led me to buy this RCA unit, which met my specific needs; hopefully, my review will help you meet yours.

What drew me to this product initially was the fact that it was an all-in-one home entertainment system solution. It incorporated an AM/FM/CD/MP3 CD player as well as a progressive scan DVD player, a surround sound speaker system and 200 watts of total power. I wanted it for my medium sized living room. The entrance is 10 feet wide, so one of the four walls is pretty much non-existent. Another wall really is non-existent, as the living room and dining room are connected. The third wall has a big window in it. My couch goes along the only wall left, and the love seat divides the living room and dining room. Wall space is at a premium; there’s no good space to put a stereo system, and the only place for the speakers is on what walls I do have. This was exactly what I needed for this room.

The first thing I did was to sample the weight of the satellite speakers. Heavier speakers mean a bigger magnet inside, translating to better sound quality. These had quite a bit of heft to them; I’m certain they could handle more than the 32 watts being delivered to them. Everything else seemed to work as promised on the display model, so I bought one and took it home.

Unpacking the box, I was pleased to see that everything I needed was provided. Speakers, their wires, and the corresponding connectors on the back of the player were all colour co-ordinated, so hook-up was a breeze. I did notice that the wire was barely long enough to set up the speakers in my living room. Based on the total power of 200 watts and the length of the wires, I would assume that RCA does not intend this system to be used in large rooms.

The FM antenna provided was a simple length of white wire that gets the job done, but won’t be pulling in distant stations any time soon. You can hook up a better antenna if you like. It also came with an AM loop antenna which should be located as far away from the main unit as possible (it puts out a lot of RF noise having so much packed in such a small space) and cables needed to hook it up to my VCR and TV. Note that if you have a TV that only has a coax connector (one single round screw-in connector) for video and sound, you cannot hook this unit straight to the TV. I advise hooking the audio and video out up to a VCR in this case, with the coax coming from the VCR to the TV.

The sound provided is loud and clear. Switch from 5 speaker surround mode to 3 speaker stereo mode and you get noticably more power, probably because it’s channeling the extra power from the speakers that were turned off through the three that are on. It doesn’t quite have the range a good hi-fi system might have, but it also doesn’t have the price tag. I would go so far as to say for what you pay and the amount of space that’s not taken up, the sound is exceptional. There is a cooling fan, but it is no louder than a typical VCR playing a tape when it runs. It played my MP3 CD’s well enough, and provided a very clear picture when playing DVDs.

One set of Video and audio input jacks are provided up front to hook up your favourite video game console or camcorder. A pair of stereo audio input jacks are provided in the rear. The typical outputs are provided (S-video, RCA jacks, etc.)

I found the interface and controls cumbersome and unintuitive, especially when playing MP3 CD’s. The remote control is not laid out very well, though the controls on the front of the main unit are simple enough. Expect some time getting used to the remote and learning how to use the system. To be fair, it is packing a lot of different things into one, so naturally it is going to be more complicated to use than a basic DVD player. Due to the fact that it does so much more than just play DVD’s and CD’s, I can let this one slide.

I’ve owned this unit for almost a year and it has proven to be reliable. It is a good solution for people tight on space, budget, or both. Generally, all-in-one units like this aren’t that great, but this one delivers a nice package for the price. I wouldn’t spend less.

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