What a great sound system. Fully capable Dolby Digital ProLogic II surround sound (meaning the speakers can independently play the correct sound on each one depending on the program whether it's a DVD or TV show broad casted in Dolby Digital Surround sound and HDTV.) Put in a Dolby 5.1 surround sound capable DVD or TV show and it sounds like you're sitting in a movie theater. You will hear things in shows you've watched before that you never know were even there. It's amazing, and this unit delivers.
Couple of things you will need - an optical audio cable for premium sound. (RCA's not only won't sound nearly as good but I don't believe they will allow the Dolby Digital 5.1 to work properly.) Also, you'll want to buy a HDMI cable to hook up the unit for DVD playing. The optical cable, assuming your TV or cable box is capable, is a necessity. I used RCA audio cables for a few days before buying an Optical audio cable and the difference is night and day.
Also, the rear speaker wire isn't really long enough to properly mount the two rear speakers where they need to go. I bought an extra roll of speaker wire and lengthened them so that I could mount them up on my walls, running them through the attic, under about six feet of carpet, and to my 46" Samsung 1080p LCD TV, with all of the wires hidden. All of the speakers have a plug on the end so even if they are long enough for your application you'll have to drill a 3/4" hole in the wall to route them through your attic. Or you can just cut the wire, run it through, then splice it all back together.
I'm a beginner at this stuff, first time I've ever done ANY wiring and only the second time I've ran wires through my attic. It took a few hours but it was well worth it. The extra 100 feet of speaker wire only cost me about $10 dollars (didn't use all 100 feet obviously) and an eight foot Optical cable was about $15. An HDMI cable will run you about $40 dollars for a six foot cable. But if you have an HDTV, you MUST use an HDMI cable for the DVD player and you MUST use an Optical cable for the sound. If not, you might as well just stick with your TV speakers you already have.
One thing - Comcast universal remotes do NOT support this unit, which was a big turnoff for me personally. Instead of being able to control everything with a single remote I now have to use the Philips remote just to control the sound. But again, with the absolute superb sound, quality of the entire unit, and ease of install, it is well worth it all.
If I had to describe this unit in one sentence I would say it is sound in HD, just as HDTV is video in HD. I gave it five stars for sure but if I could change anything I would make the "plugs" on the end of the speaker wires removable (for routing through walls,) make it compatible with a Comcast remote, and that's about it. Otherwise, it's very well-priced...a ridiculous value really...you get your moneys worth and then some, very easy to install (unless you're like me and you want ALL of your wires hidden, which requires a bit more labor but is still VERY easy.) I looked into wireless rear speakers and not only are they extremely expensive ($500+ or more) but they interfere with wireless Internet connections and the sound quality is compromised by interference. Wired is the ONLY way to go and Phillips delivers!! Philips HTS3371D/F7 DVD Home Theater with 1080P HDmi Upconversion
I bought this on the internet, but Model HTS3372 at Wall Market is the same and even better value now. We had trouble understanding what people were saying in movies on our LCD TV, before we bought this. Now we can hear clearly at much lower sound level. The kids can now watch a movie and hear it while we play cards just a few feet away in the kitchen. The remote controls the iPod also so we can skip to the next song if we want. The included DVD player works great. The small speakers make it easy to install without taking over your whole room. The small wire easily slides under the carpet without showing so that you can install the rear speakers. The plug in on the end of the speaker wire can easily be removed with a toothpick and then replaced after you run the wire under the carpet. My wife who is not into such things normally just loves it because it sounds so good and is easy to hear even when turned down low.
I bought this Home Theater because I already had some Philips computer speakers, so I knew this is a good brand in terms of audio electronics performance.
In summary, I can tell you that this system is awesome: it is very loud, and it looks much more pretty than in pictures, both the speakers and the console. There are some nice rounded egdes for the speakers and the bass is bigger than shown in pictures. The speaker cables are long and transparent, so it shouldn't be a problem when setting them up across the room. The iPod docking station works pretty good and the DVD upconversion is a nice feature too.
I bought this mainly because I really like music, so I got this connected to a Creative Labs SB1090 USB Sound Blaster X-Fi Surround 5.1 (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0017QQQAE/ref=ox_ya_oh_product) via an optical TOSLink Cable. The sound is just amazing, with clear sound and a very powerfull, non-distorted bass, which is very important to me.
It is very nice to have the opcion to switch to 5-Channel stereo, so you can listen your MP3s using the 5 speakers.
All my friends and even my dad (which is not into the technology thing) has seen and listen this system and they said they are planning on getting one for themselves.
I really recommend this product to anyone.
I received this stereo/DVD system as a wedding gift and have since hooked it up to my TV and blue ray for awesome surround sound. It is easy to assemble, I am not very good at assembling things and I had everything together in about 30 minutes. This comes with adequate amounts of small wire for my living room (about 20'X25') and is a very versatile product. I plan to run through the ceiling and mount the speakers but haven't gotten around to it. The buttons are really easy to use and although there may be a couple second delay when switching sources, I have noticed that with many electronics that have multiple sources and it doesn't bother me.
THis product's sound is amazing! I have never had it past level 20, and I don't think my house or my ears can take much more than that- I have turned it on pretty loudly and walked outside my house just to see if I can hear it through my walls- I can. It's loud!
Also it's super easy to set up Ipod-either using the deck which charges it, OR just using the aux port. Both worked great for me.
This product is also a great DVD player, no complaints about that. Don't notice too much of a difference between my blu ray player and this on my 42 inch plasma. I used it with both an RCA cable and a HDMI cable. My untrained ears/eyes didn't notice a huge difference between the two. HDMI will give you better audio and video quality. An HDMI cable does NOT come with this set-up. - Dvd Player - Home Theater - Home Theater System - Upconvert'
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