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A single HDMI output is included, as well as a front-panel USB port to easily play music from a USB flash drive. The Panasonic SC-BTT465 home theater system offers good sound quality for the money and all the smart content most modern consumers want. The 5.1 channel speaker setup includes a wireless subwoofer and two tallboy speakers, which offer the primary advantage of not needing additional stands or wall mounts.
Technicians are certified by the Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association, are manufacture-certified to sell, program and service all products, and regularly collaborate with architects, interior designers, and builders on projects. Clients can choose between simple media rooms to elaborate home theaters with custom products and systems or game rooms with the technology of their choice. Mattera also provides home automation, smart home systems, and various commercial services as well, and potential clients can peruse an online gallery of past work then contact the company for a consultation.
Rockville HTS56 1000w 5.1 Channel Home Theater System/Bluetooth/USB+8" Subwoofer
We’d rather step up to the Vizio M-Series Elevate, but if you want to save a couple hundred dollars, the M512a-H6 is a great choice. The Samsung HW-S800B is a super-slim soundbar that’s only 1.5 inches high but is sonically competitive with larger models. All of our listeners loved the subwoofer, but only one liked the sound of the soundbar itself; the other two thought it didn’t sound as clear as its competitors with dialogue, and felt its immersive Dolby Atmos effects weren’t as strong. The Polk MagniFi 2 is a powerful, Chromecast-equipped, 4.1-channel soundbar with a 3D mode that’s intended to simulate Atmos, but we found that it had a weird, echoey sound that didn’t work well for movies.
Firmware on the M-Series Elevate can be updated using downloaded firmware installed through a USB stick. The SR-C30A’s remote has dedicated buttons for every function and doesn’t require you to navigate a menu system. Despite being simple, small, and affordable, the MagniFi Mini AX outperforms many larger, more complicated competitors. The Polk MagniFi Mini AX is our top pick, the Vizio M-Series Elevate is our runner-up, the Yamaha SR-C30A is our budget pick, and the LG S95QR is our upgrade pick. Choose a room and location that lets you easily block out ambient light and minimize sound transfer. It should also have enough room to comfortably seat the number of people you may want to join you for movie viewing.
F&D PA926 60 W Bluetooth Party Speaker
The Polk React is a 2.0-channel soundbar with Alexa capability, and the option to add a wireless subwoofer and surrounds. We like the à la carte concept, but the soundbar doesn’t play very loud and it didn’t sound as enveloping as some other models we tested. The MagniFi Mini AX has one HDMI eARC port, plus optical digital and 3.5 mm analog audio inputs. The LG BH9431PW home theater system offers excellent sound quality and smart TV capabilities that are easy to set up right out of the box. The BH9431PW includes 5.1 speakers, but LG claims that the extra tall vertical speakers create an effective 9.1 channel experience. The system has plenty of power, with 1460 watts in total; definitely enough to annoy the neighbors.
The S95QR includes a powerful subwoofer, surround speakers, five upward-firing Atmos speakers, and lots of inputs and audio streaming options. Color-coded speaker terminals and matching color cable tags help make system installation extremely simple. The receiver features four HDMI inputs, with one on the front panel for 1080p and 3D passthrough. There’s also a 3.5mm stereo input jack on the front panel for connecting portable devices. Although this home theater system lacks wireless connectivity, it offers excellent value and quality for the money.
Samsung DVD Bluray 5.1Ch 1000W HDMI Home Theater Receiver HT-D5300 - TESTED
The Bose Smart Soundbar 300 sounds very clear, natural, and enveloping with movies and music, but for a one-piece soundbar with no Atmos capability, it’s expensive. The remote control is simple and straightforward, with all controls clearly labeled and no menu system to fuss with. It provides dedicated buttons for all of the inputs and sound modes, plus a Clear Voice dialogue enhancement and Bass Extension buttons, neither of which seemed to do much. One nice advantage of the MagniFi Mini over most more costly models is that it’s simple to operate. In what seems like a radical ergonomic revolution these days—but should really be nothing more than common sense—the top-mounted controls have raised white labels against a black background, so they’re easy to see in the dark. The same for the remote, which lets you access all of the soundbar’s adjustments directly, instead of requiring you to navigate a menu system that’s been abbreviated and encrypted to fit onto a four-character front-panel display.
For many people, going to the movies these days involves a walk from the kitchen to the couch, rather than a trip to a commercial cinema. The BDV-N7200W has a dedicated receiver that plays Blu-ray discs and supports 3D content, as well as being able to stream audio and video and upconvert low-resolution content to HD. Overall, the Sony BDV-N7200W performs well, with very good picture and audio quality, as well as fast load times and convenience. When equipped with a suitable HDTV, this home theater system is a great choice for overall use, with excellent performance and numerous features. Another way the HT-S3700 stands out is its Zone 2 preamp output which allows for expanding into a multi-room setup.
Price
Separate components usually provide better performance, but they also take up more space and require additional cables, and their operation is more complicated. A good soundbar strikes a balance between performance and convenience, delivering improved sound quality in a package that’s easier to set up and use. A soundbar can provide quality audio in a smaller space, but more speakers may be needed to create a surround-sound effect in a larger theater room.
With soundbars that offered special sound modes, I generally employed the mode intended for the type of content I was listening to—movies or music, for instance—but I also experimented with all of the other modes available. If the soundbars had an “auto” or “AI” mode, I relied mostly on that one but tried the others as well. For soundbars with HDMI inputs that support 4K HDR video pass-through, I tested whether this function worked properly with an HDR-capable TV. The Samsung HT-H4500 is an exceptionally affordable way to add a home theater system to your home. Although this system features 5.1 channels, 500 watts of power, video upconversion, and built-in apps, it’s only suited to a smaller room, as it lacks the power to adequately serve a large space. The HT-H4500 also lacks built-in WiFi, and needs to be hardwired to the router to use features such as the built-in apps for streaming online content.
In our tests, it produced a big, spacious, dynamic sound that we liked with movies—but its high end was a little harsh, and it didn’t sound as good with music. You can add optional wireless surrounds for about $300, but the result is more complicated to set up and use than many soundbars. For its price, the 2.0-channel Monoprice SB-300 offers lots of great features and a generous selection of inputs, and it fits well with most movies and music, but it made rattling noises when we cranked up the sound on action movies. The MagniFi Mini AX has just one HDMI eARC port to connect directly to your TV, with no dedicated HDMI inputs for connecting source devices. So if you have multiple sources (such as a Blu-ray player and a gaming system or two) that you want to connect directly to the soundbar, you might want to opt for a soundbar with more inputs. But most people will probably connect all of their sources to the TV and just run a single HDMI cable from the TV to the soundbar’s eARC port.
This home theater system features a 5.1-channel speaker setup and included Blu-ray player with video upconversion and built-in WiFi. The BDV-E3100 is very simple to set up, although those who want to expand the system should take note that the speaker wires are hardwired to the speakers. Like most affordable home theater bundles, the BDV-E3100 is primarily for those who value plug-and-play simplicity over the ability to customize. We tested the AV203 and the SB380, both of which have six preset AccuVoice levels. With both, we found the tech to be more effective than the “voice” modes on most soundbars at rendering dialogue clearly—but the more you step up the AccuVoice effect, the less natural everything else sounds.
Many soundbars offer voice-enhancement modes to improve dialogue clarity, but do they really work? We tested the soundbars in front of a listening panel, concealing the identities of the soundbars to eliminate bias. Installation work carries a 12-month guarantee, purchases come with full warranty and in-house service, and Audio Breakthroughs is a Home Theater Magazine Distinguished Dealer. The group specializes in custom TV and home theaters, home automation, and security design and installs and works closely with clients to follow their desired specifications.
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