Need your suggestion in buying a package home theater system for home purpose

[piyushcom]

Hi,

I am interested to buy a home theater system for a small 2 or 3 BHK apartment. I have been reasearching on this and drilled down on Onkyo HT-S3100 5.1 home theater.

Could you please if this is a good choice or i can have some thing better in the similar price?

Purpose is pure home viewer and listen and i have a sony HDMI LCD 32 inch screen as well. Also i would like to connect my computer to avoid usage of DVD or VCD.

thanks in adance..

regards, Piyush

 

[venkatcr]

Piyushcom:

Though Onkyo is a good brand, please look at options from Denon, Yamaha Sony, and Panasonic also. All of them offer decent HT packages.

Reviews are only the first step that help you set aside the flak. The next and most important step is to audition the system. Take a few DVDs and music CDs you like and are familiar with and spend a few evenings visiting retailers who have demo rooms. Once you do this you will be able to decide what you want based on which system sounds good to you.

Remember as you visit the retailers, you will be shown more options and may get confused. So fix your budget and the system combination that you want to live with and stay focused. If you get into separates - that is AVR and speakers purchased separately - there is an ocean out there.

Always base your purchase decision based upon your own ears.

Cheers

 

[piyushcom]

Thanks VenkatCR,

Thats really a great and encouraging response. I have not been able to find retailers who has denon or Yamaha HT systems. I got a demo of Sony but the one i liked was completly out of my budget so had to come back to onkyo.If you know a Denon or Yamaha dealers in pune pls let me know.

Thanks & regards,
Piyush Sharma

 

[xela]

Piyushcom:

Please consider also the suggestion of VenkatCR, if it's within your budget, you won't regret it: "If you get into separates - that is AVR and speakers purchased separately - there is an ocean out there."

 

[venkatcr]

Here are the Pune contact details as printed in AV Max and WhatHifi

Onkyo
256, Boat Club Road
Near bund Gardens
3231 0478

Yamaha
Audio Visual & More
5609 6339

Maharashtra Electronics
2634 7681

Denon
Sound & Vision
98220 88022
2635 7647

AV Excellence
2612 7000

 

[piyushcom]

Thanks a lot VenkatCR,

Can you also suggest the mix n match combination of Amplifier / reeciver , sub woofer and 5 speakers?
I would go to these dealers and try to have a demo.

Regards, ~Piyush

 

[venkatcr]

Piyush,

As I said before that is a large ocean that will drag you in all directions. Unless you have a lot of time and patience, best is to go in for a HT Package. believe me it took me 18 months to decide my system, and by that time, technologies had changed.

And you have to consider the budget. With power conditioning, speakers, cables, DVD Player, etc, you could easily run up 100K to 150K for a entry level system.

If you are yet interested, SIGH !!!!! Here we go again !!!!!!

 

[piyushcom]

No way. , My budget is 25 K only..So it would be better to go for a HT package system. See i am classical vocal music fan and any ordinary system supresses instrument quality. So my idea was to have a decent system that will suffice my set of requirements.

Anyways thanks much, let me know if you can suggest some good package HT in my budget..
Cheers,

 

[venkatcr]

That is a tough call. 25K? Hmmmm. Ok. here we go. What I have done is take WhatHiFi and AV Max issues from Jan 2008 and listed their reviews of HT packages I have seen around that price. The comments are purely those of WhatHiFi / AV Max.

1. LG HT 902TB

Price 24,900

FOR: Good Pictures, even better sound, build and looks
AGAINST: Not much given the price.
VERDICT: A stellar system for very little money,

2. Samsung HT-X30

Price: 13,900

FOR: Great build and design. decent performance. Wireless upgrade options
AGAINST: Lacks the power, scale, and pitch of the best in class
VERDICT: A worthwhile small room system, but you can get more living room ooomph from the LG

3. Panasonic SC-PT850

Price: Unknown

FOR: Good Specs
AGAINST: Disappointing picture, rivals offer more sonic detail and punch
VERDICT: An OK system but rivals have a serious edge

4. Sony DAV-DZ750K

Price: 26,990

FOR: Build and design. Good performance.
AGAINST: Slightly forward treble. Picture beaten by the LG
VERDICT: A good system but not best in class.

5. Samsung HT-TX25

Price: 19,900

FOR: Flexibility. Convincing sound and picture
AGAINST: No HDMI, and not much else
VERDICT: A very decent all rounder, but not class leader.

6. Sony DZ855KW

Price. 39,990

FOR: Good picture, stylish speakers, wireless flexibility
AGAINST: Fussy infrared signals to rear. Premium price. Poor Auto configuration.
VERDICT: A system that offers good picture and sound but has flawed wireless convenience.

7. LG HT762TZ

Price: 29,990

FOR: Smart styled and with good specs. Can upscale to 1080p. Good integration. Fast sats.
AGAINST: Some noise to picture. Treble sounds a little detached.
VERDICT: LG's design art range is shaping up nicely indeed. This is a solid cinema system for under 30,000.

8. Onkyo. HT-SR800 (B)

Price: 45,000

This is AV Max award winner for 2007-2008. AV Max has this to say.

The SR 800 is much more promising than the S990 even though it is not offering anything new in terms of features. It sounds a lot more refined and authoritative for approximately the same moderate price; which is why it comes highly recommended. It may not be the best thing you have laid eyes on, but it does its job dutifully.

9. The Philips HTS-6600 and MCD-288 have won the silver and bronze awards, but I do not have any details.

If others can pitch in with more details of these or other models, it will be appreciated.

 

[girl21]

venkat how is Onkyo HT-S5100

HT-S5100 - 7.1-channel system, 3x 1080p compatible HDMI inputs + 1x pass-through, 130 Watts per channel amplifier using Onkyo's Wide Range Amplifier Technology (WRAT), 290W subwoofer and dedicated iPod dock

pls advise yarr

----------------------------------

That is a tough call. 25K? Hmmmm. Ok. here we go. What I have done is take WhatHiFi and AV Max issues from Jan 2008 and listed their reviews of HT packages I have seen around that price. The comments are purely those of WhatHiFi / AV Max.

1. LG HT 902TB

Price 24,900

FOR: Good Pictures, even better sound, build and looks
AGAINST: Not much given the price.
VERDICT: A stellar system for very little money,

2. Samsung HT-X30

Price: 13,900

FOR: Great build and design. decent performance. Wireless upgrade options
AGAINST: Lacks the power, scale, and pitch of the best in class
VERDICT: A worthwhile small room system, but you can get more living room ooomph from the LG

3. Panasonic SC-PT850

Price: Unknown

FOR: Good Specs
AGAINST: Disappointing picture, rivals offer more sonic detail and punch
VERDICT: An OK system but rivals have a serious edge

4. Sony DAV-DZ750K

Price: 26,990

FOR: Build and design. Good performance.
AGAINST: Slightly forward treble. Picture beaten by the LG
VERDICT: A good system but not best in class.

5. Samsung HT-TX25

Price: 19,900

FOR: Flexibility. Convincing sound and picture
AGAINST: No HDMI, and not much else
VERDICT: A very decent all rounder, but not class leader.

6. Sony DZ855KW

Price. 39,990

FOR: Good picture, stylish speakers, wireless flexibility
AGAINST: Fussy infrared signals to rear. Premium price. Poor Auto configuration.
VERDICT: A system that offers good picture and sound but has flawed wireless convenience.

7. LG HT762TZ

Price: 29,990

FOR: Smart styled and with good specs. Can upscale to 1080p. Good integration. Fast sats.
AGAINST: Some noise to picture. Treble sounds a little detached.
VERDICT: LG's design art range is shaping up nicely indeed. This is a solid cinema system for under 30,000.

8. Onkyo. HT-SR800 (B)

Price: 45,000

This is AV Max award winner for 2007-2008. AV Max has this to say.

The SR 800 is much more promising than the S990 even though it is not offering anything new in terms of features. It sounds a lot more refined and authoritative for approximately the same moderate price; which is why it comes highly recommended. It may not be the best thing you have laid eyes on, but it does its job dutifully.

9. The Philips HTS-6600 and MCD-288 have won the silver and bronze awards, but I do not have any details.

If others can pitch in with more details of these or other models, it will be appreciated.

 

[venkatcr]

venkat how is Onkyo HT-S5100

HT-S5100 - 7.1-channel system, 3x 1080p compatible HDMI inputs + 1x pass-through, 130 Watts per channel amplifier using Onkyo's Wide Range Amplifier Technology (WRAT), 290W subwoofer and dedicated iPod dock

pls advise yarr

SK, Onkyo is good in HT systems. I have read a lot og good reports on the HT systems from Onkyo. Their WRAT is also good.

Take an audition, and if you like it, go for it.

Cheers.

 

[kaushik]

just some comments..

as per the online discussions...
a home theatre in a box,specially in the starting range is a
compromise.

to save cost companies,use low-Q DAC components n stress on fancy looks...

even if you have to buy HTinaBox..only...then use a Dedicated-external-DAC...music will be far better then

recently i tested Gefen DAC(4000Rs)..see the DAC thread
for more info

 

[kothariab]

Hey Piyush,

I am also looking for a HT package approximately below 30 K.
I have spent two months till now searching in Pune but could not finalized.
The one that I liked most is Onkyo HT3100.

Have you purchased any HT ? If yes, Pl. let me know ur inputs.

That will be really helpfull to me.

Thanks,

Amit Kothari
9422402031.

 

[presboss]

Hi All:

need help. Trying to buy a good Home theater package in delhi, dont know where to shop, dealers etc, other than Bose
need for
TV room: large around 500 sq feet:
planning to connect this to a sonos system and use speakers (Bose mini cubes?) in Living /Dining and bedrooms

What can I buy in Delhi??? Where.

is sonos available in Delhi

Any suggestion would be very useful

Thanks

 

[venkatcr]

Hi All:

need help. Trying to buy a good Home theater package in delhi, dont know where to shop, dealers etc, other than Bose need for TV room: large around 500 sq feet: planning to connect this to a sonos system and use speakers (Bose mini cubes?) in Living /Dining and bedrooms

What can I buy in Delhi??? Where. is sonos available in Delhi

Any suggestion would be very useful

Thanks

PresBoss:

Your posting are very confusing to me at least. Here you are asking for a Sonos Dealer. Elsewhere you have written you are already using a Sonos System with Bose speakers. (301 etc)

Can you please clarify what exactly you have in the complete chain?

Source > Amplification > Distribution > Speakers

Also please define what additional elemenst you are looking for,

Cheers

 

[presboss]

Clarifying...

1. looking for a good home theater package to buy in Delhi, with some idea of approximate costs. Have looked at bose system, V30. Is there a better option with Harmon etc.

The Home is planned to have a HT package in TV room, and have music in Living/Dining, and 3 additional rooms.

Do not care for Bose system 48 (impossible to load up all the music into Bose, very limiting ). hence am looking at some combination of HT system and Sonos.
2. have used Sonos in home outside of India, with bose 301 and 901 speakers and enjoy the results
3. Asking if Sonos is available in India as yet.

Prefer to buy all components in India so they can be serviced easily

Would appreciate any help you all can provide

 

[ManiJ]

Saw in Bangalore Reliance Digital the Onkyo HT-S5105 model priced at Rs. 29990 (MRP 36K). Maybe a better option than HT-3100 priced at Rs. 19990 (with free Sony DVD) at the same place. I presume the same offers would be available at Delhi too.

Product details are at:

Onkyo Europe - HT-S5105

>>>NEW!!: Onkyo HT-S5105<<< - AVForums.com

Hey Piyush,

I am also looking for a HT package approximately below 30 K.
I have spent two months till now searching in Pune but could not finalized.
The one that I liked most is Onkyo HT3100.

Have you purchased any HT ? If yes, Pl. let me know ur inputs.

That will be really helpfull to me.

Thanks,

Amit Kothari
9422402031.

 

[girl21]

check out this:Onkyo HT-S5100

Saw in Bangalore Reliance Digital the Onkyo HT-S5105 model priced at Rs. 29990 (MRP 36K). Maybe a better option than HT-3100 priced at Rs. 19990 (with free Sony DVD) at the same place. I presume the same offers would be available at Delhi too.

Product details are at:

Onkyo Europe - HT-S5105

>>>NEW!!: Onkyo HT-S5105<<< - AVForums.com

 

[DR RAKESH ARORA]

Piyush,

As I said before that is a large ocean that will drag you in all directions. Unless you have a lot of time and patience, best is to go in for a HT Package. believe me it took me 18 months to decide my system, and by that time, technologies had changed.

And you have to consider the budget. With power conditioning, speakers, cables, DVD Player, etc, you could easily run up 100K to 150K for a entry level system.

If you are yet interested, SIGH !!!!! Here we go again !!!!!!

dear venkat please advice me about sound box. i just saw it today only. will u suggest me to buy it. model no is hts 8140 & hts 6100. which among the 2 is good to buy. actually i have very limited space to install a proper 5.1 ht system . please give me yr mobile no if u dont mind.