Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)I bought this system 3 weeks ago to replace a cheap home theater system I had. I was in the market for a decent system with 5-disc system. After months of research, I have decided on this sytem - even though I couldn't find any reviews. You can get detailed specifications on Panasonic's Web site or elsewhere on the Internet.
What I liked so far:
1) FM/AM presetting can be automatic. However, living in a big city, it found so many radio stations that it ran out of all presets before even it got to my favorite stations. Manual setting is pretty easy.
2) VCR rewinding is high-speed. I used to use a rewinder, but this one rewinds much too quickly.
3) DVD quality and sound quality exceed my expectations - but that doesn't mean anything to you. I never liked my music/movies too loud anyway. System automatically sets subwoofer level at 4 (high) for DVD and at 2 for music CDs - which can be easily changed. We watched Incredibles at level 4, but volume at a decent level. Sounds from ending scenes were way too much realistic for us (and for our children).
4) Remote is very functional and feels good. Some features need reading the manual.
5) FM reception is very good.
Things that I don't like:
1) Doesn't play MP3 songs written to a DVD disc. My older (cheap) system used to do that. Big disappointment for me.
2) Manual says that I could randomize between different audio CDs. I couldn't get it do that among MP3 disks. It might work on regular audio CDs, but I haven't tried that yet.
3) Only one set of input jacks. I have HD receiver and a cable receiver. I have connected HD receiver right now and cable goes directly to TV. I am somewhat disappointed with that. Fortunately VCR is built-in. When you want external signal, sytem should be put in VCR mode with AV selected (described in the manual).
4) Connecting wires to sub-woofer and speakers is difficult. Holes are very small and inserting a multi-strand wire in that hole was a big challenge for me. Wires that come with the system may work fine, but we have pre-wired surround sound in the room which has multi-strand wires.
Other:
1) Manual clearly says not to push the disk trays in (use the close button)
2) Disk trays look and feel like delicate
3) Cable that comes with the system can be used as component cables
4) Manual could have been better
5) Best Buy carries them - if you want to look at it**Updated on 7/3/2005 **
1) It does randomize between different CDs. However, setting that up was a challenge for me.
2) It does not play MPEG movies. BIG turn off for me.
3) I have an extremely scratched DVD. All the other DVD players skip/freeze on that disc. But, this DVD player played it fine.
4) Overall, still happy with the system.
**Updated on 9/13/2005 **
I recently encountered the same problem Donald (another reviewer) had experienced. DVD dialogue volume becomes very low or diminishes. However, MP3 music and CDs play fine. So, I called Panasonic. The lady _quickly_ told me to refer to page 41 of the manual and set the 'Center Focus.' I tried that with skepticism, but it worked. Now, the system is back to normal. My overall satisfaction is still high because I found some cool features as I am also finding problems like this. One such cool feature is the ability to search for a song in an MP3 CD of hundreds of songs.
** Update: 9/29/2008
Display at the front died (like it did to many other users), but I am continuing to use it. Yes, it is hard to use it without the display on the unit, but on-screen-display (OSD) on the TV helps to some extent. Replacing the unit is such a time consuming process that I am willing to put up with the inconvenience of no display.
** Update: 6/24/2010
The DVD player quit working. It takes too long to read the disk and then displays the error message "Check the Disk". I have tried DVDs, MP3 CDs, music CDs, etc. and the problem persists. Customer help didn't even try to help - he just pointed me to the local service center. My next DVD player will not be a Panasonic.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Panasonic SC-HT830V 5-Disc DVD/VCR Combo Home Theater System
The Panasonic SC-HT830V Home Theater System can handle all your entertainment needs, thanks to a combo DVD/VCR player with an integrated amplifier and AM/FM receiver. It delivers 470 watts of total power output (800 watts peak) and 5.1-channel surround sound through its two tower front speakers (with height-adjustable stands), two satellite surround speakers, one center channel speaker, and one dual-unit active subwoofer (which has a built-in amplifier). The surround, satellite, and center channel speakers are all magnetically shielded so as not to interfere with your TV's video signal and are wall mountable. This system also features built-in Dolby Digital, DTS, and Dolby Pro Logic II decoders.
The 5-disc DVD player/changer is compatible with a wide range of disc formats, including DVD-Audio, DVD-RAM, DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, and CD-R/RW, as well as HighMAT, JPEG, MP3 and WMA file formats. The incorporated High-Performance Media Access Technology (HighMAT) provides enhanced the method of storing, arranging and playing back personal digital photo, music and video collections on recordable discs such as CD-RW media. Other features include a 10-bit, 54 MHz DAC (digital to analog converter), cinema mode, dialogue enhancer, and Depth Enhancer feature (for startling depth and true-to-life skin tones, as well as a soft, movie background focus). It also features a 4-head, Hi-Fi VCR with commercial skip feature, and an AM/FM tuner with 30 total presets (10 AM, 20 FM). It provides the following connections:
Composite Video Out: 1
Composite Video In: 1
S-Video Out: 1
Component Video Out: 1
Analog Audio In: 2
RF In: 1
RF Out: 1
Headphone: 1
What's in the Box 5-disc DVD/VCR combo with integrated amplifier/receiver, 1 subwoofer, 2 front speakers, adjustable stands, 2 surround speakers, 1 center channel, remote control, speaker cords, printed instructions
Click here for more information about Panasonic SC-HT830V 5-Disc DVD/VCR Combo Home Theater System
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