Well, I picked up a new toy today and I'm absolutely loving it. It set me back a bit on my new computer, but I'll be able to live with my current one. My new toy is...the Onkyo HT-S570 home theater system. Basically, I wanted a 5.1 speaker system for my temporary room while the new one is being built (and also for my new room when it's done), but I really couldn't find any good deals. I didn't want to get a home theater in a box since I really didn't trust the quality, but after seeing this one advertised in the Fry's ad for today and reading the reviews online, I couldn't pass it up.
The system itself sells for $300 at most places on the internet and that was the original price at Fry's, but with a discount of $100, the deal was almost too good to pass up. I had been researching speaker systems for a couple weeks and for a complete 5.1 speaker setup I figured it would have cost at least $250 for a good set and much more if I wanted to build it speaker-by-speaker. For the $200 of the HT-S570, I not only got a very nice 5.1 speaker system (high quality 100 watt speakers with wooden enclosures - not cheap plastic) along with an acceptable receiver. The receiver itself is quite capable of decoding Dolby Digital and DTS but lacks THX decoding which is something I'd like to upgrade to in the future. Also, the system itself is only capable of 5.1 whereas the newest systems range all the way up to 8.1 (8 speakers + woofer).
As it is though, this small room I'm temporarily inhabiting is completely filled with sound while watching even the most inane television shows and almost overwhelmed when presented with a DVD (such as Resident Evil: Apocalypse). While I was adding the receiver to my setup here, I also took the time to upgrade the wiring, adding component video from my DVD to my TV and Digital Coaxial from the DVD to the receiver. The picture quality on DVDs is noticeably better and well, the sound just kicks ass right now. I would just like to add a couple more satellite speakers from Onkyo to match this system so if I ever upgrade to a more capable receiver (6.1 or higher w/THX decoding), I'll have speakers that match the others in the system.
On a side note, tonight's CSI:Miami was amazing. It was an hour and a half long and simply riveting. From start to finish, there wasn't a dull moment, and even though my new speaker system did add to the ambiance, the episode on a whole was like watching a movie. I usually leave CSI:Miami episodes on my DVR for a while (though that does have to do with me previously being busy most Monday nights), but tonight's episode was one that shouldn't be missed. Now...if I could just catch up on those 6 Lost episodes I've got saved up.
URL: Onkyo USA Home Theater Products
The system itself sells for $300 at most places on the internet and that was the original price at Fry's, but with a discount of $100, the deal was almost too good to pass up. I had been researching speaker systems for a couple weeks and for a complete 5.1 speaker setup I figured it would have cost at least $250 for a good set and much more if I wanted to build it speaker-by-speaker. For the $200 of the HT-S570, I not only got a very nice 5.1 speaker system (high quality 100 watt speakers with wooden enclosures - not cheap plastic) along with an acceptable receiver. The receiver itself is quite capable of decoding Dolby Digital and DTS but lacks THX decoding which is something I'd like to upgrade to in the future. Also, the system itself is only capable of 5.1 whereas the newest systems range all the way up to 8.1 (8 speakers + woofer).
As it is though, this small room I'm temporarily inhabiting is completely filled with sound while watching even the most inane television shows and almost overwhelmed when presented with a DVD (such as Resident Evil: Apocalypse). While I was adding the receiver to my setup here, I also took the time to upgrade the wiring, adding component video from my DVD to my TV and Digital Coaxial from the DVD to the receiver. The picture quality on DVDs is noticeably better and well, the sound just kicks ass right now. I would just like to add a couple more satellite speakers from Onkyo to match this system so if I ever upgrade to a more capable receiver (6.1 or higher w/THX decoding), I'll have speakers that match the others in the system.
On a side note, tonight's CSI:Miami was amazing. It was an hour and a half long and simply riveting. From start to finish, there wasn't a dull moment, and even though my new speaker system did add to the ambiance, the episode on a whole was like watching a movie. I usually leave CSI:Miami episodes on my DVR for a while (though that does have to do with me previously being busy most Monday nights), but tonight's episode was one that shouldn't be missed. Now...if I could just catch up on those 6 Lost episodes I've got saved up.
URL: Onkyo USA Home Theater Products
posted by Blake | 23:14
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