Cheap Home Theater Deals

I love Bose. I used to sing their praises like a blind follower."The best audio anywhere! It is unbeatable!"Well, the audio is awesome, but their video is crap.The Lifestyle 48 can't play DVD or Netflix or anything without something going wrong with the video.Multiple calls to customer service is making me wish I didn't pay thousands of dollars for this.Please. I've learned from other Amazon reviews in the past, BUY SOMETHING ELSE!

I will make this review short and sweet and avoid any arguments with true audiophiles who will go on endlessly about specs that I could care less about. I gave this system four out of five stars for two reasons: 1) The high price tag; and 2) There are better sounding systems for the price. I bought this system to replace my aging 1995 Bose Lifestyle 12 system which was incompatible with current technology. The reasons I bought this system is that it is the most unobtrusive, sleek, and user-friendly home theater system I have ever seen. And it sounds pretty damn good, too. I have my Apple Time Capsule, Apple TV, iPod dock, WD-TV Live, Playstation 3, DirecTV DVR, Sony record player, and Epson projector all plugged into the Bose V35 without a hitch, and all the inputs are HDMI, save the record player. I project onto a 110" fixed screen and I could not be happier. It is true that better sound can be found with a lesser or similar price tag, as Bose is famous for "enhancing" sound, but you will not find a better overall home theater system for the price--that much I can guarantee. If you want small speakers instead of bulky monstrosities, easy-to-use and compatible components instead of fumbling around behind a huge receiver with a million inputs, and the ability to update current technologies instead of being stuck in the stone age, then look no further. You have found your system.

Though not easy to set up, these speakers are worth the effort. We started these out with some music (Hendrix, Chopin, Brubeck), and were immediately struck by the generous and detailed sound stage. At the same, the midrange didn't sound nearly as clean as you'd expect from speakers in this price range. Within the first 30-40 minutes, though, the speakers had opened up to an extent that had to be heard to be believed, resulting in greatly improved overall sound quality. Later we tried HT, and found, for example, that softer tones were rendered with exceptional delicacy, while ample "slam" was delivered when needed. In a smaller room, you can definitely get by without a sub. The only thing I'd add is that the overall sound is a little on the bright side, so you'll probably want to steer clear of brighter-sounding receivers/amps. Also, we were using the satellite floor stands for the L/R and the small center stand, all of which I recommend.

This is a good, simple, one box solution for surround sound. It was bought as our vacation home AV system. Very easy installation with very good instructions. Since bluray has become the standard the V lifestyle systems are a better choice than the DVD based lifestyle systems. I picked up a Sony BD player for 150 dollars! Nice, deep and powerful bass. As in most Bose products the highs and mids are less than crystal clear but good enough for all around music listening and movies. I bought at a steep discount at Sam's ($750) which was only slightly more than the BOSE 321 system. At that price, it was simply a steal! It has plenty of clean power for our 50x40 great room (20 foot ceiling), in fact, it can fill the entire house with effortless sound. Operation is similarly simple. The remote is well designed and controls your other components, however, it is unlighted. Overall, a great system from the installation, connectivity and operational point of view which offers good sound quality, it should satisfy all but audiophile ears. If you can find one with a similar discount don't pass it up.

I hate to upgrade my equipment because after 10 years of owning a piece, I find that the audible improvements are not very audible at all. However, with the case of the Marantz AV7005, I find that when I pick a song I'm familiar with, I end up listening to the whole dang CD again. I'm hearing clarity never heard before. The vocals shine though this unit, and the ability of this preamp to float every instrument in its own space is incredible. For the record, I'm using Paradigm Reference speakers and Sunfire Signature amplification. No fancy smantchy cables, just a well built dedicated room with proper dimensions and logical absorbtion and defraction. Or is that refraction? Whatever. I read about people upgrading all the time, and it might be a desease, but with new processors always changing the way they do things, we aren't given much choice. I hope I'm done upgrading for a while. I just want to enjoy my system. Did I mention that this unit, with Audessy and the new surround modes is totally engaging? Pinpoint localization, and when people whisper in scenes, You are never, never, backing up the movie to hear what they said. Even when everyone in the house is sleeping, and the volume is turned right down.

I have owned several Yamaha receivers going back many years. My latest was the RX-V1, purchased about 10 years ago, but she finally bit the dust -- too expensive to repair and her technology too old to compete...hence, time to upgrade. I like buying Top-of-the-Line gear because one usually gets his money's worth. So, if the RX-A3010 is truly Yamaha's finest, then at least provide me with a printed Owner's Manual...the lack of one really gripes me. No matter how you slice it, this is a very complicated receiver to set up -- trying to interpret a low resolution PDF File on a 24" iMac, originally written in Japanese then poorly translated to English, is a stretch I would prefer not to make! Can I at least have a printed manual please?I have yet to figure out how to hook up an additional Zone of speakers on my lanai and pool area, but I did manage to configure my Klipsch speaker system for 5.1 surround, the .1 being a 15" Klipsch high-powered subwoofer that will rumble your innards. My mains and surrounds are all matching RF-7s, with a large RC-7 center channel. This receiver has a tremendous amount of power so use it wisely!With that out of the way, this is a very fine receiver; once you muddle through the amazingly complex setup you will no doubt be very impressed with the audio/video capabilities this device offers. I find the direct internet connection to be very easy to use, easy to update firmware, and a real enhancement to overall entertainment value. The iPhone…

I had Onyx and bought high end speakers--but the sound for TV was never "right". NOW IT IS!!It also does good things to video quality (upgrades 480/720 to 1080). The controller controls all your video /audio inputs.It DOES NOT let you shut off your TV and just listen to another audio source just as background music...this is a design flaw if you ask me. I'd like to set up Pandora on my Blu Ray and just listen, but hate to waste the 'trons to have the TV on when no one is watching. This is just STUPID for the system engineers....OK OK, I admit that I am probably picky...but I am a nuclear engineer and I KNOW that it is just simply STUPID not to anticipate this need by consumers.It DOES NOT let you use TWO remote controls...I know; why would I want to do that? Well, those of us who are married and want to have it loud or soft depending on whether or not we're on the phone with Daddy....let's just say that Bose engineers are pretty stupid not to add a "key code" to each remote/console so that you can have multiple remotes and still not control the neighbors' TV (assuming he was smart enough to buy a bose system)--BTW, that was the LAME excuse given to me by the customer service rep when I called to see why I couldn't set up two remotes for the system (I bought a second one so my wife and I could stop fighting over the remote). Now I have a second remote that makes a great paper weight but is just that useful...to say I'm irritated is to understate my attitude.These…

The first time I heard these speakers I was sold. KEF managed to create a beautiful looking thin line product that produces a clean, accurate and transparent sound equal to much more expensive systems. My living room is almost 20' square, has two large open doorways and large windows with little wall space. The sofa is against one wall at right angles to the front speakers, so I have a challenging setup. I started with the T205 system and quickly realized that the back speakers just weren't producing adequate sound. The extra $200.00 was well spent. KEF calls the sound from the T305 "burly" and that is an apt description. I drive the system at low power most of the time and it produces a deep full rich sound that fills the room.I didn't mount the speakers on the wall, instead I used the supplied stands to place them within six inches of the wall so that they have the resonance necessary to fill the room. Driving them is an Onkyo HT-RC160, not the most powerful receiver, but it sturdily delivers the power the speakers need with low to no distortion. Any system can play loud, but to get deep rich sound at low sound levels is a treat. As KEF says, these are "exceptionally slim profile speakers that generate all the intricacy, spaciousness and dynamic range of a high end conventional design".Many satellite systems I looked at produced painfully bright highs to compensate for lack of dynamic range, and the bass was muddy and the subwoofers seemed non-existent or…

I have been running the Marantz SR6006 for about 5 months now, and I am very pleased with my purchase. I am currently running all ELAC speakers FS-247, BS-244 and CC-241. For the sub, I am running an SVS-PB13-ULTRA. For my outside patio in ZONE 2, I am running a couple of KEF Ventura 6. The sound produced from this system is, simply put, incredible. I hear things in music now that I've been listening to for years that I have never heard before.The Audyssey MULTEQ-XT made setting up the speakers and distance levels a breeze. I use the Dynamic EQ, but not the Dynamic Volume. After I got the basic settings from the Audyssey, I tweaked it to my liking.Airplay works fantastic on this receiver. One great thing about this is that I can control everything on the receiver through my iPhone, iPad, or MacBook from anywhere inside or outside my house. So if I'm sitting out back while someone inside is watching TV, from my phone I can turn on the patio speakers and listen to Pandora without interrupting the TV watching inside. The receiver is powerful enough to power a Blueray movie through surround sound, output to the TV, and separately power two speakers outside without the need of an additional amplifier.I would be writing a book if I reviewed everything this receiver is capable of. The sound quality, video output, and functionality of the SR6006 are all excellent. You can set the receiver up to run the best settings it detects, or you can tweak them yourself to just about any level that…

I bought this to replace a pioneer elite vs-31 think I am getting a upgrade.It is very easy to set up, network radio is disappointing though as it is canned to several few preselected commercial stations, either fee based or commercial based.The big disappointment for me is that the unit I bought(not from amazon, from newegg) will randomly shut itself off during movie playing, this is simply unacceptable for a $1500 unit. To add insult to injury, the place I bought it from(newegg) charged me $225 for returning a defective unit.Buyers be ware.Update:I checked all my connections with Multimeters, no bad connections any where. Changed to Dennon 4311ci, same wiring, no such issue what so ever.Some other issues I also experienced with this Yamaha receiver:HDMI audio drop out, when this happens, I need to go back to HDMI set up, redo hdmi settings.HDMI audio drop out seems to be a common issue for Yamaha Receivers.Random static noise when watching blu-ray, when this happens, the noise can be heard every 2-3 minutes, lasting several second. This can be fixed by turning the receiver off then on again.

Excellent music and movie sound, great bass response and clarity of music sound. Highly recommended. Subwoofer can be placed in any room spot and still get powerful high notes.

Pros -The sound is amazing. Prior to this I had a Samsung All in One BluRay 5.1 surround system and I'm baffled by how much better this sounds.The receiver has every kind of input you'll ever need.Cons -The SubWoofer is huge and the receiver is big as well. This was almost a deal breaker with my girlfriend.It didn't come with enough speaker wire to reach the back surrounds. My living room is average sizeOverall I'm very satisfied with my purchase. Just know that the system is going to take up a decent amount of space.

I previously had multiple components, receiver and lots of tangled cords. I was looking to downsize without giving up quality and eliminate the clutter. I was not disappointed. This is a great system. I was surprised, however, that it took so much work to set up the new Bose system. It is not 'plug n play'. I ended up spending several hours to connect the components. Once set up it is great and I recommend this system. I am very pleased.

27 of 33 people found the following review helpful 5.0 out of 5 starsyou have to hear it to believe it: flawless to perfection!, August 30, 2006 By Paul Zaltsman (LOS ANGELES, CA) - See all my reviews(REAL NAME)  when i was shopping for a new system i had no intention spending that much for a system or speakers that is, and if i did i always thought i would be bying a bose, but once i heard it, it blew me away. prior to my purchase i compared the kef speakers with the top of the line bose system in a store, and honestly, the kef speakers had no competition. i also like the design of these speakers, the subwoofer is unbelievable! if you're going to buy these speakers i highly recommend getting the harman kardon av 340 reciever, in order to get maximum performance.

This is the most expensive 2.1 home theater by a wide margine yet does not offer HDMI 1.4. This means it is incapable of processing a 3D signal for passthrough to the TV. Simply unacceptable for a system of this price when others offer this functionality for 1/8 the price!UPDATE: Bose has released an update to allow passthrough of 3D content. However it is still lacking other great features of HDMI 1.4 such as ARC (Audio Return Channel). Updated from 1 star to 3, will go to 5 if this system is ever released with true HDMI 1.4 compatibility.