Great sound at low price. many inputs. looks cool.

cheap speaker wire in box, small remote. center channel a bit weak.

after about a month of research, and mainly due to the comments and reviews i've found about this system here and in a few online home theater pages, i found that this unit was just what i was looking for in terms of performance and price.

i couldn't be more happy with the system. sound is crystal clear and seems to hang in the air- it actually feels like the bullets are passing over your head in the opening of pvt. ryan, the crowd noise in the colleseum in gladiator is unbelievable. even quieter movies sound great- i got perfect murder by accident, and i was amazed at how good it sounded. i enjoy watching movies at home now more than in the theater- more comfortable, and the sound is just as good or even better!

as others have stated, i bought some 16 gauge wire immediately and tossed the stuff that came with the system. the included sub is fantastic, and i haven't really been able to test it to the fullest since i live in an apartment. the receiver handles DTS, DD5.1, pro logic, and 2-channel stereo (which i use when playing cds). the center channel makes audio cd's sound a little hollow, but bear in mind most were not designed for a 4 or 5 channel environment.

many have complained about the remote. while it's nothing great, it's not horrible either. all you really need it for is to adjust the volume. i got the Radio Shack 15-1994 remote which is the best remote i have ever seen. controls my tv, dvd, cd carousel, receiver, and vcr. has learning and backlit keypad, for $30.

lack of DSP on the receiver means little if anything to me--i don't understand why it'd be necessary. the main goal of HT equipment is to reproduce what the movie's creators wanted the picture to sound like, not to warp it with some ridiculous signal processing.

5 stars for the value, can't find anything better for the price. overall, a 4-star, since it isn't the highest-end stuff. go blow a grand or two if you want that, but if you have a smaller space (like my apt), and want great sound, this system is hard to beat. i'd put this system up against many higher priced ones anyday.

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I am happy with everything - for the price.

not yet.

Great value. Nothing can be better than this system.

None

Kenwood 503 is choice.

Excellent Value, SUBWOOFER, SUBWOOFER, SUBWOOFER!

Poor speaker wire

For the money this system is very well put together. Set-up was fairly easy, although, I do think the manual could have been better written. After my wife and I set this system up in place of our old system, we threw in "Saving Private Ryan" on DVD and the difference was amazing. It actually sounded like bullets were passing through the living room! The Subwoofer is incredible to say the least. When it hits, you know it. Our friends thought our old system was pretty good and now they are going out to buy this one!

When we bought this system we also bought Monster Cable speaker wire on the advice of several reviewers on and off this site. When we first hooked up the system we used the "stock" wire first to see if there really was a difference. We listened to a couple of chapters from "Saving Private Ryan", then switched to the Monster Cable, and watched those same chapters again. The difference was really there and the Monster Cable made a HUGE improvement in the sound of the system. As with most other reviewers, I fully recommend the replacement of the stock wire with Monster Cable. I personally don't think that the remote is that bad, but please take into account that I am used to the remotes of other Kenwood systems that I own.

The available ports are more than adequate for connection to your existing components and future upgrades. This is a system that will not be obsolete for a long time and is sturdy enough to last that long. For the money, this is one of the best systems out there and is even better than some of the more "high end" systems available. I fully recommend this system to anyone looking for a quality system for a decent price.

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RCA, Kenwood

Bass that rocks, easy setup, great for small apartments

center channel, speaker wire, who cares about the remote?

Everyone that has reviewed the system has already made valid points on the good and the bad. Overall this is a great system. If you have a small confined listening area, like a small den or a studio apartment, get ready to be blown away. Everyone mentions how bad the speaker wire is. Can anyone here recommend a good gauge speaker wire from monster that would be good for this system? I plan on upgrading the front and center channels soon and want wire that will be able to handle an upgrade. Feel free to email me. Regards!

Amazing sound quailty, the sub is great feature!!, nice price. very easy to set up.

remote sucks crap!!!!

so far im really enjoying this system. works great in DTS mode. love the sub feature, shakes the neighbours!.

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none

Subwoofer, Receiver, Price

Wires, Control

Got this gem after reading positive recommendations from most. I'd have to say that the positive reviews are correct. This is my first Home Theater system so I can't compare it to others, but I think it sounds great. I was able to enjoy a limited part of Toy Story yesterday and the sound during the THX intro was awesome. For the price, I have not heard any system this good.

Unlike some I had very little trouble understanding the manual, and the one sheet of quick instructions to setup the sytem was quite useful. I did not like the speaker wires that came with this system though. I find them too thin and too short in length. I already had purchased replacements, as I knew this was the case. If you go to get the system get the necessary length of 16 gauge wire at the store at the same time. The control of the system by remote and the front panel is a little awkward too, and will take some getting used to.

Over all this is a real winner for those who are new to Home Theater and are on a more limited budget.

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Clear and crisp sound

Speaker wires

I have been reading AudioReview.com for about 4 months searching for a combination of home A/V equipment. I have a DTV and a 32" JVC D Series TV. I needed the audio equipment to start the beginning of a full home theater setup.

I had my eye on the Sony STR-DE945 for a receiver and the Polk RM6600 with the 100 W Sub. Total Price for this combo would have been about $1,500. But I felt I had to pay it.

Did a little more looking at Home Theater in a box solution and found the Kenwood reviews here. I have to say they were spot on. I am totally enjoying my setup and I haven't yet hooked up the DVD! I know that will be the final say but I am super pleased to date.

As far as the setup I have an SVideo to the TV from the DTV converted and a digital connection to the receiver from the DTV converter. I bought Monster Speaker and Subwoofer wires to replace the set that came with it.

Totally recommend this setup to anyone getting started out. For the price it is great. I love this site and visit it for each home a/v electronics purchase I make.

Sound quality for price

Speaker wires, remote, parts of manual

Bought it at Circuit City for 479.00 + tax and added speaker cables (100'). Went to Frys for extra AV/Sound patch cords and DV Audio Patch, Saw it on sale for 399.00 CC Matched price next day. Sales people somewhat helpfull, but I did not have enough patch cords to make it work. Still having a bit of a problem with getting stereo out of TV and trying to set up tuner is somewhat of a pain. May actually need to read and re-read manual and rewire hookups. Remote does not work with my new TV or cable box and the buttons are small. It may just take getting used to it. BUT THE SOUND ON DVD!!! Even with an old CD (The WHO Live at Leeds) this thing rocks! Tried (The Doors w/ V. Kilmer) DVD and WOW!!! I am glad I found this site and read the reviews.... Get the better speaker cable and you will be set. Also make sure you have plenty of the right patch cords needed. Now I need a new TV/Audio Stand and some speaker stands for the two front and all will be fine.

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Ease of Setup, Sound Quality, Price

"Universal" Remote

This Home Theater system is a steal for the casual listeners out there. If you are looking for a good sounding system with plenty of inputs, this is definitely one to look at. The only setup problem that I ran into is one that was mentioned below. After you get everything hooked up, make sure to set the front speakers to NORMAL. For whatever reason, the default setting on the receiver is LARGE. When set to large, there is no sound output to the subwoofer (at least while listening to the stereo for sure). This package fits perfectly with a large Entertainment Center (one that will accomodate a 36" TV).

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