which makes a better home theater system ..kenwood or sony

[normajean]

I only have $300 to spend

any input is appreciated!

 

[Aves]

Kenwood HTB-205 is what I would go with.


KEY FEATURES
- 5 Full-Range Magnetically-Shielded Speakers
- 8" Subwoofer
- Complete Surround Sound System Including Receiver, Speakers and Subwoofer
- Dolby Digital, DTS and Dolby Pro Logic II Surround Sound
- Kenwood System Remote
- Surround Power: 100 Watts x 6

 

[N8Magic]

Specs?

 

[NetworkDad]

Nakamichi

 

[MazerRackham]

Neither! for $300 I would get this....



Or something from Yamaha in that range...

 

[glen]

I paid $300 for the wood panel my Subs are mounted on.

 

[Aves]

Are you looking to get just a reciever for $300? Or the speakers and reciever?

 

[kgraeme]

Are you trying to buy a complete system with speakers for that? If so, then it really doesn't matter. $300 is what I would spend on a receiver alone and another $700 or so on speakers.

I have a Sony receiver right now and it's fine. My next will probably be a Marantz.

 

[N8Magic]

I would go out for the Kenwood, simply because i've yet to hear a good set of Sony speakers.

 

[RGN]

Dude, I fart at Kenwood. Sony is a Record Label against Mp3's, not going there... Not to mention that their receivers soud quality leave a little to be desired. I'd wait a little while and buy this. It's only $100 more and about 100 times better sonic-wise. I just picked up the AVR520, and it blew me away. I had an AVR30 From H/K that kicked in the teeth of many other's....

 

[kgraeme]

Harmon Kardon does make some sweet systems.

 

[yellowperil]

I got a refurbed Kenwood HTB-503 from uBid for around $300 shipped last year. It was one of the best deals I ever got, the receiver and subwoofer alone were worth the price. I don't think they are available anymore, and the HTB-504 is around $500. Buy.com has the JBL NSP-1 for $250 shipped and there is a $15 coupon floating around for new customers. It doesn't include the receiver or sub though.

 

[normajean]

These are the 2 I am looking at
they are both on sale for 269.99 at cc w/free shipping.
most people who bought the kw said it good base, (100 watt sub) but recommend getting the sony.

While the sony has a 50 watt sub and everyone who bought, it loves it.

I personally love bass, so I am torn between the 2.

are there any specs I should really pay attention to?

thanks for the help!


Kenwood Home Theater System
Brand/Model: KEN HTB205
Warranty:Months
Labor/Parts 12/12
Front Power 200 Watts
Center Power 100 Watts
Surround Power 200 Watts
Subwoofer Power 100 Watts
Bandwidth @ Rated Power 40Hz - 20kHz
THD @ Rated Power 0.7%
Dolby® Pro Logic NO
Dolby® Pro Logic II YES
DTS YES
Dolby® Digital YES
# Digital Inputs 3
# Digital Optical Inputs
# S-Video Inputs 0
# Component Video Inputs 4
Disc Player Formats N/A
Disc Capacity N/A
Front Speaker Type 3'' Full-Range
Center Speaker Type 3'' Full-Range
Rear Speaker Type 3'' Full-Range
Subwoofer Type 8'' woofer with ported enclosure
Remote Type Universal Pre-Programmed with Joystick Control
Front Speaker Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) Unavailable
Center Speaker Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) Unavailable
Rear Speaker Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) Unavailable
Subwoofer Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) Unavailable
Electronics Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) Unavailable
Other Features One-touch speaker connectors; Balance control; 40 AM/FM presets; Built-in wall-mount brackets for satellite speakers; Fluorescent display; 5 DSP modes; Headphone jack



or


Sony Home Theater System
Brand/Model: SON HTDDW740
Specification
Sony Home Theater System
Warranty:Months
Labor/Parts 12/12
Front Power 160 Watts
Center Power 80 Watts
Surround Power 160 Watts
Subwoofer Power 50 Watts
Bandwidth @ Rated Power 20Hz - 20kHz
THD @ Rated Power 0.9%
Dolby® Pro Logic YES
Dolby® Pro Logic II NO
DTS YES
Dolby® Digital YES
# Digital Inputs 2
# Digital Optical Inputs
# S-Video Inputs Unavailable
# Component Video Inputs Unavailable
Disc Player Formats N/A
Disc Capacity N/A
Front Speaker Type Magnetically-shielded, one-way
Center Speaker Type Magnetically-shielded, slim, one-way
Rear Speaker Type Magnetically-shielded, one-way
Subwoofer Type Bass Reflex
Remote Type A/V Remote Commander® remote control
Front Speaker Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) 5.5 x 3.1 x 4.7
Center Speaker Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) 3.1 x 9.0 x 4.7
Rear Speaker Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) 5.5 x 3.1 x 4.7
Subwoofer Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) 12.8 x 10.7 x 15.9
Electronics Dimensions (H x W x D, Inches) 5.7 x 17.0 x 11.7
Other Features Digital Cinema Sound?; Tuner w/ 20 FM and 10 AM station presets

 

[N8Magic]

I would still go with the Kenwood, especially if you watch a lot of TV as it has Dolby Pro Logic II.

 

[Aves]

Originally posted by: N8Magic
I would still go with the Kenwood, especially if you watch a lot of TV as it has Dolby Pro Logic II.

Agreed.

 

[kgraeme]

I bought a Sony setup similar to that. Two weeks after buying it I was out shopping for speakers. Ended up buying Paradigm. The sub in that system looks a little better than the one I got though.

 

[normajean]

so what is the difference between dpl1 and dpl2?

 

[divinemartyr]

You can't get a home theater system for $300, period.

You might as well flush your money down the toilet, because it would be a better value than either of those systems.

dm

 

[N8Magic]

This site is packed with info and should answer most of your questions.

 

[Babbles]

Saw the title of this thread and thought neither. Go for Harmon Kardon, Onkyo, or Dennon.

But, for only $300, don't know what to tell you but to start saving your pennies. I good 'low end' reciever will cost twice that in itself.

 

[Aves]

Originally posted by: divinemartyr
You can't get a home theater system for $300, period.

You might as well flush your money down the toilet, because it would be a better value than either of those systems.

dm

That seems a little hard to believe. If that's all he can afford to spend then the Kenwood is what he should get.

It has to be better than nothing at all.

 

[N8Magic]

Originally posted by: aves2k

Originally posted by: divinemartyr
You can't get a home theater system for $300, period.

You might as well flush your money down the toilet, because it would be a better value than either of those systems.

dm

That seems a little hard to believe. If that's all he can afford to spend then the Kenwood is what he should get.

It has to be better than nothing at all.

Agreed.

Those Home-Theater-in-a-box systems aren't all that bad... i've heard ones that sound quite good (relatively speaking), and it's certainly better than watching a DVD using the TVs internal speakers. :disgust:

 

[glen]

I think you can get a superb reciever for $300

 

[divinemartyr]

Maybe better than using the TV's internal speakers on a 27" TV, but most big screens' internal speakers will beat most of those home theater systems, surround sound aside.

I guess it depends on what you're used to as well. If you are used to 27" internal TV speakers, yeah it might be worth your $300.

dm

 

[RGN]

Originally posted by: glen
I think you can get a superb reciever for $300

Yeah, but you _cannot_ be serious about a $300 HT setup. They will never be better than "it makes noise"