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Toshiba SD-43HT Progressive-Scan DVD Home Theater System

Toshiba SD-43HT Progressive-Scan DVD Home Theater System

List Price: $299.99
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good for DVD, but poor for music
Review: This system is definitely a good value for those wanting to add home theater in a small room. It is worth keeping in mind that this system doesn't have as much power as higher-priced systems, and the speakers and remote are made of a somewhat cheap-looking plastic. That said, it does a great job of filling the living room of my one-bedroom apartment.

Where this system falls short I think is in its ability to handle music on audio CDs. For some reason, no matter which settings I try (regular stereo or tweaking it with Dolby Pro Logic) audio CDs sound flat and lackluster. The problem seems to be that the included front speakers are very small and don't do a good job handling the mid-ranges common in rock music. The subwoofer tends to dominate and creates a muddy effect. I plan to replace the front speakers with a better set, but this is slightly complicated by the non-standard connectors on the back of this system (a plug instead of the usual "pinchers").

The DVD player is first-rate. The picture quality is outstanding and I particularly like the quality of the picture when scanning (fast-forwarding) -- something which a lot of DVD players don't do well. Set up and operation are also a real breeze. This system is much easier to use than some others that I've tried.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Good while it lasts -- but they don't last
Review: Up until a couple days ago I would have rated this home theater system at 4 or 5 stars. It has component video out and DVDs look great on my HDTV set. The sound is pretty good, not very loud however. The subwoofer puts out very weak bass but the surround sound works well. The DVD tray takes a very long time to open. The reason why I rated this at one star is that it lasted only 3 months longer than the one-year warranty. Others have mentioned the problem: you power up the system, it displays "HELLO" as usual. Then the display reads "PROTECTION", followed by "GOODBYE", and then the system shuts itself down. In my case, the system was working fine and then out of the blue it shut itself down. There is no reason for this to have happened. I called Toshiba and they had me power down and then power up my system. It didn't help. Then they had me unplug every wire from the system and let it sit for 1/2 hour, and try it again. No luck. They gave me the number for a repair service, but using the repair service will cost almost as much as the system does. When a piece of electronics can barely last longer than the warranty, you know you have a piece of junk on your hands. There is no other way to put it. I intend to join the class action suit. I have purchased a Samsung HT-DS610 from Circuit City and I hope it is of better quality.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: also "Protection" freeze
Review: We got this system in June, and although it worked great for a few months, this weekend it froze in the "Hello - Protection - Goodbye" described in other reviews here. Reading others' experiences, I expect we'll just replace this with something that doesn't have so many dissatisfied customers.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: First home theater system
Review: While shopping for a HT system, I found many that were cheaper than this, but had worse reviews. The Toshiba had the best reviews and for just a few dollars more. While skeptical of reviews because most reviews are from people who have had bad experiences, the Toshiba seemed to be the only one with really good reviews. Once I received the system it did not take me long to set up. Since my living room is not that big, the supplied cables were just fine. I was absolutely amazed at the sound quality. Everything from CDs, CDs with MP3s and radio stations all sound great. The first DVD I watched was Spiderman and the sound and picture were outstanding. I have not had a problem with the disc tray opening, but the unit does get warm quickly so you will want to make sure that it has plenty of ventilation. So far I am extremely pleased with the setup and operation of this product.


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