Rating: 
Summary: Works good, really, really good
Review: My brother set it up for me. It works really good, no complaints.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for DVD movies
Review: My first impresion was that the amplifier/receiver unit is very well built; it is heavy and has the kind of design that you get for an expensive system. The speakers do not look as elegant but not disappointing. But the subwoofer begs for a major improvement for its aesthetic appearance; it looked just big and unpolished.For movies and pop music, it offers excellent sound from the speakers. Again, the subwoofer did not quite meet my expectation. It lacks the punch as it's not a powered unit. The low frequency sound was loud but loose. I heard much 'mumbling' but not enough 'boom'. For classical music, it'a a mixed bag. Solo instrument performance such as the violin, cello or piano, sounds good. But for symphonic works, the system simply can not handle the complex mixture of sound. My feeling is that there is not enough 'bandwidth' to accommodate the sound. Picture quality is great. The only problems were with SVCD at the last few minutes on the disc. Perhaps the laser can not pick up overburnt region. Overall, I would say the system is worth the money, $250. You get a lot of functions for this compact system.
Rating: 
Summary: OK product, poor customer service from Toshiba
Review: My SD43HT froze in "protection" mode within six weeks of purchase. What ensued has been annoying: Amazon won't take it back after 30 days, every call to Toshiba customer services entails 20+ minutes on hold, and 5 calls to them have resulted in 5 totally different sets of instructions from the "service" advisors as to what do do with the darn thing (meaning they don't really know what to do!). The latest: it's going to go to a repair shop- we'll see how it comes out. This is my first experience with a Toshiba product- let's just say this has never happened to me with anything from Sony or Yamaha! By the way, when it worked, I liked it!
Rating:
Summary: a great region-free home theater system on a budget
Review: PROS: easy to set up; solid video and sound; handles layer changes well; region-free
CONS: limited A/V in/out; slow to open DVD tray; clunky 'time remaining/elapsed' displays I am satisfied Toshiba customer. I bought my first DVD player (a Toshiba SD-1200) in March 2000, and it's worked perfectly to this day. So when I felt it was time to upgrade to surround sound, it's no surprise that, after comparing prices and features of competing brands, I decided on the Toshiba SD-43HT. If you're like me, and you want to take advantage of Dolby 5.1 and DTS tracks on DVDs without spending thousands of dollars on equipment, this entry-level system is a great value at under $300. The color coded wires make it easy to set up right out of the box. The wires are 18 gauge and 50' in length for the rear speakers, 25' (I think) for the front. You may want to upgrade to a lower gauge and replace these generic wires when you can. However, the wire connecting the subwoofer is permanently soldered on--and is extremely difficult to untie when first setting up the system. Toshiba should have really used twist-ties when packaging this system! Some home theaters offer 60 or even 70 watts/speaker of power, but I think these 50 watts speakers provide plenty of volume for even a larger sized room. The experienced audiophile may balk at the quality of the sound, but for the typical listener, this system is more than sufficient. Listening to the DTS mix on my Hero DVD is an amazing experience. You'll never be able to watch a movie without surround again. Advanced users may also like to tweak controls like the midi/bass/treble controls, but there are none to be found on this system, only levels and delays. (I haven't played any CDs, but I would suggest the user who finds the subwoofer dominating his music to turn down the s/w level.) The Toshiba SD-43HT offers stunning video quality. I have an older television, so I can't comment on the SD-43HT's progressive scan, but I'm sure it's even *more* stunning. The unit has composite video, s-video, and component outs. I've never encountered layer changes on DVDs where I know layer changes to occur, such as in the LOTR Two Towers extended edition. As for features, the player fast forwards in 2x, 4x, 8x and 32x. It has a zoom capability of 1.5x, 2x and 3x. There's JPEG slideshow and mp3 playback, and AM/FM radio, all which I've never used. I did burn a 67 minute mpeg file as a VCD, using Nero, onto an Imation CD-RW and it played fine. Finally, if appearances are important, this unit is pretty stylish looking. The player/receiver is slim, and the speakers and subwoofer don't look cheap and bulky like some brands. It's silver and gray so it looks nice against white and black surroundings. Now, for some negatives: There is no audio out, which makes dubbing (Macrovision-less) DVDs impossible. But more importantly, you can't take the player to a friend's house, connecting with a regular composite A/V cable, and leave the speakers at home. Also, the system offers only a digital optical input. This is compatible with the Playstation 2 and XBox, but a lot of digital cable boxes are coaxial digital (they have orange plugs that say SPDIF) and if your cable box is like mine, you'll need to be buy a digital optical cable, a coaxial digital cable, and a coaxial digital to digital optical converter -- about $40-50 in all. It takes almost ten seconds for the DVD tray to open. My old Toshiba SD-1200 opened in two seconds. You will be standing in front of your player, holding a DVD, tapping your foot, and saying 'Open, already!' Another minor problem: the SD-1200 would give the title elapsed, title remaining, chapter elapsed and chapter remaining all with one press of the DISPLAY button. The Toshiba people were clearly trying to minimize the text on screen, but it's annoying to have to click the REMAIN button and cycle through all the time options. It also 'pops' the audio when it goes from one option to the next. Most surprisingly, this system can be made region-free with a simple hack. Turn the player on without a disc. Press 'Enter' on the remote, then '8-4-2-6-9,' 'Enter' again, and the player should turn off automatically. (If for some reason it doesn't, try turning it off yourself.) The next time you turn the player on, it should be region free. If doesn't, your player was manufactured differently. I tested using region 0, 1, 2 and 4 DVDs, interchanging them, and they all work perfectly -- no hiccups. The PAL colors look fine on my NTSC set. (If you have a PAL television, you can switch between NTSC and PAL output by pressing the Zoom button when the player's off. So yes, you can use the Toshiba SD-43HT in other countries, although I'd be interested to know how you skirt the voltage issues.) The Toshiba SD-43HT is terrific. Easy to set up. The quality of sound and video is the best for the price. The features match anything else on the market. It just looks great in your living room. And it's region-free. (I really just wished the player had a composite audio out, and the tray opened faster.) I recommend this system to anyone who's looking for a home theater experience on a budget!
Rating: 
Summary: Don't wate your money.
Review: Purchased this unit in January '04 and it failed within 60 days.
Unit was repaired under warranty. Used approximately six times and it failed again. Same problem. When I turn unit on it displays, HELLO PROTECTION GOODBYE, and shuts down. Toshiba has not been very helpful as they say this unit is out of warrantee. I am advised that if the same part has failed they will pay parts and labor, Otherwise they will pay for the part and I will have to pay half the labor charge. Will never purchase another Toshiba product again.
Rating:
Summary: Same "PROTECTON" problem. Caveat emptor!
Review: Received this in January this year (from Amazon). Worked fine until last month, then the same "PROTECTION" problem as described by others cropped up. I called Toshiba customer service, and as it's under the 1 year warranty, parts are covered, but labor for the repair will cost me $100 - $150. I wrote to Toshiba to point out that it's obviously a model-wide defect as evidenced below... we'll see what their customer service is like. If I get a good response, I might be willing to give Toshiba the benefit of the doubt next time. Maybe they got stuck with a bad batch of parts from a supplier or maybe they are second-sourcing the whole system from a remanufacturer and putting their label on it. We'll see.
Yes, while it worked, it was great value for the money; I was happy with it... but the money apparently didn't buy good enough components, firmware, or what have you. Sure, high-end audiophiles will scoff that "you get what you pay for" but that argument doesn't fly with today's very reliable components, even though they might be lower end inexpensive ones. And a large manufacturer such as Toshiba should be able to absorb the cost of this kind of repair to maintain a good brand name.
Rating:
Summary: Don't buy it!
Review: The DVD player worked for about 4 weeks. It has been in the repair facility for four weeks and now I'm told the laser replacement part is backordered and will not be available for another 6 weeks. Don't buy this unit!
Rating:
Summary: Great performance and value
Review: This is a great system for someone who doesn't have the money or time to get the separate pieces for a super powerful home theater system. It sets up easily and has plenty of wire. If you need an extension for some reason (as one reviewer did), there's no problem with the wire being unconnectable from the sub, just splice in a longer cord...it's not that hard and doesn't affect performance. I added several feet to run it over a door frame. The sounds quality is great and the fact that you get the choice of Dolby and DTS is great. (You'll learn to hope for DTS on DVD boxes for obvious reasons). I've had this system for 6 months in my college apartment, where it gets TONS of use and gets abused for movies and audio. We have never had a problem with performance or reliability. The only real downfault is the slow opening of the tray, but the outcome is worth the wait. And it does have limited inputs, but that's because it's not really a reciever...it's for home theater. If u want a full reciever, go drop $500 instead of whining about a sub $300 system w/ progressive scan DVD not having the features you want in a reciever. Bottom line, this is a great buy and will put a smirk on your face when you watch your first movie. It can take a beating and still perform perfectly. If you're out for surround sound, this is your system.
Rating:
Summary: Follow-up: Too bad I can't rate this 0 stars
Review: This machine broke down after fewer than a half-dozen uses, unfortunately past Amazon's 30 day return period. Toshiba takes no responsibility for their defective SD-43HT, expects a $80.00 "handling fee" just to return it, plus does not cover labor to repair this BRAND NEW equipment. NONE of this is spelled out in the Warranty. Toshiba totally cops out of any accountability for this lousy product. Amazon: your customers expect better than this. Shoppers: Don't buy this thing.
Rating:
Summary: Follow-up: Too bad I can't rate this 0 stars
Review: This machine broke down after fewer than a half-dozen uses, unfortunately past Amazon's 30 day return period. Toshiba takes no responsibility for their defective SD-43HT, expects a $80.00 "handling fee" just to return it, plus does not cover labor to repair this BRAND NEW equipment. NONE of this is spelled out in the Warranty. Toshiba totally cops out of any accountability for this lousy product. Amazon: your customers expect better than this. Shoppers: Don't buy this thing.
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