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Entered CNET Catalog: 06/15/2007
SKU: 0036725616615
Manufacturer: Samsung
Manufacturer description
Imagine the allure of 1200 watts of audio power. Samsung's elegant HT-X70 Home Theater Audio System offers industry-leading power, enhanced by Dolby Digital and Dolby Pro Logic decoders. The full-featured unit offers the convenience of a 5-disc changer, as well as improved USB Host Play, which lets you plug and play your portable digital devices without loading software - all enhanced by progressive scan technology.CNET editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 07/05/2007
When we reviewed the Samsung HT-TQ85 late in 2006, we were impressed by its slick design, excellent feature set, and stellar sound. The HT-X70 has a similar feature set to the HT-TQ85--HDMI input and output, USB port, DVD upconversion, XM-ready--but features significantly smaller speakers, designed to blend into your living room instead of taking it over. We definitely liked the styling on this smaller unit, but couldn't help but feeling that the lack of size held the HT-X70 from rocking out on music, although it still managed to deliver enough oomph with movies. One other nitpick we had was the "Made for iPod" marketing on the box--it included a cable to connect to an iPod, but you can't navigate your iPod using the onscreen display, which limits its appeal. Still, the HT-X70 is a solid choice with an excellent feature set and slick design. More sonics-conscious listeners may wish to step up to Samsung's offerings with larger speakers.
Design
The HT-X70 has the typical look of a Samsung product. The front panel of the receiver/DVD-changer is black and split horizontally into two sections, with both the top and the bottom sloping in toward the middle, which makes it stand out a little from standard AV products. On the bottom half, there's a power button to the far left that is surrounded by a bright blue light--bright enough that we appreciated the dimmer button on the remote, which turns the light off and dims the display. You can also flip down the section surrounding the power button to reveal some extra connectivity, including a USB port, headphone jack, and auxiliary input. Further right is the LCD screen, which is easy enough to read from a seating distance of about 7 feet back.
Still further right are a few front panel controls--including function, play, stop, chapter forward/backward--plus a large silver volume knob. The top half of the front panel mostly houses the carousel-style five-disc DVD tray. Along the very top of the far right are five buttons to select an individual disc. The overall size of the main unit is smaller than a standard AV receiver, but larger than a slimline DVD player, coming in at 3 inches high and 17 inches wide and deep.
The five speakers are essentially identical in design, with the only slight difference being that the center channel does not have a flat bottom--it's designed to lie horizontally. Each speaker measured 11.8 inches high by 3.5 inches wide by 4.5 inches deep and has rounded corners to give it a sleek look. The speakers are completely black and feature a nonremovable grille up front.
While the whole design is slick, we were especially impressed with the styling of the subwoofer. It's tough to make a sub look good, but the HT-X70's subwoofer has a nice understated design that won't make you rush to hide it in the corner. Like the speakers, it's also all black with rounded corners, and from the front there's a slightly opening for the bass port, which gives it a very modern look. Note that it's not a powered subwoofer, so you won't need to plug it into the wall for power.
There's no doubt the physical unit looks nice, but the user interface doesn't quite match it in the looks department. Compared to other home-theater-in-a-box systems (HTIBs), it's standard fare, but it would be nice if HDMI-equipped HTIBs featured slick high-def graphics, since they'll almost certainly be hooked up to HDTVs. We also found several of the menus to be considerably confusing or awkward, especially when setting the speaker levels. Of course, other HTIBs--albeit ones that are generally more expensive--offer automatic speaker calibration, which would make this less of a problem.
The remote will be familiar to anyone who's used a Samsung DVD player in the past. Overall, the layout is pretty good, as the directional pad is nicely located and there's at least some differentiation between the play, stop, and fast-forward/rewind buttons to make it possible to navigate by feel, rather than having to look at the remote. However, whenever we had to use one of the more advanced functions, we found ourselves getting confused. For example, to change the output resolution, you need to hold down the SD/HD button, and then it will cycle to the next resolution--we had to consult the manual to figure that out. To execute even a relatively simple function like Disc Skip, you need to press a button labeled "TV/Video" that has "Disc Skip" written above it. Once we figured out all the functions via trial and error, we got the hang of it, but it's not simple enough for a guest to figure out right away. Another quick note regarding the remote--we did find it difficult to the control the HT-X70 once the disc tray was ejected, as it seemed to block the IR signal from reaching the player. We were able to get it to work by aiming the remote from down low, but it was still a pain.
Features
The HT-X70 has a built-in, five-disc DVD player and is equipped with standard Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital Pro Logic II, and DTS DVD-Audio, a niche high-resolution audio format. Additionally, the HT-X70 is capable of playing DivX, MP4, and JPEG files, whether they are burned on a DVD/CD or via the USB port on the front.
Connectivity is pretty solid for an HTIB in this price range. Most impressive is the HDMI connectivity--not only is there an HDMI output capable of upconverting DVDs, but there's also an HDMI input to connect one digital high-def component. (Add a cheap HDMI switcher, and you can triple, quadruple, or even quintuple that capacity.) For analog video, there's a component video output and a composite video output--but note that there are no other video inputs, which would have been a nice upgrade. There are however, three audio inputs--stereo analog RCA jacks and an optical digital audio input on the rear panel, and a minijack input up front. You can still connect a video component to the HT-X70 by running the audio cables to the HT-X70 and the video cables to the spare input on your TV, but you'll have to do some remote fumbling to switch the inputs on both devices--you'd be wise to look into buying a universal remote to handle the duties. There's also an XM port, which means you'll only need to connect an XM Mini-Tuner to get reception--provided you have a subscription, of course.
You'll also notice there's a slot in the back that says "Wireless." This is used for interfacing with Samsung's wireless rear speaker system, the SWA-3000. The SWA-3000 comes with a TX card, which you slide into the slot, and then it can communicate with the base station, which connects to the rear speakers. Of course, you'll still need to plug in the base station, plus run speaker wire to each speaker--so there are three cables in this "wireless" solution--but at least you don't have to run cables from the front of the room all the way to the back.
Many buyers may be disappointed by the HT-X70's iPod compatibility, especially considering it features the "Made for iPod" logo on the box. We appreciated that the HT-X70 came with an iPod cable, which has an iPod connector on one end and a USB and minijack cable on the other. That struck us as strange, but we proceeded to connect an iPod Nano using both cables anyway. When we selected the USB input on the HT-X70, our Nano went into "connected mode" and we were able to browse the folders on our Nano--with one big problem. When we went into music, we could only see folders named "F01" and "F02," instead of artist names. A similar problem existed with the actual files, as they were named just a random series of letters instead of a song title. Clearly, that's not an acceptable solution. Switching the input to Aux 1 was a better situation. This basically just treated our Nano like any other external audio device--so we had to browse for songs on the Nano instead of using an onscreen display--but this was preferable to the USB connection. Given these limitations, we think the "Made for iPod" claim is a bit of a stretch.
Video performance
We started off our test of the video quality performance of the HT-X70 using Silicon Optix's HQV test suite. The HT-X70 got off to a good start with the first resolution test, demonstrating its ability to display the full resolution of DVDs in 1080i mode, although it failed in both 480p mode and 720p mode. The next few tests weren't good, though--playback was jerky and filled with jaggies on tests depicting a rotating line, three pivoting lines, and a flag waving in the wind. It also had a difficult time with the HQV's 2:3 pulldown test--it clearly failed as it never kicked into film mode, resulting in moiré in the grandstands as a race car drove by. Performance wasn't much better with scrolling titles, which were filled with jaggies and some distracting "flashing" behavior.
Of course, we looked at some actual content, too, and the HT-X70 did considerably better. It did a very good job on the difficult Seabiscuit test, exhibiting none of the jaggies that we often see on this disc. We also were able to confirm that the HT-X70 does have 2:3 pulldown processing by watching the introduction to Star Trek: Insurrection, as it was able to render the smooth hull of the boat and railing of the bridge without any jaggies. So while the HT-X70 may have struggled on some of the more difficult tests on the HQV test suite, less critical viewers probably will be satisfied with the image quality performance on DVDs.
Audio performance
For music, like many bargain HTIBs, the HT-X70 came up a little short. We started off with Duke Ellington's Money Jungle, which sounded pretty good, although we thought the acoustic bass sounded a little unnatural and less musical than we'd like. Moving onto Jeff Beck's hard-rocking Truth revealed some more low-end deficiencies, and the bass got pretty boomy when we started to crank up the volume. The front speakers were pretty good given their size, but audiophiles will definitely notice they're less detailed than even relatively cheap standalone bookshelf speakers. We also tried the Fiery Furnaces' excellent Blueberry Boat, which probably sounded the best out of the three, but we still cringed a little when the subwoofer couldn't handle the bass. Our gripes aside, the HT-X70 delivers a pretty average sound for this kind of HTIB, so less critical listeners probably won't notice the difference.
On DVDs, the HT-X70 did a much better job. It allowed us to get fully engaged in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, especially the somewhat eerie introductory dream sequence. Dialogue intelligibility was solid, and the problems we had with the subwoofer were much less noticeable during the movie. Unless you're an audiophile, the HT-X70 will get the job done with DVDs.
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 User Rating: 
2/10
Didn't last even 2 years. Minimal to moderate use
Pros: When it worked, it worked well
Cons: Burned up with minimal to moderate DVD use, usually just turned on for the pass through to the TV. Started smoking and did a meltdown - less than 2 years old.
User Rating: 
1/10
very disappointing for so many reasons.
Pros: hasn't caught fire yet
Cons: Almost every I would expect of this unit either is painfully slow or doesn't work properly. see below.
User Rating: 
10/10
awesome features at cheap price
Pros: USB input can play anything, 5 dvd exchanger, great wireless, great sound effects specially for movies, 1080dpi
Cons: not easy to mount on wall without stands
User Rating: 2/10
Would not recommend
Pros: Good sound.
Cons: Had problems loading disks and playing DVD s. One month out of warranty the system fried. A circuit on the speaker board melted.
User Rating: 2/10
good deal turned bad
Pros: it sounded great for 1 year....
Cons: it used to shut off about once a week and would keep shuting off for about an hour before it would work, I over looked that minor problem until.....
User Rating: 2/10
Second one I try. Totally disapointed...
Pros: Great sound. I naver had HDMI problems. That's about it...
Cons: cannot compress all the cons in one line. Please rad below
Hardware problems: If you are in a hurry and u try to operate the ejecting&loading new disk in haste, the rotating tray that changes the disks will get confused and every now and then will throw a disc out, in the void space inside the box making it get stuck. U have to open the box and remove the "fallen disc".
sometimes the rotary thing that spins the disc will fail to spin after you change a disc by pressing the change disc button exactly when the old disc is about to load.
ZERO read fault tolerence. I mean ZEROO!!! If a disc has i tiny scratch, just a miniature one that all discs have for lying around or even for being in a case with other discs, IT WILL have terrible problems reading it, especially for divx movies and home burned discs. Sometime it will "jurky" around with just burned out-of-the-box discs.
Software problems: (wow)
1. divx works for most popular codecs, but far from what you would expect. I am talking about enormus blocking effects. Teriible loss of quality.
2. The directory menu in divx discs is funky and when changing folders in needs at least 3-4 second to "realize" whats going on. Choosing a movie to watch from a DVD full of divx movies is a pain. SLOW!!!
3. The software will hang from time to time for no appearant reason!!! if there is a disc that the player cannot read, it will stay doing nothing for 30-40 seconds, if you dont eject the disc during that time, the player will hang, meaning the only way to get it to do ANYthing is by restarting it. i.e. turning it off and back on.
4. When in resolution of 480p the aspect ratio works OK for all divx movies, but when in 720p or 1080i, all divx files with aspect ratios bigger then Anamorphic 1.33 or what ever it's called with get distorted and stretch vertically. There is no way to fix this, only going back to 480p.
Well i will have to stop here. I think i covered everything. Just one last notice. The player is enormously big, can't fit anywhere without sticking out.
User Rating: 
7/10
Great Value for little money
Pros: Good rumble in bass on 5.1 movies
Cons: Music is not great
User Rating: 
8/10
superb system for the price $350
Pros: pretty good performance all around, xm ready, hdmi, optical in, ipod ready
Cons: powered subwoofer would have been nice but for apartments its perfect, bass reproduction is ok for the average user, ipod on screen display would be nice but it not bad att all for the price
system performs well, a auto setup feature with mic would have been nice, but setup is not that complicated, i know some people say they have issues with hdmi or anynet but im using a toshiba tv so anynet is out of the question, but surprisingly enough when i switch over to hdmi input from my tv the unit does turn on in dvd mode. subwoofer is not so good on the deep lows, if it was powered that would have been awesomw but right now im in an apartment and it performs well, ill be moving into a condo soon and this system is going in my game room and im getting bose's flagship model
User Rating: 7/10
Good value, but HDMI input has problems
Pros: good DVD player, wireless rear speakers, HDMI output,
Cons: HDMI input doesn't work
So when I read about the problem this system has with Motorola cable boxes I thought maybe I could use the HDMI input with the Xbox 360 instead. Wrong, with the 360 running to the HDMI input the image on the TV had horzontal lines interlaced in it that made it useless, cycling power on everything did not help.
Fortunately my TV has 3 HDMI inputs so I just run every component directly to the TV and output the audio from the TV with an optical cable to the sound system.
The HDMI input issue aside, everything else seems to function fine. I probably would have bought the system without the HDMI input capabitliy so I decided to keep it.
User Rating: 1/10
Apparently it has a high out of box failure rate
Pros: affordable cost, wireless rear speakers
Cons: It has a high failure rate, limited component inputs, doesn't supply cable you must have that you probably don't already have
I looked at the instructions, it ws clear that if you had only one additional input and it better not be a HD DVD or Blur Ray disk player.
I finally for the front speakers set up and plugged it in and saw the booting message. I plugged the last HDMI plug in and slid it back. The system went dead! I confirmed the AC plug was inserted completely and was not kinked or damaged. I unplugged the components to see if they could be causing some feedback problem and still nothing.
I unhooked everything took it to the side to get ready to box back up and decided to plug it in another outlet. I started up again! I ran the HDMI input over to test and it was dead again before sliding it in.
Apparently, the unit will only work for a few seconds and only after it has been unplugged for more than 5 minutes.
I call the tech support line and after a long wait I got to speak to the phone service tech. He just said that I had a bad unit and it would have to be returned. If that was all, I would have just swapped out the kit, but he also let it slip that apparently this THE problem he is hearing all day today. Based on that information, I decided to return it and shop for a different manufacturer.
I purchased the Samsung model because not only was it affordable, but it also had wireless rear speakers. If they rethought the limited inputs and I had cause to believe the manufacturing quality was better, I would think about another Samsung unit.
User Rating: 7/10
Sounds great, good DVD picture, but HDMI problem
Pros: good value, XM ready, iPod ready
Cons: AnyNet doesnt work properly with HDMI
Ok, other then my HDMI rant (which BTW is more directed towards Samsungs TV implementation), this system sounds great, and plays DVD's in unbelievable clarity for a non-HD DVD system. The FM tuner sensitivity isn't great, but if you live in an urban area with strong FM signals it will do fine. The "XM ready" feature is nice too. Sound quality is good, although the bass is a little lacking, comnsidering its not a powered subwoofer, but for most people (especially people living in apartments) it will do nicely.
In my review I referenced a 'problem' other users had reported with HDMI cutting out after 15 minutes. I neglected to state that although I never experienced this problem, others have and I read about it on the Circuit City website user reviews for the HT-X70. Just thought I'd add this for clarity!!
