Sony HT-7000DH

Pros: Surround Sound is fantastic & the HDMI DVD picture is increadible

Cons: Sony dedicated remote is not user friendly with other non-Sony systems

Summary: I replace my old Samsung "un"-surround system with the HT7000DH and couldn't be more pleased. This is my first Sony system and I was a little skeptical at first as I heard Sony's quality has been taking hits lately, but they more than made up for it with this system (I've been a JVC man up to now). I just upgraded my house for a zone music system so I had this system professionally installed with everything else that I was adding and the installers were quite impressed with it even though they are registered Yamaha dealers (Yamaha's intro HDMI receiver, no speakers, starts at apx $1k).

I did alot of checking and as far as I can tell this is the only HDMI up convert receiver HTiB system in this price range and they didn't skimp on quality. I was initially going to go with a Yamaha with a comparable price but the HDMI up convert was the deciding factor for me and I'm glad I did it!

The music sound is crisp & clear and has more than enough power to work my 4 zone home system. I also have wireless music connected through a Slim Server Squeezebox 3(which is also a great product) and the Sony has had no connectivity issue and the sound is incredible.

The best part is playing DVD's with the surround system. I initially had a component hooked up to the receiver but have now went with HDMI & let me tell you the difference is awesome. The first test movie I tried w/ the HDMI was Star Wars III and It was a goose bump type experience (. The picture was incredible and the surround was thumpin. The powered sub is "kickin'" as they say in the business and makes all the difference as my old Samsung had a dedicated sub. The satellite speakers really put out the sound and the center channel truly puts out the sound as it should (previously, I had to supplement my Samsung with the TV's speakers) I've finally reached the home theater experience that I was looking for.

As a note, I'm only using HDMI for the DVD as component still looks better for my Cox cable box but that is a HDMI issue not Sony.

The only draw back is the Sony remote won't recognize my JVC TV but that's really not an issue for me as I have a Harmony remote.

As a final word, we spen all this money for a realistic theater experience and with this sytem I have reached the nirvana of home theater experience (at least for the DVD's)