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Entered CNET Catalog: 07/26/2006
SKU: HTS3450
Manufacturer: Philips Consumer Electronics
Manufacturer description
This stylish and compact digital home entertainment system plays practically any disc in high quality Dolby and DTS multi-channel surround sound. So just relax and fully immerse yourself in movies and music at home.User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 User Rating:
2.0 stars
out of 14 user reviews
ok when had remote, cant change settings without remote
Pros: worked fine until the remote was destroyed..
Cons: can't change any sound settings or radio stations without the remote. no remote= bad system.
Review: works fine until the remote is lost or broken
User Rating:
0.5 stars
out of 14 user reviews
Junk! Philips cheated the consumer with this product!
Pros: Price is fair. Worked fine for the first few months.
Cons: The power for the sound is directed from the subwoofer.
Review: All the speaker power is routed from the subwoofer. Once the subwoofer quits working none of the sound will come on. Do not risk purchasing an item that has power for the sound directed from sub.
User Rating:
1.0 stars
out of 14 user reviews
A complete pile!!!
Pros: Great picture, Great sound - at first
Cons: Remote never worked, dead after 1 year!
Review: Well, I guess you get what you pay for. I bought this system at Shopko and liked it for the first month. It had great sound and a really nice picture. Soon after the first month the remote quit working. I called customer service and they sent me a new one. Two weeks after that, the second remote quit working. I called customer service and informed them that I didn't think it was the remote, but most likely the unit. They sent me a new remote. It doesn't work either. I did find out that if one remote stops working switch out the batteries to one of the others, and that one will work for a little while. Keep repeating this process and you should be able to make it through an entire film. Well OK, I guess I can live with this. It was cheap, right? Wrong!!! Three days after the warranty was up I no longer get any sound. But boy the picture sure is nice! I gave up on calling customer service because they won't work on the unit unless you send it all back. So now I'm in the market for a new system. I think I'll pay a little more this time.
User Rating:
1.0 stars
out of 14 user reviews
Piece of crap!
Pros: Excellent sound...at first
Cons: Quit working after a year
Review: When I first purchased this, it was amazing. The sound and image quality were excellent. Literally a year after owning it (after the warranty expired of course) I started having problems. It would power up but no sound would come out. If I disconnected/reconnected everything it would start up again. After doing this process for about 2 months, it quit all together. Now that I'm looking to purchase a new system I've been looking at reviews even more carefully than before. The newer version of this model has tons of reviews on various websites showing many of the same complaints above.
User Rating:
0.5 stars
out of 14 user reviews
100 % JUNK
Pros: When it worked GREAT
Cons: DIED in 6 MONTHS
Review: This is the second Philips product that has died within 6 months after purchase. There's a buzzing that gets louder till there's no sound at all, would highly recommend another brand. Philips has yet to return,repair,replace or refund my money for this product.
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 14 user reviews
Perfect for casual HT needs
Pros: Powerful sound through the entire range, no crackle at the top. Seriously loud and crisp!
Cons: USB port should be in the back. Need more audio inputs.
Review: If you're looking for an excellent sound system for a small room, or a decent and affordable system for your entertainment room, this is the system for you!
Beautiful sound. I managed to max the speakers and there was no crackle or pop at the top end. Easy and quick to set up.
I just wish the USB port was in the back to conceal the wires when you plug in the external hard drive. I'd like to see a couple more audio inputs than just a single TV and Aux too.
Well worth the money!
Beautiful sound. I managed to max the speakers and there was no crackle or pop at the top end. Easy and quick to set up.
I just wish the USB port was in the back to conceal the wires when you plug in the external hard drive. I'd like to see a couple more audio inputs than just a single TV and Aux too.
Well worth the money!
User Rating:
3.5 stars
out of 14 user reviews
Holy Loudness
Pros: Excellent DB's from this small guy
Cons: Remote sometimes does like to take orders
Review: I bought this system when I purchased my plasma becuse the sales guy at Best Buy told me the speakersin the plasma blew, and well he was right. I spent something like $150 on this system and its worth every cent. Superb value!!!
This little guy, well 1000 watts isn't that little but this thing thumps. Movies just come to life, especially war movies. There's nothing like it. It really makes the whole experience.
Movies or shows over cable need to be turned up and the base doesn't have the same force as movies but it does the trick. The remote sometimes does nto like to follow orders either but all in all its surpassed my expectations.
If you are looking for a system that's cheap and doesn't crackle or break-up durning climatic points then this is the system for you.
This little guy, well 1000 watts isn't that little but this thing thumps. Movies just come to life, especially war movies. There's nothing like it. It really makes the whole experience.
Movies or shows over cable need to be turned up and the base doesn't have the same force as movies but it does the trick. The remote sometimes does nto like to follow orders either but all in all its surpassed my expectations.
If you are looking for a system that's cheap and doesn't crackle or break-up durning climatic points then this is the system for you.
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 14 user reviews
I got this system for only $120 at WalMart in early '06 and have not had any problems with it since
Pros: Cheap surround sound is more than adequate for my bedroom (about 10'x15'). Progressive scan DVD player included.
Cons: Now that I've upgraded to HD I noticed the lack of an optical audio input.
Review: For only $120 this is not a bad HTIB at all.
It has four operating modes:
TV: For use with the audio inpt on the back labled TV. I have my HD DVR audio connected to this
DVD: Progressive scan dvd player (with component video out puts in the rear)looks fantastic on my HDTV and it's not even an upconverting player.
Tuner: Integrated AM/FM tuner.
Auxillary: For use with another external device I alternately use it for my MP3 player or PS2.
As I mentioned above it lacks an optical audio input for use whith my hi-def dvr. But when connected with regular red/white audio cables it seems to acurately distribute the sound between the five speakers when being fed a 5.1 feed. By this I mean that it doesn't just split the sound up equally between the five speakers for warmed over surround sound as it does with devices connected thru the auxillary jacks. Rather, when watching a football game in HD for example, the anouncers' voices mainly come in over the center and front speakers while croud noise comes from different speakers seemingly depending on where it's coming from. Also the music which plays when the game returns from commercials will "sweep" from one side of the room to the other. It's awesome!
It has four operating modes:
TV: For use with the audio inpt on the back labled TV. I have my HD DVR audio connected to this
DVD: Progressive scan dvd player (with component video out puts in the rear)looks fantastic on my HDTV and it's not even an upconverting player.
Tuner: Integrated AM/FM tuner.
Auxillary: For use with another external device I alternately use it for my MP3 player or PS2.
As I mentioned above it lacks an optical audio input for use whith my hi-def dvr. But when connected with regular red/white audio cables it seems to acurately distribute the sound between the five speakers when being fed a 5.1 feed. By this I mean that it doesn't just split the sound up equally between the five speakers for warmed over surround sound as it does with devices connected thru the auxillary jacks. Rather, when watching a football game in HD for example, the anouncers' voices mainly come in over the center and front speakers while croud noise comes from different speakers seemingly depending on where it's coming from. Also the music which plays when the game returns from commercials will "sweep" from one side of the room to the other. It's awesome!
User Rating:
3.5 stars
out of 14 user reviews
Excellent sound quality for the price
Pros: Good sound quality, digital input
Cons: Remote control is not universal, DVD player interface & tray are slow, hesitation when switching between sources
Review: I purchased this system to supplement my plasma TV's speakers, and I wasn't looking to spend a lot of money. Overall I am happy with the system because the sound quality is the best bang-for-the-buck out there. DVD's, digital cable tv, and music quality are all top notch. During a football game or movie, my dog will actually sit in the middle of the room and frantically turn her head from speaker to speaker trying to get a bearing on where the sounds are coming from!
The receiver/DVD player interface is not user friendly and overall slow. The remote control is not universal, and other manufacturer’s remote controls do not support the unit...so purchasing a good universal remote (such as the Logitech Harmony) is a must. The speaker cables are hard-wired to a fairly large connector so any holes that need to be drilled in walls or floor need to be at least 3/4".
After getting the system hooked up, working out the kinks, and purchasing a good universal remote I am very happy with the purchase…but it did take several hours of work to get everything up and running.
The receiver/DVD player interface is not user friendly and overall slow. The remote control is not universal, and other manufacturer’s remote controls do not support the unit...so purchasing a good universal remote (such as the Logitech Harmony) is a must. The speaker cables are hard-wired to a fairly large connector so any holes that need to be drilled in walls or floor need to be at least 3/4".
After getting the system hooked up, working out the kinks, and purchasing a good universal remote I am very happy with the purchase…but it did take several hours of work to get everything up and running.
User Rating:
5.0 stars
out of 14 user reviews
AWESOME!!! VERY pleased!!!
Pros: AWESOME sound, Great DVD quality. Affordable Price. Connects to many things.
Cons: No HDMI digital output or fiber optic audio output.
Review: I know Cnet will probably give this system a low review because they do not know stereos like they do not know cameras. As I have seen many stereo systems they have given high reviews, and the public has disagreed strongly. Anywho, lets push aside Cnets lack of knowlege of great products on the market and go on with my review..: )
I recieved this unit as a Christmas gift for my and my husband. I have had bad experiences with Philips in the past, so I did not expect much. I owned a small component stereo from Philips a few years ago, and there was no way to balance the bass or treble. It was not a very loud system as the only time it reached a loud level was when you turned it up to 20. It skipped my CD's. It also, broke down within 6 months. So I did not feel good about Philips after that.
So when I got this HTS for Christmas, I did not expect much. But I must say, since I took this system out of the box, I have been nothing but satisfied with it.
Unlike the bookshelf model I had, the sound of this unit is amazing. Especially with movies. Music sounds really nice too. Very crisp audio with a great bass balance. I was watching a scene in Star Wars, where the fighting scene with the lava was going on. I got up to use the bathroom, which is over on the other side of my house. I could feel the bass from the bathroom, as it felt like a rumble.
If you are expecting bass that rattles windows, you will not get it with this unit, as it portays more of a theater form of bass. This unit was easy to connect, and you can hook anything up to it and get quality sound from anything that is hooked into the system. Especially video games.
For the money, this is a great system. Nice quality sound, the only thing it lacks is a digital optical connection, and HDMI connection. Other than that, this will work with a HDTV if you have the right coaxal connections on the television. Games, Music, Digital Cable, and DVD's sound great in this system. And I am someone who is very picky when it comes to audio systems. I am very much pleased with this item so far as I have not had any problems with it. I think anyone who appreciates a nice quality unit for the price will appreciate this one.
JJ
I recieved this unit as a Christmas gift for my and my husband. I have had bad experiences with Philips in the past, so I did not expect much. I owned a small component stereo from Philips a few years ago, and there was no way to balance the bass or treble. It was not a very loud system as the only time it reached a loud level was when you turned it up to 20. It skipped my CD's. It also, broke down within 6 months. So I did not feel good about Philips after that.
So when I got this HTS for Christmas, I did not expect much. But I must say, since I took this system out of the box, I have been nothing but satisfied with it.
Unlike the bookshelf model I had, the sound of this unit is amazing. Especially with movies. Music sounds really nice too. Very crisp audio with a great bass balance. I was watching a scene in Star Wars, where the fighting scene with the lava was going on. I got up to use the bathroom, which is over on the other side of my house. I could feel the bass from the bathroom, as it felt like a rumble.
If you are expecting bass that rattles windows, you will not get it with this unit, as it portays more of a theater form of bass. This unit was easy to connect, and you can hook anything up to it and get quality sound from anything that is hooked into the system. Especially video games.
For the money, this is a great system. Nice quality sound, the only thing it lacks is a digital optical connection, and HDMI connection. Other than that, this will work with a HDTV if you have the right coaxal connections on the television. Games, Music, Digital Cable, and DVD's sound great in this system. And I am someone who is very picky when it comes to audio systems. I am very much pleased with this item so far as I have not had any problems with it. I think anyone who appreciates a nice quality unit for the price will appreciate this one.
JJ
User Rating:
4.5 stars
out of 14 user reviews
Great sound and picture for the money
Pros: Coax digital input. Stylish
Cons: No fiber optic input
Review: Perfect for a small room. I love it. I was suprised on the quality of this system. You have to listen for your self. Plus, It has a coax digital input that some of the higher priced systems don't have. If you are looking for something good and don't want to spend to much, then this is the one for you.
User Rating:
3.5 stars
out of 14 user reviews
Not bad for the money
Pros: dvd player, good sound, good deal for the money,
Cons: included audio cables aren't that great, not all mp3 players are supported
Review: This system is a good deal for the money. The sound is good for a low end system. If you do go with this one, go ahead and purchase good quality audio cables..it does come with all the cables needed, but the audio cables aren't that great. Also, not all MP3 players are supported. I a Philips GO Gear (An HDD), and it's not recognized as a large capacity drive. The solution is to put the music on a flash drive. Other than the audio cables and the mp3/hdd this is a great sound system.
Updated
Well we had this for about a year and started having trouble. The sound would get real distorted and tinny sounding. This happened on and off for a few months. Then all we got was static and that is how it remains. We can't use the dvd player or anything. It will still play dvd's just no sound.
Well we had this for about a year and started having trouble. The sound would get real distorted and tinny sounding. This happened on and off for a few months. Then all we got was static and that is how it remains. We can't use the dvd player or anything. It will still play dvd's just no sound.
User Rating:
4.0 stars
out of 14 user reviews
Great Value for the money...
Pros: Decent Bass, Good Sound, Easy Setup
Cons: You get what you pay for...No upconverting...
Review: I was looking for a starter "Home Theater in a Box" and found this set on sale at Costco for $160. It looks great, and the setup was very easy. For the money, it sounds great. Don't confuse it with a higher end system, or a pieced together component theater, because it won't even compare. For a starter, or a small room, the bass and highs are very good.
User Rating:
2.5 stars
out of 14 user reviews
you get what you pay for
Pros: does play mp3's
Cons: bad mp3 user interface
Review: not bad sound for price tag, but i wanted another way to listen to my ipod and a good surround system. bad ipod menu when ipod is connected.
