psychotropic
Well-Known Member
Okay, I didn't really go through any deliberations on hifivision before putting this together, simply because it would have been WAAAAAY beneath everyone's dignity, so I just went ahead and did it, and I must say i am quite happy!
Ingredients
-----------
1)
Philips 5996 DVD Player - Rs. 3994 + HDMI cable - Rs. 799 OR
Philips 3388 DVD player with HDMI cable - Rs. 4990
2)
Philips SP 080 FM , 5.1 multimedia speakers (80 W RMS) - Rs. 4990
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I've put together a "home theater" for under 10,000 bucks (out of which 5000 was for the DVD player which I got after selling my Sony NS708 on ebay for 3000, so net cost is mor like 7000 bucks). or if someone already has a DVD player with analog 5.1 outs, then the cost would be just 5000 bucks.
Yes, it's cheap as hell, and nowhere near "hi fi", but I have a very small viewing area, 8' by 8' with one side open. In this space, I've set up this combination tweaked around a bit with the channel levels and delay (all of which can be tweaked on the Philips DVD player), and i am getting a pretty nice surround experience. I watched "Body of Lies" yesterday and and for a speaker setup costing 5000 bucks it sounded like a champ! Gunshots, helicopters, explosions and surround-heavy street sequences are pretty convincing, although once again I reiterate, it's not to be compared with a proper big-budget home theater. I am still going to be tweaking the levels and delays till i get the best soundstage possible, but it's already very promising.
Because the centre speakers are not particularly designed to be any different from the satellites, i've increased the relative volume of the center channel a notch, so that dialogue comes through pretty clear.
I would not recommend this to the discerning audiophiles or for anyone who wants to use it for playing music also (although I haven't tested it with music), but if you have a nice big-screen TV (42" plasma) in a small viewing area, and you have a DVD player with analog 5.1 outs, and you don't want to spend too much to get a significantly superior movie watching experience, then the Philips SP 080 FM is what you should go for. It comes with a remote, each satellite is 10W RMS, and the Subwoofer is 27W RMS, yes it's puny, but it's a quantum leap in quality and experience, compared to the sound coming from the plasma.
Oh ya, it has FM radio....in case anyone is interested. Think of it as a cheap dose of adrenaline for your flat panel display. At 5000 bucks you won't even feel bad when you "upgrade" even if you're doing it a few months down the line. Anyone who wants to audition (in Chennai) is welcome to come over to my place by the way.
Ingredients
-----------
1)
Philips 5996 DVD Player - Rs. 3994 + HDMI cable - Rs. 799 OR
Philips 3388 DVD player with HDMI cable - Rs. 4990
2)
Philips SP 080 FM , 5.1 multimedia speakers (80 W RMS) - Rs. 4990
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I've put together a "home theater" for under 10,000 bucks (out of which 5000 was for the DVD player which I got after selling my Sony NS708 on ebay for 3000, so net cost is mor like 7000 bucks). or if someone already has a DVD player with analog 5.1 outs, then the cost would be just 5000 bucks.
Yes, it's cheap as hell, and nowhere near "hi fi", but I have a very small viewing area, 8' by 8' with one side open. In this space, I've set up this combination tweaked around a bit with the channel levels and delay (all of which can be tweaked on the Philips DVD player), and i am getting a pretty nice surround experience. I watched "Body of Lies" yesterday and and for a speaker setup costing 5000 bucks it sounded like a champ! Gunshots, helicopters, explosions and surround-heavy street sequences are pretty convincing, although once again I reiterate, it's not to be compared with a proper big-budget home theater. I am still going to be tweaking the levels and delays till i get the best soundstage possible, but it's already very promising.
Because the centre speakers are not particularly designed to be any different from the satellites, i've increased the relative volume of the center channel a notch, so that dialogue comes through pretty clear.
I would not recommend this to the discerning audiophiles or for anyone who wants to use it for playing music also (although I haven't tested it with music), but if you have a nice big-screen TV (42" plasma) in a small viewing area, and you have a DVD player with analog 5.1 outs, and you don't want to spend too much to get a significantly superior movie watching experience, then the Philips SP 080 FM is what you should go for. It comes with a remote, each satellite is 10W RMS, and the Subwoofer is 27W RMS, yes it's puny, but it's a quantum leap in quality and experience, compared to the sound coming from the plasma.
Oh ya, it has FM radio....in case anyone is interested. Think of it as a cheap dose of adrenaline for your flat panel display. At 5000 bucks you won't even feel bad when you "upgrade" even if you're doing it a few months down the line. Anyone who wants to audition (in Chennai) is welcome to come over to my place by the way.