Customer Reviews

AMW T-352 Dolby Digital Home Theater System

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I got this system through an incentive program at work. I figured the passive sub would be anemic so I also "bought" an altec lansing 4.1 with powered sub at the same time to mix and match. The sound of this Amphion with passive sub blows the powered sub away. Out of the box, it rocked... CDs sound great... DVDs sound great... big sound from a little system. It has AM and FM receiver with a lot of presets... includes antenas for both bands... The progressive DVD player gives excellent color saturation and clarity. I am not exaggerating, but it looks so much better than my APEX AD660 which still looks so much better than videotape. I couldn't be happier with it and not just because it was "free." I have not yet determined if it has official DTS support - no DTS insignia on the front, although the owner's manual and setup screen mention DTS setup modes... it does pop up a little lighted diagram showing 5 channels when I put in any Dolby digital and/ or DTS DVD. I managed to screw up the settings to the point where it sounded like a cardboard box... and to the point where it overdrove the speakers... but after a "set defaults" things sounded excellent again. There are several modes including "concert," "theater" and the unintentionally hillarious "bathroom" setting. This is not an audiophile's dream system, but It gives very correct sound and video for the money and is the pinnacle of "out of the box home theater." Buy it, use it as it comes out of the box and Rock On.

I was very let down to hear from Amphion Media Works that their T-352 does not decode DTS. The users manual says it will... Amazon.com, Circuitcity.com and www.a-mw.com !! web pages say it will!! I can't believe that this thing has been selling and that no reviews made note of this fact. I was excited at first about this unit... it didn't sound bad... but the sound of silence when I select DTS on a DVD is deafening.

There is a rather annoying problem regarding the A/V inputs which I initially thought was originally a defect in my particular unit. However, it seems to be a problem with all T-352 models. When the function is set to Audio/Video, the subwoofer rumbles rather annoyingly, even when nothing is plugged into the inputs. If you plug anything into the inputs, the sound still remains, and the only way to get rid of it is to set the bass volume to 0. I don't know if it's a problem with the subwoofer or if it's just a feature, but the sound is nice and clear (with no low rumbling) when playing a CD or DVD directly through the unit. If you plan to connect your video game consoles or computer to these speakers, however, do prepare to be annoyed.

I'm fairly happy with this very low end system. They manage to pack a lot of features and fine adjustments into a really inexpensive unit. If you're looking for big sound, go elsewhere, but for a small room, it's fine. I found it a bit tinny, but at least it's crisp.

I don't really care for the remote though.

There is one major flaw I have found it, and it seems to be a "feature" rather than a bug, which unfortunately will ultimately force me to return the system and settle for a lesser system even though I liked this one better. The AV inputs seem to be corrupted. The sub rumbles when the AV mode is switched on, and seems to get worse whenever a connection is added to it. I thought this was a defective unit, but I returned it for a replacement, and am still having the same issue. :(

It's too bad about the AV input issue, otherwise it's a really nice inexpensive DVD player/5.1 decoder.

For everyone that has written reviews about the scrolling issue. I've found the fix. Mine was doing the same same thing when I had it hooked up with regular a/v cables. I bought a new tv recently, and it supports S-video. So I thought maybe that would fix my scrolling problem, and sure enough after buy an S-video cable and hooking it up, no more scrolling problem. I got up, gave my girlfriend a Hi-five, and it hasn't had any trouble since then. seems this dvd player was made for S-video. The only issue I still have with this player is the front satellite speakers. They are not magnetically shielded so they do some wacky stuff to my TV if they are not far enough away. looking into a cheep shielded pair to replace them. All and all, this is a good dvd and surround system for the price. If your still having scrolling trouble, try out the S-video fix. I hope it helps.

The good: It cost me $70 for a DVD/receiver combo with six speakers. I never had any of the humming subwoofer, crackling, scrolling video or any other obvious audio or video faults reported on here. I haven't had any serious trouble with the remote The bad: It doesn't play DTS. Dolby Pro Logic II (from Gamecube and PS2 on AV inputs) can be very iffy. Sound seems to jump in and out of the rear speakers a lot. Playing with menu options usually results in an inexplicable loss of sound from some or all speakers. Or sometimes it sounds different when you set an option, then it sounds even differenter when you try and set the option back to normal! Most settings aren't remembered if the unit is switched off and on again. If your rear speakers are too close to you (like i have in my apartment), you must lower their individual volumes every time the player is switched on. The remote is nice looking, but spells all its words out (like "play" intead of > and "stop" instead of []) You can't skip crappy DVD menu intros and other certain things like you can on many other DVD players. conclusion: good price, but only get it if you really really can't afford a better DVD/receiver combo, or better yet, separate components. note: to set the region on the player, go to setup with no disc inserted, press right to get to prefs page. then press 1,3,7,9 on the remote's keypad. Of course it doesn't save this, so you'll need to change it every time you want to play an import DVD.

I purchased this unit a few months ago, Had my issues.<br /> 1. The remote is hard to read. <br /> 2. My cable remote when used to change volume ejects the dvd.<br /> 3. The FM reception is the worst. Why would they use a 75 ohm connector when you can't use it. The FM antenna they give you is worthless. <br /> 4. Don't mess with the units speakers too much it causes the rear speakers to stop working. The fix is a follows.<br /> <br /> * Remove any CD/ DVD's in unit<br /> * goto setup<br /> * next goto Preference Page<br /> * Goto Default and Reset<br /> to check if working.<br /> Goto speaker set up , then test tone, you should hear each speaker turn on.<br /> <br /> It's is really good with DVD movies which is what I purchased it for. The hassle is I have to use a separatemy FM Tuner for the radio.<br /> <br /> Better off speanding a little more to get a Sony.<br /> <br /> Hope this helps

I bought one a month back. The picture kept scrolling all the time specially when using the AV1 or AV2. I don't own an HDTV but that shouldn't make a diff. Even in dvds if some scenes are too bright it starts scrolling. I called their customer service and they told me that it shouldn't do that and I should return it. I returned it to circuity city and got a new one. Got home and connected it and guess what it does the same thing again. I wasted my money in buying this. Should've bought an apex for a few more $$s. Just stay away from this product.............

I just set up mine yesterday. It sounds great, dvds sound excellent. Plays everything including SVCDs but on certain scenes the picture starts scrolling and you cannot do anything about it. Sound is more than good enough for a small room.
Problems with AV:
I connected my VCR/Cable TV through AV1/AV2 but now sometimes the colors appear too bright or the picture starts scrolling on certain channels. But if I connect VCR/Cable to TV directly then they work fine. The remote control does not control anything else and no universal remote control works on this dvd player. AM/FM tuner is great but, the subwoofer doesn't work while playing FM. MP3 and all TV channels sound great with SUB. Overall its worth the money($80) on sale. While watching Cable TV I take video signal which comes directly to TV and sound from this system and the combination is great.

I bought one of these and love the sound quality, but have had problems with my system. About after a month of use, the rear speakers no longer have any sound coming from them, no matter what is being played. They did work before, but now, nothing. I also read that other people had problems with the unit not turning on. This seems to be caused by using the remote to turn it off and then trying to turn it back on with the units power button. A quick fix to that is to turn it off, unplug it and plug it back in, then turn it on a PRESTO, it'll work again. Other than the rear speaker problem (which may be a result of my 2 y/o playing with it), it is a great system, the DVD player alone is worth the money, the receiver and speakers are simply a bonus.