Customer Reviews

Panasonic SC-HT930 5-Disc DVD Home Theater System

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Just recently purchased this item. The sound is great, extremely loud and clear for both DVDs and CDs. It is not the most user friendly piece of equipment ever, it was easy to set up and get working with DVDs, but some other things that you'd think would be simple, like putting CDs on random was suprisingly difficult. The instructions are all but useless.

The other thing that is obviously my fault for not realizing it, is it doesn't include digital inputs so you can't listen to cable shows that are broadcast in surround or video games that support surround in true surround. I didn't understand that requirement when I bought it and was disappointed when I figured it out. Seems like a system that nice should have the ability to generate surround sound from an outside source.

Also got the wireless rear speaker kit and it has worked really well so far. It will occasionally fight with my wireless laptop if I sit between the unit and back speakers, but it switches channels by itself and works perfectly after a few seconds.

I recently bought a Sharp Aquos 37 inch TV for my 10x15 den and wanted an economical home theatre system that would both look and sound good. The HT-930 fit my requirements.

The system is very stylish looking for the price and its silver appearance perfectly matches my TV and HDTV cable box, so when you walk into the room it looks like all of these components are part of one package.

The sound is crisp and clear, and the subwoofer sounds even better than some more expensive components I have listened to. It has four levels of adjustment, and on the highest setting you can actually feel the vibrations, which makes watching an action scene in a movie even more enjoyable.

The FM radio is OK, but lacks the ability to enter stations digitally. Instead you have to find stations the old fashioned way by scrolling through, though you can enter up to 15 preset stations and access them with the channel control. Since I do not plan to use the radio very much, this does not matter to me.

I also have not tried playing music cds since they are all on my ipod, which easily attaches to this system and sounds great. Just go to Radio Shack and buy (i)audio RCA plugs with a headphone adapter on the other end and (ii)a stereo cord. Plug the audio plugs into the AUX opening on the back of the unit, plug one end of the stereo cord into the headphone adapter, and the other end into the headphone jack on the ipod. Voila! You can listen to all of your music without expensive adaptors.

The instruction manual is not always that clear, but Panasonic does have live customer support via telephone that I found helpful in answering my questions.

The only gripe I have with this system is that it does not have a digital input, which means that the only thing that you can listen to in surround sound is a DVD, but not a cable show. However, I knew this in advance and still bought the system for several reasons (actually I bought two--a second one for my daughter's apartment).

First, it looks and sounds so much better than comparably priced systems that do have a digital input.

Second, to really appreciate the true effect of surround sound you need a large room. Although I can hear a difference between a dvd with surround sound and a cable show that is only in stereo, it is really not that much of a difference in my 10x15 den. What is more important to me is that the HT930 produces a very nice sound regardless of the source. Also you can individually adjust the volume of each speaker, and there is a setting that simulates surround sound when watching a movie.

If you have a large room and want to hear cable shows in true high quality surround sound, then you should consider another system. I have listened to such systems, but they cost 6 to 7 times as much as the HT930.

However, if you are not interested in spending that kind of money, then this system is for you. For the money I do not think you can do any better. My rating on this would have been five stars if there had been a digital input.

We orignally had the same problem - only had surround sound when the DVD was being used.

By rearranging the audio inputs on the TV and DVD player my husband was able to achieve the desired results - Total Surround Sound on the TV (with cable) or with the DVD player.

I've listened to just about every home theater system in the $200 to $1000 range. This is simply the best sounding system in that price range.

From the low frequency to the high frequency ranges, the sound is full and satisfying. I would definitely encourage anyone looking in this price range to seriously consider this offering from Panasonic.

Enjoy!

This systems is the next evolution of the HT900 and HT920. Both of which had designed flaws. I spoke with a panasonic service engineer about the HT900 and he verified a popping noice coming from my sub was a know issue with the sub, but no recall was issues. After 3 months of discussion they replaced with 920. After owning a little over a year I had issues with the sub on this system also. There local certified repair company told me there was an issue with the design of the circuit board on this system. Different problem from the 900. They said they though Pansonic would replace but after numerous conversations they did not. They make good TVs but low quality Home Theaters in a Box and don't stand behind their product.

I had been researching a upgrade/replacement for my aging component home theater setup, and from many people I kept hearing from them to check out the Panasonic setups. I wanted better options and a all in one if possible, so I checked out and bought the SC-HT930. I like that I have way less cables than before. I'm still figuring out all the options and setups on the DVD player but I love the fact that its a 5 CD/DVD changer, Radio, and Amp all in one. Finished setting it up last night and its blowing me away.

This guy "Kal" writing a bad review obviously has not tried the 930 model. His impression is totally on the 700 model and I believe its just a singular case of a dvd player having problems, and not a widespread problem with all Panasonic equipment. I traded up from a Harmen/Karden HT speaker system (100 watts), Pioneer digital receiver, Sony Progressive scan DVD player, 2 high end VCR's and a HD satellite receiver all tangled together in a cobweb of wires and the Panasonic HT930 takes very few wires and takes way less room than the stand full of electronics I was using. So get a grip on life "Kal". I used to think Sony TV's sucked based on a small 13" set I bought that fried on me. But then I bought a 51" HD widescreen projection set and loved it. I've also talked to about a dozen salespeople and HDTV enthusiasts about what I should get for a plasma tv. All say their first pick is a "Panasonic" for a plasma flat screen. My advice is to go to a store and check this out for yourself, play around with it, ask questions, and look at all the features. Comes with a decent warranty (extended as optional) so you can hook it up at home and play with it and see if you like it or take it back.

this is the fourth one i have purchased from amazon for the various rooms in my house , and as always, fast delivery and flawless. You can certainly spend more as some of my friends have, but frankly i can't hear the difference, for most home that is smaller then a castle, this is all you would need, i save $200 for not buying the consumer version plasma Tv and the net difference is $150 and wow what a great value. the only thing i hope for is taht panasonic make the remote a bit simpler, in the dark, it is impossible to use the dozens of little button that do not light up. Aside from that, there simply isn't a better unit out there for $350.

Surround sound effect amazing. No need to go to the movies anymore. We added the wireless unit for the surround speakers to avoid running wires to back of the room. DVD player very easy to hook up and use. Very satisfied customer.

I just wanted to make the point that for $300-$350 you can get the SC-HT820/HT830/HT833 system, which despite the lower number is arguably better. The 820/830 system has AM/FM, fully controlled from the remote, 5-disc changer, and a mid-high end VCR with high-speed transport, and very good speakers and sound (does just great in our 15x30 living room.) This model sacrifices AM/FM/VCR for a little more stylishness, but imho its not a better system.

Exactly what I was looking for. Great price, delivery and support.