Customer Reviews

Panasonic SC-PT956 1000W DVD Home Theatre System

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

 

 

UPDATE on Sept. 17, 2009: After 8 month, DVD player of Panasonic SC-PT956 broke. Fixed at local store for free because it is still under warranty. Would like to downgrade to 4 stars.
Among the popular brands (Sony, Philips, Panasonic) of upconversion DVD player-based home theaters in a box (HTIBs), it seems that they offer more or less comparable features. All three brands have HDMI and component out, audio in jack (at least one for TV), an iPod dock, radio (at least FM), and play slide shows. None plays DVD audio. Philips's strength is that its DVD player is more capable of playing different formats of discs/media contents (e.g., Pal/NTSC, DivX), which may be a deal maker for some people. In addition, Philips has a USB connection but no optical in or headphone out jacks, a possible deal breaker for others. Sony's and Panasonic's systems have a 5 disc changer and the higher end models offer wireless option for surround speakers. Aesthetically, I would rate the speakers in the following order (starting with the best): Panasonic, Sony, Philips. In terms of the quality of sound they produce, they should all be adequate for watching movies but also okay for listening to music. Overall, these HTIBs represent great value in home electronics when priced competitively - it comes down to the price in the end just as all other consumer products.

We wanted a simple system with a good reputation and wireless speakers. When we saw this one at our local club warehouse at $299, we had to get it. We needed 2 HDMI cables because we were connecting our TV, a satellite box, a PS3, and the Panasonic DVD player. We were able to get surround sound going except for the PS3. One call to Panasonic and we had an American helping us. My husband could not be happier for the price we paid.

Yes, this might be a bit deficient for more experienced buyers looking for a feature-rich home theater system that is beyond what I need or could even use at this point. Rather, I wanted something that was easy to set up, had some basic settings and features, and above all - sounded good. This fit all of that perfectly. It took about 15 minutes to get everything set up and it worked right off the bat. The wireless rear speakers are great and keep your room from having wires spread all over the place. I'd recommend it for people like me that want the surround sound, but don't have a degree in engineering or $1500+ to spend on a system.

I purchased this stereo for less than 30% of the MSRP as refurbished.
I was worried that there was limited settings due to other peoples reviews, however, I discovered that this is untrue and that the features are semi hidden.
If you press and hold your SW Level button you can set speaker volumes individually. I prefer SW -4 decibels, and LS and RS +3 decibels.
For Aux: (Mono and stereo RCAs) Press your D[]PLII button to either Movie or Music for simulated surround.
For D-IN: (Optical in, from PS3 for me) Use your D[]PLII button to turn off PL. You have to set your D-IN to PCM under the menus at your DVD screen. I then had to set my PS3 to audio Optical out, and just add Dolby 5.1 and Dts 5.1. For some games, for me only BF:BC, there was NO sound. To correct this you have to change the PS3 audio out and deselect both Dolby and DTS, and the default two PCMS that it selects will give you 5.1. For some reason the game claims dolby 5.1, but if you select only dolby 5.1 all you hear are intermittent digital squacks. If you select more than just DTS and Dobly 5.1 you will get considerable sound clipping on all games and bluray sources.
Video: I have tried out the dvd upscaling and was displeased with the look, it may be my crappy LCD 720p tv with its horrible refresh rate. I bought this stereo for its sound, not its DVD playback... so this may be a more important feature for you, but it wasnt for me. My ps3 has fantastic standard DVD upscaling. (Update, upon comparison of this systems and the PS3s upscaling I found the panasonic upscaling to be grainy and washed. There is no comparison to the quality of the PS3s upscaling).
Radio: works fine, I tried it out. I was just testing it but is of little value to me.
Semi Wireless surround: there is a hub that plugs in behind you that wirelessly recieves sound signals from the main unit. The surround speakers plug into the hub. For some people this is a problem? I dont know why, i could care less as long as I dont have a cord running perpendicularly from my tv to behind me.
Overall: Great value and sound, 5.1 for [...] bucks with great bass and plenty of settings. There isnt much quite like playing cod4 in 5.1, you have to experience it.
I hope this helps people with their stereos, and that the misinformation about limited settings is put to rest. I reccomend this stereo, Id tell family and friends to buy it. I doubt there is a better value out there. Happy Shopping.

If you looking for a HTIB this System is great with it's 1000w sounds comming through-out your room. Have a HDMI connection for the upconversion five disc DVD plaver, just awesome for the price. Exactly what I was looking for with the intergrated I-pod system and rear wireless speakers. Very stylish looking too. Can't go wrong, trust me.

This is a very nice stereo for a low price. The sound is quite impressive and I am almost happy with it. One clear disadvantage is that the rear speakers can only be connected using the wireless system. This prohibits to connect any other speakers than those delivered. E.g. connecting existing speakers that I have in the wall doesn't work.

I bought this system cheaper, as refurbished. I didn't realize immediately, but the built-in iPod/iPhone connector was broken from the beginning. This is really bad. The company doesn't take it back and sent me to a Panasonic dealer. There is just one certified Panasonic dealer who can handle warranty issues in my town. The opening hours are during my work time and it is not reachable for me, as I don't own a car. So that made me a bit angry. But in case you get a fully working system shipped and don't want to connect other speakers, it is a good deal.

I have a Samsung TV like an earlier poster. I found that by running leads from the TV audio out, to the Panasonic's aux audio in, then going into the tv menu and setting it for external speakers, this system works fine in TV mode.
Setup was easy and sound is great. This one is a keeper.

Maybe the customer service is bad, but that's no reason to give 1 or 2 stars. Their policies are always against the customer's interests.
I really like the sound and the idea of the wired/wireless surround speakers. The DVD player could be better, but it's not bad. Everything is good, but I haven't tried it with an ipod yet.
Setting the whole system up wasn't a problem, because i am somewhat used to it.
My only complaints so far are the unclear manual, not enough info on their website, and the subwoofer... it could be really loud if you live in an apartment, because it has three levels only (1/2/3).

I did not purchase this item from amazon or anywhere else. Please disregard this This is ridiculous. Sugar cake pie dirt

I bought this dvd/stereo system to get me by for my year tour in Korea since i couldn't bring much with me.

When i got it i felt the speakers were pretty cheaply made, especially the front with the flimsy thin/hollow plastic base.

The sound quality was decent enough to get me by for the year. But the dvd didn't make it that long. After about 10 months it died on me. Wouldn't open, couldn't switch functions or anything. Ended up disassembling it to get my discs out and then tossed it in the trash.

Probably won't buy another low Panasonic system again