Customer Reviews

Sony DAV-FX100W Wireless Home Theater Dream System

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

 

 

Overall, this is a great system. The sound is fantastic; the setup was easy, and nearly six months after I bought it, things are still working quite nicely.

Other reviewers have done a good job describing the product -- the one thing I wanted to touch on was the "wireless" aspect. The only wires this system does not have that other "wired" systems do are the ones that run from the receiver unit to the back speakers. The IR devices (one in front, one in back, which you have flexibility in positioning) transmits the signal from the receiver to the back speakers. One of your rear speakers will need to be plugged into a power outlet (because of its powered amplifier -- which, unlike other systems, allows the rear speakers to be as clear and powerful as the front ones), and you'll need to run a speaker wire (provided, of course) between the two rear speakers.

BOTTOM LINE: If you're trying to reduce clutter, this system may not be as wireless as you're hoping for (between the power cords for the IR receiver/transmitter, speaker wire between the rear speakers, plus all the normal wires save the ones running from front to back). BUT, if you don't want to run cable through your walls or have speaker wire running from the front to back of your room; then these are a great option that I would strongly recommend.

It's about time that (relatively) affordable wireless home theater systems have started becoming available. As someone who's never been thrilled by running wires across the living room--or even worse, under carpet or through walls--to the rear speakers, this system really was a dream come true. I chose the Sony system over others on the market because it sends infrared rather than RF signals to the rear speakers. Other RF-wireless systems use the same crowded 2.4GHz frequency band shared by Wi-Fi networks, cordless telephones, and microwaves, so the IR technology really cuts down on interference if you (like me) have a wireless home network.

The sound from this setup is great for an HTIB, and I haven't noticed that the wireless aspect of the system degrades rear-speaker sound quality at all. An earlier reviewer complained about the low-end power (or lack thereof) of the non-powered subwoofer, but I've actually noticed the opposite--sometimes the bass actually seems a litte *too* powerful.

My only two complaints aren't major and are to be expected, given the type of system this is. First, even though the system offers an HDMI output (quite rare among HTIB's, for the most part), it only offers two composite (yellow, red, white) A/V inputs. There are, however, both optical and coaxial digital audio inputs. Also, as another reviewer has noted, the slot-loading disc changer takes quite awhile to switch between discs, and the proper method for inserting and switching discs takes a little while to perfect. Overall, however, these are minor gripes which are to be expected from a "lifestyle"-type HTIB.

I started searching for wireless surround speakers due to the configuration of my apartment. A wired solution simply would not work due to the location of my couch and the distance from my TV. After searching for a while, there were only a couple options available: the Sony DAV-FX100W, a system by Panasonic that had an optional wireless option, and a wireless receiver kit made by Kenwood. After looking at reviews of all of the different options, the Sony DAV-FX100W appeared like the best choice. I'm very happy with that decision. DVDs look great on my HDTV with the 1080i upscaling feature. Be forewarned, if you wish to use this feature you will need to purchase a very expensive HDMI cable and your TV will need to be support it. I bought a 3ft Belkin cable (instead of Monster) and it was still over $100. DVDs also sound terrific; the surround is impressive for a wireless solution. Like any stereo, it is important to adjust to levels for each speaker, and I pumped up the surround speakers a little as well as the center channel. The subwoofer, as others have stated, is pretty powerful for a passive speaker. There could be more depth to the sound, however, it is an out of the box solution and I think it sounds good enough as long as the standard output is kept at it's default sound level. Others have complained that CDs don't sound good; I disagree. I've played several CDs and I think they sound great. I also input my iPod through the Video1 audio inputs, and that sounds pretty great too. Again, like any receive, you'll need to play with the settings and audio fields to enhance the sound to your liking. Overall, I'm very happy with this system.

My old DAV990 broke down after 3 years due to the heating problem apparently. It's hard to get a replacement unit minus speakers, you ended up having to replace the whole system. The sony speakers are 3 ohms so no receiver will drive them.

Anyhow, I bought the new FX100. It was easy to setup but you actually only save 1 wiring cable with the DIAT. The dvd unit is much larger than the old DAV so hopefully the heating problem went away. The upscaling to 1080 (HDMI to DVI) for my Sony plasma 42" is very good. The subwoofer is much better than the old DAV (it was awful!) I have an optical input in for my Prismiq audio streaming and it is good. I haven't got the mp3/jpg working yet. The DIAT sounds good but is not a wiring saver, you still need a power input and 1 surround speaker wire.

Overall, I am happier with this one!

Pros:
+ Easy to set up, thanks in part to the color-coded wires
+ Great sound quality
+ Plenty of features. One that I really like: The system will remember where you stop a DVD -- even if you take it out, turn off the system, or skip to another disc -- and will resume playing from that spot.
+ Wireless speakers work flawlessly, and those were a big selling point for me; no wires running from the system to the back of the room.
+ As someone who has various multi-disc collections (like "The Lord of the Rings," "The Simpsons," and "Family Guy"), I like being able to load five DVDs at once.
+ When I experienced a problem with my S-Video connection, Sony customer support helped me fix it very quickly (via e-mail, my preferred medium). Never underestimate the value of good customer support!

Cons:
- You can only play one CD at a time in random mode. That's the biggest disappointment for me. If you already have a stereo system, you probably won't care.
- Loading discs requires patience (as well as reading the manual to understand how to do it properly).
- Adjusting settings once everything is up and running isn't as intuitive as I'd like. Some settings can be tweaked via the display on your TV screen, but others require using the small LCD panel on the DreamSystem.

Bottom line:
By no means a perfect system, it's a very good one. The sound quality is pretty awesome, and the wireless speakers work without a hitch. Aside from the nuisances listed above, I am enjoying it thoroughly.

In short, if not having wires going to your back speakers is a high priority, this system should be high on your list. If you don't care about that, you should consider other systems.

I purchased the Sony DAV-FX100W system over the internet. It surprisingly arrived in only a few days. Assembly and wiring instructions were done well. It looks good and matches well with my Sony HDTV.
The sound quality is just fine for movies and TV programs but fair at best for listening to music on CD's or from the FM tuner and compares to an inexpensive stereo. The base is not tight and kind of whoompy, although there is plenty of it. I actually had to decrease it by 3 db. The many sound stages are remarkably different and have a true sense of being there such as the "sport" which does sound like being in a stadium. Most of the time it is best in "auto" performing in the method the audio was recorded.
The IR transmitter/receiver works well but there are still plenty of wires for the rear speakers such as AC power for the amp, a wire from the IR receive to the amp, and wires from the amp to both rear speakers. Not as clean as one might imagine from the product description.
As mentioned in previous reviews, the 5 disk changer is very slow and rather tricky to insert a disk until you get the knack. A 5 disk change is not necessary as the system would probably be used with DVD's for watching movies as opposed to inserting multiple CD's to listen for music. I certainly would prefer my stereo for that!
Over all I am satisfied with it and recommend it. It performs well for what it was intended, to reproduce sound from movies and TV. Again it is a good looking system.

Great Unit, easy to set up. Everything color coded. IR Wireless speakers work better than I was expecting. If you get up and walk in front of the receiver the connection does not break. You have to stand there for a few seconds for it to stop.

One thing to note, other Video devices that are input are not output via the HDMI output, Only the DVD is. It is output via composite video and only in 480i. My DVR does 1080i over Component and HDMI so I had to run the Video to the TV directly and the audio to the Sony.

I love it!

I bought this "dream system" to compliment my Samsung HL-R5087W 50" HDTV DLP television. If looks could kill these two products together win hands down. Overall I am pleased with the system for the amount of money I invested for it. Sound is decent. I feel it is diffidently a great acoustic system but if you are looking for the bass invest in a wired system with Monster Cables. As like many others thoughts I was attempting to overcome an apartment predicament and "wireless" seemed to be the answer. Problem is the two rear speakers still need to be connected to each other via none other then a WIRE. So if you are looking for a truly wireless gig continue to hold your breath because Sony has figured out how to eliminate point A to point B but point B to point C remain dreamless.

This is a great piece of hardware, the wireless rear speakers was a big selling point for me. But in my apartment I would like to have more control over the subwoofer speaker, it's volume slider is hidden in a settings menu there is no separate knob for it on the speaker itself. The bass sound from subwooferis overbearing at default. The other thing is that I would like to be able to have better control over the sound itself with an equalizer. That's not going to happen with this system, you can't change that easily. And yes the 5 disk changer is slow. The maximum volume setting doesn't seem that loud to me, but then I have the decibal settings at default. All the sound quality you expect from a theater system is here, it has all the flavors. Hooking it up to an xbox directly didnt work the way I'd like it too, but I only tried RCA and not the digital. I have a sony 32" Wega and I had the xbox patch to it and then routed to the DAV-FX100 reciever. That works like a charm, even with 5.1 sound from XBOX. One huge complaint I have is the shielding for the mid and left and right front speakers are not the best. I see a bit of haze from the magnetic fields from both the front 3 speakers, even had to elevate my center channel for fear that would permanently damage the tube on my TV. There is mention of this problem in the manual but that should be on the front page not the middle of the manual! Beware! Four Stars.

SPEAKERS: The speakers have good sounding quality, especially the bass module. The system has a bass boost feature (and they really mean BOOST) that would rage any ghetto parties you may happen to throw. Mid-range frequencies are decent, but high-end is only ok sounding. Rear speakers seems decent, but sometimes weak, though you can change that by experimenting with combinations of DTS sound settings and speaker range/ distance in the menu. Sony's proprietary wires make connections easy, but if you ever need a replacement, it would really be a hassle to get one or splice one yourself. To summarize the speakers:
Pros: wireless rear speakers, great bass module, adjustable stands for the speakers
Cons: proprietary wires, just-ok high end frequencies, rear speakers need customizing for better sound

CD/DVD PLAYER: Loading a disc is really not intuitive and really slow - I have changers that are 5 years older and they change much faster than this one! Also, the changer can NOT accept commands while a disc is starting up/ initializing. Unlike Sony's, most players will queue your commands so that they are executed as soon as the disc has started up. For instance, say you load up a disc and want to skip to track #3 right away; the Sony changer will not accept commands until AFTER the disc has started up, which usually takes 8 seconds. My other changers, which are 5 years older, will accept commands and initialize in half the time! 8 seconds may not seem like a lot, but when you use the player every day, you'll find it to be quite annoying.
Pro's: HDMI output, optical audio input
Con's: slow changer, slow disc start up, poor command queuing

REMOTE: The worst feature of the system! The remote is really non-intuitive and lots of features need to be accessed via an on-screen menu, which means you need to turn on your TV just to customize your music selection. It provides buttons for rarely used features, while has none for useful, common functions like shuffle, disc selection, memory selection, etc. Whoever designed the remote functionality is mentally deranged!
Pro's: slim & clean profile; controls basic functions of TV
Con's: non-intuitive interface, lots of features need accessing via a TV menu, no buttons for useful common functions, buttons for rarely used features; this remote SUCKS!

Overall, I got this system because of its decent sound and wireless rear speakers. I can tolerate the ridiculous remote because I have a much better one which I can program the functions. Also, I have a secondary changer just for CD's so that I don't have to use the changer's convoluted menu system. If wireless rear speakers and inputs/ outputs are not important to you, then this system is not the right fit and overpriced.