73 of 76 people found the following review helpful:
Better then expected
I have a friend that wanted me to go with him to look at and buy a surround sound system for his LCD TV. I never thought much about "theater in a box" systems, I have a Sony 7.1 AV component system with Polk Audio speakers myself. We went to Best Buy so we could listen to the different systems. Sony's system with Blu-ray built in had no bass and sounded lacking. Samsung...
50 of 56 people found the following review helpful:
Really Good and Really Bad!
Pros:
Very clean sound overall. F/X in movies sound outstanding.
TV shows sound great.
Easy to set up.
Deep bass (for movies).
Cons:
As with many systems you have to crank it way up to hear the vocals in most movies. It's then way too loud when F/X or music kicks in. This is why I returned this system. Yes, the F/X sound...
This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
I have a friend that wanted me to go with him to look at and buy a surround sound system for his LCD TV. I never thought much about "theater in a box" systems, I have a Sony 7.1 AV component system with Polk Audio speakers myself. We went to Best Buy so we could listen to the different systems. Sony's system with Blu-ray built in had no bass and sounded lacking. Samsung was the same, as were all the other brands in the $400 - $600 range. Then we came to the Bose. I've gotta say, I was very surprised. The bass was rich and full, balanced by the sound of the 2 front speakers that filled your ears with a surround sound 'feel'. Not to mention the fact that you can set it up in about 10 minutes. I'm not saying that it sounded better than my system, but in its class, I believe that it's the best of the best.
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This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
Pros:
Very clean sound overall. F/X in movies sound outstanding.
TV shows sound great.
Easy to set up.
Deep bass (for movies).
Cons:
As with many systems you have to crank it way up to hear the vocals in most movies. It's then way too loud when F/X or music kicks in. This is why I returned this system. Yes, the F/X sound awesome but you can't understand the spoken dialog. There's no adjustment other than the bass level on the sub.
The sound cuts out anytime you change volume levels. It's a gated and delayed "drop out." It cuts out any extreme input regardless of source. This feature is very annoying and unacceptable. It sounds like a good idea to avoid pops and noise but it's done too drastically.
For live music dvd's/blu ray's you can forget it! Acoustic guitars sound good and that's about it. It's the low end that is lost. Only the extreme lows seem to come though regardless of how loud you set the bass on the sub woofer.
In closing:
I really wanted this system to work for me. I watched many dvds/blu rays, moved the speakers all over the room, changed rooms and after three long days... I gave up. The final straw was not being able to understand the dialog in "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Price". I watched that movie twice. Once on blu ray with the Bose 2.1 and once on dvd with the Harmon/Kardon HS 100. The dialog was crystal clear on the Harmon/Kardon system. The Bose Cinemate 2 would be be perfect (for movies) if they could get the dialog issue worked out.
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This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
After reading all the reviews (and I mean ALL!) I went shopping. I looked and listened to Denon - Boston Acoustics - Sony - Yamaha and a host of other systems in the $400 to $600 range. Didn't even consider Bose Cinemate Series II because of all the negative reviews. Well actually it ran 50-50. But after being disappointed with all of the above I decided to check the Bose system out. WOW! Sound quality was far superior as well as the build. Bought it. Installed it. I am amazed at the life like sound. You feel it not just hear it. I had JBL Control Monitors hooked up to my 60" plasma and could not even imagine this small system sounding better. But it does!
I seriously don't know what the critics are talking about.
Bottom Line: If you are looking for the best value, quality & sound for your HDTV in the $400 to $600 range, then you cannot beat this system.
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This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
We've had this product for over 3 months now and it has been absolutely perfect. We were worried that the sound may not fill up our living room because it is big and has 12 ft. ceilings. After we installed it we realized the sound could probably fill an airplane hanger. The sound is so rich and the bass is just awesome. Don't worry if you have a giant room...this system is way more than enough.
To the people that said the sound effects and music were too loud...It's your TV. My TV has level audio, so if a commercial comes on they can't blast me out of my chair. Levelized audio gives you that same volume no matter what. Many newer TV's have this, but you may have to figure out how to get it to work. My Samsung came with that setting as a default from the factory, but other brands may make you choose it as an option.
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This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
I did extensive research on a simple sound system to compliment my 46' Sony LCD and the Bose was the best one for simplicity (which I wanted) and for sound. I looked at Polk, Boston Acoustics, Denon, and Sony, but ultimately the Bose Cinemate II beat them all. While the price was a little higher than those I mentioned for comparable systems, the Bose sounded the best by far and is constructed very well. Set up took me less than 30 minutes and I tested it using my Blueray player, my PS3, my Wii, XM radio, and various tv stations and it sounded great. It is well worth the $600.00 it is listed at. The other system I looked at didn't look or sound as good and they were on average only $100-150 cheaper.
I also looked at the Bose Cinemate GS II which costs $200 more. I tested them both side by side at a Bose Factory Store and two other electronic stores. There was virtually no difference in sound quality between them. While the GS sounded awesome like this one, I personally do not feel it is worth $200 more for the little additions you get like a universal remote (I have a Logitech Harmony 900 which I highly recommend--best remote out there in my opinion) and smaller main speakers (not much difference in size really anyways). The sub is the same on both of them.
I highly recommend this system to anyone who doesn't want to mess with wires that you would have to have with a 5.1 or 7.1 system.
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This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
Just purchased this unit for new Imac 27", which I am setting up using EyeTV. On a ten point scale for sound I would give it a strong 7. There is a bit of problem hearing voice dialogue during dvd playback as reported by another user. But, as I have a Lifestyle setup for main TV and it has the same problem, not really sure if it is me or just a characteristic of Bose.
The speaker desktop stands are overly complex and poorly designed. They are held together with screws in a way that one can never quite get tightened enough, the speaker then mis-aline in relation to the stand from the slightest jar.
Another flaw is the optical digital connection was bad. I had read somewhere else about this. The female connector in the control unit is not tight, the male connector simply falls out. I have tried 4 other male connector's, they should lock in with a snap and take a small tug to remove. I am returning it to the Factory store to see what they say, and will update the stars to 4 if fixed.
It was very easy to set up and use (except for the speaker stands) I looked at several other options, decided on this. I will keep it if they correct the Op connection is fixed.
_______________FOLLOW-UP____________
The problem with the connector was solved down at the factory outlet store. The salesman could not get the wireless connector to stay in the unit either. The solution is to press very hard into the control unit until you hear a click, it requires much more force that you would expect, much different that other optical connectors. Also the extension cable that I purchased would not "click" into the unit due to the slight recess, so be cautious when getting extra long cables for it as they may not mate. I've up the rating to 4 stars.
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This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
If you're looking for a great sounding, 3 piece system in the $600 price range, you should give the Cinemate serious consideration. I was able to test drive multiple systems at Best Buy, including sound bar systems, full mutlipiece systems with receivers, and 3 Bose systems. This particular system produces outstanding bass which perfectly compliments the 2 midrange speakers. It's a very nice balance of highs, mids, and lows (subs). You'll be VERY hard pressed to find a system that sounds this full, and this professional in the $1,000 range. Did I mention it has serious volume and sounds equally great at all volume levels?
There is a subwoofer level adjustment control which allows you to dial in the perfect balance of bass suitable to your tastes and the particular room it sits in. Initially, i was a little disappointed there weren't more highs (sparkling) pushing from this system-but, after sitting with the system and demoing a few others in home I was very happy with the Cinemate.
I've been playing guitar for 22 years, so I am extremely particular about quality of tone-I think i have a good set of ears and hear things very well. The engineers did an outstanding job engineering the Cinemate. I have it hooked into my Samsung plasma, via an optical cable and when watching TV shows/movies in HD, the sound can be unbelieveable (depending on the source audio and its' quality). Once again, Bose proves it's namesake.
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This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
After I decided to downsize my audio system, I was hoping to find a surround system for my home theater that would fit my budget ($350-600) and save space. The system replaced an older Kenwood component system with bulky speakers that took up monstrous floor space in my apartment.
I looked at several systems, including a Sony system. All of the 5.1 systems I looked at required a lot of wiring and ideal speaker arrangements or lots of time configuring the sound. By comparison, the Bose has just a few cables and only two satellites to accompany the Acoustimass module (the subwoofer).
In terms of space savings, the Bose CineMate Series II (not the GS) is a winner. It requires no large amplifier, but simply consists of the above speakers and a very small sensor unit. It connects to your television via the included optical cable and all audio plays through the television. The whole setup is controlled via the very small remote unit.
Installation was a snap. To tune the system, you really just need to adjust the bass level via a knob on the subwoofer. Then, and this is important, you must turn off your television's speakers.
The only complaint I have is minor--you do need to have all of your audio devices or other sources connected to your television. My DVD player also plays my CDs and connects via HDMI. That's a minor characteristic which I can't even call a flaw.
The flip-side of the space-saving coin is that this is not a true 5.1 surround experience. The speakers sound very, very good, and the experience is comparable in terms of quality to a true surround sound. But don't expect to hear baddies behind you, or anything like that. But DO expect to hear everything. The sound is crisp, clear, and loud for a system its size.
The CineMate Series II is spectacular for either a bedroom or the living room of an apartment. If you have a house and can afford it, you may as well go for a component system with true 5.1 since you've have more space and more wiring options as an owner rather than a renter.
If you have a Logitech HarmonyOne remote, it will control your CineMate, which is also handy.
This system is on the high end of my budget, but there are no systems in this price range or size that sound anywhere near as good.
Finally, I'm aware that some people claim to have problems with mid-range sounds like human voice for dialogue in movies. I have had no such problems, and it works even with films (Harry Potter) that some people claimed to have issues with. I suspect that these underperforming units have a defect or were not installed correctly.
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This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
I purchased Bose® CineMate® Series II instead of the GS version because side by side they sounded the same. Although the speakers are a little bigger they look great! Also I didn't want to pay 200.00 for there universal remote so I purchased the Logitech Harmony One Advanced Universal Remote and it works perfect with my samsung ToC HDTV and all my other electronics. I would recommend that combo to anyone who is considering the GS version.
This review is from: Bose® CineMate® Series II Digital Home Theater Speaker System (Electronics)
I recently purchased a 46 inch LCD and was looking to upgrade my sound system and discovered a great little package with monster surround sound - Bose Cinemate II. I was walking through a Best Buy store and heard this amazing sound. I turned the corner and continued to listen to the demostration of these speakers. WOW! two fronts and a clean sub with powerful surround. I was impressed and since I owned top of the line Polk Audio and Infinity in the past, I immediately had something to compare these speakers to and made the purchase. The set up was easy, fast and with the speaker stands (sold seperately) looked sharp and most importantly the sound was GREAT! Yes, there might be better systems out there, better names etc since our ears are sensitive to different tones and pitch but go to your local Best Buy and give these speakers a listen to and hear them for yourself. You will be surprised..
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