Recommend me a home cinema system - Anyone got the Sony DAVS550?

[Coolio]

Ok, old one packed up and John Lewis are giving me my money back so which one do I go for. We had the Panasonic SCHT70 so I guess anything is a good buy compared to that. It didnt have DTS so I want one that will have that, but whats this THX thing? Should I be looking for that on a new system?

Is the Sony DAVS550 the best one about at the mo for a reasonable price? I will be able to watch tv through it in surround sound right?

[dtsrules]

If you let people know how much you have to spend they may be able to help.

[rwniel]

As the 'SCHT70' had a 5 disc changer, is that a factor in its replacement? It's worth bearing in mind that a single disk player is better at playing movies and a dedicated CD player for music.

Also, how big is the room and what television is it? Both these could be a factor, especially in terms of connection, make and model choices.

THX is a paid certification process, largely aimed at high end equipment (and cinemas) and so is unlikely to be relavent to your purchase. It basically sets standards for amplication and other elements which make up the system. It also includes set-up like speaker placement and options are provided on some DVDs to help with this. More details here (http://www.thx.com/mod/products/homeTheatre.html)


Robert

[Coolio]

ok, the tv is a philips 28pw6515. I dont necessarily want a 5 disc changer, it never made any difference to me. The room is a lounge kitchen and dining, open plan place but the tv part of it, where I have the speakers is about 18x12 feet.

I will probably look to upgrade the TV in the next year or two, probably to a 32/36 normal widescreen tv or to a rear projection monster.

I dont really want to spend much over 400, and I dont want to go the seperates route either because the look is important to me.

I have also been reading that the Panasonic SCHT900 is highly regarded, often even better than the Sony DAVS888.

[lovegroova]

Well, my brother has the DAVS550 and I think it is fine for surround duties and as it is available multi-region for less than £300, you won't find much to beat it.

The only thing it doesn't have is 6.1, but 5.1 is fine, especially in this price bracket.

His wife likes the look of the main unit and the speakers which are pretty funky, and his 4 year old can work the dvd so it is easy to use.

And as another poster said, forget about THX - it doesn't impact this price range.

Get a demo and see what you think.

[rwniel]

The '900' is a good choice, especially as it has progressive scanning and component outputs both of which might be useful when you come to upgrade your television.

Get a demo if you can though.