ONKYO SKS-HT240 Home Theater Speaker System Review

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(More customer reviews)I spent a great deal of time researching a home theater system that fit my requirements. Online reviews were the single largest source of information and the biggest input to my decision. I'm hoping this review will aid someone in the same manner in the future.
First, a few words about my situation - we have a largish (20 X 20 X 25) family room with a 50 inch DLP (a Samsung HL-R5067W) in a corner. The room has large floor-to-ceiling glass windows on the right side, solid walls on two sides, and an open back, which overlooks the kitchen area. In short, a difficult acoustic situation. I needed a system that could fill this large space with sound, yet be crisp enough for dialogues. Plus, this was going to be our main music system as well, so it had to do a good job with music CDs and MP3s, with a large mix of genres and styles.
Since this is the family room (roamed by our curious 2 yr old, with spillover noise from the kitchen etc), we didn't want to spend the world either. The understanding was that we'd budget about $1000 for this system, reserving the future 'media room' for the _really_ good system.
Other requirements were: speakers should be medium sized (not as small as bose, but not large either), preferably in silver.
As mentioned earlier, I looked at many systems online, ranging from HTIB systems (Home Theater in a Box) to separate speakers that ran to hundreds of dollars each. We went to Best Buy, Flanners, American etc to listen to some setups, comparing Denon, Yamaha, Sonys and eventually this Onkyo set.
This Onkyo set has almost a 'perfect' review everyplace you see them online. That's what really made me take notice. And when I actually listened to them at American TV, they beat everything comparable, and then some. So we bought them online (from Vanns.com, actually), and haven't regretted them for a moment.
They do have a couple issues - one, and this is highly subjective, is that I don't care for the stainless steel top, bottom and linings (a little too flashy for our taste). They are a little on the large side, with the subwoofer being pretty big. Also, more importantly, you'll need a few tweaks to get them to play up to their full potential. But that's about it.
As many others have attested before me, the sound from movies will change your movie reviews, and to really top it all, Dave Matthews sounds like he's pretty much sitting in my family room (well, I'm exaggerating, but only a little). The subwoofer is beyond good - it produces a low rumble that's almost visceral.
I paired these speakers with an Onkyo TX-SR574S receiver, and the results are delightful. You will need a good receiver so that you can change the sound levels and distance to different speakers individually. I needed to do that before they started sounding really good. You also will need good, thick speaker cables. Not Monster cable - they are a waste of money - but good (16 gauge at least) speaker wire and a better subwoofer cable than what comes with the set.
The entire set cost me about $700, including $100 for good cables. So we have $300 left over for a HTPC I'm building.
And now for the most important measure of all - my wife, who hates sci-fi movies, sat through 'The Fifth Element' from the beginning to the end, including the credits. This one's a keeper.

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If you're serious about home-theater sound, a home-theater surround sound receiver is about your best choice for broad connectivity and high quality performance. Perhaps the most daunting task is finding and connecting the right speaker system. Onkyo has assembled quite a great speaker system for you and, with included color-coded cables, installation into your receiver is relatively simple. After all, its all about home entertainment and you deserve an easy routs to achieving pleasure that you can continually appreciate. That's where this Onkyo SKS-HT240 comes into the picture and the sound field. It looks good too! Frequency Response -27 Hz - 150 Hz (Subwoofer) Includes connecting cable Onkyo USA 2 Years Parts and Labor Warranty

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ZVOX 325 High-Performance Single-Cabinet Surround Sound System Review

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(More customer reviews)This is by far the best sounding, easiest to set up all in one theater system I have owned or heard, bar none. I have owned many 5.1 systems, and also two different soundbar systems (the highly rated Sony HT CT-100 being one of them), and the zvox 325 is the best bang for the buck.
Crystal Clear vocals, smooth bass, and the phase cue option is great for action movies (Wanted and Matrix Blu-ray sounded amazing, although music sounds much better with the phase cue turned almost all the way off.)
While the CT-100 worked great in my bedroom, vocals were still a problem, and the bass was way too punchy even at lower levels. Since I had just ditched and sold all my 5.1 equipment (yamaha 1000 watt receiver, boston acoustics bookshelves, and some older bose fronts) the last thing I wanted to do was run wires all over my condo, as well as have my fiance complain about space issues and how confusing it was for her to just watch tv through the internal speakers. I also did not want to drop thousands of dollars on other sound bar systems just because they had digital audio and hdmi switching capabilities.
My hdtv has 4 hdmi inputs, which is more than enough for me. I have my blu ray, wii, and hd cable all run through hdmi into the tv (except for wii, component), and the analog audio out to the zvox 325. I still do not buy the digital audio is always better bs, as this sounds 10x clearer than my ct-100, and can go twice as loud through a stereo mini jack! No, it is not true 5.1, but during movies I can hear background effects side to side, and most importantly, I can actually HEAR the dialogue. If there is one con, its the flimsy remote, but I can deal with it. I think zvox now has a customer for life, and for $299, I dare you to do better.

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The ZVOX 325 is the perfect choice for someone who wants to add terrific sound to a television – without the complication and expense of a 5.1 surround sound system. It delivers remarkably accurate, wide-range sound from a single compact cabinet; with only one connecting wire\'.and a one-page owner\'s manual. The 325 was created by legendary speaker designer Winslow Burhoe (founder of EPI Loudspeakers and Burhoe Acoustics). Frankly, we are amazed at how good the 325 sounds. It is simply delightful. Female vocalists sound warm, rich and natural. Music is reproduced with true high fidelity. Live concerts sound big and airy and awesome. Movie soundtracks are delivered with startling realism - including punchy, accurate bass. Even sporting events take on a new dimension with the 325 – you\'ll hear details you\'ve never heard before. And all sound is reproduced with a sense of distortion-free ease. Never before has an audio system offered this combination of high performance, small size, simplicity and affordability. Just hook up its single connecting wire and you will transform your TV into a terrific home theater system...but without all the wires and boxes. "The 325 sounded great. An awesome system." - Sound & Vision magazine "Inspires sincere gadget lust...surprisingly good surround sound." - PC World "Superior to most we've tested." - CNET "Remarkable. We're amazed." - Maximum PC magazine "Great sound." - About.com

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