Review by John P. Miguez for Sony BDVE300 5.1-Channel High-Definition Blu-ray Disc Player/DVD Disc Home theater System (Black)
Rating:
I bought the BDVE300 to go with a Sony 52Z5100 HDTV that I also bought from Amazon. I bought it mainly because I wanted to match the two items for both esthetic and practical reasons. The black speakers match the TV perfectly. I can also control both with one controller and easily run the TV sound through the HTS.

I am not an audiophile. So I didn’t try to compare technical specs. This review is strictly subjective (in part to counter the one above) and is based on what I have heard while using the system with the TV.

The room in which the TV is located in is a 20 X 20 den/family room with a connecting dining area and kitchen. The entire area is open. It has wooden floors with a single oval area rug in front of the fireplace and TV.

I found the sound to be exceptionally clear and clean, without distortion or unevenness. I can tell a definite difference between the TV speakers and the BDV300 speakers. The BDV300 sound seems more spacious. It fills the room without blowing you away. The sound has more fullness to it than the TV speakers.

I have not tried it at full volume. I have never felt the need to do so. I have watched two musical DVDs, a Mary Chapin Carpenter concert and the 10th anniversary recording of Les Miserables. In both cases the music sounded beautiful and clear. You could hear all of nuances of the voices and the words of the songs were distinct and clear.

If you want strong bass that shakes the room, I am not sure this is the system for you. The bass is there but it is blended in with the other sounds. I am sure I can adjust it for greater effect. However, I am currently running the system at default values.

As for the lack of an S-air wireless cartridge, as mentioned by the reviewer above. It is true you have to buy it separately. However, everything I read about the system stated this plainly up front. If you need this feature it is available as an option. In researching this system I found this individual posted the same opinion on every web site he could find. I don’t think his opinion was a fair assessment of the system’s capabilities.

I found the set up to be rather easy. The instructions show various options on installing it alone with the TV or with a cable/SAT box or with an external DVD, etc. With the external mic it took about one minute to calibrate and maybe 15 mins. to connect the wires.

Be aware that Sony uses a proprietary plug on the DVD/Radio/Amp end of the system. The speaker end is a simple pinch type terminal. There is a FM & AM receiver as part of the system. I have not tried them yet. The DVD/CD/Blue ray player worked fine.

The bottom line is: The BDVE300 does everything Sony says it does. If you are looking for something to enhance your TV experience and play CDs with good clear sound, this system will do it well. For the price, I think it is an excellent value. I found no “gotchas” or “I can’t believe they did this”. So I gave it a rating of 5. I am very pleased with my purchase.

John

Review by Rolando R. Cuenco for Sony BDVE300 5.1-Channel High-Definition Blu-ray Disc Player/DVD Disc Home theater System (Black)
Rating:
Well i bought this system on black friday in walmart and i got it for a decent price. To hook it up it took me around 30 to 40 minutes. It came with a cd that guided you throughly very well. All the cable connections are color coded making it easier for those who never had a theater system. Even though the system sounded good, i still expected more from a Sony brand. The level sound only goes up to 32, and sometimes i found myself at 25 because i couldn’t hear right. The system was fairly fast, the menu interface similar to that of a ps3 and played really fast. The blu-rays look great and sounds the best out of all the other. You want a full experience out of this get an hdmi cable since it lacks one and the audio outputs because it also lacks that too. I ended up returning it because the connector to the ipod dock had a malfunction and it would not play the ipod. Overall this is a great system for those that never had one. But if you’re looking for better sound and a better experience look toward the other brands such as Panasonic, Lg, and Samsung. =) hope this helped. I have the Panasonic SC-BT200 1000W 7.1 Channel Blu-ray. Look into that, it is cheaper and comes with cooler assets and better sound.

Review by Lorie E for Sony BDVE300 5.1-Channel High-Definition Blu-ray Disc Player/DVD Disc Home theater System (Black)
Rating:
I bought this home theater for my boyfriend for Christmas and he loves it! I hooked the whole thing up within a couple of hours, and it only took that long because I had to run the wires under a rug and build speaker stands in the process. Overall, set up was very easy. The sound is great and I personally love that it has an adapter for my iPhone (in airplane mode). In and of itself, the system is a great upgrade from the poor sound quality of his flat screen Bravia TV. He was really surprised and delighted.

The only disappointment was that I didn’t realize when it bought it that in order to use the S-Air function, you actually need TWO things – an S-Air receiver ($90)and an S-Air transmitter ($50). I initially thought only the transmitter was needed and bought it, but the receiver is also needed to connect to the rear speakers. Spending an additional $150 beyond the cost of the system wasn’t an option for me, so I’m returning the transmitter. That is more my fault for not understanding, but Sony doesn’t exactly do a great job communicating what all is needed either.