Digital audio sync problem

This is not necessarily a problem with my HTS3544, but this issue somewhat limits the use for digital audio inputs - the video signal is not synced with the digital audio. My Philips home theater has a sync setting, but I am not sure if it is only meant to be active while playing DVDs. I think that the TV should have some syncing mechanism. What's worse, it appears that the amount of correction needed changes from time to time. In my experience, the video and audio became so out of sync that I had to eventually resort to using my TV's speakers.

Philips HTS3544 home theater

And finally the quest is over! I have a home theater. Philips HTS3544! The manual is both for Philips HTS3544 and HTS3555. I have not idea what the difference between the models is. I connected the digital audio out from my TV. Bear in mind, that digital out is only possible for digital channels. This means that I get true Dolby sound for a good number of channels.

The sound is amazing. I never really care as much about sound, but this is the kind of thing that when you get it, it's difficult to go without it. My concern was that it would be too loud, but the sound is spread over all the channels, so when you close the door in the room not much of it escapes, while inside you have a real theatric experience. For $159 at Target, not bad at all! There is no hissing or anything unpleasant about the sound.


You can really watch all the movies you have with a totally different feeling. HTS3544 is also quite slim, it does not look like an antiquated piece of equipment. There is an iPod dock which can also be used for some Philips mp3 player I never heard of (GoGear). You can control the functions of the iPod and if you connect the dock to the television with a video cable you can watch pictures or videos on the screen. I actually was not able to achieve that, because I don't have a single picture on my iPod. Unfortunately, it does not seem to be possible to view iPod's menus on the TV screen.

There is an MP3 port and I was able to get excellent sound from it. The only complaint is that the button on the remote toggles between AUX and Digital In. Takes a few seconds to switch from one to the other.

There is one valuable option. You can indicate whether your TV is NTSC or multi-system. I have a bunch of PAL DVDs. My old DVD recorder (also a Philips) could play them, but the TV was unable to display them properly. A TVs problem, primarily, but very inconvenient.

I ordered a Belkin HDMI cable from Buy.com for $10. When I get it I will be able to test upconversion. I cannot emphasize it enough that you do not have to pay $40-$60 for a cable at your local BestBuy or what have you. This is just a total scam. For a short cable you don't even have to have a real brand. I got a 6 inch Belkin, so this should be just fine.

One thing I have to try is playback of DivX disks.

So far, I was unable to make my Philips universal remote to work with this home theater... I was hoping that Philips products would work together...

DAVHDX265 - no digital audio in either.

I understand how a lower model of the Bravia home theater line does not have digital in. As it turns out, DAVHDX265 does not have it either. It also makes me wonder why Costco carries the lowest model of the line, but that's a different story altogether.

Really, is it that unreasonable to expect a digital audio port in a home theater system? I could have gotten a Philips HTS3151D for $90 as an open box. I really like these Philips home theaters. But this digital in issue keeps coming up. I do not want to get something that will intimately not do the job for me.

Insignia NS-H2002 home theater

This home theater does not have a digital in, so I am not interested in it per se. But it is crazy cheap at $69. It might not be as powerful, but the my interest in it is entirely of a different sort. Suppose, one even knew that this system is prone to breaking and developing all sorts of problems. Still, wouldn't this be the case when getting an extended warranty actually be a good idea? With a product so cheap, well bellow competition, you could have it replaced if it ever broke... Insignia is a BestBuy brand, so it is probably not all that terrible after all.

DAVHDZ235 vs. Philips HTS3555

To my great dissatisfaction, it turned out that Sony Bravia DAVHDZ235 does not have a digital in. I don't know why I assumed that it would. It seems as if Philips is more digitally diligent. Their HTS3555/37 has a DTS and Dolby Digital Decoder. And the speakers are not as huge as on some other models, and the main unit is somewhat slim.
It also has a MP3 line-in and a USB port. It does upconversion to 1080i and even plays DiVx files.
BestBuy has it for $180 or something, but from the reviews (quite good, I must add) it looks like it sold for $156 at some other point.

Here is the manual to this Philips HTS3555 home theater:

DAV-HDZ235 upconversion

As it turns out, DAV-HDZ235 does upscaling to 720p/1080i. Suddenly, this model is becoming a lot more appealing :) This feature is not mentioned on a few sites where they sell this model. And Costo price is still unbeatable - about $50 below competition. Also (well, I am new to this home theater world...) it comes with a microphone. When connected and placed in the exact location where you expect to be listening to this system most of the time, it balances out the audio levels for all the speakers!

Nintendo DS Lite coupons - one sweet deal

You can't have too many Nintendo DS's in the house, really. Someone is using one, the other just got accidentally washed in the laundry... Microcenter is still running what I consider a fantastic deal on DS. Get the console for a regular price ($130) and get 2 coupons for free games worth $30 each. The first coupon is good in December, the other one - in January. I already used the first coupon - Yoshi's Island. This will be someone's Christmas present.

Sony Bravia DAVHDZ235 home theater and Sharp SH12U

Here is one thing to consider when choosing the size of your new TV. A bigger TV, especially if we're talking smaller sets, will be very likely to have more connections. I learned this the hard way. My Sharp SH12U, even though the screen size is quite sufficient for me, does not have an analog audio out jack. It only has digital audio out with Dolby or PCM. Because digital channels that I get over QAM do not have a loud enough audio signal I started looking around for a way to boost the sound. If only I had analog audio out on the TV! Like a headphone jack or something... I would have gotten a Logitech X-530 or Logitech X-540. This last one even has a 'matrix' feature that creates surround sound when there is not 5.1 source. Unfortunately, I now have to look for a more expensive (which is fine) and space-consuming (not fine!) option. Costco has a Sony Bravia DAVHDZ235 home theater for $170, but it is obviously bigger than a Logitech speaker system. All the speaker components are significantly larger and then there is the set-top box. I understand that this give you more power, but I just don't need that much power! Frustrating.