Pioneer HTD-540DV
Pros:
Great sound. Easy to set up. Great features. Front-stage surround. Great price.
Cons:
can't think of any.
The Bottom Line:
For under $300, you get a 5 disc changer that plays everything under the sun. And the sound is great.
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
Note that this review is for the Pioneer HTD-540DV, which at the time of this writing is not a listed item here on Epinions.
After several weeks of researching online and going to various stores, I zeroed in on the Pioneer HTD-540DV. It fits the bill for what I want. A 5-disc changer that plays almost ALL of the various audio and video formats....DVD audio/SACD, DVD-Video, DVD-R/RW, CD, CD-R, MP3, JPEG...
It is fairly powerful with 600 watts total output. It is made by Pioneer, a highly respected company. It is priced right, $279 delivered to the door through Ebuyer.com.
And finally, what drew me to this particular unit was the "Front-Stage Surround" mode. Due to the layout of my living room, and my not wanting to spend too much money going wireless or having speakers mounted all over the place, I liked the idea of a "front-stage surround" system. This means that you are able to put all 5 of the speakers around your TV, turn the "satellite" speakers away toward the side walls, and presto, you have quasi-surround.
While I do not see why other systems couldn't produce the same effect by simply turning the satellite speakers away from the listening position, this is one of, if not the only, system to purport to have built a "front-stage surround" mode into the unit.
And I tell ya. After setting it up with relative ease in about a half hour, I popped in my latest rental, The Bourne Supremacy, and I swear at times I thought I had side speakers. There is a noticable "surround" effect as the sound bounces off the side walls. Now I won't try to pretend that it's "as good" as true surround. But for my purposes and taste, it is just fine.
What I also like about this unit so far (I've only had it 2 days) is that the DVD/CD player is flush with nice features. I love the memory feature. It remembers exactly where you left off on ALL 5 discs! I was very surprised to see that. Also the readout is bright and clear, easy to see from a distance. There are numerous nice features to adjust the sound to your liking. The remote works well also, and has everything you would want right at your finger tips to adjust sound, change discs etc...
What else? Oh yeah, the sound. The sound is excellent. Although admittedly I have not heard many surround systems in my time, and none in my house, this one is superb, imo. The sound is thick, rich and clear. I have not even had to come close to pushing the volume too high as it is quite powerful.
CDs sound great too. And the player adjusts its settings automatically. Pop in a DVD and you're in movie mode. Pop in a CD and it switches automatically to music mode. I love that.
Anyway, this is a great unit, especially for this price. I don't think you could beat it. And so far, I have not had one inkling of wanting anything more....including "better" speaker wires. I'm very satisfied as is.
