Denon S-301 DVD Home Entertainment System Review
Features of the Denon S-301 DVD Home Entertainment SystemWhat's in the Box Inside the package with the Denon S-301 DVD Home Entertainment System you get the following items:
DVD Player/Amp The DVD player is the brains of the entire Denon S-301 DVD Home Entertainment System. On the rear of the DVD player are all of the connection options, and there are quite a few options for connecting this system. Denon included an HDMI out port, component video out, S-Video out, and RCA video out. Input options include dual S-Video and several analog RCA outputs.
Rounding out the connectivity options are a S/PDIF in and out for digital connections via Toslink cable as well as digital coaxial in. A connector for an FM antennae is also included on the rear of the DVD player to allow you to use the system as a home stereo as well. The DVD playback can be changed via a toggle on the back of the DVD player between wide and letterbox aspect ratios. On the front of the DVD player there are inputs for your iPod, other MP3 players and a USB port. The system also supports Dolby Virtual surround sound through headphones.
Speakers The speakers for this system consists of a pair of matched left and right satellite speakers and a subwoofer. The satellite speakers are 2-way design with dual 8cm cone bass-mid per speaker and a 2.5cm high range tweeter and the speakers are also magnetically shielded. The satellites measure in at 15 3/4" x 5" on the stands. The sub woofer is an active 20cm cone magnetically shielded unit inside its own enclosure. The sub has 140W of power and measures in at 18 1/4" x 14".
The speakers can be table top mounted with the included speaker stands, or you can mount them to the wall with the included wall mount brackets. The speaker wire included is of good quality, and customized to the Denon system. You will not be able to use the speakers with any other brand speaker wire due to the unique wire connector the system uses. Denon S-301 DVD Home Entertainment System in Use Unboxing the Denon system was easy and straight forward as was setting the system up. If you have ever had the opportunity to set up a standard 5.1 home theater system, you know how difficult this step can be. I tested the system with an Olevia 542i 42" LCD TV connected to the Denon S-301 DVD Home Entertainment System via HDMI. Picture quality with DVD playback was absolutely first rate. DVD's that are not HD quality were upconverted very well to 1080i with excellent results. Sound quality was shocking for a 2.1 system though I personally would still prefer a nice 5.1 system. I have yet to hear a virtual surround sound system that really sounded like 5.1. The Denon S-301 did nothing to chang my mind on that point. However, if you take the Denon S-301 for what it is, a superbly performing 2.1 home theater in a box it excels. The subs small stature compared to other home theater systems I have used beliles its ability to produce bass. The sub produces the type of bass I love, room filling, chest vibrating sort of bass that draws you into your movies. I tested the system with a number of movies, two of my favorite test flicks are Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Rings and Underworld Evolution. I particularly like the birthday party scenes of LOTR with the fireworks. While I still didn't feel surrounded by the sound like I do with a 5.1 system, the sound quality was great. While the bass was deep, the voices and other sounds were still easy to discern and not overwhelmed by the bass. The remote has universal functions for other home theater components as well as specific controls for the DVD player. The system also performed well for TV watching as well, though the volume levels when using the system for TV sound connected via RCA cables to my TV was much less than on the DVD playback. The sound was so low, I often wondered if the volume was all the way up, which it was. The single biggest issue I take with the Denon S-301 DVD Home Entertainment System isn't with the sound or the performance of the system, it was with the price. You might expect a Denon branded product to be costly, but at nearly $1500 for the S-301 its outright expensive.
The Denon S-301 DVD Home Entertainment System makes some great sound from the small easy to connect system. The high-end price makes the system more costly than many quality 5.1 systems and the virtual surround sound of the S-301 just isn't as good as real 5.1 surround sound. At the end of the day if you have the cash to drop $1500 and want an easy to connect and great sounding 2.1 system, the S-301 may be what you are looking for. If you are hoping for a replacement for a 5.1 system with comparable surround sound capabilities, I don't think the S-301 is there yet. I4U Rating
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