• 06-03-2004, 10:49 AM
    hidefinitley
    Bose 321 comparable solution
    I have a very limited amount of space for a home theater system and have been researching small home theater alternatives. I am interested in a progressive scan dvd player that plays mp3's. Additionally, I would like a high perfomance sound (surround sound would be nice but not necessary). The only system that I have found so far that is small enough to fit the bill is the bose 321 system. Could anyone suggest an alternative system.

    Thanks,
  • 06-03-2004, 02:06 PM
    prash
    U can do MUCH better with this
    Try the Niro 1.1 pro. It costs a less, performs a lot better and is even simpler to setup. Here is a review

    http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/art...&page_number=1

    -prashant
  • 06-03-2004, 05:45 PM
    CyberStoic
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by hidefinitley
    I have a very limited amount of space for a home theater system and have been researching small home theater alternatives. I am interested in a progressive scan dvd player that plays mp3's. Additionally, I would like a high perfomance sound (surround sound would be nice but not necessary). The only system that I have found so far that is small enough to fit the bill is the bose 321 system. Could anyone suggest an alternative system.

    I have a friend who has the Bose 321 and to me, it sounds pretty awful. The manual is very particular about where those front speakers should be and if they are not quite right the imaging is terrible. The dialogue also seems to get lost quite a bit.

    My next door neighbour has a Onkyo 601 receiver, two Athena Bookshelf speakers and an athena subwoofer. The onkyo (like many receivers) allows you to have simulated surround with two speakers. His system sounds infinitely better (in my opinion, for what that's worth) than the bose321. The onkyo will adjust the dialogue, and the Theater-Dimentional (T-D) mode ( either in DD, DTS, neo6, or Prologic II) gives as good a "surround" from two speakers as you are probably gonna get.

    I am sure there are many other set ups that can be put together for reasonable cost that would blow away the bose, which to me seems overpriced for a dvd player that is not even progressive scan.

    Good luck
  • 06-03-2004, 05:47 PM
    CyberStoic
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by prash
    Try the Niro 1.1 pro. It costs a less, performs a lot better and is even simpler to setup. Here is a review

    http://www.soundandvisionmag.com/art...&page_number=1

    -prashant


    Hi prashant;

    I heard the Niro, and it sounded ok. Certainly better than the bose, but for the money, you could piece together something that would sound better, I think. I also did not like how the niro sounded with music.
  • 06-03-2004, 06:19 PM
    Geoffcin
    Cambridge Soundworks
    Quote:

    Originally Posted by hidefinitley
    I have a very limited amount of space for a home theater system and have been researching small home theater alternatives. I am interested in a progressive scan dvd player that plays mp3's. Additionally, I would like a high perfomance sound (surround sound would be nice but not necessary). The only system that I have found so far that is small enough to fit the bill is the bose 321 system. Could anyone suggest an alternative system.

    Thanks,


    Makes some interesting systems. I'm using thier speakers in my HT setup, and also on my computer.

    Go to Hifi.com
  • 06-03-2004, 06:36 PM
    Woochifer
    First off, I'm not sure if the Bose 3-2-1 plays MP3 or does progressive scan. Last time I checked, the Bose 3-2-1 doesn't even have component video outputs, which you would need for progressive scan output. It's a slick package, but it gives you a very limited set of features, has zero room for upgrading (if you ever want to go multichannel, you have to chuck the 3-2-1 and start over), and is the highest priced option in its class.

    Since space is your biggest concern, a couple of options from Sharp and Denon come to mind. These are integrated DVD player/receiver combos. You just add your own speakers (which IMO is always the way to go because the speakers that come with most integrated systems are very poor quality).

    http://www.sharpusa.com/products/Mod...8,1366,00.html

    http://www.sharpusa.com/images/aud_SDPX2_pic1.jpg

    http://www.usa.denon.com/catalog/products.asp?l=2&c=16



    Both of these are compact units that have progressive scan DVD players built in, can do virtual surround processing, and have five-channel amps so you can later on add the center and surround speakers. That Sharp looks very impressive because it uses the one-bit digital amp design derived from their well regarded $16,000 SM-SX100 amp, and the amp can directly process a SACD signal. It can also be wall mounted. It seems to be more widely available than the Denon. Both units cost $500. This gives you the option to find your own set of speakers and you'll still be well under the price for the Bose 3-2-1.

    There are other compact integrated system options from Yamaha, Denon, and Sony that fit your needs. However, they come with not so impressive speakers. But, at least they have standard connections that you can use to add whatever speakers you want. The Bose 3-2-1 is proprietary and the connectors are incompatible with other speakers.

    If you have room for separate receiver and DVD player, I would suggest that you go with that option first. Separate components will give you better performance and more advanced decoding features.
  • 06-04-2004, 08:09 AM
    prash
    I suggested the Niro 1.1 pro only because of the space constraint that was mentioned in the post. The best choice (in my opinion) in this price range would b the Ventriloquist VT12 (www.hsuresearch.com)

    -prashanth