Sony HT-DDW790 Home Theater System, Amplifier, 5.1 Speakers - 800W RMS

...

is limited in inputs, outputs, and doesn't have any HDMI ports at all but that's part of its beauty - making it simple to set up and simple to operate. If you're looking for a system to use as a video switchbox that routes video from all your components to your TV, then this is not the system for you. However, if you simply want good sound, simple set up, and easy operation, (and can route your video directly to your TV or are using a separate video switcher), then this is a dream system (especially when you factor in a price that's about the same as a standard DVD player.

I pulled my Sony HT-DDW790 out of the box and had it set up and running in under 20 minutes. I'm more than satisfied with my purchase.

Incidentally, you can also connect the Sony HT-DDW790 via its digital coax or fiber optic inputs to your computer and use it as a blazing computer gaming sound system should you ever decide to upgrade your home theater sound system. In fact, connect your computer or gaming system to your TV and let the Sony HT-DDW790 handle the sound for some truly great gaming.

Sony HT-DDW790 Home Theater System, Amplifier, 5.1 Speakers - 800W RMS

...

I was playing my crappy MP3s through this, it figured out what was the vocal track and the vocals came through only my center speaker. my back speakers were playing drums and my front speakers very playing guitar. Pretty impressive. Even TV shows worked well...placing the dialogue in the center speaker, and ambient noise in the surround sound speakers. (regardless if the show was broadcasting in surround sound or stereo) They have different pro logic presets depending on whether you are listening to music or watching a show/movie.

Now for the complaints. The speaker wire is attached to the speaker and cannot be removed. I have a fairly small living room and I hate seeing messy cables on my carpet so I was having them tucked into the edges of the carpet. As I feared, I did not have enough cable to reach my back wall. I will have to go to Radio Shack tonight and by more speaker cable and adaptors to connect it to the provided cable. (and probably will lose some quality) Sony should have allowed to detach the cable or at the very least, have more than enough length to fit different sized rooms.

Another huge design flaw was that all the speaker cubes had hook holes so you can mount them on the wall EXCEPT for the center channel. Is Sony assuming I have a tube tv or a rear projection that i can lay the center channel on top of? My plasma is too thin to have anything on top of it, so for the time being, I've placed the center speaker at the base of my plasma, laying on the shelf. Looks ugly. Will have to build my own shelf so I can place it above my tv and against the wall.

I was surprised that I could not turn on and off my TV with the receiver remote. I know this system is cheap, but I thought that feature was fairly standard. Apparently, it looks you can only control Sony products (TVs, DVD players) I'll have to buy a universal remote.

Sony HT-DDW790 Home Theater System, Amplifier, 5.1 Speakers - 800W RMS

...

of deal (experience shows me that these always go faulty).

Setup was a snap, much easier then i'm used to thanks to the handy mic that comes with the system that helps your receiver automatically calibrate your speaker settings. I was happy with what I heard at the store, but I was blown away when I heard this in my own home (no sound pollution, like at the store). For a $150.00 system this sounds great! The audio is mostly clean, bass is pulse-pounding, mids and highs are good. So how does it compare to the $6,000.00 high end system my buddy has? Well, obviously not even close.

Here's what you can expect with this system:
The sound is mostly clean. The mids and highs are good, but someone seeking perfection may be a bit disappointed. Don't expect eye-blinking highs and super-rich mids. The bass is surprisingly powerful, but at higher volumes you will get "bass belching". The bass does thump pretty well but this bass module is passive so you wont get those strong soul-shaking bass thumps that you hear in high end systems. Worth mentioning is the form-factor of this system, well the speakers anyways. The speakers are nice and small, making this system discrete. The speakers have a nice feel to them, they don't feel like super cheap speakers. The receiver isn't as attractive because it's quite large and lacks substance because the buttons are very tiny - there's a lot of empty space.

So there are some issues with this system, why did I give it 5 stars? Well, first off, these issues are to be expected. One reviewer said that sony cut corners, I say - duh! Of coarse if you're going to build a complete 5.1 surround system including a receiver and price it around $150.00 then you're going to cut corners. Anyways, it deserves 5 stars because this is the best cheapie 5.1 system i've ever owned. I went in expecting crud and ended up with something that actually sounds pretty darn good! My movies are very immersive and my music sounds pretty good. That's all I need right now.