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| Panasonic SC-BT1005.1 Blu-Ray Home Theater System (Black) | 
 enlarge | Brand: Panasonic
Category: CE
List Price: $999.95
Buy New: $750.62
You Save: $249.33 (25%)
New (30) Used (1)
Avg. Customer Rating:  2 reviews
Sales Rank: 3996
Color: Black
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: Yes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 9.4
Dimensions (in): 12.8 x 16.9 x 3.7
MPN: SC-BT100
Model: SC-BT100
UPC: 037988256754
EAN: 0037988256754
ASIN: B0015YX700
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Great idea but mine was defective July 21, 2008
I had to return mine, as I was getting intermittent static from the front speakers both when watching television programs and when watching both DVD and Blu-Ray discs. I checked the speaker connections and even downloaded a firmware patch, but to no avail. On the positive side, this is an attractive unit with usually good sound quality and some nice features, such as wireless rear speakers and an integrated iPod dock and SD card reader. On the downside, the unit is slow to turn on and unusually slow to switch input sources, and the remote control is very cryptic.
 Overall good system, short wires - UPDATED July 9, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Not being a video or sound expert, I can only address this from the average joe user perspective. Sound is great, picture is fantastic, set up overall a breeze. I wish the wires were longer but at least I can deal with that and adapt. The "wireless" rear speakers are a bit inconvenient for my particular situation but I see as overall a positive aspect. Again, not a problem that I cannot overcome. Love connecting this to my 42" Panasonic Plasma! The old TV remote controls everything, including my magnavox HD/DVR cable box. The remote for this system is a bit overwhelming but with some patience and reading it can be dealt with also. I've only had it a few days, but already love it and can see a lot of enjoyment out of it. I've read about using a PS3 and separate sound system but my room layout would not allow for that much equipment so this all in one package works great for me.
UPDATE - Now that I have it installed and added wire to work the system into the room its in, I love it. I will agree that its a little slow starting up, but if thats my biggest problem I'm not too worried about it, I can wait the extra few seconds. Sound is very good and love the interoperability with my 42" Panasonic Viera Plasma TV.
 Perfect for apartment living... June 25, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
I received Monday night and had it up and running in less than two hours. I was impressed by the solid quality of the speakers. I was even able to fit the SW neatly behind my lcd tv. iPod connectivity is great and am already running the cable box sound through it. Yes, no HDMI pass-through but so what? While I agree with the other reviewer in that the menu system isn't terribly intuitive -- that it'll just a matter of time to get used to. Bottom line is: great picture (Blu-Ray or upconverting), good sound and good versatility. Would I like more inputs/outputs? Sure, but do I miss not having them -- nope. If you are in the market for an all-in-one HTIB Blu-ray system, you won't go wrong with this one.
Good,,for htib June 23, 2008
20 out of 20 found this review helpful
NOTE: I HAVE ADDED ADDENDUMS TO THIS REVIEW, MAKE SURE AND READ THE COMMENTS
A search of the internet will quickly reveal many in the audiophile community bashing "home theater in a box" (htib) systems like this, and many of their entirely valid criticisms of such systems apply to this unit, but it has a lot of redeeming qualities too that make me overall convinced that this is a good buy for anyone whose needs match what it provides. Also it is a pretty high end htib so the sound quality will exceed what many would expect. A quick word on settings: This unit comes with a number of effects such as surround enhancement and some pre set EQ settings. Don't use them. Maybe turn down the sub a bit and turn up the center channel, but your goal with movies is to ACCURATELY reproduce the sound as it was intended to be heard. Keep everything flat and you will hear how the movie was meant to sound. That's how I know this is a quality htib: It sounds good with everything flat)
This is a good system for what it is, namely a way to get both blu-ray and 5.1 surround in one convenient and affordable package. The rear speakers are wireless, as in there is a second amp that connects wirelessly to the main amp so you don't have to run cables from the front to back of the room although you do have to run cables from the second amp to the rear speakers. The rears are very light and thus easy to mount on the wall, and I don't worry about that lack of weight too much because surrounds really don't need much power as they just add effects. The fronts and center are much beefier and are two-ways with what appears to be real crossovers so that's pretty good for a home theater in a box. The subwoofer is (unfortunately) passive but its driver is bamboo so I don't think it has the paper-driver problems of other htibs. It seems to cross over at a decent point as the bass stays properly nondirectional. All in all, in my fairly small room it sounds really great for me, and it's pretty cool how it has all the latest surround decoders including Dolby trueHD and DTS HD.
All that said, this system definitely has some typical htib limitations: It has proprietary speaker connections so you can't use other wire without splicing. You can, however, use other speakers because the speakers themselves use standard connections (only the amp-end connection is proprietary). You can also expand to 7.1 sound either by another proprietary (and wireless) panasonic amp or the unit actually does have wired surround outputs so that you can plug in other amps and speakers for the front and back surrounds. However, the proprietary wire is permanently implanted in the subwoofer and naturally there's no way to get a nonamplified subwoofer signal out of this amp so even with some wire splicing ability I doubt you could add a powered sub. So you could upgrade the speakers but not the sub. But again all the included stuff sounds very good so I don't regard this as a dealbreaker.
In addition to a passive, nonupgradeable subwoofer and the inability to use your own speaker wire (although you can use your own speakers), the unit is VERY skimpy on inputs. No HDMI passthru, and only ONE toslink/SPDIF in, and one conventional component audio in. This means that, unless you get a switch or are willing to swap out, you can only use one source other than blu-ray with which there will be "true" surround sound. This is a problem for me because my TV does not allow the SPDIF out to output any audio except for the ATSC tuner (copyright issue) and I have both a cable set top box and an xbox 360 that I want to get surround sound from. Remember, if you plug standard RCA stereo plugs into this thing you will not get real surround, just pro logic type matrix encoded stuff.
All in all, this is still a good buy. These days you can get a 42 inch lcd 1080p tv for about $1000, and you can get this system for about $1000, and you'll have a complete home theater with display, sound, and blu ray player (which is a good final standard profile player which will support all special features except bd live), all for about $2000 and no hassles. As usual with htib, you will sacrifice upgradeability and connectivity for this convenience, and you will have a passive subwoofer. But trust me, this sounds very good for htib and at this pricepoint I recommend it highly for anyone who wants the modern high def home theater experience on a limited budget, because on that, it delivers. You will really enjoy watching movies on this thing and in the end, that's all that really matters.
OK June 2, 2008
8 out of 10 found this review helpful
Like most Panasonic equipment its is heavy on technical features, but lacks an intuitive user interface and clear directions. In other words its very powerful, but can be frustrating to learn to control.
Likes:
1. Sounds is good.
2. iPod integration is excellent.
3. Bluray picture is excellent.
Dislikes:
1. "Viera Link." I bought this with a new Panasonic Viera TV to leverage their Viera Link technology and operate evrythign from ONE remote. In reality you still need both remotes to do most things. Viera Link is more marketing than reality. You will still need a basket to hold a plethora of remotes.
2. Unit start up is very slow and takes a good minute to boot. Not like old school amps which click on in a second or two.
3. Controls are not laid out intuitively. It takes many days with the instruction manual to learn how to use this device.
Overall I like it alright. But Panasonic's lack of expertise in Human Interface Design does keep this from being a star performer.
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