Denon DHT-FS3 Home Theater in a Box
- Simple home theater solution. Single cabinet with 5 drivers using the hot new X-Space Surround Tecnhology to create multi theater experience
- 25 watts x 5 and 50 watts for subwoofer
- Gloss Piano Black Finish
- A simple solution for your flat panel audio
Product Description
Home Theater in a Box… More >>
Denon DHT-FS3 Home Theater in a Box
I appreciated the easy setup and the concept of a better quality replacement for my Visio flat panel tv speakers, but I’m afraid I was vastly disappointed by the sound quality. Difference from TV speakers was barely discernible, so I’m returning the unit.
Rating: 2 / 5
I needed a replacement sound system but did not want the hassle of 5 speakers and cords running in my living room or worse yet drilling holes and monuting speakers. This is the ideal product for that. It was very easy to set-up and adjust–two wires. It is not the same as having full surround sound, but as close as you can get with a single speaker. I checked out the Bose and Harmon Cardin and settled on this. I feel I got the best product for my needs.
Rating: 5 / 5
Surround system is awesome. I get a real good effect all over plus I got it on an amazing deal on amazon a while ago….$499.
Rating: 5 / 5
Denon fs3 soundbar exceeded my expectations. Great bass, and the sounds come out truly natural. This is money well-spent, and is recommended as a must-have for home theatre set-ups especially for anyone with a limited room area. A 5 to 1 audio experience in a compact-sized surround sound.
Thanks Amazon. Delivery was fast and secure. Received the item in excellent condition, and came with the accessories as advertised. I will continue doing more business with this outfit.
A limitation to this product is the non-HDMI cable connectivity. But nonetheless, it’s just a minor inadequacy. (for me!) Also, ipod dock (asd 1r) has to be purchased separately.
Rating: 5 / 5
Last month I purchased a Panasonic TH-P54V10 to replace my aging Sony 36″ WEGA CRT (which still looks great after nearly 11 years). While the picture on the 54V10 is fantastic, the sound coming from the speakers was woefully inadequate, actually worse than the Sony it replaced. I blame the desire to make thinner and thinner TV’s not leaving any room for sizeable speakers and enough space to move air. (skip the next 4 paragraphs if you just want to cut to the chase)
So I started looking for an affordable way to improve the sound. I had several constraints and requirements. First, I was on a severe budget, since I had just blown my available funds on the new TV and wall unit. $400 was all I could spend. Second, my wife refused to look at speakers, even bookshelf speakers on either side of the TV. I also wanted something that could offer not just better sound, but a wider soundstage and a more immersive experience. Soundbars seems like the only real option. After doing research around the interwebs, I realized that the desire for actual surround sound might be asking for too much.
So after doing some research, I had settled on a choice between the Polk Soundbar 360 and the Denon DHT-FS3. Both brands are known for quality products and have garnered positive professional reviews. Both of these products had original list prices of $1200, are now discontinued and could be purchased for $400 and $350, respectively, from Amazon. In my mind, it made more sense spending my money on discontinued products that were designed to originally sell for 3X as much as their current prices versus spending that money on current products designed to sell at that same lower price point. Flawed reasoning?
I had originally wanted to purchase both units, try them out and keep the one that sounded better. Unfortunately, Amazon’s restocking fees of 20-50% made that idea unaffordable. I ultimately chose the Denon over the Polk since it was 1) less expensive, 2) had a sub, 3) didn’t have a DVD player I didn’t need, 4) was more space efficient (especially without a separate component), 5) it has Dolby Headphone decoding and 6) my previous experience with Denon products.
Before I get into the performance of the DHT-FS3, I want to present my point of reference when it comes to sound and performance. I have not actually had any audio system hooked up to my main TV for over seven years. I tend to watch most of my series TV and rented movies on another TV, when I exercise at home (it is a great motivator). I listen through Sure SE530 headphones hooked up to a Denon ADV-M71 receiver and its dedicated headphone amp and Dolby Headphone surround processing. My last actual home theater system was a Sony 5.1 Dolby Digital receiver (can’t remember the model) hooked up to an Energy Take5 + Energy Sub combo. I don’t consider myself a purist audiophile, but I can recognize, and do appreciate, quality sound.
So, onto the DHT-FS3’s performance. After removing the soundbar and sub from the excellent packaging, I set the main unit up in front of the TV, screwed in the feet (which come in two different heights), hooked up the optical connection to the back of my TV, ran the connection to the sub and plugged it all in. I hit the power button and listened to the first sounds emanate from the speakers. I was let down. It actually sounded worse than the TV’s speakers. The sound was tinny and shallow.
Then I remembered a review that indicated adjusting the audio parameters would do wonders. So I played around with the treble and bass, adjusted the room size and a few other tweaks. The result was night and day. The sound was full and satisfying. Going from the Stereo setting to the Wide setting created a much larger soundstage. Most importantly, for everyday general TV viewing, the Denon offered up much clearer sounding dialogue.
Of course the promise of these soundbars is to offer a surround experience that can compete with actual 5.1 systems. Does the Denon deliver? Not surprisingly, no, at least in my initial observations. Two of my favorite demonstrations of both sound and surround sound are the THX intros on movie discs, both the original “symphony” and the “farm animal/Disney” sequences. Both strive to highlight the surround effect and a journey through frequency response, from bright highs to rumbling lows. While the Denon reproduced this range most satisfactorily, and there was a very noticeable shift from left-center-right, there was no actual surround effect. Meaning, there was no evidence of sound coming from behind. However, the soundstage was quite wide, seeming to fill up my living room from side to side. Center channel performance is notably clear. Dialogue won’t be overcome by the action.
One negative, and one that likely plagues most soundbars, is the fact that it blocks the IR sensor of the TV. I thought I might have to get an IR repeater in order to overcome this issue. However, I found I was able to bounce the IR signal off my ceiling and have the TV pick it up.
As far as connectivity, my TV has four HDMI inputs and an optical output, so the lack of HDMI inputs on the Denon is not really an issue. It does have two optical and one coax digital input, along with RCA analog inputs. There is no on-screen display, rather settings are adjusted via a digital display on the front of the unit and adjusted via the remote. This suits my needs just fine. I just wish I could use my Dish remote to control the system volume, but it doesn’t seem to recognize any of the Denon remote codes available.
Edit: I have since found out that my TV will not pass multi-channel sound through the digital out, so hooking source material (DVD, Games, etc) directly to the Denon’s inputs should result in better sound quality.
For $350, I am quite satisfied with my purchase. I got the sound improvement I was looking for, along with a more than satisfactory audio companion for my TV’s exceptional picture. For the original asking price of $1200, I am not sure I would have chosen to go the soundbar route, but if I was looking to spend that much on a soundbar, I would have also had to consider the top level ZVOX and Yamaha products. Curiously, three days after I placed my order from Amazon, their price went from $350 to $1199! I called to find out why the price changed so drastically (on a discontinued item) but they couldn’t give me a convincing reason, other than “market fluctuations.” Obviously I am glad I purchased mine when I did.
(I have also uploaded a few pictures)
Rating: 4 / 5