What is the best Blueray / Wireless Surround Sound System available in UK?

GregintheUK

New member
I want to purchase a new blueray player and wireless surround sound system, either as a package or separately, ideally I want these features included in each:

Blueray player:
- Recordable Harddrive
- 3D capability
- Internet / DLNA Option
- USB

Surround Sound:
- Wireless Speakers
- 5.1 Speakers

Is there any player currently on the market that meets these requirements? any links would be brilliant
 

Robert

Member
I would like to answer this question for you, but in reality there is no system out there that you describe that I would ever waste my money on because they all suck. Allow me to explain.

A surround sound system with a built-in Blu Ray player is often called a Home Theater in a Box (HTiB). These systems are very poor quality with very low wattage. Sure, the box may say that it has 1,000 watts, but that is a highly skewed, theoretical number. These systems have a hard time pumping out more than about 200 watts at any given moment.

Another problem with HTiB systems is that if one feature fails, such as the Blu Ray portion of the receiver, you are forced to buy an entire new system. They do not sell just the receiver without the speakers. This is nothing more than a waste of money.

These HTiBs also have a hi rate of failure due to overheating. The receiver enclosures are much to small and they try to pack too much stuff in them. This leaves no breating room for air circulation and they get much too hot. The next thing you know... Boom it's dead.

As far as wireless goes, this also sucks really bad for several reasons. First off, since the speakers aren't connected to the receiver, to get power they need to be plugged into a wall outlet. This is what powers the internal amplifier of the speakers. This means that you need a power socket everywhere that you want to place a speaker. Otherwise you will be running power cords, which happen to be much larger than most speaker wire.

Also, you will more than likely have interference issues. These wireless speakers can pick up signals from cell phones, security systems, scanners, motors in appliances, and even nearby HAM broadcasts. A gentleman I work with says that ever Sunday morning, he hears a local church broadcasting their morning sermon through his wireless speakers.

Speaker wires are quite easy to hide for the most part, especially if you have carpeting. It will slide right under a baseboard with a slight push. And the added quality you get is well worth the little extra effort.

You want to know what the best HTiB system with wireless speakers is? Well I'm here to tell you that they all a waste of money. Being the "best" HTiB wireless system is like being the least stinky pile of crap.

You would be much better off with a component system where you buy each piece individually. You can easily get 10 times the quality, often for the same price or only slightly more than the HTiB systems. If I told you that you could buy a VW Polo for $10,000 or a Ferrari for $12,000, which would you rather buy?
 
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