Sony HT-SL5A - any good?

I

Iam

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I'm after a amp/speaker set to go with the Sony KV36FS76 I've just ordered.

The salesman at the Sony centre recommended the HT-SL5A over the HT-DDW840 as the HT-SL5A is slimmer & will fit beneath the TV better ... I know the output is lower on the SL5A, but it's for a smallish room, & volume is no concern. Both the 840 & 5A do Prologic II, & the 5A is almost £100 cheaper (from Unbeatable), tho it was £20 more expensive than the 840 in the Sony Centre!

I've searched under HT-DDW840, & those on this board who have them like them.

Does anyone have any opinions about the HT-SL5A?
 
I got the HT-SL5 from Empire Direct a couple of weeks ago, it was the cheapest at the time (think it still is £256.32 delivered) but also the only one with immediate delivery, took 3 days to get to me.
Was really the only option due to lack of room and fitting in with Tosh 220 DVD which is same height and width.

Although I only had a Dolby Surround TV to compare before,this piece of kit seems excellent to me, plenty of grunt.

The only negative point is the internal fan which can be heard whirring away during quiet periods, there is an option to turn it to auto but tends to allow it to get quite hot on that setting.
Might be coz I got it in a corner next to Sky box with little room for ventilation, might have a trip to local Sony Centre to compare.

Limited for space, its got to be an option.
 
John039

Can you please post the dimensions of the Amplifier unit for the HT-SL5A youve got - W+D+H if poss.

Thanks for your help.
 
Hi DM,

Width 430 mm
Height 63 mm
Depth 289 mm (including front dial and rear phono extensions)

You can get this HT-SL5 A along with the Sony 305 DVD Multi - region player for £345.99 from http://www.hifibitz.co.uk/warehouse/details.asp?productid=SONHTP1000

If I hadn't already got a DVD player this is an excellent price for both, and would have spared me yet another remote...:eek:
 
John,

Thanks for the WDH info.

I have a Pioneer DV454 so I should now be able to visualise how the 2 will look together under my TV before buying the amp.

Thanks again for the info.
 
John,

another quick question - are the HT-SL5A speakers shielded as I was planning to have the Centre speaker positioned on top of or just below my TV.

I am presuming they are shielded but can you confirm that the instructions supplied don't recommend positioning the speakers away from the TV or anything?

Thanks again John
 
DM,
According to the specs in the Sony operating instruction booklet...
Front , surround and center speakers are "Full range, magnetically shielded"
Sub is also magnetically shielded.
 
I bought the sl5a as well a few weeks ago, mainly due to its slim size.
I agree about the fan being a bit noisy. When I set the fan to automatic, the whole unit seemed to get pretty hot and I was a bit worried (a burning smell didn't fill me with confidence either).
However, I left it as it was and the smell soon stopped. It still gets hot (the manual even says "to avoid the danger of burning yourself, don't touch the top or sides of the unit" !!), but all seems to be fine.
It also looks great sitting on top of my Pioneer 350, they're virtually the same size and colour. (Fortunately the bottom of the sony doesn't seem to get too hot so I think it is OK sitting on the dvd player).
Overall, it's a great thing - probably not as good as a full size £300+ amp, but for me, it's perfect.
 
I did try to check the noise from the fan on a display model at Miller Brothers, but the store was just too noisy to here anything.

Lionel,
I would have assumes Auto fan would activate the fan whenever the temperature gets too hot, I left the amp on auto fan
for quite some time but never heard the fan switch on itself.

The only instructions in the (poor) booklet about this is....
Fan on....Turn on the fan at all times
Fan auto..Turn on the fan automatically when there is sufficient speaker output.

says nothing about getting hot enough to fry an egg on...:eek:

Still if it melts within a year we're covered.
 
I've never heard the fan come on either and it does still get VERY hot.
I've got an extra years warranty with barclaycard so I won't be too bothered for two years...
 
Did you find barclaycard required item numbers for every single piece of the kit to get the added year cover ?...just saying HT-SL5A was not good enough, dunno if they were winding me up or I was dealing with a muppet!
 
Originally posted by john039
I got the HT-SL5 from Empire Direct a couple of weeks ago, it was the cheapest at the time (think it still is £256.32 delivered) but also the only one with immediate delivery, took 3 days to get to me.
Was really the only option due to lack of room and fitting in with Tosh 220 DVD which is same height and width.

Although I only had a Dolby Surround TV to compare before,this piece of kit seems excellent to me, plenty of grunt.

The only negative point is the internal fan which can be heard whirring away during quiet periods, there is an option to turn it to auto but tends to allow it to get quite hot on that setting.
Might be coz I got it in a corner next to Sky box with little room for ventilation, might have a trip to local Sony Centre to compare.

Limited for space, its got to be an option.

Just bought this kit with a matching Sony multiregion DVD player....for £349...............nice!
do agree about the fan noise but I leave it set on auto. 2 things i have noticed that maybe u could tell me if u have found as well? 1) the Sony website & others shows the amp a) being classed as HTSL5A yet my box & manuals state HTSL5...............does yours? & b) as having 6 input buttons on the front...............mine has 4!
2) Does your active sub hum slightly? it's not irritating it's just that when u set the fan to auto any noise is heard!
Appreciate a reply.
 
Yeah,
HT-SL5 on the box and booklet.....no idea what the "A" is for.
4 inputs on front also.. Video, DVD, TV/Sat, Tuner FM/AM.
Sub does hum but only with my ear pressed up against it,otherwise nothing, unlike the amp which is intrusive with "Fan on".
 
Originally posted by john039
Yeah,
HT-SL5 on the box and booklet.....no idea what the "A" is for.
4 inputs on front also.. Video, DVD, TV/Sat, Tuner FM/AM.
Sub does hum but only with my ear pressed up against it,otherwise nothing, unlike the amp which is intrusive with "Fan on".
Cheers John039.
According to the Sony Centre the A stands for Amp! They also told me that Sony originally were going to have 6 inputs on this receiver hence the photos on their website & the net but decided against it to hit a certain price point.
Also notice that the tuner isn't RDS, not really a problem but strange that Sony haven't put it on this amp.
Very impressed wiv this so far though. Returned a load of JVC stuff recently to get this stuff + TV & one of the complaints I had with JVC was the noisy amp...... the JVC amp REALLY made a noise! Went for all Sony TV/Amp/DVD & so far so good. Don't mind the amp getting hot as have had amps in the past that got hotter than this..................some seem to run hot I guess!
Thanks for your quick response...........much appreciated!
 
No problem leedebs,
I'm very impressed with the system too.

A for amp eh?...very original, but why do ours not have an "A".

Looking at a few pics of the kit, they do indeed show 6 buttons on front panel but they do not seem to have a tuner.

John
 
I'm thinking of getting this unit as my first foray into home cinema.

In my set up I sit about 6' from the TV and front speakers, and about 3' infront of where the rear speakers will go. Am I safe in thinking this system will be good enough in this situation?

Also, how critical is the placing of the subwoofer? I can either put it behind the TV or 3' behind and to the left of me, below the rear left speaker. Will that work OK?

Finally, what are its specifications for power and inputs/outputs? The Sony site is very poor on detail and there are numerous different figures given for power by various web sites.

Thanks
 
You'll be sitting slightly closer than I am,turn it up and it rocks, so I've no doubt it'll be enough, quite a few on here say the all in ones cannot compare to the separates...that may be true but this all in one is more than enough for me, coupled with the fact I'm limited with space.

On the box it says 275w, Sony centre gives it as 5x45w + 1x50w sub.......snap.

Sub is non-directional so placement shouldn't matter.
 
I'm interested in these speakers as well, but I can't find any reviews of them. So could any owners give a brief overview of their sound quality - i.e. how they sound for films and music, what the sub is like, etc?

Also, if anyone knows how they compare to similar priced systems like the Videologic Digitheatre / DTS that would be a great help too.

Thanks.
 
Originally posted by Max
I'm interested in these speakers as well, but I can't find any reviews of them. So could any owners give a brief overview of their sound quality - i.e. how they sound for films and music, what the sub is like, etc?

Also, if anyone knows how they compare to similar priced systems like the Videologic Digitheatre / DTS that would be a great help too.

Thanks.
I also can't find any mention of this system in any of the numerous magazines I have bought or on the web. Re the Videologic system I don't think it supports Prologic II and so I have ruled it out as I watch mostly TV and that is essential to upgrade the TV experience

Eric
 
Has anyone seen any reviews of this system yet? If so would you post a link or paraphrase the conclusions? I can't find anything on the web or in magazines. Is this because its too new or because its rubbish?

Thanks
 
Originally posted by john039
Did you find barclaycard required item numbers for every single piece of the kit to get the added year cover ?...just saying HT-SL5A was not good enough, dunno if they were winding me up or I was dealing with a muppet!

I just registered mine on-line, with an Appliance type of "Audio Hi-Fi" (there was no Home Cinema option...), and a model number of HT-SL5A

I got the documentation through in the post about three days later - no problem...
 
I've had my HT-SL5A for about a week now, & think it's great (this is my first 5.1 setup, mind, so I've nothing to compare it against) - however, the fan is noisy, & I can't turn it off ....

The instruction manual says to hold down the PLII button (on the remote, presumably) & then press i/O ... I've tried it (every which way) & can't get it to turn to auto/turn off. I've tried it from a cold start etc. Can anyone who managed to set it to to auto tell me exactly how they did it?

Thanks.
 

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