I paired this with the Panasonic TCP42G25. The Viera link means the speakers are automatically integrated with the TV and Panasonic Blu-ray player, which is convenient. It's a great upgrade over the TV speakers. Definitely recommend this for anyone who wants better-than-average sound without the effort and expense of putting together a full 5.1 or 7.1 home theater setup. Panasonic SC-HTB500 2.1-Channel SoundBar Speaker System with Wireless Kelton Subwoofer (Black)
I recently took advantage of the Amazon Gold Box Deal and bought the Panasonic TCP42G25 and got this sound bar for free. This was exactly what I needed to replace a poor quality Olevia LCD TV in my bedroom. I have a fully decked out audio/video room already so all I wanted was something decent for the bedroom. After some tweaking and rewiring, I was able to integrate this with the new Panasonic Plasma, an old Panasonic Blu-Ray DMP-BD35, and a low end Dish Network VIP211. The big puzzle was a bug in the Dish receiver that caused it to fail to deliver Dolby 5.1 over the HDMI cable. I took advantage of the second HDMI input on the soundbar with an optical input to solve this problem. Bottom line, no new wires, no new A/V receiver and fantastic sound from a very simple setup. It is very easy to do a "side-by-side" comparison because Panasonic's VieraLink will return the sound back to the TV if you turn the soundbar off. What a difference! I am only giving the unit 4 stars because of the lack of some, in my opinion, basic functions being absent. Why would Panasonic not put simple bass and treble controls on a unit that retails for $349? Other than that, I am really enjoying the new setup.
This is a great value for the price. With the subwoofer being wireless, placement possibilities are endless. Sound is really good. The sound from Panasonic TV speakers outranks others by far, but this sound bar is great. I would highly recommend this product to anyone who has limited space but still wants great quality sound. Very nice.
Highly recommended. I'm really enjoying the virtual surround sound of this system. The subwoofer is just plain awesome, and the voice output is crystal clear from the soundbar. It's a pleasure to watch movies, regular TV, and listen to music from Pandora from these speakers, in the bedroom. This product exceeded by expectations.
The local Geek Squad recommended a "sound bar" for our new Panasonic 50" Viera TV due to the size of the room it is in. The hook-up was easy (according to my husband)and the sound is great ... can shake the windows!
Bought the Viera Cast 50" plasma HDTV (TC-P50G25)and got a bundle deal from Amazon for this 2.1 soundbar. I have been on the telephone and online Technical Support Chat with Panasonic 5 times. There is so much conflicting information in varying reviews of Panasonic plasma tv with Panasonic soundbar with some people saying they had no problems, but they all seem to be people who used BOTH the optical and the HDMI cable connections. If you follow the Panasonic tutorials and read their user manuals it all points to needing only ONE cable connection and plugging it into the first slot on back of tv where it says ARC in parens. After talking to support I have experienced having the soundbar sound come from the soundbar -- which I loved -- but it only lasts 2 to 5 minutes. The Technical Support people, having now spoken with 6 different individuals - want to get you to use optical cable even though that is against the directions. Then they look at the documentation and agree that it is supposed to work with just the HDMI cable. I am so disappointed that I cannot get this to work and hesitate going to yet another store to purchase an optical cable and having yet another cable sticking out of the tv and into the soundbar if it is not supposed to be necessary! Is there anyone out there who has experienced this frustration? Please advise. I would love to watch a movie with the soundbar on and not using the tv speakers. Otherwise...have to send the soundbar back where it came from.
UPDATE: After doing everything possible to resolve, I decided I must have gotten a lemon. I do want to give the soundbar another chance, so I am using the Return functionality allowed by Amazon having UPS pick it up tomorrow and I will have another one to try. I will update later to report on hoped for success with another unit.
UPDATE 2: Amazon Customer Service is A#1. No problems with returning first soundbar and have already received replacement unit. Regret to report that I only got one burst of sound out of it. Now I feel I MUST approach the problem with the purchase of a new HDMI cable. I had settled for the Amazon brand because I could not get a Panasonic brand immediately. Also, Panasonic told me I did not need to use their brand for the soundbar to work. If anyone else has experienced failure of two units and or have solution other than this attempt to fix please advise. I thank you in advance. To be specific, I used Amazon's Basics hdmi cable that states it is ready for 3D as well.AmazonBasics High-Speed HDMI Cable (6.5 Feet/2.0 Meters)[Supports 3D + Audio Return Channel]
FINAL UPDATE: I now have a working soundbar. When complaining to my daughter across the country she immediately suggested that I swap out the hdmi cables before I go to the store and buy another and/or optical. So - I listened. I switched the Amazon cable with my cable box hdmi cable which is labeled as 1.3b. Voila! My soundbar works beautifully as I am sure the first one would have done had I tried this. After all the tech support people I worked with I wonder why they did not think of this. My cable box is a tad funky right now and looks like I may not get HD signal from it with the Amazon cable. But I will wait until tomorrow, go through all my setup rituals and see if it self heals. If not...another round of calls to Amazon to report this problem with their cable so others do not go through this. Hope this experience helps someone else out there.
12/31 resolution report: I had to return the Amazon Basics hdmi cable as it was the cause of all problems. Having read so many reviews on Amazon I learned of monoprice for cables. I then read on CNET that they use their hdmi cables and I jumped in and purchased the latest technology hdmi cable from them for just $3! Got it, plugged it in, and now EVERYTHING GOOD. Although I like to support Amazon - I highly recommend to anyone that they purchase home theatre cable needs from monoprice.com. - Home Theater Speaker Systems - Home Theater - Panasonic Viera - Sound Bar'
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