Product Review
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JVC TH-C50 5-disc Changer 5.1 Channel Home Theater System

5 disc 5.1 channel home theater system.
The Good

Good audio performance and a great price makes this a great buy for people who do not need to use a lot of accessories (like headphones and multiple gaming systems). The TH-C50 is also small enough to casually blend into its surroundings.

The Bad

Poor accessory support. The 5 second audio lag when switching between speakers and headphones is a major annoyance and having only one optical input makes hooking up multiple gaming systems a pain as well as making the included “universal” remote not very universal.

Full StarFull StarHalf StarEmpty StarEmpty Star The Verdict

If you are an avid movie watcher, and little else, this system is a good deal. The audio performance is good for its price and the center channel handles voices remarkably well. If you plan on playing a lot of video games or using headphones, look elsewhere.

Staff Reviewed (Default Seal for Staff Written Reviews)

Great Home Theater for a Select Few

Great system for home theater use, but not as good a choice when it comes to gaming.

The JVC TH-C50 5-disc Changer 5.1-Channel Home Theater System is just what it claims to be-- a complete home theater package. Ample wire and clear instructions make setup incredibly straightforward. Other systems should be envious of this model's easy setup.

Once I installed this system it was time to test it with a DVD. My favorite test film is The Matrix, as some of you may well know by now, but I thought I’d switch things up a bit and go with The Lord of the Rings. This film was also a good test for the unit's upscaling abilities. I was pleased with the JVC audio; it wasn't the best, but it was pretty good. The subwoofer was just right for my moderately sized living room, however people with larger spaces will want to swap it out for a more powerful sub. The center channel was a real treat-- it’s not often that a reasonably priced system can accurately reproduce voices, let alone keep them separated from the other channels.

The upscaling processor in this system worked well. Of course there is no substitute for actual hi definition signals, but I refuse to upgrade my entire movie collection. The JVC offers the added bonus of upscaling to 780p or 1080i so everyone can join the hi definition party with any hi def. TV.

Sadly, the JVC was not all roses. The included universal remote was not universal enough to work with any of my AV components, even ones purchased within the last year.  The headphone jack was also a big disappointment. I am not allowed to watch Dr. Phil with the volume turned up at my house, so I have to use headphones. For some reason, the JVC system has a 5 second audio lag between switching from headphones to speakers, a major annoyance! The single optical input will force people who have multiple gaming systems to buy a cable selector if they want their 360 and ps3 to both have 5.1 audio.

The JVC TH-C50 5-disc Changer 5.1-Channel Home Theater System will work well for people who don’t need headphones or more than one optical input;  the rest of us should probably keep looking.

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