Audio Video News

The term "home-theater-in-a-box" has become an expletive in the A/V world. They're usually seen as catch-all, cheap, simple excuses for a carefully assembled home theater. Because of this, companies shy away from the term HTiB. Onkyo, for example, just announced its new "integrated home theater system," the HT-S9300THX. It's an HTiB by any other name, but that doesn't automatically make it a bad thing.

According to Onkyo, the HT-S9300THX is the world's first 3D-ready, THX-certified integrated home theater system. Its receiver features four 3D-capable HDMI 1.4a inputs and can upscale from any source to 1080p through its Faroudja DCDi Cinema video processor. The system includes six midrange speakers, including three dual-woofer front loudspeakers and four satellites, and with Dolby ProLogic IIz the system is ready for a 3D height channel right out of the box. For bass, the HT-S9300THX also features a 12-inch subwoofer.

The HT-S9300THX ships at the end of this month, and will retail for $1,099. Despite its clear status as a home-theater-in-a-box, the specs certainly make it look like a viable way for users to set up their first surround system, or upgrade from their current home theater to a 3D-capable 7.1 system.

— Will Greenwald