Home > Consumer Reviews > JBL Cinema ProPack 600II 8-Piece Home Cinema System (Gray)

I picked this up at a national chain store for $$$$$. The sound is great for the price. It's still great at $$$$$. The highs are crisp and clear and the base has plenty of punch. The power is more that adequate, and the DVD changer seems to be competently designed. If you're looking for movie theater sound, this system delivers. But the system loses points for the remote. It has tiny buttons labeled with tiny type, all squeezed too close together and incompetently arranged. JBL knows how to make good sound equipment, but they need to repeat Ergonomics 101.

Overall, this is a very good system for someone with a budget. I've had mine for almost 4 years.

1. The Receiver:
Pros: It has all the connectors you can think of.
Cons: It's huge, it doesn't auto-select between Digital and Analog audio in. It is hard to find a universal remote that will handle JBL.

2. DVD:
Pros: MP3 player, 5 CD/DVDs.
Cons: It's huge, truncates the names of the songs, firmware sucks. Had to take it to the shop because it didn't accept CD/DVDs at some point.

3. Speakers:
Pros: Good sound for the price, it includes the bases.
Cons: Bases are not quite well designed or manufactured, may break.

4. Remote:
Pros: Universal.
Cons: Very poor design.

We've had this system setup for over 1 1/2 years with no problems at all. It has a good sound that more than fills a 400 s.f. area (tile floors help). The remote is the only minor complaint, as many others have already mentioned. We're about to add a pair of outdoor speakers to the system and aren't sure yet how to do that (the receiver's speaker outputs are limited to the 5 speakers that come with it) but I'm sure there's a way. We feel we got a good bargain on this system and are very pleased with it.

I recently purchased a JBL Cinema Pro Pack 600II Home Theatre System and I am very happy with it. It was easy to set up with very good instructions.

The JBL DCR600II-Z 6 x 100-watt receiver powers all of the speakers, including the subwoofer. It offers Dolby Digital, DTS decoding, and our own advanced digital processing algorithm, Logic 7, for enhancing standard surround modes and for creating natural multichannel sound from two-channel music or movie sources. The powerful JBL 2-way satellites and center channel are a perfect complement to the receiver and 8" subwoofer. You won't believe the performance and features you get for the price, there just isn't a better home theater value.

Additional key features:
* Full-function pre programmable remote control
* 6-Channel direct inputs
* 4 Composite video inputs
* 4 S-video inputs
* 1 Optical and 2 coax digital inputs
* 1 Digital coax output

JBL speaker system key features:
* Overall frequency response: 35Hz - 20kHz (-6dB)
* Configuration: 2-Way satellite speakers, video-shielded
* Impedance: 8 Ohms nominal
* Tweeter: One 1/2" titanium-laminate cone
* Midrange driver: One 3" cone
* Subwoofer: 8" woofer in a floor-firing, bass-reflex ported enclosure

So, if you get a better deal, go for this Cinema ProPack 600II without any hesitation!

I purchased this HTIB back in June of 2002 and was mostly pleased with the picture and sound until late November 2003. Now I experience all of the same problems of the other consumers with poor reviews. With the warranty now over, I'm SOL!

CONS: The system didn't come with a powered subwoofer. The remote, DVD player, and receiver were not at all intuitive to use. The remote had poor ergonomics.

I'll keep the satellite speakers and center speaker from JBL. But, the non-powered sub, receiver, and DVD players are getting replaced. Like my headline suggests, the DVD player is going to pay for its defectiveness.

My advice for newbies to home theatre is to piece together quality components from top manufacturers in each area of a home theatre system.