Home > Consumer Reviews > Rio HT2030 Progressive-Scan DVD-VCR Home Theater System

This is my first venture into home theatre and I am very pleased. Having purchased a Rio portable music player a few years ago, and being impressed with the quality of that unit, I was hopeful that this system would reflect the same quality of design and construction. So far I have found this to be absolutely true!

I bought this system to replace my own system I had cobbled together over the years. So I was able to replace my stereo receiver, cd player, vhs player, dvd player, and two sets of speakers, all in one suprisingly compact unit.

Setup was easy and fast. I appreciated the l-o-n-g cables provided by the manufacturer. Some units I have seen only came with 10 foot cables. The manual is very well written and easy to follow. Within an hour I had made all of the connections, placed the speakers, and programmed all of my cable stations (auto- search)and fm radio stations.

So far the unit has performed without a hitch. I like the variety of sound setups, including prologic, which is something not found on many lower-priced (and some high-priced) units. It even has a feature to program delays on the speakers to customize it to your exact room configuration (incredible!).

The remote control is not overly cluttered, and is well laid out. It does not however, control the power on/off for my tv set. So I have to keep that remote handy. It doesn't light up either, which would be useful at night. I replaced an Apex dvd player which had horrible search and control features. This dvd player control is much more intuitive and straightforward.

The only shortcoming for some might be the passive subwoofer. It is fine for me, but if you want really booming bass, better to get a powered subwoofer.

Overall, this is a quality unit that was well thought out by the mfgr. It has the most features and power I have seen on a unit in this price range.

THis is one of the best electronic devices that I have ever purchased. Increadible ease of setup, Fabulous 5.1 surround sound. I just can't believe how well matched this system is. I have sat in $1,000 systems and not heard as good as sound dynamics and clarity. This is a BEST buy and I highly recommend it.