Sony HT-XT100

Absolute waste of money – I have this system and have tried with optical to my Panasonic LED and to my Apple TV. It never remembers settings, voice is always muffled and music or background screams in over all conversation. Takes 5 to 10 minutes stuffing around and then we give up and resort to sub-titles. Worst Sony product I hav ever owned...my $100 PC sound system is superior but only lack remote control.

Good Speaker – I purchased this item directly from Sony on special. I have to say my expectations were pretty low but it is actually pretty good. In a small room it throws sound better than most sound bars I have seen. If you are looking to replace surround sound with this you will be disappointed but if just want to beef up poor sound on a TV this thing does the trick.

Unreliable – This amplifier is full of features and produces a good sound. Don't expect surround sound however but it is close. I connected it to a Samsung TV with Apple TV and Chromecast in the bedroom. The problem is that it is not reliable. Sometimes it works sometimes it doesn't. At the moment the TV will not produce sound directly through the HT XT 100 but when I use the Apple TV or Chromecast it works fine. I didn't have this problem yesterday. Last week I couldn't get the Bluetooth to work. Again the Bluetooth sometimes works fine.

I use a Samsung TV In the living room with a Samsung surround sound unit. Never a problem. These days sound systems and TVs are so sophisticated that I would not recommend you mix brands. In fact I would not only use a sound system of the same brand but I would only use the model recommended by the TV manufacturer.

TV Soundbase – Flat screen TVs have poor quality sound, due to flat speakers. Most people would supplement the sound with external speakers. For usage in a bedroom, a soundbase is very suitable, as it takes up very little space. The TV merely sits on top of the soundbase. The Sony HTXT 100 is an affordable method to get better quality sound for the TV. It has bluetooth connection, so I can link my smartphone to it, to listen to music. It also has a usb input slot for music. The 3 HDMI ports are useful. I link the ARC HDMI port to my TV's ARC HDMI port, so that I can use the TV's remote control for both TV and soundbase, to turn on and off and also to adjust the volume.

I also have a Sony HTXT 1 soundbase, in my son's bedroom, which was the 1st soundbase that Sony produced, but has discontinued. This model is better, as it is more powerful and has 2 subwoofers.

My main TV in my entertainment room is connected to a Yamaha AV 5.1 receiver, with 5 full sized Bowers and Wilkins speakers and a subwoofer.