You might call this package a match made in heaven, but it was created right here at B&H. We've paired the Sony HT-SS370 5.1 Channel Home Theater System with its Blu-ray brand mate, the Sony BDP-S570 Blu-ray Disc Player. Each one is a fine product in its own right but together they can produce video and audio that's, well, just heavenly.
Both units are compatible with x.v.Color, which can display more than a billion colors. That's actually more than the human eye can discern but it's not some kind of marketing gimmick. It smoothes out banding that can occur even in HD signals. You can't get a more vivid and lifelike picture.
Take the HT-SS370 home theater. It combines 1000 Watts of audio power with three HDMI slots. That means in addition to plugging in the BDP-S370, you could plug in a game console and still have a slot left over.
This home theater is packed with features. It can play 720p, 1080i and 1080p video from high definition sources and it's got surround sound processors from both Dolby and DTS. The included calibration microphone "fingerprints" the audio characteristics of your room for the optimal listening experience.
You can send audio to up to 10 rooms from a single SS570. Just add an optional Sony S-AIR Card to it and place optional S-AIR receiver/speaker systems in each room. It's great for parties when you want to pipe your music throughout the house.
The Blu-ray player has an Ethernet (RJ45) jack and Wi-Fi capability built-in if you prefer to connect to your broadband Internet connection. Once you're connected to the Internet you can use the BD-Live features an increasing number of discs contain.
BD-Live discs can contain commentary, production stills and artwork like you've come to expect with DVDs, but with BD-Live the information can appear onscreen in a picture-in-picture box. With the Bonus View feature a disc can even download data from the Internet. Bonus View requires a high speed Internet connection and a USB device (like a flash drive) with 1 GB of free space. With BRAVIA Internet Video you can stream content from Netflix, YouTube, Slacker and an ever increasing number of sources.
You probably already have a library of DVD discs. Guess what? They'll take on a new life on your BDP-S370. It has a feature Sony calls Precision Cinema HD Upscaling. What it means is that your DVDs will look the best you've ever seen them.
Both units have BRAVIA Sync, Sony's brand of the HDMI (CEC) standard. This enables you to control both devices from a single remote (either the home theater's or the Blu-ray player's). Now if one of the remotes slips between the couch cushions you can use the other one to control the entire system.
You'll also appreciate the wide variety of discs the BDP-S570 can play. In addition to BD-ROMs (regular commercial Blu-ray discs) it can play BD-RE, BD-R, DVD-ROM, DVD-Video, DVD-R/RW, CD and CD-R/W, DVD+R/DVD+RW, CD-DA (Music CD), CD-ROM and Super Audio CD. It can also play a dozen file formats including MP3, JPEG and DivX.
The BDP-S570 has audio power to match its video prowess. Its built-in 192 KHz/24-bit digital-to-analog converter offers exceptional multi-channel audio conversion. And it has powerful surround sound processors from Dolby and DTS to create an immersive sound field you have to hear to believe.
If you have an iPod Touch or iPhone using the same wireless router your BDP-S570 is using you can use them as remote controls with a free app from the iTunes store.
We've saved the best for last. You've seen all the excitement surrounding 3-D movies lately. Well, 3-D Blu-ray discs are already available and the number of available titles is going to soar in the next few years. Sony is planning to offer a free software update in July that will make your BDP-S570 fully 3-D capable.
All you'll need to enjoy the incredible 3-D experience in your home is a 3-D capable TV or home theater projector, 3-D Blu-ray discs and 3-D glasses (sold separately). But don't worry, 3-D Blu-ray discs will play just fine in 2-D on your current 2-D only set. So you can make the transition to 3-D at a rate your budget can handle.
We've made up a limited number of these kits so don't take too long deciding whether or not to get one. There's no better way to get into high-end Blu-ray and still have lots of money left over to build your Blu-ray disc library.