Those speakers don't sound as lightweight as you might imagine and with enthusiastic amplification, plus the robust subwoofer, this system can manage a masterful home cinema performance given a rousing soundtrack like the one on the Will Smith horror flick I Am Legend.

There's enough bass to fill a moderately large room from the sub and it's fast and accurate, leaving the towers to deliver an uncluttered mid-range and a descriptive treble.

The tower design demands proper speaker placement around the room, so you will always have a cohesive soundstage from front-to-back.

Virtual surround

The centre does well to project Smith's dialogue through the mix.

Switching from 5.1 to virtual 10.1 mode (via LG's Virtual Surround Matrix tomfoolery) brings an interesting shift in spatial perception; the room feels larger and the sound feels more dispersed.

It's an interesting effect (it claims to add an extra four speakers to fill the gaps between the satellites, plus an extra one floating near the centre channel), but to me it sounded processed and compressed.

So while it provides certain scenes with a soupçon more atmosphere, you'll probably end up switching it off.

Power rating caution

There's a limit to how much volume you can give the LG system, too. Those plastic cabinets don't have the reinforcement of wood and the tweeters will start to sound a little harsh at the upper levels. LG's claimed 1,000W power rating should be taken with a massive pinch of salt.

That said, as all-in-one systems go, this is one of the larger performers out there, and music sounds particularly exciting in surround sound. The DTS 5.1 mix of the Classic Beethoven DVD by the London Symphony Orchestra benefifis from the open and enveloping sound available through these towers.

This isn't one of Mr Levinson's hi-end hi-fi's, though, so the two-channel mode is slightly underwhelming, but it's still above average for a DVD system.

Extra features

Upscaled images from DVD are fairly crisp and noise-free in 720p mode, but the scaling isn't on a par with dedicated mid-price DVD players, and the 1080p mode didn't bring any real improvement on
my BenQ W5000 Full HD projector. I'd suggest it's a case of discovering what looks the most realistic on your own screen.

As for those additional features, the iPod dock is an obvious boon, given that statistically, we all now own at least one. The USB Host socket that allows you to play files from a USB drive is potentially useful and the FM radio sounds fine – if you have decent reception.

It's a real shame that Blu-ray technology hasn't filtered down to this price point yet, as you can bet it will next year. But that doesn't mean you need to delay purchase; the LG's HDMI input means it is future-proofed in that regard.

Among the current crop of all-in-one systems, the LG HT953TV stands tall as one of the more stylish, well-equipped and sonically-pleasing alternatives to budget home cinema components