Onkyo has come up with a slinky solution to all your hi-fi and home cinema needs - a universal DVD system that it claims can do it all.
The Onkyo LV-S501 plays back CDs, SACDs, DVD-Audio, DVD-Video, plus discs containing WMA or DivX files. You can even use it to view JPEGs on your TV.
Great picture quality is assured thanks to the inclusion of two HDMI ports (one output and one pass-through), plus a 108/MHz/14-bit video DAC. Sound quality should be up to snuff too, with 192kHz/24-bit audio DACs and a healthy 50W per channel power output on board.
Indeed Onkyo says that unlike other 'lifestyle' systems, picture and sound quality have been the watchwords here.
Other goodies include a virtual surround sound courtesy of Onkyo's Theatre Surround DSP, a 2.1-channel speaker system and compatibility with a little-known device dubbed the iPod - although you'll also need to add one of Onkyo's range of iPod docks (a DS-A1X for £40, or a DS-A2X for £60) for that.
Price for the whole LV-S501 shebang is just £600 (that's the the DR-S501 receiver + HTS-201 2.1-channel speaker package); or you can pick up the DR-S501 on its own for just £400 - bit of a bargain that.
Oh and as for 'fitting it in with your décor' goes, you can buy the Onkyo LV-S501 in any colour as long as it's black. We should also point out in the interests of balance that other 2.1-channel universal DVD systems are available. The brilliant Arcam Solo Movie 2.1 at £1,450 springs immediately to mind.
