Panasonic’s HTB520 features a sleek glossy black finish and has a sound bar unit that should fit well under any 42- to 50-inch HDTV.
There’s no Panasonic branding on the speaker bar itself, so in theory it should blend in well under other makes of panels.
The main features of the 2.1-channel HTB520 is the wireless subwoofer, which a welcome addition on with these minimalist setups and one which will hopefully set a trend with other manufacturers. The 6.5-inch subwoofer is a downward firing type which is usually easy to place while the speaker bar consists of four drivers–two 6.5cm woofers and two 2.5cm tweeters. The tweeters should give this entry-level system a much better dynamic range.
Those with 3D Blu-ray players should find the system’s HDMI 1.4a connectivity handy, as it allows for 3D signal pass through as well as the Audio Return Channel (ARC) feature. There is built-in surround sound processing but it is limited to DTS and Dolby Digital. If you have HD soundtracks from a Blu-ray Disc source, the set does allow you to input up to 7.1 channels of linear PCM audio via HDMI.
While the HTB520 sound bar is affordable, it lacks connectivity with just one HDMI input and another digital optical input. This means that even if your HDTV is ARC compliant, the lone optical input limits you to just one other audio source; and there aren’t any analog audio inputs to be found either.
There’s also a lack of an LED (or LCD) display to see which source you’re currently listening to and what audio format the unit is decoding which users will no doubt find annoying.
The SC-HTB520 is an affordable sound bar system, but it does lack features found on other similarly affordable machines such as Sony’s now discontinued HT-CT150 such as better connectivity and an LED display. If those features are important to you, Sony still has more expensive HT-CT350 model available. However, if you can live with the limited connectivity, Panasonic’s offering does seem like a good entry level approach to add to your TV and movie watching experience.
Technical Details
- Soundbar
- Wireless Subwoofer
- Easy Connection with VIERA Link
- ARC (Audio Return Channel)
- Innovative Stylish Design
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