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Panasonic SC-HTB520

post #1 of 25
7/10/11 at 5:26pm
Thread Starter 
Has anyone had a chance to listen to one of these new Panny's yet? So far, to my surprise, the limited info available suggests that it sounds pretty good, even some lossless decoding I believe.
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post #2 of 25
7/11/11 at 5:12am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Steveo1717 View Post

Has anyone had a chance to listen to one of these new Panny's yet? So far, to my surprise, the limited info available suggests that it sounds pretty good, even some lossless decoding I believe.

I tried out a HTB500 at home a while ago and it did sound good but one thing with the Panasonic bars is they do not do any surround effect,,, the 500 did not do a faux surround sound and I have read nothing to suggest the 520 will be any different in that respect (I was kinda hoping the 520 would have that feature)

But if your not looking for a surround effect the new 520 should be a great sounding bar if its better than the already impressive 500 bar.

Cheers
Davyo
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post #3 of 25
7/15/11 at 7:27am
I have a new pany tv and was looking at this soundbar. Can I control the volume (of the soundbar) thru the TV or do you have to use the soundbar volume control. I'm assuming the ARC would provide volume control thru the TV but just want to make sure. My cable system remote leaves a lot to be desired in controlling devices however it does control the TV.
thanks,
Ken
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post #4 of 25
7/15/11 at 8:36am
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Originally Posted by krv View Post

I have a new pany tv and was looking at this soundbar. Can I control the volume (of the soundbar) thru the TV or do you have to use the soundbar volume control. I'm assuming the ARC would provide volume control thru the TV but just want to make sure. My cable system remote leaves a lot to be desired in controlling devices however it does control the TV.
thanks,
Ken

Use Viera Link to set default speakers to home theater. You can also set it to turn the soundbar on/off with the TV if you want. Any remote that can control your TV will then adjust soundbar volume.
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post #5 of 25
7/15/11 at 4:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Possumgirl View Post
Use Viera Link to set default speakers to home theater. You can also set it to turn the soundbar on/off with the TV if you want. Any remote that can control your TV will then adjust soundbar volume.
Thank you, I'm going try one tomorrow!
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post #6 of 25
7/19/11 at 11:29am
I got the pany soundbar. Connected cable box to TV-->TV ARC to soundbar ARC HDMI. Am I correct that I will only get PCM/stereo signals? If so, why do they have other lights for DTS and DolbyDigital?

Thanks for any insight.
Ken
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post #7 of 25
7/19/11 at 2:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by krv View Post
I got the pany soundbar. Connected cable box to TV-->TV ARC to soundbar ARC HDMI. Am I correct that I will only get PCM/stereo signals? If so, why do they have other lights for DTS and DolbyDigital?

Thanks for any insight.
Ken
If you have a blu-ray player connected via HDMI directly to the soundbar, the lights will indicate which audio format is being received.

Also, if you were using your TV's internal tuner (OTA antenna), DD5.1 would be output via ARC for programs that have that format. However, the TV will only output 2 ch. stereo from components connected to it via HDMI. Somewhere in the TV's manual it probably says that.
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post #8 of 25
7/20/11 at 8:03am
How do you like this model? I was thinking about getting it before deciding to go with the new Sharp 600.
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post #9 of 25
8/1/11 at 8:12pm
Any ideas on how to connect my Panny SC-HTB520 to a non ARC compatible TV (viera G15). I am also looking to connect a PS3 and DVR also. The 520 does not have a digital optical input and everywhere I have looked so far has suggested this is necessary if I don't have an ARC supported TV.
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post #10 of 25
8/2/11 at 7:38am
Are you sure your G15 isn't ARC compatible? I was under the impression that all Panasonic Viera TVs are. I know my G10 (precursor to the G15) is ARC compliant.
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post #11 of 25
8/2/11 at 7:43am
Quote:
Originally Posted by RoyBiv83 View Post

Any ideas on how to connect my Panny SC-HTB520 to a non ARC compatible TV (viera G15). I am also looking to connect a PS3 and DVR also. The 520 does not have a digital optical input and everywhere I have looked so far has suggested this is necessary if I don't have an ARC supported TV.

See pages 6 & 15 of the owner's manual where the location of the digital optical input is shown.
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post #12 of 25
8/12/11 at 6:41am
I just saw this model in an HH Gregg store. It's a decent enough soundbar, nothing special really and a fingerprint magnet. It matches ok with a Panny tv though. I'm not a big fan of the included remote. What happened to the sound mode buttons from the previous Panny soundbars? They are gone now. What's up with that Panasonic?
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post #13 of 25
8/22/11 at 2:26pm
I am pretty sure that my Panasonic TC-P50S1 doesn't have ARC, but I know that it does have Viera link. If I were to pair the SC-HTB520 soundbar with my tv, it's cool to know that I can control it with my remote with no issues. If my tv did have ARC, what benefit would it give with this particular setup, if any?
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post #14 of 25
8/22/11 at 2:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by stw View Post

I am pretty sure that my Panasonic TC-P50S1 doesn't have ARC, but I know that it does have Viera link. If I were to pair the SC-HTB520 soundbar with my tv, it's cool to know that I can control it with my remote with no issues. If my tv did have ARC, what benefit would it give with this particular setup, if any?

You're right, the S1 doesn't have ARC. The only thing ARC does is eliminate the need to use a TOSLINK cable should you need to send audio out from the TV to an external audio system.
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post #15 of 25
8/22/11 at 5:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Possumgirl View Post

You're right, the S1 doesn't have ARC. The only thing ARC does is eliminate the need to use a TOSLINK cable should you need to send audio out from the TV to an external audio system.

Thanks for the note PossumGirl. When I asked about ARC above, I assumed the soundbar would have more HDMI inputs than it does. I've been reading more about it and see that it only has one HDMI input and one HDMI output. Because of this, it sounds like things get more complicated now. Like RoyBiv, I have a PS3 and DVR that I want to connect to the soundbar.

It sounds like I'll have to connect my PS3 and DVR to the TV using HDMI, like they are now (without a soundbar attached). Then connect the TV to the soundbar using a TOSLINK cable. Now would I also need to hook an HDMI from TV to soundbar so I could use Viera link, so I can control sound with my current remote (actually using a Monster AVL300)?
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post #16 of 25
8/22/11 at 6:08pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by stw View Post


It sounds like I'll have to connect my PS3 and DVR to the TV using HDMI, like they are now (without a soundbar attached). Then connect the TV to the soundbar using a TOSLINK cable.

That's one way to do it. As you probably know, the TV will only output 2 ch. stereo from devices connected to it. That may sound perfectly fine. However, if you want to feed the soundbar DD & DTS, you could connect your PS3 to the soundbar via HDMI, then connect HDMI from soundbar to TV. Connect the DVR to the TV via HDMI but disable HDMI audio-out on the DVR and instead connect Toslink from the DVR to the soundbar. That way you'll also have DD5.1 from the DVR as well.

Quote:


Now would I also need to hook an HDMI from TV to soundbar so I could use Viera link, so I can control sound with my current remote (actually using a Monster AVL300)?

Yes, Viera Link needs an HDMI connection in order to see compatible equipment.
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post #17 of 25
8/22/11 at 7:09pm
I thought Vieracast = HDMI ARC, no? If not, what's the difference?
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post #18 of 25
8/23/11 at 7:15am
VieraLink is Panasonic's name for CEC. VieraCast is Panasonic's streaming platform
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post #19 of 25
8/23/11 at 7:36am
Yeah that's what I meant. So what is the difference between that and ARC?
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post #20 of 25
8/23/11 at 8:38am
Quote:
Originally Posted by IslaTurbine View Post
Yeah that's what I meant. So what is the difference between that and ARC?
CEC = Consumer Electronics Control. Panny calls theirs Viera Link. It allows similarly enabled equipment to communicate during the HDMI handshake to determine what is connected to what, what each piece can do, and which one is in control. Manufacturers implemented CEC some while ago. The ARC (Audio Return Channel) feature didn't come along until 2010 models. See my post #14 above for an explanation of ARC.
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post #21 of 25
8/24/11 at 10:15am
Does anybody know the universal remote code for the Panasonic HTB520? I have an older Sony Bravia TV and I'm using the standard Xfinity remote control. I was controlling my previous sound system through the Xfinity remote and would love to connect the HTB520. Looking for the 5 digit code that works. Anybody?
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post #22 of 25
8/25/11 at 8:58am
I hate to ask this since I'm so new but I also have a Panasonic TC-P50S1 and am interested in the HTB520 but not sure how I'd hook up my devices. My problem is I have 3 devices I'd like to hook up: FiOS DVR, Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-Ray, and a Boxee Box. All of these devices are currently hooked up to my TV via HDMI.

I assume I would use HDMI and TOSLINK from the HTB520 to get VieraLink and sound from the TV, but would I just hook everything up to the TV as normal and switch one of the devices to the HTB520's HDMI input? Would this only give me 2 ch. stereo?

Any help on this would be much appreciated. I'm new to hooking up audio connections to my TV and I would like to get the best sound while working with what I have.
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post #23 of 25
8/25/11 at 9:34am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Fanel345 View Post

I hate to ask this since I'm so new but I also have a Panasonic TC-P50S1 and am interested in the HTB520 but not sure how I'd hook up my devices. My problem is I have 3 devices I'd like to hook up: FiOS DVR, Panasonic DMP-BD60 Blu-Ray, and a Boxee Box. All of these devices are currently hooked up to my TV via HDMI.

I assume I would use HDMI and TOSLINK from the HTB520 to get VieraLink and sound from the TV, but would I just hook everything up to the TV as normal and switch one of the devices to the HTB520's HDMI input? Would this only give me 2 ch. stereo?

Any help on this would be much appreciated. I'm new to hooking up audio connections to my TV and I would like to get the best sound while working with what I have.

Your setup is similar to what I suggested in post #16 above, except you've also got the Boxee to complicate it a bit. The BD player should be connected via HDMI to the soundbar, then HDMI from soundbar to TV. You can leave the DVR and Boxee connected to TV and run optical from TV to soundbar. You're right that will only output 2 ch. stereo for those components.

You could purchase an optical switch so that you'd connect DVR & Boxee to it and then the switch connects to the soundbar. Before doing that, I'd suggest a test. Connect the DVR or the Boxee to the soundbar with HDMI and see how much (if any) difference you hear between that and just using the optical out from TV. Since soundbars use "trickery" in the first place, you may be perfectly happy with the 2 ch. output.

It sounds as though you haven't purchased a soundbar yet, so you might want to look at the new Sony CT550W or the Sony CT150 as they both have three HDMI inputs.
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post #24 of 25
8/25/11 at 11:49am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Possumgirl View Post

Your setup is similar to what I suggested in post #16 above, except you've also got the Boxee to complicate it a bit. The BD player should be connected via HDMI to the soundbar, then HDMI from soundbar to TV. You can leave the DVR and Boxee connected to TV and run optical from TV to soundbar. You're right that will only output 2 ch. stereo for those components.

You could purchase an optical switch so that you'd connect DVR & Boxee to it and then the switch connects to the soundbar. Before doing that, I'd suggest a test. Connect the DVR or the Boxee to the soundbar with HDMI and see how much (if any) difference you hear between that and just using the optical out from TV. Since soundbars use "trickery" in the first place, you may be perfectly happy with the 2 ch. output.

It sounds as though you haven't purchased a soundbar yet, so you might want to look at the new Sony CT550W or the Sony CT150 as they both have three HDMI inputs.

Awesome, thanks for the advice. The one reason I liked the Panasonic stuff was that I could (in theory) reduce the amount of remotes I'd have to juggle. If I went with the Sony solution or an optical switch do you have a recommendation for an universal remote that works well with any of the mentioned soundbars and the rest of the equipment above?
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post #25 of 25
9/9/11 at 3:44pm
Hello folks! May I join this "boat"?

I own one Panasonic P46G10E with the following things connected to it:


HDMI1: Cable TV Box
HDMI2: Sony PS3 Slim
HDMI3: Asus O!Play R1


Now I would like to add to the "party" one soundbar and obviously looked for a Panasonic one.

The SC-HTB520 looked fine till I start to think how the hell am I going to connect it to my TV

My idea was to connect it via an optical cable to the P46G10 but by this method I will ear the O!Play movies is stereo only ?

What's the best way to optimize the sound?

Connect the soundbar, via optical cable, directly to the Asus O!Play to ear the best sound when watching movies?

Any other options?

Thanks.

PS: The G10 series hasn't got the ARC protocol!
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