X

Panasonic SC-BT300 photos

Panasonic's SC-BT300 is a 7.1 home theater system with built-in Blu-ray and its tall-boy speakers help deliver very good sound quality, but it doesn't have the Netflix streaming found on some similarly priced competitors.

Matthew Moskovciak
Covering home audio and video, Matthew Moskovciak helps CNET readers find the best sights and sounds for their home theaters. E-mail Matthew or follow him on Twitter @cnetmoskovciak.
Matthew Moskovciak
1 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Panasonic SC-BT300

Panasonic released one of the first Blu-ray home-theater-in-a-box (HTIB) systems in 2008, the SC-BT100, but we didn't bother to review it. The reason: it was still a Profile 1.1 disc player and its high price tag made it easier to put together a great system of separate components for about the same price.

That's why we were pleasantly surprised by the two Blu-ray HTIBs that Panasonic offered this year: the SC-BT200 offers a quality Blu-ray experience for the price and the SC-BT300 (reviewed here) offers better performance (from tall-boy speakers) for an extra hundred bucks.

It's not the best Blu-ray HTIB we've seen this year and the lack of Netflix streaming may be a deal-breaker for subscribers, but it's a well-thought-out system that combines the same excellent video quality of the standalone DMP-BD60K Blu-ray with a solid 7.1 surround-sound speaker package.
336450172440TLSPK.jpg
2 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Tall-boy front speakers

Most Blu-ray HTIBs stick to traditional 5.1 configurations, but the SC-BT300 is a full 7.1 system. The system is made up of two tall-boy speakers, four small speakers for the surround/surround-back channels, a center channel, and the subwoofer. The tall-boy speakers stand 40.2-inches high, and the circular stands are 10-inches in diameter. They're big enough to dominate a room, so if space is limited you may be better off with Panasonic's step-down SC-BT200.
336450172440SMSPK.jpg
3 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Small surround/surround back speakers

The surround/surround-back speakers are a little bigger than a soup can, coming in at 3.63 inches wide by 5 inches high and 3.2 inches deep, and each features a 2.5-inch bamboo cone driver.
336450172440DT1.jpg
4 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Center channel

The center channel is a little bigger (9.8 inches wide, 3.75 inches high, and 3.2 inches deep) and features two of the 2.5-inch drivers.
336450172440DT2.jpg
5 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Center channel, side view

336450172440DT3.jpg
6 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Subwoofer

The sub has a 10-inch passive radiator and 6.5-inch woofer, and its footprint is also relatively small (7.1 inches wide, 14.2 inches high, and 13.4 inches high).
336450172440DT4.jpg
7 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Subwoofer, side view

336450172440RCR.jpg
8 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

AV receiver/Blu-ray player combo

The combination receiver/Blu-ray player has a relatively nondescript look, with the faceplate featuring a reflective black finish.
336450172440DT8.jpg
9 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Pull-out iPod dock

One nice design touch is the pull-out iPod dock; just give a tug where the Panasonic logo is and a tray for the iPod is revealed. We prefer this integrated design (also found on some LG models) to the break-out docks on the Sony BDV-E500W and Samsung HT-BD1250T, which cause a little more wire clutter.
336450172440DT9.jpg
10 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Beneath the flip-down panel

Toward the bottom is a flip-down panel revealing an SD card slot, the autosetup mic input, additional playback controls, and a headphone jack.
336450172440DT5.jpg
11 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Back panel connectivity

Like most Blu-ray HTIBs, the SC-BT300's connectivity is limited to audio inputs; there are no video inputs. That means with additional components, like a cable box or game console, you'll need to make separate connections to the SC-BT300 and your TV, plus you'll have to fumble with several remotes to get it all working. (Alternatively, you can avoid some of the hassle with a quality universal remote.) While most Blu-ray HTIBs don't have video inputs, it's worth mentioning that the LG LHB977 (street price of less than $600) and Samsung HT-BD3252 ($800 list price) each have two HDMI inputs, so they might be a better choice if you have other HDMI gear, such as game consoles and DVRs.

The SC-BT300 has two optical digital-audio inputs and one analog stereo input, which is about average compared with other systems. Panasonic allows you to select each of these inputs by continually pressing the "EXT-IN" button, which means you can connect a total of three separate components to the SC-BT300.

336450172440DT6.jpg
12 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Speaker jacks

The SC-BT300 uses proprietary speaker jacks (as do most HTIBs), so you can't use your own speaker wire.
336450172440DT7.jpg
13 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Wireless-ready

There's a wireless transmitter on the back of the SC-BT300, but you need to buy a separate wireless transceiver to enable wireless functionality. The SH-FX70 wireless transceiver can be purchased separately for $130, but note that it only powers a pair of speakers; if you want both your surround and surround-back speakers to be wireless, you'll need to purchase two SH-FX70 units.
336450172440DT10.jpg
14 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Automatic speaker calibration microphone

The SC-BT300 is one of the few HTIBs at this price range to include automatic speaker calibration, but the included mic has a cable that's too short.
336450172440DT11.jpg
15 of 15 CNET/Sarah Tew

Remote

The included remote on the SC-BT300 is similar to the one included with the company's Blu-ray players and we're generally fans of the design. Frequently used playback controls are given big, blue buttons and the directional pad is surrounded by important buttons like pop-up menu and top menu. There is one inexplicable omission, though: an open/close button for the integrated Blu-ray player. Sure, you have to get off the couch to change discs anyway, but we prefer to hit the button before we get up so there's an open tray waiting when we get there.

More Galleries

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera
A houseplant

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera

20 Photos
Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra
magic-v2-2024-foldable-1383

Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra

10 Photos
The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum
Samsung Galaxy S24

The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum

23 Photos
Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design
The Galaxy S24 Ultra in multiple colors

Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design

23 Photos
I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites
img-0368.jpg

I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites

34 Photos
17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About
Invitation for the Apple September iPhone 15 event

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About

18 Photos
AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?
img-1599-2.jpg

AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?

17 Photos