*Four Star* because it could be better.. BUT saying that, it's not a bad little system for the *reduced price* some places are selling it for. It's good for a starter system if you're looking to dabble in surround sound for your PC and dont want to shell out hundreds if you're unsure..
I leave all the speaker volumes at default on the "Xenta HT-533USB" and adjust the EQ, bass boost and room compensation in the "VIA HD Audio Deck" which is the onboard sound driver that's installed on my computer.. The only thing I adjust on the system is the volume and sub woofer level, using the remote.
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Positive:
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*Surround sound works perfect when attached to a PC that has three programmable outputs.
Done using three "RCA->3.5mm" cables (You recieve three "RCA male->RCA male" cables with this product and will need to buy three "RCA female->3.5mm male Y-splitter" to convert one end to fit your PC's sound ports)
*Works well in supported games such as battlefield 3 when in-game setting are adjusted correctly. Bullets whiz by and you can hear people creeping up on you if they're not quiet.
*Films with real 5.1 surround sound, sound pretty immersive!
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Could be better:
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The satalite speakers are a little tinny but moving the subs response curve to 600Hz and boosting by 9db in the "VIA HD Audio Deck" under 'bass management' helps compensate this to a tolerable level.
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Other Issues:
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I had to update my PC's sound driver because it kept kicking back to 2.1 when I restarted my PC. But now it's updated it remains in 5.1 surround sound after restarting..
One other problem I had was a humming sound that developed over three or four weeks like the person above me mentioned.
It eventually got louder and I had to do something about it! I couldn't return it because I'd thrown away all the packaging and manual etc, so I decided to open up the back and take a look inside..
Well to cut a long story short and save you all the aggravation, this is what fixed my buzzing/humming sound:
*I turned the power off!
*Unscrewed the USB bit on the right side of the sub woofer box (Was a bit tricky to get out because of some flanged screws)
*Disconnected both the cable from it
*Tucked the cables back inside
*Then screwed the USB panel back on and switched the power back on.
Tadaa! No humming sound when powered on and out of standby mode :)
My guess is the USB unit is a cheap and nasty one that has developed a feedback issue over time.
But I never used the USB part anyway so this doesn't bother me at all.
***Please note: If you do this yourself, I am not responsible for your actions. I am merely informing you how I stopped the humming on my system, which may work for you too. But proceed with caution and only attempt if you're confident in your abilities to carry out such actions***