Review: Panasonic SC-PTX7 HDD Jukebox Theater System

WATCH, LISTEN, RECORD

November 2007 By Marshal M. Rosenthal

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I’m no fan of “music servers” because they’re too expensive and complicated to set up. But hanging out doing the bills on a hot August day, I can see where it would be nice if there was a compact music system that could access and play me my music. So that’s why I think Panasonic might have the right idea by including a hard drive in their SC-PTX7.

The main unit houses the DVD player and receiver along with an internal 80GB hard drive - that’s enough storage space for over a thousand hours of audio recordings (depending upon the choice of compression), whether ripped from a CD or taken off of the AM/FM radio or analog sources like VCRs. And yes you can even transfer audio from your iPod to the hard drive using an included dock. There’s also an Ethernet port for joining a home network, transferring over non-copy protected music from a PC and accessing the Gracenote music database online for album and track information. The Panny has a mini-set of the database preloaded onto the receiver for convenience, but connecting to a network is automated to where it doesn’t make sense not to use it: after I plugged in the Ethernet port and went to the relevant section of the quick setup, it took care of the network settings and that was that.

The receiver decodes Dolby Digital as well as DTS and Pro Logic II, as well as adding XM Radio - although you must have a subscription in order to use it. The two hard plastic, bookshelf-type speakers are magnetically shielded for close proximity to a TV, and each has a separate driver positioned to “throw” sound between the left and right speakers so as to create a “Center” for dialogue. Playing excerpts from the movie NEXT and the CG animated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie, voices are not overwhelmed by the explosions, collapsing buildings and other outrageous sounds coming from the left and right channels, and there’s a distinct feeling that it’s coming from the “center” as would be the case with there being an actual speaker there. Also, activating the virtual Dolby Digital does seem to expand the soundfield and add audio cues from farther out at the sides. Of course you need strong bass to hammer the sounds home, and there’s enough power from the amp for powering the included subwoofer along with the speakers - the speaker wires provided are of a good length which is important since proprietary plugs are used.

As far as video quality goes, using the HDMI output along with upscaling to 1080p provides for a sharp image, and additions like a Cinema mode geared for movies and a Variable Zoom among others are nice to have. You can also play MP3 and WMA music files on disc, but music transferred to the hard drive allows for playlists, shuffle play, search and other functions such as grouping songs into categories. The easiest way to transfer CDs is to use the dedicated button on top of the receiver, although patience must be commanded while the disc is converted over. After copying the Ocean’s Thirteen soundtrack, I compared and found Frank Sinatra’s “In This Town” to sound as good digitally as from the CD, as well as Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker; although using higher compression isn’t recommended with classic music as it sounds a bit too “brassy.”

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