Bose Lifestyle 28 Theater System
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- Included Components: Receiver Radio Tuner
- Number Of Speakers: 5 Speakers and Subwoofer
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Looks tempting, looks can be deceiving.
Pros
4-Inch tall jewel cube speakers, touchscreen remote control, 4-room expandability, Videostage 5.
Cons
Price, amplifier, no DTS (or any notion of Dolby decoding at all).
Recommended it?
No
The Bottom Line:
I do not recommend this system because for the money you could not do any worse.
In the Bose outlet store the first thing I noticed was the sample theater they had featuring the exact Lifestyle 50 system. I was blown away by the sound and then I learned that the sound came out of speakers small enough to fit in my hand.
Contrary to Soupcraze's submission, the speakers on this system are not the same as in the other lifestyle stereos. In fact, with the change of the Lifestyle 30 to the Lifestyle 35, the Lifestyle 50's speakers have become the only of its kind left. Although the bass module looks like it's the same as the bass module in the LS 12, 28, 35 (or even the past 8), it's not. The bass has increased power and a higher range of low frequencies (not to mention it is slightly longer). But don't make up your mind yet.
My favorite part of this system is its set of speakers. These speakers are very capable, but unfortunately their capability cannot be reached with the cheesy Bose factory amplifier. In another room of my house, I have Bose Acoustimass 5, series IV, speakers connected to an Adcom amplifier and preamplifier. That sound quality is what made me assume that the Lifestyle 50 would be of the same sound quality. It's not.
The pre-amplifier of this system is the tiny black box (not the gigantic CD player) which pre-amplifies all 4 rooms (should you use all four of them). The amplifier must be purchased separately with expansion, but the standard speakers have an amplifier in the subwoofer for all of the speakers. This amplifier is extremely unnatural-sounding and contourless.
At no time have I noted this more than at a televised award show. When applause comes on, you are no longer watching the TV, but the speakers. The applause sounds so digital I found myself searching for my receipt later that evening.
As for surround sound, I'm not too big on Dolby DTS (as I cannot tell the difference between that and the lower Digital sound processor) but I do know that nearly every receiver (from $125 or so) have DTS on them and that speaks very lowly of this $3,500 stereo. However, it has a feature, Videostage 5, that converts one channel into five channels. For instance, if you attach a phonograph, monaural cassette, a monaural VCR or have a few TV channels that aren't available in stereo you don't have to listen to it through just one speaker. VS5 converts that one signal into 5 channels. That is one of the best features of the stereo.
The remote is a phenomenal piece of technology that also helped me in this purchase. On it, you can control all 4 rooms, CD, Tape, Video1, Video2 and AUX. It works anywhere in your house I'm not sure of the range, but it works from everywhere in my 1/2 acre yard and everywhere in my house also. The screen lights up green when you touch it and goes blank in approx. 10 seconds. You should have to replace the 3 AA batteries about 3 times a year. Don't break it though as I have seen them priced at $350. It also has a WipeScreen feature which disables the screen for 20 seconds while you wipe off fingerprints or etc. A final noted feature (which is a must for me) is that there is a button behind the system that makes the remote beep if you lose it--very handy.
A note on the CD player: It pauses automatically when you switch to another source and immediately plays back when you switch back to CD (very nice). the "Ultra-slim" 6-changer magazine has a flaw in it: If you have any 3-inch CD's (aka. samplers) don't bother loading them in here. The only CDs that fit in it are the standard CDs. It does play CD-R's but not RW's or MP3 CDs.
I do not recommend the Bose Lifestyle 50 Digital Home Theater System. I do not recommend it because you can purchase a system lightyears better than this one for the same price. If you take the time to look at what is usually the most expensive piece of equipment on most high-end stereos it is the Amplifier and/or Pre-amplifier. The speakers and features of this stereo are great, but the amplifier and preamplifiers are extremely weak. If I were to purchase the amps and pre-amps alone, I wouldn't dare pay more than 100 for the total of both. You'd do better to buy the older model Bose Acoustimass 15 speakers (NOT the new ones the new ones' bass modules are a joke) and a nice receiver--Harman/Kardon for instance.
Contrary to Soupcraze's submission, the speakers on this system are not the same as in the other lifestyle stereos. In fact, with the change of the Lifestyle 30 to the Lifestyle 35, the Lifestyle 50's speakers have become the only of its kind left. Although the bass module looks like it's the same as the bass module in the LS 12, 28, 35 (or even the past 8), it's not. The bass has increased power and a higher range of low frequencies (not to mention it is slightly longer). But don't make up your mind yet.
My favorite part of this system is its set of speakers. These speakers are very capable, but unfortunately their capability cannot be reached with the cheesy Bose factory amplifier. In another room of my house, I have Bose Acoustimass 5, series IV, speakers connected to an Adcom amplifier and preamplifier. That sound quality is what made me assume that the Lifestyle 50 would be of the same sound quality. It's not.
The pre-amplifier of this system is the tiny black box (not the gigantic CD player) which pre-amplifies all 4 rooms (should you use all four of them). The amplifier must be purchased separately with expansion, but the standard speakers have an amplifier in the subwoofer for all of the speakers. This amplifier is extremely unnatural-sounding and contourless.
At no time have I noted this more than at a televised award show. When applause comes on, you are no longer watching the TV, but the speakers. The applause sounds so digital I found myself searching for my receipt later that evening.
As for surround sound, I'm not too big on Dolby DTS (as I cannot tell the difference between that and the lower Digital sound processor) but I do know that nearly every receiver (from $125 or so) have DTS on them and that speaks very lowly of this $3,500 stereo. However, it has a feature, Videostage 5, that converts one channel into five channels. For instance, if you attach a phonograph, monaural cassette, a monaural VCR or have a few TV channels that aren't available in stereo you don't have to listen to it through just one speaker. VS5 converts that one signal into 5 channels. That is one of the best features of the stereo.
The remote is a phenomenal piece of technology that also helped me in this purchase. On it, you can control all 4 rooms, CD, Tape, Video1, Video2 and AUX. It works anywhere in your house I'm not sure of the range, but it works from everywhere in my 1/2 acre yard and everywhere in my house also. The screen lights up green when you touch it and goes blank in approx. 10 seconds. You should have to replace the 3 AA batteries about 3 times a year. Don't break it though as I have seen them priced at $350. It also has a WipeScreen feature which disables the screen for 20 seconds while you wipe off fingerprints or etc. A final noted feature (which is a must for me) is that there is a button behind the system that makes the remote beep if you lose it--very handy.
A note on the CD player: It pauses automatically when you switch to another source and immediately plays back when you switch back to CD (very nice). the "Ultra-slim" 6-changer magazine has a flaw in it: If you have any 3-inch CD's (aka. samplers) don't bother loading them in here. The only CDs that fit in it are the standard CDs. It does play CD-R's but not RW's or MP3 CDs.
I do not recommend the Bose Lifestyle 50 Digital Home Theater System. I do not recommend it because you can purchase a system lightyears better than this one for the same price. If you take the time to look at what is usually the most expensive piece of equipment on most high-end stereos it is the Amplifier and/or Pre-amplifier. The speakers and features of this stereo are great, but the amplifier and preamplifiers are extremely weak. If I were to purchase the amps and pre-amps alone, I wouldn't dare pay more than 100 for the total of both. You'd do better to buy the older model Bose Acoustimass 15 speakers (NOT the new ones the new ones' bass modules are a joke) and a nice receiver--Harman/Kardon for instance.
