Sony Blu-ray systems are in seventh heaven

Sony has gone big on Blu-ray releases today, announcing seven new home cinema setups that should pique your audiovisual interest, no matter what the size of your house is.

The frontrunners of the new range are two all-in-one systems that offer 1080p support, upscaling to 1080p and 7.1 channel sound.

All in one

The BDV-E300 and BDV-E800W bring you 'virtual' 7.1 channel sound – which Sony says will give you a "complete wraparound audio experience without filling the room with speakers".

The E300 does this with the help of five compact satellite speakers for the main channels and a subwoofer.

As for the E800W, the speaker setup is slightly different, with Sony offering up four floorstanding main speakers for front and rear left and right channels, the same high-power subwoofer, and wireless rear speakers as standard. Both of these use the BDP-S360 player as their player of choice.

For the audio purists who want true 7.1 surround, you will have to purchase what Sony calls a 'wireless upgrade kit'. The WAHT-SBP1 upgrade comes with an amplifier and two additional speakers.

Space-saver

For those with a little bit less space, then Sony has also announced the BDV-Z7. This is a 2.1 surround sound setup.

As with the faux 7.1 setups, Sony has given the BDV-Z7 "a virtual 5.1 surround sound experience" which is piped through Sony's S-Force front surround speakers.

Four play

Four more releases make up Sony's Blu-ray bonanza – all of which are based around Sony's BDP-S360 player.

These are: the BDV-360FS, based around a 400W 2.1-channel system; the BDV-360IS, which uses five of Sony's 'golfball-sized' speakers; the HTP-BD36SS, a 1000W system using compact satellite speakers; and finally the HTP-BD36SF, which is blessed with four floor-standing speakers for the front and rear left and right channels.

For more information on these setups and pricing, visit SonyStyle.co.uk.