Soundbars?

[FlyingLemons]

I've been thinking of getting a soundbar for my flat (where I live when I work most of the week) as space is at a bit of a premium... and I think the stereo speakers on my TV are a bit rubbish. Flat, lifeless sound which ruins most films when compared with the surround sound system I've got back up in my house in Scotland.

I've heard they're pretty good, obviously not as good as a full surround system, but still much better than TV speakers and good at providing a good approximation of surround sound. Could anyone tell me if they're any good, and if so what's a good one to buy?

 

[Mr. B]

I have experience with one of Yamaha's older soundbars. They are certainly better than the speakers in just about any TV. If it's well-positioned in a square room, the surround sound effects can be very good too. ...but like you said, they can't really compare to a proper surround sound system. If your expectations are in check, it should be a worthy investment.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

I have the Sony HTCT150 3.1 system, which has a large subwoofer unit containing the electronics. It has multiple HDMI inputs, which is a useful, but not essential feature. You can buy sound bars with integrated low frequency drivers - they don't have the performance of a separate unit but they are usually much better than TV speakers.

 

[Trekker4747]

I have a soundbar, it was a fairly cheap one I bought when I got my new TV. I got it because on TVs these days the speakers are usually placed in the bottom or back of the TV which is not the optimal place to have sound coming from for quality or clarity.

Anyway, the soundbar I have serves its purpose and produces good sound. The only problem with my particular model was that it and the TV didn't have the same kind of outputs, I think the TV had the LED output (no RCA/Composite oputput) and the soundbar did not have the LED/laser input so I had to get a convertor. So beware of that, make sure the sound outputs on the TV match the inputs for the soundbar.

The "biggest" problem with them is that the remote codes for them aren't "universal"... I guess? That's to say you're not going to be able to program their controls for it into a universal remote. Also, as part of this, it's control isn't going to be connected to your TV so it's just one more thing you're going to need to control for power on/off and volume. Which can be a bit of a pain in the butt I guess not a huge deal.

Their sound is certainly going to better than the TV's speakers but nowhere neat as good as a true multiple-speaker surround-sound system. Which isn't always practical to buy, set-up, or even have especially if you live in an apartment.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

Yeah, wires trailing everywhere are a real pain. I considered buying a 5.1 system with wireless rear speakers but the whole thing would have cost double what I was prepared to spend. Connecting everything using HDMI leads via the sound system as the hub simplified the wiring, and I can control all the Sony stuff using the one remote.

 

[Saturn0660]

The Samsung is rather nice as the sub is wireless to the bar.. Sony is a great pic as well.. If you wanna go out of control you can get 5.1 sound bars that bounce the sound off your walls..