# Surround Sound



## Bob Sanders (Nov 10, 2013)

Not a big fan of surround bars. They're a 'fake' surround sound but reasonable if you're pinched for room. On good sound tracks you can easily pick off the difference though. 

If you want real surround, you need a minimum of 5 speakers (plus sub).


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## mikegp (Jul 17, 2011)

It won't be surround sound, but is sufficient for most people. I have 7.1 surround sound in my basement and I don't mind when I'm at someone's house with a sound bar. Most people only really care about bass and volume anyway.


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## Colbyt (Jan 27, 2014)

I switched from 5.1 wired system to a sound bar when I upgraded to HD and have not regretted the choice. As a matter of fact I have not even installed or used the woofer and rear speakers yet. I purchase the combo unit where all the front speakers are in one unit and really like the clean look of it without all the crap sitting around looking ugly.

Do keep in mind that a lot, maybe all wireless rigs require wires from the woofer to the two rear speakers so you may want to pull some wire from your woofer location to your 2 rear locations.


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## ktkelly (Apr 7, 2007)

I guess it all depends on a couple things.

!. Whether or not you want great sound as opposed to mediocre sound.

2. Whether or not you are willing to buy better quality speakers and amps, or want some low end, rather basic gear.

3. Whether or not your room will allow for the system to be done properly, or is set so the design just won't really matter.


Sorry, there is no way on earth that a speakerbar can do the job as well as a properly designed 5.1, or 7.1-2 system It's not possible.


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## Colbyt (Jan 27, 2014)

The truth is it all depends on your wife's ears and how loud she will tolerate the volume.


:devil3:


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## Nobr8ks (Sep 30, 2015)

ktkelly said:


> sorry, there is no way on earth that a speakerbar can do the job as well as a properly designed 5.1, or 7.1-2 system it's not possible.


truth!!!


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## Fix'n it (Mar 12, 2012)

while it is true that for HIGH END audio, you need separates, properly installed. 

BUT. MOST people do not need that. and don't want all of the gear sitting around.
BUT. pretty awesome sound can be had from a sound bar.
check these out. THEN tell me GOOD sound cannot come from a sound bar. 
https://www.google.com/search?q=hig...ved=0ahUKEwjz3-rLtOTJAhUBXWMKHQt5CcMQ_AUIBygC


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## dlam9946 (Nov 22, 2015)

haha

I think I am probably going to do a 5.1 system. When you mount the speakers to the wall, what is the best way to hide the speaker wire coming from the wall to the speaker? Do you use speaker wire wall plates? Same for behind the receiver, is that the cleanest way to do it?


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## ddawg16 (Aug 15, 2011)

Just so we make it clear.....

When listening to music......2 good speakers and a sub is all you need. The same setup as if you were at a concert. All the noise comes from the stage.

When watching a movie....the surround sound comes into play. The surround sound 'simulates' sound as if you were physically there. 

The 'quality' of the system determines how much power is needed to get the point across.


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## ktkelly (Apr 7, 2007)

dlam9946 said:


> haha
> 
> I think I am probably going to do a 5.1 system. When you mount the speakers to the wall, what is the best way to hide the speaker wire coming from the wall to the speaker? Do you use speaker wire wall plates? Same for behind the receiver, is that the cleanest way to do it?



If it's in the budget, I would hang a pair of bi-pole surrounds on a Datacomm 45-9914.WH. If that pushes the budget too hard, go with a pair of in wall speakers that are more budget friendly.

Using the same piece behind the AVR can also help with the wiring.


It's highly recommended that ALL speakers in a system be of the same brand, i.e. timbre matched.


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## user_12345a (Nov 23, 2014)

the less "toy" you can get away with, the better.


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## Bob Sanders (Nov 10, 2013)

ddawg16 said:


> Just so we make it clear.....
> 
> When listening to music......2 good speakers and a sub is all you need. The same setup as if you were at a concert. All the noise comes from the stage.
> .


You can get some incredibly high quality quad and surround music, and it sounds pretty awesome.

A list from just the "A" column of high quality surround music



> AMERICA -
> Hearts. Warner Bros. BS4-2852 (CD4), WSTQ-2852 (DQR),
> L9B-2852 (Q8), WB 256115 (CD4) [Germany]
> {WB 256115 was issued in a stereo jacket (WB 56115) with a "foil"-type
> ...


If you have a surround system you should pick something up and try it..... pretty amazing. It's easy to get lost in it.


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## dlam9946 (Nov 22, 2015)

Most of my budget is going to remodeling the room. I.E. resurfacing and building a wall, with a fireplace. Installing CAM lights, replacing the hearth sheet rocking walls, etc etc the list goes on.

Ideally I would like to buy a 5.1 system in a box with receiver, have it wired. And then as I have more money possibly upgrade the system. I have a Sony 5.1 system but its about ten years old so I figure its time to upgrade now


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## ktkelly (Apr 7, 2007)

Does the Sony have HDMI in/out, or toslink, or coaxial digital in?

If you budget is that tight, just keep on using the Sony and buy some better quality speakers. You can always upgrade the AVR at a later date when the budget allows, and in the mean time you'll have something that sounds better than it ever has..


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## dlam9946 (Nov 22, 2015)

ktkelly said:


> Does the Sony have HDMI in/out, or toslink, or coaxial digital in?
> 
> If you budget is that tight, just keep on using the Sony and buy some better quality speakers. You can always upgrade the AVR at a later date when the budget allows, and in the mean time you'll have something that sounds better than it ever has..



I need to check, its been boxed up still from the move. I dont think it has HDMI, or coaxial. I do know it has Optical


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

I use a Sound Bar for Mono programs, watching Netflix programming, tv. We only turn on the Home Theater, when it is a movie that we want to listen to it in Surround Sound. We probably use the Sound Bar for 99% of our tv viewing. It is not because of a bad setup. It is because we do not see a need to have the Home Theater on, every time we turn on the tv.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

ktkelly said:


> I guess it all depends on a couple things.
> 
> !. Whether or not you want great sound as opposed to mediocre sound.
> 
> ...


Points 1-3 is your personal opinion. Just because someone chooses a Sound Bar over a Home Theater for regular viewing, has nothing to do with mediocre sound, room size, how much they have to spend. It is because not everyone is into wanting a theater like experience.

Sound Bars are intended to get around the tinny sound from the built in speakers on a TV. Those with Wireless Sub-Woofers and speakers, are fine for someone who may rent, in school or does not see a need to spend thousands of dollars on something that they may only use 1% of their program viewing.


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## gregzoll (Dec 25, 2006)

dlam9946 said:


> Most of my budget is going to remodeling the room. I.E. resurfacing and building a wall, with a fireplace. Installing CAM lights, replacing the hearth sheet rocking walls, etc etc the list goes on.
> 
> Ideally I would like to buy a 5.1 system in a box with receiver, have it wired. And then as I have more money possibly upgrade the system. I have a Sony 5.1 system but its about ten years old so I figure its time to upgrade now


If the receiver is still going strong, the paper on the speakers is not rotted. Put it in your garage. I have a Denon AVR 1612, with Klipsh RB-81 II's for the fronts, a RC-42 II for the Center, because of limited space in our Coffee table style stand, RB-42 II's for the rears.

For allowing the Amazon Fire TV Box that we use for streaming, I have a HDMI Splitter to allow the TV & AVR to share the feed, so that if the wife is in bed, I can still watch through the HDMI 2 input on the TV. The Sound Bar is a Vizio SBB4021E-A0, which is connected to the TV through the Stereo Out on it.

The way that my Home Theater is set up, even with the archway opening into our Dining room, the sweet spot stays within the seating area of the Living Room. I have no Sub-Woofer on my 5.1 setup, because we did not want two sub's in the Living Room. The RB-81 II's, do a great job for handling Bass.


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## YerDugliness (Jun 2, 2008)

ddawg16 said:


> When watching a movie....the surround sound comes into play. The surround sound 'simulates' sound as if you were physically there.


That is accurate if one is watching Dolby Pro-Logic, where the surround is processed from the out-of-phase front channel information. However, with Dolby Digital or DTS the rear channels are discrete, and in my DTS system the rears are full-range (SACD surround audio is also 5.1 with the surround speakers producing full range). DD falls way short of DTS in overall general audio quality, IMHO.

If all you care about is improving the intelligibility of the TV over what the minuscule built in speakers offer, a sound bar is a great idea. If, however, you're looking for surround sound, use a high quality dedicated "center channel" speaker. The plan is to use the best quality speaker for the center channel because that is where the dialogue is located by the sound processor, as well as a lot of special effects. A sound bar produces not only the center channel info but also both front side channels.

I've been seeing a lot of 2.1 systems lately using sound bars for the front and a dedicated sub...looks interesting from the standpoint of overall intelligibility, but not as interesting as a full-on surround system.

Cheers!

Dugly


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