Home Theater/Game Room Thread

Ossoi

Ossoi

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Masakari said:
Anyone have recommendatiins for a soundbar + sub setup for under $500?
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Don't buy a sound bar

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Ossoi

Ossoi

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Masakari said:
Pissing contest between audiophile geeks lol.
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What are you trying to accomplish from a sound bar? Actual surround sound, because then you're better off following their advice and getting an actual surround set up rather than using a bar attempting to mimic surround sound
 
Masakari

Masakari

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Ossoi said:
What are you trying to accomplish from a sound bar? Actual surround sound, because then you're better off following their advice and getting an actual surround set up rather than using a bar attempting to mimic surround sound
Click to expand...

I like surround sound, except my TV couch is against a wall and rear speakers don't really feel like an option with how my layout is set up currently. So my plan was to invest in a mid quality ($500) 3.1 soundbar + subwoofer, then add a rear set up once I move into my new place next year.

In the past 10 years, I've only really ever shopped soundbars and thought non-sound bar 3.1 to 5.1 set ups faded out (I shop Best Buy). Hell, my desktop's 5.1 set up from years ago sounds better than my TV's soundbar though. I tried to hook that up but there's a manual pad to control the volume that keeps it tethered at the TV.
 
Masakari

Masakari

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En Sabah Nur said:
Samsung is probably the way to go with soundbars. Q800C was on sale for under $400 a few weeks ago, I'd aim for that.
Click to expand...

Just missed it then, I'll wait for the next promotion. The last of the Q800Cs are going for $650 right now on Amazon.
 
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Ossoi

Ossoi

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Masakari said:
In the past 10 years, I've only really ever shopped soundbars and thought non-sound bar 3.1 to 5.1 set ups faded out
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ummm no? In fact they've expanded to include Atmos (height channels) and virtually every prestige TV show is broadcast in Atmos nowadays. Like I said, I have a 7.1.4 system, so 7 speakers on the floor and 4 on the ceiling.

So yeah, if you want actual surround sound rather than a bar under your TV trying to emulate surround positioning then you'll need a separate amp along with the speakers
 
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KurganAU

KurganAU

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Soundbars are good in the sense that they are better than nothing. For the same money, whether your budget is $500 or $5,000 your money is better spent on individual components rather than something trying to be an all in one solution. Here's a cheap buy list as an example if all you have is a TV to start with.

1.) Home theatre Receiver $350 - Sony STR-DH590
2.) Left and Right Bookshelf Speakers $200 - Polk Audio Monitor XT15

The great thing is you can call it a day here and be happy with what you've got for $550, knowing it is better than any soundbar in it's price range. You have a complete listening experience, everything there is to hear is processed by the receiver and delivered to these speakers in an honest way. Should you wish to continue your journey and care about directionality, seperation etc, now you have a foundation to build upon.

3.) Centre Speaker $200 - Polk Audio Monitor XT30

Again, perfectly fine stopping point. If you were to be watching a movie in Ossoi's 7.1.4 Atmos setup, the most active speakers you would hear before he raped and killed you would be the front wall of sound, consisting of Left, Centre, Right. In particular, dialogue will be routed frequently to this speaker. This stands out more now since each speaker has it's own cabinet, has physical distance from each speaker, and can be placed in the best sounding spot for your room. Panning will be more noticable.

4a) Rear Left and Right Speakers $200 - Polk Audio Monitor XT15
OR
4b) Upgrade Front Left and Right $700 - Polk Audio Monitor XT70

Filling out the surround sound aspect, purchasing another set of the front bookshelf speakers to be used as the rears is an easy choice. Alternatively, repurpose your existing front bookshelfs as the rears and upgrade the fronts to full size towers if you are coming to this point a while after after steps 1 and 2. Apart from stand out moments, majority of run time for rears and surround is atmospheric immersion, so it's the Front Left, Centre and Right that warrants the bigger spend.

Lastly, you've probably noticed I haven't mentioned a subwoofer at any point. Here's two reasons why
  • The bass provided from a good set of speaker cabinets on their own is underated
  • Bass and subwoofers are their own rabbit hole that you could blow an entire Home Theater budget on trying to "chase the dragon".
I treat it as a seperate category because it needs to be thought of as such. There is a reason so many second hand subwoofers are listed for sale. This post is long enough already, so I'll just include a recommendation if you need more from what just speakers can give.

5a.) Music Focused Sealed Subwoofer $600 - SVS SB-1000 Pro (Black Ash)
OR
5b.) Movie Focused Ported Subwoofer $800 - SVS PB-1000 Pro (Black Ash)

Any upgrades past this point in the form of wanting more speakers or a new format/standard comes out would require the purchase of a new receiver. If you stopped at step 2, you have saved yourself money by only needing to replace 1 thing instead of an entire new soundbar package. If you built a system over time with all 5 steps, everything you bought can be used with the replacement receiver again.
 
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Ossoi

Ossoi

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KurganAU said:
Soundbars are good in the sense that they are better than nothing. For the same money, whether your budget is $500 or $5,000 your money is better spent on individual components rather than something trying to be an all in one solution. Here's a cheap buy list as an example if all you have is a TV to start with.

1.) Home theatre Receiver $350 - Sony STR-DH590
2.) Left and Right Bookshelf Speakers $200 - Polk Audio Monitor XT15

The great thing is you can call it a day here and be happy with what you've got for $550, knowing it is better than any soundbar in it's price range. You have a complete listening experience, everything there is to hear is processed by the receiver and delivered to these speakers in an honest way. Should you wish to continue your journey and care about directionality, seperation etc, now you have a foundation to build upon.

3.) Centre Speaker $200 - Polk Audio Monitor XT30

Again, perfectly fine stopping point. If you were to be watching a movie in Ossoi's 7.1.4 Atmos setup, the most active speakers you would hear before he raped and killed you would be the front wall of sound, consisting of Left, Centre, Right. In particular, dialogue will be routed frequently to this speaker. This stands out more now since each speaker has it's own cabinet, has physical distance from each speaker, and can be placed in the best sounding spot for your room. Panning will be more noticable.

4a) Rear Left and Right Speakers $200 - Polk Audio Monitor XT15
OR
4b) Upgrade Front Left and Right $700 - Polk Audio Monitor XT70

Filling out the surround sound aspect, purchasing another set of the front bookshelf speakers to be used as the rears is an easy choice. Alternatively, repurpose your existing front bookshelfs as the rears and upgrade the fronts to full size towers if you are coming to this point a while after after steps 1 and 2. Apart from stand out moments, majority of run time for rears and surround is atmospheric immersion, so it's the Front Left, Centre and Right that warrants the bigger spend.

Lastly, you've probably noticed I haven't mentioned a subwoofer at any point. Here's two reasons why
  • The bass provided from a good set of speaker cabinets on their own is underated
  • Bass and subwoofers are their own rabbit hole that you could blow an entire Home Theater budget on trying to "chase the dragon".
I treat it as a seperate category because it needs to be thought of as such. There is a reason so many second hand subwoofers are listed for sale. This post is long enough already, so I'll just include a recommendation if you need more from what just speakers can give.

5a.) Music Focused Sealed Subwoofer $600 - SVS SB-1000 Pro (Black Ash)
OR
5b.) Movie Focused Ported Subwoofer $800 - SVS PB-1000 Pro (Black Ash)

Any upgrades past this point in the form of wanting more speakers or a new format/standard comes out would require the purchase of a new receiver. If you stopped at step 2, you have saved yourself money by only needing to replace 1 thing instead of an entire new soundbar package. If you built a system over time with all 5 steps, everything you bought can be used with the replacement receiver again.
Click to expand...


Yeah, decent post, can't argue with any of that.

Only thing I'd add - potentially worth investing a bit more in the AVR to get one with atmos capability. The increased availability of atmos content on streaming services justifies the outlay. Although, four ceiling speakers for atmos was a noticeable improvement over two - so this can push your budget even further.

Also, the second hand market can be a good way to source decent speakers. I built my system over the years with some used KEF Q3's that served as my front speakers and are now my surround speakers after upgrading my front L/R and centre.
 
E

En Sabah Nur

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KurganAU said:
Soundbars are good in the sense that they are better than nothing. For the same money, whether your budget is $500 or $5,000 your money is better spent on individual components rather than something trying to be an all in one solution. Here's a cheap buy list as an example if all you have is a TV to start with.

1.) Home theatre Receiver $350 - Sony STR-DH590
2.) Left and Right Bookshelf Speakers $200 - Polk Audio Monitor XT15

The great thing is you can call it a day here and be happy with what you've got for $550, knowing it is better than any soundbar in it's price range. You have a complete listening experience, everything there is to hear is processed by the receiver and delivered to these speakers in an honest way. Should you wish to continue your journey and care about directionality, seperation etc, now you have a foundation to build upon.

3.) Centre Speaker $200 - Polk Audio Monitor XT30

Again, perfectly fine stopping point. If you were to be watching a movie in Ossoi's 7.1.4 Atmos setup, the most active speakers you would hear before he raped and killed you would be the front wall of sound, consisting of Left, Centre, Right. In particular, dialogue will be routed frequently to this speaker. This stands out more now since each speaker has it's own cabinet, has physical distance from each speaker, and can be placed in the best sounding spot for your room. Panning will be more noticable.

4a) Rear Left and Right Speakers $200 - Polk Audio Monitor XT15
OR
4b) Upgrade Front Left and Right $700 - Polk Audio Monitor XT70

Filling out the surround sound aspect, purchasing another set of the front bookshelf speakers to be used as the rears is an easy choice. Alternatively, repurpose your existing front bookshelfs as the rears and upgrade the fronts to full size towers if you are coming to this point a while after after steps 1 and 2. Apart from stand out moments, majority of run time for rears and surround is atmospheric immersion, so it's the Front Left, Centre and Right that warrants the bigger spend.

Lastly, you've probably noticed I haven't mentioned a subwoofer at any point. Here's two reasons why
  • The bass provided from a good set of speaker cabinets on their own is underated
  • Bass and subwoofers are their own rabbit hole that you could blow an entire Home Theater budget on trying to "chase the dragon".
I treat it as a seperate category because it needs to be thought of as such. There is a reason so many second hand subwoofers are listed for sale. This post is long enough already, so I'll just include a recommendation if you need more from what just speakers can give.

5a.) Music Focused Sealed Subwoofer $600 - SVS SB-1000 Pro (Black Ash)
OR
5b.) Movie Focused Ported Subwoofer $800 - SVS PB-1000 Pro (Black Ash)

Any upgrades past this point in the form of wanting more speakers or a new format/standard comes out would require the purchase of a new receiver. If you stopped at step 2, you have saved yourself money by only needing to replace 1 thing instead of an entire new soundbar package. If you built a system over time with all 5 steps, everything you bought can be used with the replacement receiver ag
Click to expand...
A quality $300 soundbar package that includes a subwoofer is going to produce far better sound than 2 monitors with 5" woofers. You people are delusional.
 
BrutulTM

BrutulTM

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One thing I can say from experience is that if you're upgrading over time, upgrade the center channel before or at the same time as your L and R speakers unless you like watching movies and having the sound effects and score drown out the dialog.
 
E

En Sabah Nur

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Ossoi said:
Sure, sure, stick with your "surround" sound bar under your TV. I'll keep enjoying my 7.1.4 Atmos set up with actual speakers
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Dawg, nobody is buying soundbars for surround sound. They are buying them because it's a massive improvement over the TV speakers at a great price and in an attractive and convenient form factor.
 
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En Sabah Nur

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BrutulTM said:
One thing I can say from experience is that if you're upgrading over time, upgrade the center channel before or at the same time as your L and R speakers unless you like watching movies and having the sound effects and score drown out the dialog.
Click to expand...
Yet another advantage of soundbars - everything is pre-tuned and you generally get excellent clarity of dialogue.
 
Ossoi

Ossoi

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En Sabah Nur said:
Dawg, nobody is buying soundbars for surround sound. They are buying them because it's a massive improvement over the TV speakers at a great price and in an attractive and convenient form factor.
Click to expand...

you literally recommended a soundbar "with" 11 speakers including upfiring "atmos" speakers, lmao

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yes, a soundbar is better than the built in speakers on a TV but if that's all you want one for then why recommend a soundbar that aims to mimic actual surround sound speakers above and behind you by firing sound off walls/ceilings lmao
 
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