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Message
F* a soundbar, building a DIY sound system - Update pg 4 - paywalls suck
Posted on 4/27/20 at 1:42 pm
Posted on 4/27/20 at 1:42 pm
My sound bar just went out (for like the 3rd time in 3 years, keeps blowing the same cap, tired of fixing), so I need a new one. The room is arranged with the couch against the wall opposite the TV, so the sub can hide behind it. The sats can also possibly go behind there, but I'm not opposed to running some wire and mounting them on the wall/ceiling.
I'm not an audiophile, so not looking for anything fancy. I'm definitely not trying to spend Sonos type money. I just need better than the teensy TV speakers.
Is there a soundbar that's good enough that I don't need the sub and sats? Probably the only "extra" feature I'd be interested in if the price is right is if it was networked and if the sats were PoE capable. I have zero experience with Sonos, and I haven't even researched what they can do, but maybe that's exactly what I want except without paying the price.
But I would be perfectly happy with just a plain no-frills bar.
Any suggestions on where to start my research? Or anything I should absolutely avoid?
I'm not an audiophile, so not looking for anything fancy. I'm definitely not trying to spend Sonos type money. I just need better than the teensy TV speakers.
Is there a soundbar that's good enough that I don't need the sub and sats? Probably the only "extra" feature I'd be interested in if the price is right is if it was networked and if the sats were PoE capable. I have zero experience with Sonos, and I haven't even researched what they can do, but maybe that's exactly what I want except without paying the price.
But I would be perfectly happy with just a plain no-frills bar.
Any suggestions on where to start my research? Or anything I should absolutely avoid?
This post was edited on 7/27/20 at 2:30 pm
10
Posted on 4/27/20 at 2:12 pm to Korkstand
Will need a budget...
Is the tv wall mounted or not?
If it’s not you could do a tv base. I had a zvox tv base that I had for a while that was great for general tv watching
Is the tv wall mounted or not?
If it’s not you could do a tv base. I had a zvox tv base that I had for a while that was great for general tv watching
Posted on 4/27/20 at 2:13 pm to Korkstand
Posted on 4/27/20 at 2:28 pm to Korkstand
I have a Klipsch sound bar with wireless sub. Love it.
Posted on 4/27/20 at 3:11 pm to Korkstand
I got this Vizio soundbar with the slim subwoofer for my bedroom and it sounds great. Put the sub behind the dresser. Huge step up from TV speakers but not too expensive. Ran a digital fiber line to the TV. Easy setup, good sound.
This post was edited on 4/27/20 at 3:14 pm
Posted on 4/28/20 at 8:42 am to Korkstand
I got the Yamaha YAS-207 a few years ago and i really like it for the money. Movies have an almost theatre like sound with good bass tones and pretty impressive surround sound. Since i'm not expert, the review I like most for this product when researching is below. I'd highly recommend.
The only issue i tend to have is the sub will lose its bluetooth connection sometimes but I expect that with bluetooth and i simply unplug the sub and power back on. Connects back everytime.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwPsvO26TpI
The only issue i tend to have is the sub will lose its bluetooth connection sometimes but I expect that with bluetooth and i simply unplug the sub and power back on. Connects back everytime.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwPsvO26TpI
This post was edited on 4/28/20 at 8:44 am
Posted on 4/28/20 at 1:24 pm to Korkstand
Read the reviews on Vizio. They are fantastic and set up easy with just about any remote.
Posted on 4/29/20 at 7:09 pm to Korkstand
I bought the definitive technology micro a while back. It sounds excellent and have the ability to add the w7 speakers later on is a plus.
Posted on 6/24/20 at 4:51 pm to Korkstand
Thanks for all the recs, but I'm taking this in a new direction now.
I ended up buying a soundbar + wireless sub, but it had a critical flaw for me. It has a power save feature that turns itself off after 15 minutes of no audio, and no way to disable it. The majority of our TV use is my two young kids watching stuff via Roku, so everything needs to work with that one remote (it has TV volume and power buttons, but doesn't control soundbars). It all works fine via HDMI ARC, so the TV speakers are off and the Roku->volume controls adjust the soundbar this way. Problem is the kids tend to pause for long periods, then when they return the soundbar has gone to sleep with only two ways to turn it on: the soundbar's own remote (shitty), or power cycle the TV (shittier). And it's a 10 second wait for sound after that. It's just awful, and I don't understand why any manufacturer would add such a feature with no way to disable it. After stumbling across this feature which is only disclosed in one sentence in the manual, I started digging through negative reviews of other soundbars and it seems many of them do this. Or it seems that all of them have some other serious flaw like the sub disconnects often or some other stupid thing.
So then I moved on to looking at receivers instead, but the problem there is they are all 12+ inches deep, and my TV is mounted in the taboo location above the fireplace (honestly the only place it can go in this room), and the mantel is only 11" deep. Amps are smaller, but there are not many options.
So now I'm in pissed off geek mode, and I have decided to build my own amp using a Raspberry Pi with a HiFiBerry Amp2 and an Audio Injector. Then I can add a couple bookshelf speakers, and I think it will sound better than any soundbar. The TV volume controls should adjust the volume that it outputs to the RCA audio jacks, right? If not, I can add an IR receiver to my Pi and set it to work on the same codes as the TV and adjust volume that way. Hopefully there is no audio lag.
I'll bump again when I'm finished to report how well it works and the total cost.
I ended up buying a soundbar + wireless sub, but it had a critical flaw for me. It has a power save feature that turns itself off after 15 minutes of no audio, and no way to disable it. The majority of our TV use is my two young kids watching stuff via Roku, so everything needs to work with that one remote (it has TV volume and power buttons, but doesn't control soundbars). It all works fine via HDMI ARC, so the TV speakers are off and the Roku->volume controls adjust the soundbar this way. Problem is the kids tend to pause for long periods, then when they return the soundbar has gone to sleep with only two ways to turn it on: the soundbar's own remote (shitty), or power cycle the TV (shittier). And it's a 10 second wait for sound after that. It's just awful, and I don't understand why any manufacturer would add such a feature with no way to disable it. After stumbling across this feature which is only disclosed in one sentence in the manual, I started digging through negative reviews of other soundbars and it seems many of them do this. Or it seems that all of them have some other serious flaw like the sub disconnects often or some other stupid thing.
So then I moved on to looking at receivers instead, but the problem there is they are all 12+ inches deep, and my TV is mounted in the taboo location above the fireplace (honestly the only place it can go in this room), and the mantel is only 11" deep. Amps are smaller, but there are not many options.
So now I'm in pissed off geek mode, and I have decided to build my own amp using a Raspberry Pi with a HiFiBerry Amp2 and an Audio Injector. Then I can add a couple bookshelf speakers, and I think it will sound better than any soundbar. The TV volume controls should adjust the volume that it outputs to the RCA audio jacks, right? If not, I can add an IR receiver to my Pi and set it to work on the same codes as the TV and adjust volume that way. Hopefully there is no audio lag.
I'll bump again when I'm finished to report how well it works and the total cost.
Posted on 7/8/20 at 9:55 am to Korkstand
Wouldn’t be the Pioneer Andrew Jones soundbar would it?
I have for one room an LG Atmos soundbar with sub and wireless rear speakers with up firing Atmos speakers. Exceedingly pleased. 
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