Soundbar upgrade recommendations from HT-CT100

[Motz]

So currently I have an HT-CT100 from sony and i absolutely love it... however I am moving and I figure that means I will need to reconfigure and why not buy a new sound bar.

I will be hooking it up to my Panasonic TC-P55S30

Some pre-reqs:

• Must have 3D passthrough
• Must fill my 500sq ft apartment with awesome noise
• Sub woofer is bonus
• Lots of HDMI in if possible (I have Xbox 360, Nexus Q, HTPC, PS3, and soon WiiU)
• Can't really do an a/v receiver as there isn't much room in the place

[adam1991]

Wow. I'm shocked to see a simple soundbar that also does HDMI switching. Usually in the TV world, the soundbar is a relatively dumb product.

I'll be curious to see the suggestions. I'm kind of in the market for something similar, but don't need the amplifier to switch HDMI; I leave that to the TV. I've been considering ZVox.

[newfiend]

No room in the new place to run 5.1 or 7.1? I know a soundbar is cleaner but sound is 1/2 -3/4 of a movie.. You don't want surrond sound?

I thought about a soundbar when I started my home theater project a few years ago.. But I really wanted the "theater experience" when watching movies.. I decided on a AVR, and some Polk Speakers.. It took quite some time to get all the pieces as I bought one speaker at a time (really expensive .. at least for me they were.) but once I had it all hooked up It just sounds Soooo GoooooD. Blu-Ray HD Audio is just immersive, I don't think you can get that level of detail out of a soundbar..can you?

newfiend~

[adam1991]

I know from my standpoint, I'm looking to upgrade the TV sound. Not try to simulate a "theater experience".

The more modern the TV, the slimmer it is--and the slimmer it is, the worse the speakers are. TVs by and large have gotten to where you *must* consider separate speakers, even just to watch TV. It's a hidden cost of buying a new TV.

BTW, while idling my time waiting for a show to start last Friday night, I found myself wandering through the Bose store at the mall. They've figured out a new game: put their big-ass sound setup INSIDE the TV (makes it about 8 inches deep), and charge $6000 for it. (Hey, but it *is* LED 1080p!)

[newfiend]

Yeah.. I guess I get your point Adam.. Not everyone wants the "theater experience" in home.. I'm a movie buff so I like the "theater experience" at home. I guess for me .. If I'm going to spend money on a sound system I want to be right in the middle of it. I used to install car audio so I like the feeling of Bass that shakes the house and Mids and tweets that fill it all in.

I can see that a lot of people wouldn't want that especially in an apartment situation where neighbors could complain and it could be come a problem.

Speakers need a certain amount of "air space" to perform correctly.. Bose does an amazing job.. But I don't see the point in thinning out a TV just to make it thick again with speakers either..lol I'm sure it sounds nice but??

To each their own.. I like to not only watch the movies but feel like I'm in the action..and the surround sound does that for me. How do the soundbars compare? Do they fill in nicely if you get one with a subwoofer?
newfiend~

[STC]

Going OT but IMO THIS makes a huge difference (specifically MultEQ XT) when coupled with a semi-decent AVR and speaker setup.

[Motz]

Wow. I'm shocked to see a simple soundbar that also does HDMI switching. Usually in the TV world, the soundbar is a relatively dumb product.

I'll be curious to see the suggestions. I'm kind of in the market for something similar, but don't need the amplifier to switch HDMI; I leave that to the TV. I've been considering ZVox.

Yeah I really really like it, but it doesn't do 3D. They have a few newer models that do, but figured maybe I should ball out of control and get something awesome

Are you pushing audio and video through the tv and then passing audio to soundbar via optical? I love having everything go through the little receiver then output to tv via 1 single hdmi.

No room in the new place to run 5.1 or 7.1? I know a soundbar is cleaner but sound is 1/2 -3/4 of a movie.. You don't want surrond sound?

I thought about a soundbar when I started my home theater project a few years ago.. But I really wanted the "theater experience" when watching movies.. I decided on a AVR, and some Polk Speakers.. It took quite some time to get all the pieces as I bought one speaker at a time (really expensive .. at least for me they were.) but once I had it all hooked up It just sounds Soooo GoooooD. Blu-Ray HD Audio is just immersive, I don't think you can get that level of detail out of a soundbar..can you?

newfiend~

Yeah I do watch a lot of blu-rays, it would be nice to have true surround sound, but I would need wireless speakers (probably 5.1 setup). I wouldn't really have room for a receiver though and that is probably the big issue there.

Here is my floor plan: http://marsellecondos.com/downloads/Mar ... yer_01.pdf

[newfiend]

Are you going to be wall mounting the Tv? or putting it on a stand?
newfiend~

[Motz]

I own this guy which it sits on top:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80133930/

And i know you are asking yourself which color did motz buy of this stand... and your assumption of bright red is absolutely correct

My big issue right now is that the panasonic put their IR in the center of the TV so this is a pain for 3D glass as the soundbar barely give clearance to the IR, it works, but if you sit up right properly. I would love to mount it to the wall, but it am renting and not sure if they will allow it.

[adam1991]

http://www.amazon.com/Premier-Mounts-PS ... vesa+stand

height adjustable.

[newfiend]

http://reviews.cnet.com/av-receivers/ma ... 40677.html

Pros: It's small.. 3D capable, has audio return channel and has pretty good reviews. It would probably give you better sound than the sound bar.... option?
Cons: Slightly expensive for what you get..

There are a few Sony HTIAB that have wireless surround speakers. I have one of these in our bedroom and it sounds pretty good really for inexpensive 5.1.

newfiend~

[Motz]

I like that slim line. Would use the harmony to control and will never plug in an ipod lol


Only 4 HDMI input kinda stinks, but maybe they have a newer model. Will look.

I would need some nice speakers and such for it.

[newfiend]

I have a set of these.. http://www.polkaudio.com/products/series/tsi They have other options though.. I absolutely love them.. Sound is amazing but they are a bit on the big side. I got them on newegg one at a time until I had the whole set. Even the TSi 200's are good and I have those for my surround speakers. (rear channels). If you didn't want large front speakers these could easily be used for the front and rear speakers and you could add a center channel and a sub and have a very nice sounding system. It does cost more to go this route and takes time to piece together but the pay off at the end is incredible. The first time you watch movie like Transformers you won't stop smiling. I will warn you though there are some hidden costs, speaker wire and connectors and probably a few speaker stands. But like I said .. The end result is awesome.

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