Soundbars vs bookshelf speakers...

[RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE]

Okay, I'm beginning to get more tidy in the living room. Last month,I purchased a TV stand at long last.
I managed to put my hi fi amp into one of the shelves , and am currently playing my TV through that and through a pair of bookshelf speakers.

As we all know , technology is hurtling forward in the audio/visual world.

I was wondering for tidyness, is it worth ditching the bookshelf speakers and getting a soundbar instead?

What are your thoughts on this ?

[KiOgon]

Mine's crap, waste of money but it's neat

[Batfastard]

If you want a sound bar you need to spend. 1000 is the minimum from a test the gadget show did last year.
altho have a butchers at this link: [url="http://www.techradar.com/news/home-cinema/home-theatre-audio/10-best-soundbar-speakers-for-your-hd-tv-913392"]http://www.techradar.com/news/home-cinema/home-theatre-audio/10-best-soundbar-speakers-for-your-hd-tv-913392[/url] admitedly there is a lack of prices its a bit more current

[Dingus]

Unless the bookshelf speakers are particulaly onerous to you , I wouldn't bother changing them for something which costs a lot of money and may well not sound as good . It's just not good sense . There are even conventional speakers that are fairly unobtrusive that would probably be preferable to a sound bar .

[Damonjames]

Last year I went to the BOSE shop looking at home theatre stuff. I had a listen to their sound bar at the request of Mrs DJ, because she hated all the wires on our previous 5.1 setup. I have to admit I was surprised at how bad it sounded, IMHO, if BOSE can't get it right then no one will. Stick with the bookshelf
Ones you have, and maybe add a self powered sub.

[Bolo]

It's hardly like bose is at the top of the hifi food-chain
A soundbar could help making speech more audible in stereo setup, but my money went towards a decent centre speaker.

Currently I'm running two large-ish floorstanders (for wich mrs B gives me crap, but I borrowed some fancy looking bookshelf ones -tannoy, pioneer and eclipse- even she could hear the shocking loss of quality) a centre and a sub (for fun watching movies)
I tried 5.1 and 7.1 setups but found it gimmicky and not worth the clutter.

Maybe play her favorite music through quality speakers more often?

[BassTractor]

As above, really. Some soundbars are really very good, but they're expensive. Most are just overpriced fashion products.
Approach with extreme care.

A relatively cheap bookshelf sub (one just puts it in a place where it doesn't attract attention - btw Yamaha do a few neat ones with really decent quality) in addition to your bookshelf speakers would probably be a better investment for covering everything from classical guitar to scarie movies. Me, against my will, I've gone from large, obtrusive speakers to bookshelf speakers (will buy the sub as soon as bass GAS vanishes, which possibly is never), and I must admit I did not lose my lust for life after all.


[quote name='Damonjames' timestamp='1374362158' post='2148131']
IMHO, if BOSE can't get it right then no one will.
[/quote]

[b]Ouch![/b]
Sorry Damon, but IMNSHO: if Bose ever get it right once, I'll have to find me some filt hat recipies on the double. I had to sell the stuff for several years. Never sold a single set. Couldn't get myself to lie to customers. Boss angry, Bose angry, Basstractor happy, non-Bose customer happy. Two out of four. One can do worse.


[quote name='Bolo' timestamp='1374388623' post='2148185']
Maybe play her favorite music through quality speakers more often?
[/quote]

Word!
Says my wife after having given me crap about our expensive Hi-Fi set for years:
"If we ever divorce, I'm keeping the Hi-Fi. You'll always buy another set, but I won't. But I still want that sound."
Yup, she has that set now.
(I'm only happy we sold the B&W 802s to my sister, so the ex now just has some Infinity speakers. Ha, the sweet taste of revenge! )


best,
bert

Edited July 22, 2013 by BassTractor

[RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE]

Funny you mention B&W. mine are 601 s3. Suppose I could get a B&W subwoofer off ebay, and that should make things sound even better

[BassTractor]

Good stuff, those B&W 601 S3.
I must admit I'm a little sceptical as to how they perform in a bookshelf. Might do very well though - my cheap Yamahas perform relatively well in such conditions. Then again, they're not squeezed inbetween books, and I experimented with the space in the bookshelf, as in height between shelves and thus the immediate room they operate in. The speakers are only living together with my tiny bass rigs on the same shelves, so there's lots of air around them.

At any rate, the B&W sub (was it SW 600 or something?) should work, but you could use a lot of different ones, also much cheaper ones. One just needs to match them loosely, as we're not talking about getting the very most out of the set here - bookshelf placement and all.
Me, I'd get a cheapish bookshelf sub with a crossover frequency you can dial in yourself. YMMV.

Of course, if you're not on a budget, I can help you design the doom system with horns that start in your basement and come out of the bookshelves in your living room. We'll get you a bookshelf rig of doom in no time! Bookshelves really don't deserve the flak they're getting.

b,
b

Edited July 21, 2013 by BassTractor

[BottomE]

I have a soundbar - quality is bad but good enough for most things if that makes sense...

[Telebass]

For years now, I've used a set of Yamaha YST-MS20 2.1 multimedia speakers for whatever tv we've had. They're getting a bit tatty now, but sound fabulous. Crystal highs without the harsh, deep bass for days, and not too big. The end credits to Bones are going to test the low end of any speakers. If they/it can do that well, they're probably decent speakers!

[Telebass]

Sorry, that's MS30.

[Geek99]

I got a nimzy - which turns furniture/walls/flat surfaces into speakers

[BassTractor]

[quote name='Telebass' timestamp='1374476270' post='2149011']
Sorry, that's MS30.
[/quote]

Of course. We all knew the MS20 was a Korg anyway.

[51m0n]

What is theis bookshelf?

Floorstanders all the way, my wife was taken aback by the vastness of our current speakers, until she heard them, loves them now....

[bassace]

Having just taken delivery of a soundbar for my TV I'd say bookshelf any day. Although my Tannoy floorstanders are killers. They do engender spousal disapproval though.

[ZenBasses]

Firstly I've never been a fan of surround sound. I have 2 diy speakers with KEF drives.

Give me 2 decent speakers any day..

Sound bars I believe we're designed to be mounted on the wall under a TV.

They look daft on a hifi stand. My partners Dad has one.. And to me it has no throw... Plus because the speakers are fixed.. The stereo image is quite narrow.. And come on who actually has all their seating set directly in front of the TV..?

Patners mum's chair is set to the left of the TV at an angle.. Sometimes she can't hear things properly..

Stick to 2 decent speakers.. You can't go wrong.

[Lfalex v1.1]

I cheated.

Kef 3005.1 satellites/sub, a very nifty Pioneer amp, Sony Blu-ray and Samsung telly. In the lounge. Works OK. The audio components cost less than £900. Virtually no cable visible.

In the back room lurks the proper stereo... Warts and all!

Edit - and in both rooms, the speakers went in first, then the ancillaries, then the other furniture. So it all "works" correctly, and people sit where they ought to!

Edited July 22, 2013 by Lfalex v1.1

[Pukie]

BOSE = Better Off with Something Else

Top of the range yamaha soundbars sound pretty good - if you have a rectangular room for the sound to bounce off.
but a can't bring my self to part with £1200+ for one.

B&W are the dogs danglies , a shop gave me a side by side comparison of B&W stand speakers verses other brands floorstanding models- I was stunned, no contest, but just how much money have you got!!!

Arrgh, now Iv'e just looked at a hifi website - seen B&W now do a soundbar - £1650!!! wonder what it sounds like.

Edited July 22, 2013 by Pukie

[BassTractor]

[quote name='Pukie' timestamp='1374494818' post='2149291']
wonder what it sounds like.
[/quote]

It sounds like a bar.
You're welcome.

b,
b

Edited July 22, 2013 by BassTractor

[Bolo]

Am I wrong when stating that bookshelf speakers sound a wholesome lot better on a solid stand instead of tucked on a shelf?

[Dingus]

[quote name='RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE' timestamp='1374402863' post='2148306']
Funny you mention B&W. mine are 601 s3. Suppose I could get a B&W subwoofer off ebay, and that should make things sound even better
[/quote]

It doesn't need to be a B&W sub , Ray , lots of other brands are perfectly compatible with your excellent 601's , which you should get up on some stands , if it all possible . I would recommend a REL sub, , but Velodyne and EPOS make some good ones too , if they crop up on EBay . I use a REL sub with some AE floorstanders and it sounds wicked . Deep and tight bass with a minimum of fuss .

Edited July 22, 2013 by Dingus

[Dingus]

[quote name='Bolo' timestamp='1374510985' post='2149548']
Am I wrong when stating that bookshelf speakers sound a wholesome lot better on a solid stand instead of tucked on a shelf?
[/quote]

No , you are not wrong .

[RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1374513800' post='2149588']


It doesn't need to be a B&W sub , Ray , lots of other brands are perfectly compatible with your excellent 601's , which you should get up on some stands , if it all possible . I would recommend a REL sub, , but Velodyne and EPOS make some good ones too , if they crop up on EBay . I use a REL sub with some AE floorstanders and it sounds wicked . Deep and tight bass with a minimum of fuss .
[/quote]

Oops ! I forgot to tell you that the speakers are already on stands. Just that they're called 'bookshelf speakers'. Me bad .
Great advice tho'

[Dingus]

[quote name='RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE' timestamp='1374516495' post='2149625']
Oops ! I forgot to tell you that the speakers are already on stands. Just that they're called 'bookshelf speakers'. Me bad .
Great advice tho'
[/quote]

Glad to hear you are using stands , Ray . Those BW's are a quality speaker and deserve to be heard at their best . If you see a REL Quake sub , or, even better , a REL Stampede , going on Ebay for reasonable money then they are a great bet . REL subs stand out because they are equally good for music in a stereo system as they are for home cinema , and are specifically designed to be so . Those models I mention are from the mid 2000's and although now discontinued were fantastic products that have become classics in their own right . Either would serve you well in your flat and , although small and unobtrusive in size , would be ample for your needs . It also helps that REL are a Britsh company that can help with spares and servicing , if the need arises .

Edited July 23, 2013 by Dingus