Discussion
Finally getting round to deciding on one but seems a minefield. I think I find one I like, then see a random review or comment that puts me off. It's for an LG CX TV and I'm looking into a different base as it's on a table in the corner. Budget ideally around 1k or so but want something I could expand on later. The only one I'm discounting is Sonos. I know many love them but it has things I'm not keen on. I'm not brand loyal, as long as it's a good one.
I went for a Monitor Audio passive soundbar, driven by a Denon AV receiver.
Obviously not a simple "one box" solution, but works very nicely. I have the amp hidden away in a cupboard, so it looks like a normal soundbar under the telly.
A grand will get you a Monitor Audio SB3 (£650-ish if you shop around) and a basic AV amp. You could get a decent mid-range secondhand AV amp for a couple of hundred quid.
Add some ceiling/surround speakers and a sub to the amp later.
Obviously not a simple "one box" solution, but works very nicely. I have the amp hidden away in a cupboard, so it looks like a normal soundbar under the telly.
A grand will get you a Monitor Audio SB3 (£650-ish if you shop around) and a basic AV amp. You could get a decent mid-range secondhand AV amp for a couple of hundred quid.
Add some ceiling/surround speakers and a sub to the amp later.
Depends what you want, but I have a £1k soundbar (LG SL8Y, got it free with the TV), which is fairly well regarded and it's rubbish. It's OK with films, and sometimes sounds pretty good but compared to even a modest seperate setup with a stereo amp and speakers it would get blown out of the water. For music it's terrible, my £130 desktop Edifiers are way better. The main issue is the integration betwen souindbar and sub, the sub does way too much work so really brings attention to itself, even with bass turned all the way down and the sub carefully positioned it's very over bearing. You can't move it too far away from the TV as it operates so high up in the frequency band it creates directional sound (not what a sub should be doing at all). It's better than the inbuilt TV speakers, but not dramatically so. Just gives you more of the same really. My parents have a £100 soundbar which I got free when I signed them up to BT, honestly it's better than my LG one, it doesn't have a seperate sub so while sound quality isn't quite as good overall it doesn't have the annoying issues mine constantly distracts with so that would be my advice, go with one without a seperate sub. On the plus side, the one I have and other LG ones can be upgraded with proper rear surrounds.
TL;DR, go and listen to a soundbar first to make sure you actually like the kind of sound they produce.
TL;DR, go and listen to a soundbar first to make sure you actually like the kind of sound they produce.
Edited by varsas on Friday 29th September 13:36
This is the reason why I went for a passive soundbar from a proper hifi speaker manufacturer. It still needs a sub for best results with films, but goes low enough that placement isn't an issue.
My previous setup was a 5.1 set of Quad L-ites. That was basically five £100 bookshelf speakers and a £500 sub (prices from around 10 years ago). I did upgrade the front left and right speakers to the slightly larger 11L models though.
The SB3 passive soundbar sounds better, as well as looking a lot "cleaner". Might be down to better placement in the completely rebuilt lounge, but I'm very happy with it.
My previous setup was a 5.1 set of Quad L-ites. That was basically five £100 bookshelf speakers and a £500 sub (prices from around 10 years ago). I did upgrade the front left and right speakers to the slightly larger 11L models though.
The SB3 passive soundbar sounds better, as well as looking a lot "cleaner". Might be down to better placement in the completely rebuilt lounge, but I'm very happy with it.
clockworks said:
I went for a Monitor Audio passive soundbar, driven by a Denon AV receiver.
Obviously not a simple "one box" solution, but works very nicely. I have the amp hidden away in a cupboard, so it looks like a normal soundbar under the telly.
A grand will get you a Monitor Audio SB3 (£650-ish if you shop around) and a basic AV amp. You could get a decent mid-range secondhand AV amp for a couple of hundred quid.
Add some ceiling/surround speakers and a sub to the amp later.
That's definitely a better idea than a traditional soundbar.Obviously not a simple "one box" solution, but works very nicely. I have the amp hidden away in a cupboard, so it looks like a normal soundbar under the telly.
A grand will get you a Monitor Audio SB3 (£650-ish if you shop around) and a basic AV amp. You could get a decent mid-range secondhand AV amp for a couple of hundred quid.
Add some ceiling/surround speakers and a sub to the amp later.
I think people see soundbars in Currys and John Lewis and don't realise there are other, better, solutions that don't necessarily cost any more than a traditional soundbar. Soundbars only exist to capture sales to those who otherwise wouldn't have bothered with a surround system (appreciating that the reasons can be real, such as WAF or rented accommodation).
KobayashiMaru86 said:
Finally getting round to deciding on one but seems a minefield. I think I find one I like, then see a random review or comment that puts me off. It's for an LG CX TV and I'm looking into a different base as it's on a table in the corner. Budget ideally around 1k or so but want something I could expand on later. The only one I'm discounting is Sonos. I know many love them but it has things I'm not keen on. I'm not brand loyal, as long as it's a good one.
The LG CX is designed to work with the Bang & Olufsen Stage sound bar. It is a very, very impressive bit of kit as long as the room is not massive. 4m x 4m it will fill it properly and goes down to 27hz, bigger than that and the bass is not quite as impressive. But it beats most soundbar subs for bass without needing one.
Also, a sound bar that is great as music.
Problem is price, now starts around £1700, but loads come up ex-demo etc. for around a grand.
https://support.bang-olufsen.com/hc/en-us/articles...
Ed.Neumann said:
KobayashiMaru86 said:
Finally getting round to deciding on one but seems a minefield. I think I find one I like, then see a random review or comment that puts me off. It's for an LG CX TV and I'm looking into a different base as it's on a table in the corner. Budget ideally around 1k or so but want something I could expand on later. The only one I'm discounting is Sonos. I know many love them but it has things I'm not keen on. I'm not brand loyal, as long as it's a good one.
The LG CX is designed to work with the Bang & Olufsen Stage sound bar. It is a very, very impressive bit of kit as long as the room is not massive. 4m x 4m it will fill it properly and goes down to 27hz, bigger than that and the bass is not quite as impressive. But it beats most soundbar subs for bass without needing one.
Also, a sound bar that is great as music.
Problem is price, now starts around £1700, but loads come up ex-demo etc. for around a grand.
https://support.bang-olufsen.com/hc/en-us/articles...
varsas said:
I've not heard of this, shame it doesn't properly support my B9. I wonder why it needs a seperate LAN cable, it should be able to use HDMI CEC for any control functions it needs, it'd be interesting to know what it's actually for.
It still works fine with ARC, but when using it with the network cable and you install the B&O app on the TV you can then operate it as if it were a B&O TV and use the Beoremote etc. Gassing Station | Home Cinema & Hi-Fi | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff