Sound bars what's wrong with them?

Or whatever box it is connected to. Lip sync issues. I've never had it so kept it 0. Then there is rear audio delay.
 
We had two, one with a wireless subwoofer which kept dropping out (sent back for a refund) and the other a cheapo £70 job from Tesco. Better than the TV speakers but no match for the AV amp. With the new 4K TV arriving next week it's now been evicted as probably not enough space, but was thinking about using it with the PC albeit would need a 3.5mm to R/W RCA converter lead.
 
As mentioned before, Yamaha make great ones but cost comes into the equation. We use a YSP-2500 and it is very good.
 
Sound bars are made for space saving and convenience, they are naturally compromised because of that.

Had to laugh when I read 'my 300 quid soundbar is a huge improvement over my tv speakers'. Really? You could spend 100 quid on an amp and speakers and comfortably match that.

Not knocking soundbars, they have their uses, but unless you really need the form factor then it's almost always the worst option.
 
The Running Man said:
But why would the sound need adjusting +\- 10ms? Is is the post processing in the TVs themselves that creates the need for a delay or something?
Click to expand...

You might be suprised but even sending audio digitally can add delay (you can test that by playing audio through analogue and spdif simultaneously on a pc). Then there's things like listening modes, room correction (not likely on a soundbar, granted) and also the need to compensate for the delay the tv adds to the picture - when using a seperate audio device you often need to be able to adjust te sync to compensate for all of this.
 
I always laugh when I see people in soundbar threads saying: "But they ain't as good as a dedicated amp and Hi-Fi speakers/surround system". Well, no **** Sherlock... they are of course not for people who really care about the best sound quality for the money and/or willing to put the effort into separates.

Soundbars are designed to provide adequate (or in some cases well above adequate) sound quality compared to TV speakers, and many do the job very well indeed without wires or mess. They are mostly plug and play, fire and forget, and fit into the space taken up by the TV so are very partner-friendly.

Newer soundbars also have proper wireless 5.1 sound, and while OF COURSE they are inferior to Hi-Fi surround systems, many people have never experienced those anyway so will never care or notice. And for that, they do the job nicely.

I have a Sony HT-CT260 for my bedroom and the sound it puts out is light years ahead of the TV and I have had many enjoyable hours of movie watching and music listening out of it... and before that I did have a decent Hi-Fi setup before it was donated to my father so I do have a point of reference.

Lets not act like hopeless snobs... soundbars have their place, fill a required niche, and some of them do the job admirably. :)
 
Last edited:
I am a hifi snob and was massively impressed at what the SONOS soundbar did for its size. Probably had a bit of Bose-Itis though but sure you could get a decent one for a few less quid :)
 
I have both a 5.1 setup and a soundbar.

The only other option I have in the room with the soundbar is tv speakers which isn't something I could go back to after having a yamaha soundbar.

Obviously in the room that accommodates the 5.1 setup I wouldn't pick a soundbar over speakers.

Soundbars are for those that don't want wires or have the space for speakers. It's not exactly a niche market either. Anyone with young kids comes into that category. You wouldn't want a 5 year old poking in your speakers diaphragm, etc or pulling out wires or knocking speakers over.

Yes cheap soundbars are crap compared to 5.1. But the more expensive yamaha's are not to be sniffed at. Will they match proper speakers £ for £ nope but they aren't trying to. They fill a clear gap in the market and very well.

People complain it's tv manufacturers at fault for making thin tv's with small speakers well it's consumers that demanded thin tv's so it's the fault of progress.

IMO people should be allocating a budget for some kind of upgraded sound system when they want quality or buying a tv with quality speakers built in.

http://www.johnlewis.com/sony-bravi...h-freeview-hd-youview-built-in-wi-fi/p1997756

that tv for example (mate has one) is absolutely mental how good the sound system is on it. it's better than a £300 soundbar IMO.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
IMO people should be allocating a budget for some kind of upgraded sound system when they want quality or buying a tv with quality speakers built in.

http://www.johnlewis.com/sony-bravi...h-freeview-hd-youview-built-in-wi-fi/p1997756

that tv for example (mate has one) is absolutely mental how good the sound system is on it. it's better than a £300 soundbar IMO.
Click to expand...

The problem with TV's like that, other than the cost, is the size. Those speakers are non-upgradeable and non-removeable, meaning that if you do decide to upgrade the sound then you still have those great lugs on it. It's much better to not have to pay the extra for those speakers and then sort out your own.
 
Thinness should have no bearing on the SQ, it's purely down to the budget allocated for the built in speakers. Sonny should know this having owned a 42pz85. the PZ80/85s had some of the most god awful speakers i've ever heard in a TV and they are not thin Tvs in any sense. Well, compared to CRTs they are but yeah.
 
Last edited:
Richdog said:
The problem with TV's like that, other than the cost, is the size. Those speakers are non-upgradeable and non-removeable, meaning that if you do decide to upgrade the sound then you still have those great lugs on it. It's much better to not have to pay the extra for those speakers and then sort out your own.
Click to expand...

Well anyone buying that tv wouldn't be using anything other than the tv speakers. Otherwise they would buy sony's offering without the speakers built in therefore they can use external speakers without any issues. Basically people that complain about built in sound there are options out there with absolutely fantastic built in sound but yes they aren't cheap which is what they will cry about when they see the price of such tv's. They want everything but not prepared to pay for it.

You see it time and time again. TV manufacturers are ripping us off by purposely making crappy speakers so they can sell us matching soundbars. Well how do you explain that sony tv linked above then? The speakers on that honestly would blow anyone away for a tv. I was amazed when i heard them I had to ask is all that sound coming from the tv as I didn't think it was possible.

james.miller said:
Thinness should have no bearing on the SQ, it's purely down to the budget allocated for the built in speakers. Sonny should know this having owned a 42pz85. the PZ80/85s had some of the most god awful speakers i've ever heard in a TV and they are not thin Tvs in any sense. Well, compared to CRTs they are but yeah.
Click to expand...

The PZ85 had alright sound tbh in fact it was a lot better than the GT50.

The PZ85 model had a soundbar built in albeit a pretty crappy soundbar it was better than the GT50's speaker offering by quite a big margin.

It wasn't great but I wouldn't say they were awful either.

http://www.flatpanels.dk/billeder/panasonicpz85-1l.jpg

that big silver thing under the tv is the tv's speakers. for anyone wondering what we are talking about.

trust me the GT50 (thinner tv) has awful speakers i would rate them as like a 1/10. the pz85 a 4/10. ysp yammy soundbar a 6/10. 5.1 setup 8/10.

obviously the perfect 10/10 home setup would be some fancy dolby atmos setup with 2 subs, etc.

you really need to experience other tv's built in speakers if you think the pz85 was awful. if you cranked up the volume yes they struggled immensely and you would be forced to turn them down but they were still better than the gt50 by a long way.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
trust me the GT50 (thinner tv) has awful speakers i would rate them as like a 1/10. the pz85 a 4/10. ysp yammy soundbar a 6/10. 5.1 setup 8/10.
Click to expand...

They are awful. 4 tiny little slits on each side very lower front. Not any thicker than a plastic ruler. They always sound like something is blocking them.
 
V F said:
They are awful. 4 tiny little slits on each side very lower front. Not any thicker than a plastic ruler. They always sound like something is blocking them.
Click to expand...

It's been so long since I sold mine I wish I could re-listen to them.

I found they struggled when you bumped the volume up and would actually rattle and distort. At low-normal volumes I found them pretty decent for built into a tv.

All I can compare to is the GT50 atm. I just turned my YSP-1400 off and anything below 40% you cannot even hear on the GT50. You need to whack them up to around 100% to match the YSP-1400's loudness at around 20% which isn't that loud tbh but the SQ is awful at that level.

Seriously the GT50 has awful speakers for such a premium tv. It's what made me buy a soundbar in the first place because the drop in quality from the PZ85 was pretty noticeable.

Now I'm not saying the PZ85 was brilliant far from it but as far as built in speakers they weren't that bad. You should listen to the GT50's speakers now they are awful.

Was there a difference between the PZ85 and PZ80 in terms of SQ?
 
I'm very happy with my Yamaha, it does what I expected, makes a half decent attempt at filling the room, better than a 2.1 system, but not as well as a 5.1.

It's not great for music, but hey that's not what it's for.

With the little mic system to set the timings and volumes for each speaker it's surprisingly effective.

It just works for my life at the moment, I'd still go for 5.1 given the chance, like a dedicated man cave, but a young child and unruly cats make the form factor the dominant feature for me right now.
 
They have their place. I was looking into a half-decent 2.1 set up with receiver and some Dali speakers. In the end, even that was going to be taking up too much room so I went with a Canton DM75 at about half the price.

The Canton is fantastic, perfectly good sound quality and sits under the TV so doesn't clutter the room. I've even hooked up the Apple TV so it can act as an Airplay speaker too.
 
Ste said:
I am a hifi snob and was massively impressed at what the SONOS soundbar did for its size. Probably had a bit of Bose-Itis though but sure you could get a decent one for a few less quid :)
Click to expand...


The SONOS soundbar works fine for us too.
 
Psycho Sonny said:
you really need to experience other tv's built in speakers if you think the pz85 was awful. if you cranked up the volume yes they struggled immensely and you would be forced to turn them down but they were still better than the gt50 by a long way.
Click to expand...

I have experienced enough. thank you. the PZs are among the worst, they are well known for it. The 80's dont have the soundbars either, dont forget.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom