Advise what to buy. Soundbar? Please Help (1 Viewer)

[Chivaz]

Hi all,

I'm finally going to buy any sort of "home theater" system. I don't want to spend more than $300 max (Canadian). I know I won't get the best system for that money, but I currently have nothing, so anything is better than that .

What I want to be able to do:

• hook it up to the tv
• Play music via my cell phone on it
  • Either by connecting the phone into a dock which is connected to it, or via wi-fi / bluetooth
  • It's a Nexus 5x

Any help very much appreciated as I have no idea what to get for that money.

Thanks!

 

[ArmSC]

So first off most folks will tell you not to get a soundbar. The reason for this is they use lower quality components and are very proprietary with their designs. if something goes wrong with it you cannot replace a component you have to go get a new one. They are also non expandable what you get is what you get. You cannot integrate them into another system at all. That being said if you're just looking for better sound and have a lower budget they can meet that need.

The recommended solution would be to get an AVR and a set of speakers to make a basic 2.0 setup. The beauty of this is you can expand and change out the components. The downside is it's more expensive but is a better investment as you can use the speakers over and over while just changing out the AVR.

The problem that you have is your budget really won't support an AVR and speakers so you can either increase the budget and get the preferred solution or go with the soundbar and except the limitation of them. If you want to look at a soundbar I would look at this setup.

• VIZIO Soundbar $145
• Monoprice Sub $125 (If you can find another one on kijiji or ebay you could do that too. This was the only one that would fit your budget that I found new. However, I not very familiar with retails options in Canada.)

This setup will be a soundbar but with a separate powered subwoofer. You can replace/upgrade the sub or if the soundbar dies you can use this with an AVR setup. This means that at least you're not out of all your money if something happens to the soundbar.

 

[Chivaz]

Thanks for the reply ArmSC,

what would I have to spend to get a not too bad non soundbar setup?
And, what 5.1 soundbar would you recommend?

Just trying to figure out how much I'm willing to spend for what.

 

[ArmSC]

The "not too bad" setup is very subjective but I'll try to put something together. I'm not sure if you're wanting a 5.1 straight away but honestly without breaking the budget you would be better off getting a nice 2.1 and adding to it later. Here are somethings to look at.

AVR - Denon AVR S510BT $300 Nice entry level 5.1 with integrated bluetooth for your phone.

Speakers - pick one

1. 5.0 Fluance AVHTB Tower set $324 - Gets you a 5.0 at a low cost but you will lack the deep bass a sub brings. This will sound better than almost any soundbar as they normally have very small "subs" included. If you have the space for towers consider this.
2. 2.1 Pioneer BS22 $140 + Pioneer Sub $180 (same link) - 2.1 setup that will sound good and set you up for expansion in the future. You just add in the center and a set of surround speakers and you're in business.

Set - Pioneer/Polk RM set $580 5.1 setup with a Pioneer AVR and Polk RM speakers. This will get you going with a 5.1 so it will be better than any soundbar but it might lack in music with the smaller sats compared to larger books. The sub will have to go up high to compensate for the lack of lows the sats produce so it will be more noticeable.

For a 5.1 I wouldn't go with a soundbar for that setup. If you have to have a soundbar stick with a 2.0/2.1 unit IMO.