A change in direction... sound bar

mdaudioguy
mdaudioguy Posts: 5,165
I've all but decided to move on from one of my favorite HT setups - 5.1 Definitive Technology satellite (4 x ProMonitor 800 and a ProCenter 1000), Pioneer Elite AVR, and Klipsch sub. A month or so ago I decided to begin streamlining our living room entertainment center by removing the stand and building a plywood box that's mounted on the wall in the corner and holds the AVR, DirecTV box, Roku, PC, etc... The TV is mounted to the box (completely hiding it) and has the appearance of floating. So far, so good. Now, the L, C, and R speakers are now affixed to either side and below the TV. Kind of cool, but the more I look at it, the less I like it. Looks like the TV has ears. And a goatee.

So, I started thinking sound bar with wireless rear speakers and a sub. And quite frankly, I was thinking... Bose. The SoundTouch 300 system is really nice. I've heard it a few times. Say what you want, but it does 5.1 HT well. This is our main TV for shows, sports, and stuff. We still have the larger 9.2 HT for movies and events.

However, I'm now thinking seriously about the coming Polk MagniFi MAX SR system with SDA digital surround technology. I do have some reservations, but I think I'm going to trust Polk on this. I'll probably buy it sight unseen, sound unheard, as soon as it's available.

https://www.polkaudio.com/products/magnifimaxsr

Comments

  • smglbrth
    smglbrth Posts: 1,458
    In all honesty, IMO FWIW (not much probably), when I did away with the surround set-up and went with the Magnifi Mini I was extremely impressed by the sound that was coming from it. If this is on track as a bigger version of the Mini I think Polk is on a roll with changing the way surround bars "sound". However, I'm not a huge HT nut...
    Remember, when you're running from something, you're running to something...-me
  • bose has always seemed to have allot of distortion at louder volumes, not sure about the stuff they have now but the stuff they had back 10 years ago sounded nice till it got on the loud side and it was pretty expensive for some tiny cubes and a sub.

    i got Bose computers speakers and they sound pretty descent, better than anything use under 100 bucks but they also start to distort pretty good if you turn them up past 12 o clock on he volume knob..

    i just do 2 channel for movies, to me it sounds great, you ever just think of just using your book shelf speakers and a receiver. i think a sound bar would be a downgrade. you can get some pretty compact 2 channel receivers these days if you are worried about it taking up space.

    i have not heard the polk sound bars or wireless speakers but pretty much everything i have head from polk has sounded nice.
    Cambridge Azur 651A
    Polk LSi M703
    Sonos Connect




  • tratliff
    tratliff Posts: 1,651
    edited June 2017
    I moved away from HT in the living room years ago.

    I have a dedicated room for 2-channel and HT. My goal was to clean up the clutter from the rest of the house. Wife lets me do what I want in my room but likes me to leave the rest of the house simple and easy to use. And we would only watch movies in that room rarely.

    So I had the contractor that originally built the mantel above the fireplace design and build another one. It is a not much bigger than the one original. But what it did have was a deeper top shelf, to put a 60" tv on using the TV stand (not mounted on the wall), and the bottom shelf which I put a Yamaha sound bar on. All wires are internal to the mantel and it has a very clean look.

    The reason I went with the Yamaha was it is self contained. Meaning it was like a receiver and sound bar combination. Its a fully functional stand alone unit, has wireless sub capability, apple integration, AM/FM, and ARC control.

    The system works seamlessly. When the TV is turned on via the DirecTV remote everything turns on in order including the sub. Volume is controlled via ARC thru the TV. So the volume graphic on the TV for volume is now giving a visual of the sound bar volume.

    So the big question. How does it sound? The sound is full and so much better than the TV speakers. It is not even close the HT theater setup in the other room. But for watching what we do in that room it is great. And the ability to have FM and apple compatibility is another great feature. We use the FM tuner a couple of times a week to have music playing while reading, cooking, eating, cleaning.....

    If I had to do it over again I would build it out about the same. The ease of use and functionality is great.

    I don't have any pictures with me but will take a few over the weekend and post them.

    Good luck in what you decide.
    2 Channel Rosso Fiorentino Volterra II, 2 REL Carbon Limited, Norma Revo IPA-140B, Lumin U2 Mini, VPI Prime w/SoundSmith Zephyr MIMC, Modwright PH 150, Denon DP-59l w/Denon DL-301MKII, AudioQuest Thunderbird Speaker and Interconnect Cables, AudioQuest Niagara 7000 w/Dragon and Hurricane Power Cables
  • Jstas
    Jstas Posts: 14,707
    My neighbors have the original magnifi sound bar and it's pretty impressive with what it does and how well it adapts to less than ideal rooms. It doesn't have rear channels but it'd likely only improve the experience.

    It's been soldiering on with daily use for 3 years or so now. They love it and my neighbor's son gave the best review for it. He said "Dude, it fit so easily and flawlessly that I forgot it was there."

    Then he told me about how his grandmother kicked the cord for the subwoofer out of the outlet one day and that was when he noticed it because it sounded different.

    I don't think you'll be disappointed in it.

    I also have another friend who has one of the larger sound bars in the room with the TV the kids watch. It's actually funny to see their heads swiveling to see where the sound from the movie they are watching came from. He got the sound bar for that room because he could hang it on the wall with the TV so it was less likely to get damaged. He's been impressed with that too. Especially for the price he paid.
    Expert Moron Extraordinaire

    You're just jealous 'cause the voices don't talk to you!
  • erniejade
    erniejade Posts: 6,288
    Check out some of the Klipsch offerings. They have lots of small powered or wireless stuff.
    Musical Fidelity Tri-Vista 300, Audioquest Thunderbird Zero Speaker Cable, Tyler Highland H2, Audioquest Thunderbird Interconnect, Innuos Zen MK3 W4S recovery, Revolution Audio Labs USB & Ethernet, Border Patrol SE-I, Audioquest Niagara 5000 & Thunder, Cullen Crossover II PC's.
  • mdaudioguy
    mdaudioguy Posts: 5,165
    The Bose stuff is no kidding nice, but the sound bar ($699), sub (another $699), and wireless rear speakers ($299) are a pretty pricey package. I think come August, I'll give Polk a shot. Some of the wireless connection/synching issues reported on here are a little concerning, but Polk always stands behind their stuff, and they've surely worked all those bugs out by now... right??
  • mdaudioguy
    mdaudioguy Posts: 5,165
    Btw, my son and​ his wife love their Magnifi Mini.
  • motorhead43026
    motorhead43026 Posts: 3,892
    edited June 2017
    I have two magnifi minis. Bought one and liked it so much, bought another.
    2 channel: Anthem 225 Integrated amp; Parasound Ztuner; TechnicsTT SL1350; Vincent PHO-8 phono pre; Marantz CD6005 spinner; Polk SDA2BTL's; LAT International speaker cables, ZU Mission IC's and power cables all into a PS Audio Dectet Power center.

    Other; M10 series II, M7C's, Hafler XL600 amp, RB-980BX, Parasound HCA-1500 amp , P5 preamp, all in storage. All vintage Polk have had crossover rebuilds and tweeter upgrades.

    The best way to predict the future is to invent it.

    It is imperative that we recognize that an opinion is not a fact.

    Imagine making politics your entire personality.
  • mdaudioguy
    mdaudioguy Posts: 5,165
    I changed my mind about this. Sticking with what I got. Just for fun, I'm actually going to add 2 Atmos speakers tomorrow to go 5.1.2.
  • rooftop59
    rooftop59 Posts: 7,952
    mdaudioguy wrote: »
    I changed my mind about this. Sticking with what I got. Just for fun, I'm actually going to add 2 Atmos speakers tomorrow to go 5.1.2.

    Can't say I'm surprised. I would have trouble personally making the move you were describing unless it was really necessary.

    Do you have any pics of the setup with the floating cabinet?
    Living Room 2.2: Usher BE-718 "tiny dancers"; Dual DIY Dayton audio RSS210HF-4 Subs with Dayton SPA-250 amps; Arcam SA30; Musical Fidelity A308; Sony UBP-x1000es; Squeezebox Touch with Bolder Power Supply
    Game Room 5.1.4:
    Denon AVR-X4200w; Sony UBP-x700; Definitive Technology Power Monitor 900 mains, CLR-3000 center, StudioMonitor 350 surrounds, ProMonitor 800 atmos x4; Sub - Monoprice Monolith 15in THX Ultra

    Bedroom 2.1
    Cambridge Azur 551r; Polk RT25i; ACI Titan Subwoofer
  • mdaudioguy
    mdaudioguy Posts: 5,165
    Not a great pic, but you'll get the idea. We're getting ready to paint and get blinds to replace the curtains...
  • mdaudioguy
    mdaudioguy Posts: 5,165
    Unfortunate corner placement... Fireplace to the right.
  • rpf65
    rpf65 Posts: 2,127
    That room needs a disco ball
  • mdaudioguy
    mdaudioguy Posts: 5,165
    DSkip wrote: »
    That's trippy man! Are you a magician?

    It looks especially odd in the picture. In real life, it looks way cooler! B) The room isn't huge, so getting rid of the stand gives it a more open look. I also don't have to worry about dust all over everything so much anymore.
  • nooshinjohn
    nooshinjohn Posts: 25,034
    Late jumping in here, but I really like the stuff from Sonos. Wireless, and expandable if and when you want it to be. They would be my choice if I pull the plug on HT...
    The Gear... Carver "Statement" Mono-blocks, Mcintosh C2300 Arcam AVR20, Oppo UDP-203 4K Blu-ray player, Sony XBR70x850B 4k, Polk Audio Legend L800 with height modules, L400 Center Channel Polk audio AB800 "in-wall" surrounds. Marantz MM7025 stereo amp. Simaudio Moon 680d DSD

    “When once a Republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles; every other correction is either useless or a new evil.”— Thomas Jefferson
  • mdaudioguy
    mdaudioguy Posts: 5,165
    Sonos reminds me too much of Bose, but yeah, that could also work. There's also Heos, which pretty much mirrors Sonos' offerings for slightly less money. In my case, I already have 6 Squeezebox zones, which while no longer manufactured, still work great.