Heard the SurroundBar360 tonight..

mmadden28
mmadden28 Posts: 4,283
edited November 2008 in The Clubhouse
I was passing time before the movies and stopped into the Best Buy next door.
In the aisle they has a SurroundBar360 setup. It was an awful place, right there in a busy main aisle.

Anyway I pressed the demo button and crouched on the floor practically sitting on the floor to listen. I was impressed.:cool: I was impressed with the sound stage, and how well it rally did sound like surround sound from just that one speaker. Cool. Even with the horrible placement I still got the idea. It was interesting when somebody walk past in front of me how the sound changed/shifted.

Now, taking into consideration the poor placement, ambient noise, and large open space for the demo, I thought it sounded a tad bright and lacked much bass although I could feel air coming from the Powerport. Hmmm I guess that would remain to be seen once tried out in one's own home. I was still taken back when a Torrie Amos(?) song with piano was on, how good the piano sounded. It says it doesn't need a separate subwoofer.

I want to get a real demo of this on. Interesting to say the least. Since I already have a full HT set I would consider this for a smaller room where I don't have space for a full setup and lots of speakers.
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HT:Onkyo 805, Emotiva XPA-5, Mitsu 52" 1080p DLP / polkaudio RTi12, CSIa6, FXi3, uPro4K
2-chnl : Pio DV-46AV (SACD), Dodd ELP, Emotiva XPA-1s, XPA-2, Odyssey Khartago, LSi9, SDA-SRS 2 :cool:, SB Duet, MSB & Monarchy DACs, Yamaha PX3 TT, SAE Tuner...
Pool: Atrium 60's/45's
Post edited by mmadden28 on

Comments

  • shack
    shack Posts: 11,154
    edited November 2008
    mmadden28 wrote:
    Now, taking into consideration the poor placement, ambient noise, and large open space for the demo, I thought it sounded a tad bright and lacked much bass although I could feel air coming from the Powerport. .... It says it doesn't need a separate subwoofer.

    There is no way this works well for HT without a separate sub. The demos at Polkfest made that clear. Can you do without a sub? Yes. Should you? No IMO. I'm confident that the folks at Polk would agree.
    "Just because you’re offended doesn’t mean you’re right." - Ricky Gervais

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  • mmadden28
    mmadden28 Posts: 4,283
    edited November 2008
    shack wrote: »
    There is no way this works well for HT without a separate sub. The demos at Polkfest made that clear. Can you do without a sub? Yes. Should you? No IMO. I'm confident that the folks at Polk would agree.

    Yeah, for HT a sub would be an absolute must with this, even if a small one in a small room.

    If I consider one for my bedroom, where I wouldn't be watching movies, just catching up on shows, and depending on how it performed, I probably wouldn't need a sub.

    By the way, when I said I could feel the air from the Powerport, I meant when holding my hand right above it.
    ____________________
    This post is a natural product. The slight variations in spelling and grammar enhance its individual character and beauty and in no way are to be considered flaws or defects.

    HT:Onkyo 805, Emotiva XPA-5, Mitsu 52" 1080p DLP / polkaudio RTi12, CSIa6, FXi3, uPro4K
    2-chnl : Pio DV-46AV (SACD), Dodd ELP, Emotiva XPA-1s, XPA-2, Odyssey Khartago, LSi9, SDA-SRS 2 :cool:, SB Duet, MSB & Monarchy DACs, Yamaha PX3 TT, SAE Tuner...
    Pool: Atrium 60's/45's
  • disneyjoe7
    disneyjoe7 Posts: 11,435
    edited November 2008
    Then again agree with Shack, I would say the "Powerport" in such a large area wouldn't do anything either.

    Speakers
    Carver Amazing Fronts
    CS400i Center
    RT800i's Rears
    Sub Paradigm Servo 15

    Electronics
    Conrad Johnson PV-5 pre-amp
    Parasound Halo A23
    Pioneer 84TXSi AVR
    Pioneer 79Avi DVD
    Sony CX400 CD changer
    Panasonic 42-PX60U Plasma
    WMC Win7 32bit HD DVR


  • fireshoes
    fireshoes Posts: 3,167
    edited November 2008
    It has a subwoofer preout for the people that want one. It has decent range otherwise. Obviously it is not trying to be an audiophile system, but it is a great solution for people that want better sound than what the terrible lcd or plasma speakers will put out. It has been a very popular system for people mounting a tv above a fireplace as well.
  • ohskigod
    ohskigod Posts: 6,502
    edited November 2008
    for HT nuts like us, a sub is needed. but I can see how someone not being as crazy as we are just wanting the ambience of surround doing fine without one as well. I couldnt do without a sub, but was surprised what it could do without one.
    Living Room 2 Channel -
    Schiit SYS Passive Pre. Jolida CD player. Songbird streamer. California Audio Labs Sigma II DAC, DIY 300as1/a1 Ice modules Class D amp. LSi15 with MM842 woofer upgrade, Nordost Blue Heaven and Unity interconnects.

    Upstairs 2 Channel Rig -
    Prometheus Ref. TVC passive pre, SAE A-205 Amp, Wiim pro streamer and Topping E50 DAC, California Audio Labs DX1 CD player, Von Schweikert VR3.5 speakers.

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  • madmax
    madmax Posts: 12,434
    edited November 2008
    mmadden28 wrote: »
    If I consider one for my bedroom, where I wouldn't be watching movies, just catching up on shows, and depending on how it performed, I probably wouldn't need a sub.

    That means you would probably be listening in stereo rather than 5.1. In stereo it is just a set of very small speakers, not mucht to speak of. It is using 5.1 that makes it shine. In this case of catching up on shows without a sub I would put the money into two good book shelf speakers.
    madmax
    Vinyl, the final frontier...

    Avantgarde horns, 300b tubes, thats the kinda crap I want... :D
  • zingo
    zingo Posts: 11,258
    edited November 2008
    madmax wrote: »
    That means you would probably be listening in stereo rather than 5.1. In stereo it is just a set of very small speakers, not mucht to speak of. It is using 5.1 that makes it shine. In this case of catching up on shows without a sub I would put the money into two good book shelf speakers.

    +1 I have a stereo sound bar (not made my Polk though :eek:) and it works really well for what you are referring too since the 5.1 would have been wasted.
  • mmadden28
    mmadden28 Posts: 4,283
    edited November 2008
    Most of the shows I watch are in HD and are 5.1, so the effect wouldn't be wasted. Granted some of the shows would not be HD and would not be 5.1. I'm pretty sure though, that I would likely have a sub, but it wouldn't be on for late night viewing. Again, I'd have to hear for myself in the room it would be in to see how it performed w/o a sub first before jumping right into adding a sub.
    ____________________
    This post is a natural product. The slight variations in spelling and grammar enhance its individual character and beauty and in no way are to be considered flaws or defects.

    HT:Onkyo 805, Emotiva XPA-5, Mitsu 52" 1080p DLP / polkaudio RTi12, CSIa6, FXi3, uPro4K
    2-chnl : Pio DV-46AV (SACD), Dodd ELP, Emotiva XPA-1s, XPA-2, Odyssey Khartago, LSi9, SDA-SRS 2 :cool:, SB Duet, MSB & Monarchy DACs, Yamaha PX3 TT, SAE Tuner...
    Pool: Atrium 60's/45's
  • fireshoes
    fireshoes Posts: 3,167
    edited November 2008
    BTW, the standalone SDA SurroundBar has nicer speaker components than the SB360, so if you have room for a receiver, that would probably be the better way to go.