Hi guys,
Nailed it down to 2 sound bars. It will be sitting on my desk below my monitors being used for movies, gaming and music, and be used in the outside area when entertaining guests as a bluetooth streamer.
Both are:
- 2.1 with Wireless Sub woofer
- Bluetooth
- HDMI In & Out (the connection I will be using)
- Dolby Digital
- DTS
Here are the 2 models:
-
- $267 (delivered)
- 300 watt 85W x 2 + 130W
- Dolby Digital Pro Logic® II (upmixes 2.0 to 5.1 surround)
- Hexagon profile means I can not sit anything on the speaker
-
- $199 (delivered)
- 280 watt 80W x 2; 120W
- Samsung 3D Sound Plus (upmixes 2.0 to 5.1 surround)
- No speaker guards - difficult to clean / easy to poke speaker units in the bar
- USB port (can charge phone, stream mp3s)
Kinda torn between the two. The sony has slightly better reviews on amazon, and has won a few awards.
Help me make up my mind!
I bought the Sony when it was released. Paid $600+ for it … which was crazy I know.
But have been happy with it for our purposes - it sits under a plasma and provides sound for a large open-plan floor boarded room. Vast improvement on the plasma speakers for TV and movies. Good for music streamed iMac > Apple TV > Plasma > Sony. And the bluetooth streaming is great for playing songs direct from i-Devices.
You need to realise that Bluetooth sound is never going to be as good as direct connection - but in a big room with furniture and family noise it's fine.
The only time I have been a bit disappointed was when we had approx 30 people in the room and the sound became a bit muffled. But any sound bar is going to be the same - it's not a true stereo.
I reckon the Sony would be fine for your purposes. It is quite large, so check the measurements for your space.