Wireless Home Cinema System

Raigmore · 03-10-2019, 19:53

Although I took my 20-year old Def-Tech 5.1 Home Cinema system with me when we sold the hose, I decided that it will be difficult to install it in the flat at Bexhill. I'll therefore ship it to India with our other stuff and use it while we are there.

I want to get a high-end (not outrageous

) wireless home cinema system for the Bexhill flat. I have heard that unlike in the past, some wireless speaker systems can be almost as good as their wired counterparts these days. I am willing to spend up to �2000 but as I don't know much about wireless systems, can people please suggest makes/models? I have heard that SONOS are good but know nothing about them.

PS: As this is a flat, the speakers will have to be compact. No room for large floor-standers.

basegreen · 03-10-2019, 20:11

Sonos playbar/sub/play:1 rears very good unless you’re desperate for atmos

alsemail · 03-10-2019, 22:06

I wouldn't diss the Sonos for it's ease of use and they sound good but you're missing out on more than just Atmos with them.

They only do basic DD5.1

No DTS, DTS-HD, TrueHD, Atmos, DTS:X etc. Too much of a compromise for me but may suit others.

I'd be looking at one of the higher-end soundbars but although the rears are wireless on many of them, they still need power cables.

Generally, if you're going wireless, you're going to have to compromise somewhere.

Raigmore · 04-10-2019, 07:30

Thanks people. If SONOS don't have DTS, Atmos etc, I'll want to look elsewhere. Are there any good wireless systems with those facilities? I might extend my budget a bit to up to �2500 (won't tell the wife, of course

) ; after all I did spend �1500 on the wired Deftec setup 20 years ago.

One point. Can I get an add-on AV Receiver that is compatible with the SONOS and which can digitally beef up the sound to DTS or ATMOS? For example, when I bought my NAD CD player 20 years ago, it could not plat DTS CDs of which I have a few. But when connected to the speakers through the DTS compatible ONKYO Amp, it played them with DTS sound. Can a similar gimmick be worked with the SONOS?

basegreen · 04-10-2019, 11:12

There's add ons so you can adopt SONOS elsewhere and still play songs through your own amp and speakers.

Honestly - I used to feel the same about compatibility with X and Y, but recently I've just been happy with general 5.1 support. It all still sounds great, but im probably in a minority. I care a lot more about music than film.

Raigmore · 04-10-2019, 17:18

Also, will it be possible to rig up wireless headphones to the system for private listening? It is an apartment block after all and also I won't have the luxury of the Home Cinema 'Den' that I did for the past 20 years. My wife might not appreciate me listening to Bon Jovi singing Runaway while she is trying to sleep.

alsemail · 04-10-2019, 17:28

Sennheiser do a great range of wireless headphones that plug into the AVR with a 3.5mm headphone jack or via optical on other devices. Large discounts are available regularly direct from Sennheiser with returned stock classed as refurbs.

As to your Sonos to AVR, I'm not saying it doesn't exist but I've never seen or heard of it.

If you want the higher end audio formats AFAIK your choices are a high ends soundbar such as the Samsung Q90 - https://www.avforums.com/reviews/sam...r-review.16157

Or an AVR and speakers and wires. I have an AVR system, all the wires are hidden by D-Line trunking which just looks like the skirting boards have an architrave feature on them. It's simple and easy to apply, it's even self-adhesive.

Raigmore · 04-10-2019, 19:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by alsemail

Or an AVR and speakers and wires. I have an AVR system, all the wires are hidden by D-Line trunking which just looks like the skirting boards have an architrave feature on them. It's simple and easy to apply, it's even self-adhesive.

I face a tough battle. The compromise with the wife is that she will allow me a free hand to set-up the AV system only if they are wireless. But I might be able to con her by convincing her that the trunking contains nothing but air. Let us see.

basegreen · 04-10-2019, 20:45

https://gearpatrol.com/2019/09/05/sonos-port/

Raigmore · 04-10-2019, 22:07

Quote:

Originally Posted by alsemail

If you want the higher end audio formats AFAIK your choices are a high ends soundbar such as the Samsung Q90 - https://www.avforums.com/reviews/sam...r-review.16157

The Samsung HW-Q90R does sound like it would fit my requirements for the lounge. Supports DTS and Atmos. Noted that it has only 2 HDMI inputs but maybe it is all I need? The Sky Q box for one and the BD Player for the other and the HDMI OUT to the TV. Is there an input selector on the system?

Raigmore · 05-10-2019, 07:14

The more I read about the Samsung HW-Q90R, more it seems like what I want. But I have a question about playing music though. I prefer having a quality dedicated CD player for that and leave the BD-player for movies only. I am thinking of replacing my 20-year old NAD with the Marantz CD6006 which has good reviews.

I noted that the Samsung HW-Q90R has an optical input and the Marantz has an optical out. So, any opinions on what the sound quality would be like if I hooked up the Marantz CD player to the Samsung soundbar via a quality optical cable compared with playing a CD on the oldish Panasonic DMP-BDT130 via the HDMI?

The Bear · 05-10-2019, 08:51

My �150 Samsung soundbar has an input selector, so I'd be pretty sure this one has!

Raigmore · 05-10-2019, 18:47

I am getting a bit confused while looking up options on the web.

With the Samsung HW-Q90R, I understood that you plug the BD Player and Sky-Q box into the Soundbar's HDMI IN ports and take the sole HDMI OUT to the TV, right? And if I want an additional dedicated CD player like Marantz CD6006, I have to use the optical cable, in which case the Marantz's own (reportedly superb) DAC is bypassed. But this seems very straightforward overall.

On the other hand, if I opted for Sonos 5.1 wireless Home Cinema system, the HDMI cables from the BD Player and Sky-Q box have to be plugged into the TV which should have an HDMI ARC capability and then plug that into the sole HDMI port of the Sonos Beam, right? Would that mean that I cannot connect a separate CD Player unless through the TV again and either way I have to have the TV on to listen to CD music? That seems inconvenient.

The Bear · 06-10-2019, 09:39

Can't you just use the optical cable again, then you don't need the TV on?

Raigmore · 06-10-2019, 10:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Bear

Can't you just use the optical cable again, then you don't need the TV on?

Probably. But in any case I have decided to go for the Samsung HW-Q90R

One slightly unrelated question but on the same topic. We don't yet have Sky Q (never got around to it) but will have it in the penthouse. I understand that the main box is plugged into the soundbar by HDMI; but what do the satellite boxes need to attach them to a different soundbar? I asked because I am thinking of getting LG SL8YG Soundbar with LG SKP8 wireless rear speakers for the master bedroom. This has only one HDMI input which is needed for the BD player; so will the satellite Sky Q boxes plug into the optical port?

shteve · 06-10-2019, 12:38

Can't you use the ARC facility of your TV and use that (the TV) as the input switcher, with the sound then routing out to the single HDMI port of the soundbar?

Raigmore · 06-10-2019, 16:18

Quote:

Originally Posted by shteve

Can't you use the ARC facility of your TV and use that (the TV) as the input switcher, with the sound then routing out to the single HDMI port of the soundbar?

OK; both the soundbar and the TV I want to get with it - LG43UM - 7500PLA have the arc facility.

From what you are saying, the Hi-speed HDMI Cable from the HDMI ARC out in the soundbar plugs into the TV's HDMI ARC input. And then do I plug both the Sky Box and BD player directly to the TV and use the TV as the input switcher? Will that work optimally for both external sources or will I miss out on certain things?

basegreen · 06-10-2019, 16:58

This is why I don�t bother any more.

kanedaa · 06-10-2019, 19:34

ARC has the same basic limitations as optical/coaxial - PCM 2 channel, DD5.1 and DTS 5.1. On top of that it can also do Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 with Atmos (which is what Netflix uses to do Atmos).

Currently trickling on to the market is E-ARC which adds in the lossless Dolby and DTS formats. LG probably have the best support but it's only on their 2019 OLED range and their top-end LCDs also have it (they're the only TVs on the market with native HDMI 2.1 which has E-ARC by default). No idea about Soundbar support, but I think it's probably even more limited.

The Bear · 06-10-2019, 23:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raigmore

I am thinking of getting LG SL8YG Soundbar with LG SKP8 wireless rear speakers for the master bedroom. This has only one HDMI input which is needed for the BD player; so will the satellite Sky Q boxes plug into the optical port?

SkyQ miniboxes have optical out on the back, so yes.

I connect my main SkyQ box to my soundbar via optical, and the box can do Dolby Digital Plus, so I imagine the same would apply to the miniboxes as well.