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Sound surround system advice
kat_klaw
09-06-2014
Sorry this is a real noob question. I think I know what I want, but not sure how to do so

I'd like some sort of sound system like this SAMSUNG HW-F450 Soundbar. Ive received conflicting advice from in store sales reps, and searching on the internet has just served to confuse more.

Ive been left with equipment that no longer does all that I need to do. What I have is

- Toshiba 40" RL958 Smart LED TV
- ipod touch 4th Gen ios 6.1.6
- Galaxy S4 mini (MP3's)
- Music stored on a NAS, but can be transferred to USB drive.

What I no longer have
- Anything to play music cds or watch dvds with.
- 5.1 sound surround system

Space is now more of a premium and a decentish sound bar or something with just 2 speakers would be better, but they'd have to really be those slim on a stand types, or sound bar.

I like the look of the above Samsung soundbar and I know I need to buy a new dvd player (recommendations invited but not important).

Main thing is would it all work so that I can listen to music dvds/cds/movies/tv and also Blue Tooth to the ipod/phone?
If so what cables do I need and how to attach where. - link includes all the connectors on the Toshiba TV.

Thank you for any help
Peter_CJ
09-06-2014
How about this...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-HT-F...ema+all+in+one

Looks as if it will tick all your boxes without spending a lot more.

http://www.samsung.com/us/video/home...r/HT-F5500W/ZA
kat_klaw
10-06-2014
Thank you but thats 5.1 which I no longer am able to cater for due to space. I have nowhere to locate the back speakers and wires or power supply would be a problem.

Need 2.1 or soundbar. Ive just spent about another 2 hrs going round in circles again looking at 2.1 and came up with this, which is similar to what you recommended.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-HT-H...&s=electronics

But now confused again over the wireless aspect. From here

Quote:
“ Wi-Fi DirectNo
Wireless Speaker Module includedNo”

So I guess to benefit from the streaming content then I will need a samsung dongle at a rip off £50 (ouch hate it when they do that!) which starts taking it over budget (absolute max £250). I dont have need for 3d or blue ray but it would future proof it.
I do watch a lot of iplayer and it would be nice to have itv too. Shame it doesnt have a LAN port.
Peter_CJ
10-06-2014
The F5500 has settings for various speaker positions, i.e. surrounds at rear, or at front, have a look at page 21 here... also page 11 re LAN

http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/co...1_20131002.pdf

It packs in a load of features for the money, and 1000w, whereas the 2.1's are 500W.

Richers have this Yamaha bar for 129.99 if signing up to VIP weelky email.

http://www.richersounds.com/product/...014-06-10_0309

But will cost you a lot more by the time you add the other bits and pieces.
evil c
10-06-2014
I've had a look at what's available and suggest you buy a separate Blu-ray player and a soundbar that will connect to any TV and has portable device music playback via Bluetooth and USB.

You could buy the excellent sounding Samsung HW-450 soundbar and bluetooth connected sub-woofer for £163 from Amazon Marketplace (a lot cheaper than your Currys link): http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-HW-F...samsung+hw-450 and any Blu-ray player with media streaming that has good reviews on Amazon, for example the Sony BDPS1100 for £67: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-BDPS110...3S7978ZMZMVJAC

Connecting them should be simple enough for you to work it out, a cheap (from a pound type shop) HDMI cable between the Blu-ray player and the TV and a Digital Audio TOSlink cable between the soundbar and the TV Digital Out (there's TOSlink cables on the soundbar page).
chrisjr
10-06-2014
Originally Posted by Peter_CJ:
“The F5500 has settings for various speaker positions, i.e. surrounds at rear, or at front, have a look at page 21 here... also page 11 re LAN

http://downloadcenter.samsung.com/co...1_20131002.pdf

It packs in a load of features for the money, and 1000w, whereas the 2.1's are 500W.

Richers have this Yamaha bar for 129.99 if signing up to VIP weelky email.

http://www.richersounds.com/product/...014-06-10_0309

But will cost you a lot more by the time you add the other bits and pieces.”

BIB.

The power output figures for this type of kit are a work of fiction. They may boast about the power output being a kilowatt but in reality it won't get remotely close to that, mainly because they don't fit a power supply able to sustain that level.

They basically max out a single channel only then multiply by 5. So you get one channel only at 200W but only a 300W power supply. Which short of re-inventing the laws of physics means the 1000W claim is completely bogus.

Then you have to factor in how they define the power figure. If they use RMS then the figures are comparable. But if they use one of these made up "music power" ratings the 500W device could actually be louder than the 1000W device!

And in any case 1000W is not that much louder than 500W, certainly not twice as loud. And in real life the speakers will be pumping out single or double figure wattages at normal listening levels.

So comparing headline power ratings is a complete waste of time. The figures are by and large bogus and cannot be achieved even if you wanted to. And the neighbours will be round with baseball bats in hand long before you get close to max volume assuming you don't live in the middle of nowhere.
chrisjr
10-06-2014
Originally Posted by kat_klaw:
“Thank you but thats 5.1 which I no longer am able to cater for due to space. I have nowhere to locate the back speakers and wires or power supply would be a problem.

Need 2.1 or soundbar. Ive just spent about another 2 hrs going round in circles again looking at 2.1 and came up with this, which is similar to what you recommended.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Samsung-HT-H...&s=electronics

But now confused again over the wireless aspect. From here



So I guess to benefit from the streaming content then I will need a samsung dongle at a rip off £50 (ouch hate it when they do that!) which starts taking it over budget (absolute max £250). I dont have need for 3d or blue ray but it would future proof it.
I do watch a lot of iplayer and it would be nice to have itv too. Shame it doesnt have a LAN port.”

Think you've been looking at the wrong specs.

The Amazon link and the Samsung link are two different beasties. The Amazon link is to the H5200, the Samsung link is to the F5200. That letter is significant. The H has WiFi but the F does not. But both have wired LAN ports.
Peter_CJ
10-06-2014
My advice kat_klaw is to take note of the feedback from consumers who have actually tried the HT-F5500, and ratings from reviews, and compare what is included with other options, the wide range of features, connectivity, etc.

Also, check the Samsung manual link I put up in post 4 for accurate details of LAN, etc.

Personally, I would go for the 5.1 option, the sub doesn't need to be up front - at either side will be ok, it will be better for movies on DVD, and it doesn't cost anymore anyway. Seperate sounds points are generally recognised as better than dynamic sound from a bar. If you've experienced both fair enough, if not, I recommend sampling both for yourself at somewhere like Richers, JL, or a-nother, with similar priced equipment to hear the effect and difference, even if they don't have the actual models under consideration in stock.

With a 5.1 set up you can experiment with bouncing sound using the rear speakers in different positions.
Nigel Goodwin
10-06-2014
Originally Posted by chrisjr:
“BIB.

The power output figures for this type of kit are a work of fiction. They may boast about the power output being a kilowatt but in reality it won't get remotely close to that, mainly because they don't fit a power supply able to sustain that level.

They basically max out a single channel only then multiply by 5. So you get one channel only at 200W but only a 300W power supply. Which short of re-inventing the laws of physics means the 1000W claim is completely bogus.”

I'm even more sceptical than that

I don't believe a single channel would approach 200W, and that if you accidentally fed the speakers a real 200W it wouldn't last even seconds

Such figures are such a work of fiction it's unreal - my old Leak Stereo 70 amplifier (a real 35W per channel) would easily exceed the threshold of pain in a decent sized room

Yet strangely you can run these '1000W' systems flat out, and it's still not very loud
chrisjr
10-06-2014
Originally Posted by Nigel Goodwin:
“I'm even more sceptical than that

I don't believe a single channel would approach 200W, and that if you accidentally fed the speakers a real 200W it wouldn't last even seconds

Such figures are such a work of fiction it's unreal - my old Leak Stereo 70 amplifier (a real 35W per channel) would easily exceed the threshold of pain in a decent sized room

Yet strangely you can run these '1000W' systems flat out, and it's still not very loud ”

The amp might just about manage 200W for a couple of nanoseconds into a dummy load before the power transistors burn up. But I tend to agree with you that the speakers probably would not last even that long if they were hooked up to an amp really capable of that sort of power

I would bet good money that if you took the speakers apart and were able to identify the drive units involved they would be rated well below the mythical "200W" as the manufacturers know full well they are never ever going to see that sort of power level in real life.
fmradiotuner1
10-06-2014
I was looking at this the other day looks nice
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-SHAKE-5...rds=sony+shake
And says 2400W but wonder what the real watts would be RMS?
I guess my Denon AVR-2310 would be much better which I have just bought on ebay and if needed any more power if can have another amp connected to it.
Peter_CJ
10-06-2014
The OP has very limited space (so presumably a small room) and 250 pounds to spend at max.

The Samsung HT-F5500 offers exceptional value for money at 200, and the very great majority of owners feeding back say they are very happy with the sound, i.e. level and quality.
chrisjr
10-06-2014
Originally Posted by fmradiotuner1:
“I was looking at this the other day looks nice
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sony-SHAKE-5...rds=sony+shake
And says 2400W but wonder what the real watts would be RMS?
I guess my Denon AVR-2310 would be much better which I have just bought on ebay and if needed any more power if can have another amp connected to it.”

How the hell they get away with describing that thing as 2.4kW is beyond me. Even more so as they claim it's 4x 600W RMS. It only consumes 370W from the mains, so where does the other 2 and a bit kW come from?

Looking at the speaker connection no way on this earth are they rated at 600W a pop! Plus after a bit of googling I found an image of the rear of the thing showing a bit of mains lead. It looked no more than 3A rating. Certainly not the 10A minimum it would need to be if it really were 2.4kW.

And where are the heatsinks that would be needed to keep the heat dissipation of that sort of amp under control? Not to mention the cooling fans.

I've used power amps that really can produce that sort of power. They are big bulky heavy beasts by and large.
Nigel Goodwin
10-06-2014
Originally Posted by chrisjr:
“The amp might just about manage 200W for a couple of nanoseconds into a dummy load before the power transistors burn up.
”

I doubt even that - try measuring the PSU rail voltages on such a system, and do the maths

Quote:
“
I would bet good money that if you took the speakers apart and were able to identify the drive units involved they would be rated well below the mythical "200W" as the manufacturers know full well they are never ever going to see that sort of power level in real life.”

I've taken MANY speakers apart that say on the back '50W RMS - 100W Peak', to find the bass unit inside says 'Made in China 5 Watts'
chrisjr
10-06-2014
Originally Posted by Nigel Goodwin:
“I doubt even that - try measuring the PSU rail voltages on such a system, and do the maths ”

I never said just how low an impedance dummy load you'd need to get 200W out of it
kat_klaw
10-06-2014
Thanks ever so much guys for everyones feedback. Its much appreciated as audio/TV was always 'his domain' so I know nothing about what is best for what I need to do.

Having spent yet more time looking - and having seen Peter_CJ's suggestion of the all in one - that really got me wanting a Samsung Smart Blu-ray - purely for the fact that atm Samsumg seem to be the only ones to offer itv/4OD/5.

I think I mentioned earlier that I watch iplayer a lot, but what I didnt mention is that I often watch the likes of 4OD on the ipad (yep theyre crafty and you cant even mirror it). I'd love to be able to also watch those channels on the TV too. Although I do have a PVR I never use it - the Toshiba TV also has the option to record programs to an external HDD, but again I dont use that because I always forget to record and preferring to use catchup. Catchup TV also means I'd either need wireless dongle if not integrated or lay CAT5 from the router upstairs.

So Samsung it is and taking all the suggestions in this thread (thanks for pointing out Id read one of the specs wrong - told you I was a n00b) that leaves me with 3 choices.

1) Samsung HT-F5500 5.1 3D Smart Blu-ray Home Theatre System - £209.59 - link

God knows where Im going to put the 2 back speakers though - All 5 speakers would have to go on the TV stand & on top of the blue-ray although I have room for the sub woofer to one side of the stand.
This is also the one that I'd need to buy the Samsung wireless dongle for, so add on an extra £50 if I dont lay CAT5

2) Samsung HT-H5200 3D 500W 2.1 Channel Blu-ray Home Cinema System with Smart Hub - £230.99 - link

I have room for this, and I think it does all I need. It also includes wireless LAN so no need to purchase a dongle.

3) Samsung HW-F450/EN 2.1 Soundbar £163.58 - link

Ermmm and now Im struggling to find a samsumg smart blu-ray player to keep in budget - link or £109.99 @ Argos.

Worth blowing my budget for? This also seems to do all that I need. *


atm Im undecided over 2 or 3.
Im still very much drawn to the soundbar, but that means £23 over budget. Is it worth it... or is the H5200 adequate?
Have I missed anything?

TIA

Edited to add.
* Its the thought of being able to actually view all catchup channels on large screen thats making me consider going slightly over budget.
chrisjr
10-06-2014
Get the HT-H5200. It will be more than adequate if you can't accommodate a full 5.1 system.

And probably a shed load easier to set up if you are in anyway technophobic

Not something I would give house room to myself as i much prefer separates systems where each component, amp, speakers, disk player etc are separate items. But then again I get paid to muck about with professional audio kit so a tangle of wires holds no fear for me. But I know people who get reduced to a quivering pile of jelly at the thought of needing to plug a couple of wires up
kat_klaw
11-06-2014
Not really a technophobe - Give me a PC and Im fine - Ive built several. I could also talk in great depth about certain technologies

Unfortunately I just know stuff all about anything to do with Audio & TV or what I need. It was never anything I ever got to play with, and I dont want to make a mistake with £250

Its only when I havent got a clue what Im doing that I turn into the quivering pile of jelly
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