LED TV Surround Sound advice needed

[Hightower]

I'm on the cusp of bringing my family's entertainment up to date by buying a replacement TV/Blu-ray system.

I've already selected a suitable 'Smart' TV and possibly the DVD/Blu-ray player. What i would like advice about is about upgrading the in built sound system for a 5.1 surround system.

I have already got speakers hanging in the corners of our living room and only need an amplifier to connect between the speakers and the TV.

My question is to ask if anyone has experience of this set-up? If the amp can be bought separately and if I can buy an amp that can automatically switch on when the TV is being used and off when the TV is switched off with a volume that syncs with the TV's volume so that once it's set-up only one remote is needed.

[falcon0310]

pm me or give me bell as do as job you can have any amp but would recomend hdmi switcher built in and all in one remote do go for all in one system there not very good adrian

[Mollers]

You'll be requiring an amp, woofers, tweeters and a bag on your head.

GRAMMOPHONE - Rowan Atkinson - Not The Nine o'Clock News - YouTube

[falcon0310]

Maybee like this

Cheaper than led

[Hightower]

Loved Not the 9 O'clock News. That was pretty funny!

Yes, I'm looking at a Samsung. Love the Picture and the features but crap sound.

[Hightower]

Originally Posted by falcon0310

pm me or give me bell as do as job you can have any amp but would recomend hdmi switcher built in and all in one remote do go for all in one system there not very good adrian

I have an all in one remote, but hate continually having to switch inputs and having a separate one just for Volume is a step to far IMHO

[falcon0310]

look at the logtect ones as thats what i have it switches all devices at the same time and lights if need, i use richer sounds quite alot as cheap, samsung 8000 very good maybee yam or onkyo as used both

[falcon0310]

google logitech tablet, can ask what buget and do you want 5.1 or 7.1 or be flash 9.2 ?

[Bigmuz7]

I'd be interested to see what comes up on this one .. Ive just always used seperate Yamaha amps and screens in two different rooms, preferring the abilities of the hardware , to having the convenience of one remote

edit .. havent seen that not the nine sketch .. funny and so true

[longjohn]

Easiest way to be sure of full integration is to make sure the amp, TV & DVD/BluRay are from the same manufacturer (& same generation models)- The only one that makes decent kit of all three items is Sony - The AV Amp being the difficult one of the three. Having said that, in theory the various HDMI standards (1.4 current with 2.0 on the horizon) should ensure some form of integration & the ability to use one remote to control everything for the most common functions. Some of the better AV Amp manufacturers offer compatibility with Panasonic's VieraLink and Sony's Bravia Sync - which should make for decent integration with kit of those brands. Just make sure that between the amp & the TV you have enough HDMI connections and make sure the HDMI standard is 1.4 to ensure audio return channel & Ethernet - this simplifies & minimises the spaghetti junction of cables by save not having to have audio interlinks between TV & amp and having separate ethernet feeds for all internet connected devices.

Also look out for AirPlay the Apple streaming protocol allowing integration with iTunes/iPod/iPhone etc - also some very nice universal remote app for the iPod/iPad

Don't be too swayed by some of the Smart TV applications - most are a waste of time - but BBC iPlayer, 4OD, ITV player etc are great.

Lastly think about an AppleTV - by far the easiest and neatest integration for music/photos/video from a computer (PC or MAC) but fairly limited to iTunes & its formats (which is fine!)

In this day and age do you really need a DVD/BluRay player or recorder - a twin tuner hard disc recorder is much more useful (some have DVD/BluRays build in)

[falcon0310]

i agree, if you can wire couple cat 5 /6 cables aswell, as wirless is not great

[jezza2011]

Thinking of upgrading also.
I am looking at the sony bku-ray player and the sony 5.1 surround sound amp ( seperates)
http://www.richersounds.com/product/.../sony-strdh820


I have an old sony surround sound av amp and is good back in the day but the new on has hdmi in and out so less cables etc.
nice bit of kit

[Hightower]

I must say that I'm a little disappointing to have not found something suitable this weekend. My aging Toshiba CRT has spring contacts on the back so that I can wire in my speakers directly to the TV, still using the center speaker on the TV for monologue.

I don't see why I should spend £750 on a new TV and then spend hundreds ££'s buying fancy extras like sound bars and AV amps and have something that's not that convenient to use

[longjohn]

Because the sound on modern ultra thin LCD TV's is crap (there's no room for a decent couple of speakers in the casing!) and a good 5.1 or 7.1 is miles better than anything from an old CRT TV and if you are careful matching your components works seamlessly.

If you want a simple to use good sounding system pair an LG TV of your choice to a LG BB5521A 4.1ch Premium 3D Blu-ray Sound Bar - sound is very good and it is a doodle to set up & use & everything you need in one box + wireless sub.
Bought one of these for my sister a while ago when they were a bargain @ £399 (from Electro Centre) - bit more expensive now but miles cheaper here than anywhere else.
LG BB5521A 4.1ch Premium 3D Blu-ray Sound Bar

You don't even need to go for a smart TV as the soundbar has all the DNLA Smart TV features built in and is wireless out of the box - so minimum of wires - can get by with just one HDMI lead.

[jezza2011]

It all depends on if you like the idea of everything in one unit. Personlay I dont as I am on my 2nd bluray player and my surround amp is 15 years old!
proving my amp is better than the video, numberous dvdplayers and my bluray player. I would be dam annoyed ifi had a all in one and it died. costs alot to replace the lot but with seperates if one dies its not too traumatic.

[IanH]

Just do it right from the start and don't bother with putting sticky plasters over current marketing practices and technical failings.

For instance buy some second hand Meridian kit and even though its say 10 years old will sound far better than anything modern made these days. And if you pick the right stuff, it will do everything a modern piece of kit will do. But be warned, if you stray off the second hand trail, it gets very expensive. But even second hand, you ain't going to do it for a few hundred quid.

[longjohn]

Originally Posted by IanH

And if you pick the right stuff, it will do everything a modern piece of kit will do.

Not quite - won't do all the modern integration and switching - but yes agree will sound far better! I still have an old Armstrong 626 tuner amp from the 70's - still going strong - looks fabulous and sounds great. Don't actually use it for Home cinema tho but was possible to derive a simulated rear channel by wiring a single speaker out of phase on the 2nd speaker circuit - quite effective.

[IanH]

If you know which bits to choose, it will do the lot. OK, not quite, it wont do bitstream over hdmi, but lpcm is better sound quality anyway and thats available from any bd player so its only marketing hype. That said, even their old dd/dts bitstreams sounds better than most modern systems with latest bells and whistles.

[longjohn]

Originally Posted by jezza2011

It all depends on if you like the idea of everything in one unit.

Yep - but if it's simplicity you want and - lack of cables and usability trauma - it's the answer.
And if the AV amp breaks - most of the rest of the kit is pretty useless without it.
But agree a well thought out separates system will give the best results at a price - not least of which is hiding all the cables. You pays your money and makes your choice.

[Hightower]

Well the cheapest option for me is to just buy an AV tuner/amp to plug everything in to. Yamaha1 or Yamaha2 is probably the best option for about £200 new or something second hand, just not too old as I want HDMI connectivity.