Sound bar vs. Speakers
One of the best parts about being a home theater aficionado these days is also one of the biggest challenges: you have so many different options to choose from depending on your needs. Do you go with a traditional home theater system with floor standing, or in-wall speakers, or do you look for something a little more subtle? Are in ceiling speakers to your liking, or would you prefer a set of JENSEN in wall speakers to maximize your environment? Another option that has grown in popularity in recent years is the soundbar, which replaces a full set of speakers altogether for very different results.
Home Theater Speakers vs. Sound bars: The Breakdown
The major benefit of a soundbar is that it is incredibly simple. Instead of five, seven, nine, or more speakers to install in various strategic locations throughout your room, you get a single piece of equipment designed to supplement your TV's built-in speakers. Sound bars come in all different sizes, but generally speaking, they run the length of your TV screen. They're small, yet powerful. Imagine if the normal center speaker in your home theater system was short and long and you're essentially picturing a soundbar.
The biggest advantage of soundbars is that you can still create a large, optimized sound environment without all of the additional installation and configuration that normally comes with a full home theater system. If you're worried that you won't be able to recreate that deep, booming bass that you've grown accustomed to, you shouldn't be - two piece soundbars are available that include a separate sub-woofer for all of that low-frequency power you want.
Soundbar Disadvantages
The major disadvantage of soundbars, however, takes the form of just about everything else. While soundbars are decidedly simple as you're only plugging in one piece of equipment, it's not like in-ceiling speakers or in-wall speakers are all that complicated to begin with. With the right amount of planning, getting a traditional home theater system up and running is something you can easily do on your own in an afternoon and you have something that looks like a natural, aesthetically pleasing part of the environment as well. You will never get the surround sound experience from a sound bar, only multi speaker systems can deliver that.
Another major disadvantage of soundbars is one of ultimate power. Now we like toys as much as the next person, but we don’t entrust high quality sound reproduction to what is fundamentally a gimmicky toy. While adding a soundbar to your TV will absolutely boost the quality from your average inbuilt TV speakers, it ultimately can't hold a candle to the sound quality and power that only home theater speakers from JENSEN can provide. This will be especially true in large environments. A surround sound system will create a large sound field that encompasses the entire room, whereas a soundbar will still only really give you the power you want if you're sitting as close to the TV as possible.
Are Soundbars Worth It?
None of this is to say that soundbars are bad - they can certainly come in handy, particularly in small, enclosed spaces. Soundbars are perfect for renters, as they can be easily picked up and moved with little fuss. They are also indiscreet, perfect for those individuals that love more show than go! They can also be carted to another room making them multi room. If ultimate sound quality is not a high priority for you and you don't need a true surround sound experience, then a soundbar will probably work.
The cost of a soundbar can be less than that of a 5.1 home theatre but if you compare top of the line sound bars there isn't much of a difference. Sonos Playbase is considered one of the best and retails at $999 AUD and another $999 AUD if you want the big base add on. For that price you can get 4 speakers and a subwoofer with Jensen and have a complete home theatre experience. If you go the sennheiser way you might drop even more money for less quality with the ambeo soundbar coming in at $3999 AUD. You could hook up a 7.1 speaker system for ultimate listening enjoyment for less.
Surround Sound System vs. Sound Bar
However, if you're serious about home theater speaker sound, you need serious home theater system components to go along with it. JENSEN’s range of in-wall or in-ceiling speakers can complement any sized room. With their stunning looks but discreet design, they can be installed in even small living rooms with awesome home theater sound. If you are serious about sound, then you should seriously consider installing JENSEN in-wall or in-ceiling speakers. With their large drivers and greater cubic capacity behind the drivers, you get warmer, mellower tones that are far beyond the capabilities of a soundbar. You can also purchase a set of speakers to give the best movie theater surround sound! The sound quality is unmatched by even the most expensive sonos or sennheiser bars.
Check out JENSEN speaker’s excellent home theater equipment range. From designer in-wall speakers to ground-shaking subwoofers, JENSEN has a speaker to suit your needs. Contact us for advice on your next speaker purchase.