NationStates Jolt Archive

I'm thinking of getting a surround sound system for some home theatre style goodness. Anyone got any tips on what I should get? I'm in the <€300 price range.

Dunno what to tell you about specific brands, but I can tell you that the human ear and brain can detect an anomaly in a sound that is off by a millimeter in position or some absurdly small fraction of a decibel. Also, it doesn't matter where in the room the subwoofer is, as your brain discards that information in favor of tracking the position of the higher frequencies.

Buy some more inexpensive speakers and stick them all around the room.

Or did Rydnoh's post just disprove this as an alternative?

Buy some more inexpensive speakers and stick them all around the room.

Or did Rydnoh's post just disprove this as an alternative?

I took a "Musical Acoustics" class as a lab-physics req. Learned all sorts of interesting things that I will never use.

So yes, Bda-nen, I did.

I took a "Musical Acoustics" class as a lab-physics req. Learned all sorts of interesting things that I will never use.

So yes, Bda-nen, I did.

Neat. I think you just used some of that knowledge though, albiet vicariously through some internet persona.

It was you that said people rarely spelled your name correctly, Rnoyhd.

Neat. I think you just used some of that knowledge though, albiet vicariously through some internet persona.

Touche, though I meant use it in a real-world application that results in something beneficial. All I can do with it is annoy people by parading my own superiority of intellect though barely-relevant trivia.

It was you that said people rarely spelled your name correctly, Rnoyhd.

That I did, B-nenad, that I did.

Dunno what to tell you about specific brands, but I can tell you that the human ear and brain can detect an anomaly in a sound that is off by a millimeter in position or some absurdly small fraction of a decibel. Also, it doesn't matter where in the room the subwoofer is, as your brain discards that information in favor of tracking the position of the higher frequencies.
I'm sure that isn't even relevant unless you have excellent hearing.

I'm sure that isn't even relevant unless you have excellent hearing.

It actually is somewhat relevant, as shitty surround sound systems do not, for example, take the shape of the room into account, so you get reverberation at different times which subtly alters where your brain perceives a sound to be coming from. Basically, bad systems are just a bunch of speakers mounted all over the room, which gives you sound coming from every direction but nothing more accurate. Good systems take the size and shape of the room into account and compensate by timing the signals very specifically so that the sound does not seem to be coming from somewhere vaguely to the left but exactly 62 degrees to the left and 6 degrees above where you are looking, which makes for better sound quality and a better experience. But you pay for it, as those systems are more expensive.

And the detail I mentioned about what the human ear can detect is all humans, not people with extraordinary hearing. Assuming you have normal human hearing, you can hear a sound wave that moves your eardrum less than the width of a moderately sized atom.

When it comes to furniture or stuff that resembles furniture like speakers there is no reason to get it new. On craigslist people throw away perfectly good expensive stuff all the time.

Also any time a rich person has a garage sale it's awesome. I went to one this week and got a great new recliner with a foot rest for 10 bucks. And about a year ago I got really great quality speakers that are probably worth about $500 for only 20 bucks at another yard sale. The wood was all faded but who cares.

I'm thinking of getting a surround sound system for some home theatre style goodness. Anyone got any tips on what I should get? I'm in the <€300 price range.

The Logitech zx5450 is pretty good by all accounts. I think it is c.£200 so not sure how much you can get it in euros. (Also I think they are designed more for computers, so not sure how useful that is)

Other then that. Buy from a decent brand, and wireless satellites might be a possibility and they are really useful

one which is good for quiet and loud music, because loud music is always good. I suppse you get what you pay for, i paid about £150 for my music thing, and it's served me well.

I've got a fantastic BOSE speaker (http://www.freshtrend.com/images/bose-sounddock-ipod.jpg) system for my iPod. It's not surround sound, but it's freaking amazing. It has convinced me that I shan't be happy with anything but a BOSE surround sound system. Shan't. I simply insist.

But it's freaking expensive so I'll have to be content with the iPod dealio for a while.